Ah, I love incredible sunsets like this one! I can never see too many!
Sunday, March 20, 2016
Silhouette Sunday
During a recent magenta sunset, Shyla stood on a boulder and sniffed the wind.
Ah, I love incredible sunsets like this one! I can never see too many!
Happy Sunday!
Ah, I love incredible sunsets like this one! I can never see too many!
Saturday, March 19, 2016
Starry Saturday
I finally tried something that I should have attempted a long time ago - star trails over our house. I chose a clear night when the moon hadn't risen yet, and I set up my tripod outside in the snow. I left it out there, taking a series of 5 minute exposures for more than 1.5 hours.
It turned out better than I ever expected! This shows me that I might be able to capture some of the bigger meteor showers from near our house. It was a fun experiment that told me that I'd been missing out on star photos at home for too long!
Friday, March 18, 2016
Good news and a snow day!
I awakened feeling sluggish, as I looked at the bigger than expected snowfall outside our windows. Soon, however, the day turned around. It seems that we have a date for R's surgery! The surgeon still needs to get plane tickets so I'm still cautious about celebrating too much. However, if things continue to fall into place, his surgery will be in early April. That will be the first step toward making him able to romp in our forests again!
My attitude was substantially different after hearing that news. Shyla and I headed out for a snowshoe hike. The snow was much too deep to try to ride my fat bike without some work packing down the trails first.
Shyla was her usual exuberant self in fresh snow. She loves snow!
It was deep enough that she had to start moving from in the snow by popping straight upward! That move always makes me laugh!
After popping upward, she could gallop pretty normally, especially when she was in my snowshoe tracks.
Her clear-eyed joy was obvious to me.
Even after two passes on a trail with my snowshoes, it was impossible to ride my snow bike on the trails so I pedaled toward a nearby side road with almost no traffic, except for elk. As I started down the road, I spotted a small group of elk standing closely bunched together in a meadow. It was snowing very hard at that point.
On my return ride, I saw them again, this time lying in the snow. I wonder how this splinter group got separated from the rest of the herd. Having seen the whole herd together several times this year, I know it has somewhere in the range of 200 elk in it.
Although I loved my time outside today, the best part of the day was finding out that R's surgery will happen fairly soon. It'll be a tough surgery and a tough recovery. However, I'm thrilled that we're finally close to starting that journey.
Thursday, March 17, 2016
St. Patrick's Day Snow
We are being treated to a potentially large March snow storm. After spring weather softened us up, it suddenly got colder in the mornings a few days ago.
And the clouds started gathering on the Divide, sprinkling a little snow on us each night.
Neither Shyla nor I minded. At this time of year, I like the cold crisp weather and the touch of snow over the kinnickinnik (a.k.a. "bearberry") that covers much of our forest floor.
At the same time, I made a change to Shyla's training, reducing our higher-intensity training that involves lots of tugging and fast recalls to a couple of very short bouts each day. I read from a good source that a trainer's intensity (i.e., my intensity) can scare a sensitive dog.
Shyla has been far more confident for the past two days. I don't know if it's the fact that I've lowered my intensity during training with her or a random event. I hope that time will tell.
Today, Shyla played enthusiastically in the snow storm, while wearing a bandana that was given to Angel K years ago. In case you can't read it, it says "Bark if you're Irish!".
Happy St. Patrick's Day from snowy Colorado!
And the clouds started gathering on the Divide, sprinkling a little snow on us each night.
Neither Shyla nor I minded. At this time of year, I like the cold crisp weather and the touch of snow over the kinnickinnik (a.k.a. "bearberry") that covers much of our forest floor.
At the same time, I made a change to Shyla's training, reducing our higher-intensity training that involves lots of tugging and fast recalls to a couple of very short bouts each day. I read from a good source that a trainer's intensity (i.e., my intensity) can scare a sensitive dog.
Today, Shyla played enthusiastically in the snow storm, while wearing a bandana that was given to Angel K years ago. In case you can't read it, it says "Bark if you're Irish!".
Wednesday, March 16, 2016
Tuesday, March 15, 2016
The Inner Workings of Shyla
Yesterday, it felt like springtime in the morning. I've been seeing mountain bluebirds flit past me in meadows for a week or so but yesterday I captured my first photo of one. I see these beauties most often in the spring, and they make me smile!
By yesterday afternoon, it was snowing, very hard at times. This morning, we awakened to 17°F and a cold wind. It was winter again.
Shyla acted fearful yesterday. I had several ideas about the cause. One idea was the wind. However, it was just as windy today as yesterday, and she didn't seem fearful today. Another idea was that my intensity level about our training had become too much for her. I tried to keep our training very low key today, and I'll continue not to ask for too much intensity from her in the future. I have no idea if that's why she's better today. Maybe time will tell and maybe it won't.
Shyla played fetch with great gusto today. She seemed to enjoy everything we did today, and I don't know why today was different from yesterday in that regard.
Shyla is my first dog with serious fear issues. K had some issues but they paled by comparison to Shyla's. For K, her fear was strongly correlated with her thyroid hormone levels. She took oral thyroid hormone, and we had to gradually increase the dose over her lifetime as her thyroid gland produced less and less of its own hormone. I knew whenever we needed to bump up the dose because her fear escalated. Then, the higher dose would make the fear vanish. That memory made me think that I'll ask my vet to check Shyla's thyroid levels when we're there next month. It's a long shot but worth a look.
Something tells me that I'm going to be trying to understand the inner workings of Shyla for a long time. I've always hoped that someday her fear will be behind us... but I am learning that it may remain an issue, sometimes latent and sometimes obvious, for her whole life.
I do love that she trusts me so much. Her eyes tell the story.
By yesterday afternoon, it was snowing, very hard at times. This morning, we awakened to 17°F and a cold wind. It was winter again.
Shyla acted fearful yesterday. I had several ideas about the cause. One idea was the wind. However, it was just as windy today as yesterday, and she didn't seem fearful today. Another idea was that my intensity level about our training had become too much for her. I tried to keep our training very low key today, and I'll continue not to ask for too much intensity from her in the future. I have no idea if that's why she's better today. Maybe time will tell and maybe it won't.
Shyla played fetch with great gusto today. She seemed to enjoy everything we did today, and I don't know why today was different from yesterday in that regard.
Shyla is my first dog with serious fear issues. K had some issues but they paled by comparison to Shyla's. For K, her fear was strongly correlated with her thyroid hormone levels. She took oral thyroid hormone, and we had to gradually increase the dose over her lifetime as her thyroid gland produced less and less of its own hormone. I knew whenever we needed to bump up the dose because her fear escalated. Then, the higher dose would make the fear vanish. That memory made me think that I'll ask my vet to check Shyla's thyroid levels when we're there next month. It's a long shot but worth a look.
Something tells me that I'm going to be trying to understand the inner workings of Shyla for a long time. I've always hoped that someday her fear will be behind us... but I am learning that it may remain an issue, sometimes latent and sometimes obvious, for her whole life.
Monday, March 14, 2016
Me and My Girl
On our sunrise outing this morning...
Shyla was more fearful again today. This photo shows how she looks to me when she's worried - it feels like an honor to have a soul like hers trust me.
I can't fix everything that makes Shyla fearful but I do my best.
I can't fix everything that makes Shyla fearful but I do my best.
Sunday, March 13, 2016
On the Upswing
Yesterday evening, the world looked gray as we started our "sunset" hike. I didn't expect any beautiful sights when we arrived up high. I was wrong.
It was a far more subtle sunset than usual. This was the view to the southwest. Slightly left of the middle, you can see the ski area on the horizon.
We walked out to a more exposed viewpoint. During our short walk, the clouds had closed in even more and had completely hidden the ski area. Directly to the west, we could see the outlines of high mountains being snowed upon.
By this morning, most of the clouds had cleared out. Shyla and I enjoyed some early morning fun in the sun.
Some clouds remained from the cloudy evening, clinging to the Divide. I was awed by the beauty of the craggy mountains covered in fresh snow and hugged by puffy clouds.
Shyla was in fine form. The wind was blowing but she wasn't afraid. She seemed super upbeat and eager to play our training games. I think that she's returning to normal, leaving the recent fear phase behind. I decided against taking her to town for training class this afternoon. I'd rather keep her confidence rising than give her a tough challenge right now.
Happy Sunday to all of you!
It was a far more subtle sunset than usual. This was the view to the southwest. Slightly left of the middle, you can see the ski area on the horizon.
We walked out to a more exposed viewpoint. During our short walk, the clouds had closed in even more and had completely hidden the ski area. Directly to the west, we could see the outlines of high mountains being snowed upon.
By this morning, most of the clouds had cleared out. Shyla and I enjoyed some early morning fun in the sun.
Some clouds remained from the cloudy evening, clinging to the Divide. I was awed by the beauty of the craggy mountains covered in fresh snow and hugged by puffy clouds.
Shyla was in fine form. The wind was blowing but she wasn't afraid. She seemed super upbeat and eager to play our training games. I think that she's returning to normal, leaving the recent fear phase behind. I decided against taking her to town for training class this afternoon. I'd rather keep her confidence rising than give her a tough challenge right now.
Saturday, March 12, 2016
Peaceful Sunset Hikes
I've been enjoying sunset hikes with the Duo so much. It's been sunny, not windy, and so quiet. We haven't even seen any moose recently.
R runs as if he has no idea that we've been fretting about him. Anything he does, he puts his full enthusiasm into!
And he looks regal in the setting sun.
I don't know what I'd do without having a forest outside our back door. When I'm there, I focus on the natural beauty and on our Duo. And, the Duo keeps me laughing. In this case, R was expecting a treat, which caused him to open the drool faucet!
Happy Saturday.
R runs as if he has no idea that we've been fretting about him. Anything he does, he puts his full enthusiasm into!
And he looks regal in the setting sun.
I don't know what I'd do without having a forest outside our back door. When I'm there, I focus on the natural beauty and on our Duo. And, the Duo keeps me laughing. In this case, R was expecting a treat, which caused him to open the drool faucet!
Happy Saturday.
Friday, March 11, 2016
Sow and cubs still snuggled in den
A bear den update... For new readers, I have trail cameras monitoring the activity in a small cave where a sow is denning this winter. After a quiet December and January, she gave birth to cubs. The family is still snuggled in the den as the cubs grow and develop.
The sow has not come out of the den since the birth of her cubs in the very early hours of 1/31. We saw her outside for short walks and eating snow on the day before the birth.
Now, the cubs probably weigh around 2 lbs each. Their eyes are probably not open yet. They need their mother to stay wrapped around them to keep them warm and to let them nurse. The mother bear loses about a half pound per day as the cubs draw energy from her reserves through nursing.
It's miraculous to me that a mother bear gave birth in this small cave nestled in our woods, and now the family is holed up in that cave while the cubs develop. In all likelihood, we will see the cubs come outside the den for the first time sometime in late March or April.
There are bear biologists in Minnesota who know more about den life and cub development than anyone else. They have a website that even includes a video from a camera placed inside the den. It shows a mother bear interacting with her three cubs.
In Minnesota, bear cubs are usually born around 1/21. Our bear cubs were born about 10 days later than that so you need to add 10 days to all of the dates that they give for various developments in the cubs and mother. I talked with one of the bear biologists (Lynn Rogers) from Minnesota, and he predicts that our cubs' eyes will open around 3/15. The date that they first come out of the den will depend on how much snow there is by the den.
Here's a video including clips from the past 3 weeks that you can watch here or at Youtube. Although the bears didn't come fully outside the den, the cubs can be heard bawling, probably when they get cold or lose their lock on a nipple for nursing. Enjoy!
I expect that the next round of video clips will be very interesting because they'll include the mother and cubs spending time outside the den. I'm so excited to see what footage we get!
Happy Friday!
The sow has not come out of the den since the birth of her cubs in the very early hours of 1/31. We saw her outside for short walks and eating snow on the day before the birth.
Now, the cubs probably weigh around 2 lbs each. Their eyes are probably not open yet. They need their mother to stay wrapped around them to keep them warm and to let them nurse. The mother bear loses about a half pound per day as the cubs draw energy from her reserves through nursing.
It's miraculous to me that a mother bear gave birth in this small cave nestled in our woods, and now the family is holed up in that cave while the cubs develop. In all likelihood, we will see the cubs come outside the den for the first time sometime in late March or April.
There are bear biologists in Minnesota who know more about den life and cub development than anyone else. They have a website that even includes a video from a camera placed inside the den. It shows a mother bear interacting with her three cubs.
In Minnesota, bear cubs are usually born around 1/21. Our bear cubs were born about 10 days later than that so you need to add 10 days to all of the dates that they give for various developments in the cubs and mother. I talked with one of the bear biologists (Lynn Rogers) from Minnesota, and he predicts that our cubs' eyes will open around 3/15. The date that they first come out of the den will depend on how much snow there is by the den.
Here's a video including clips from the past 3 weeks that you can watch here or at Youtube. Although the bears didn't come fully outside the den, the cubs can be heard bawling, probably when they get cold or lose their lock on a nipple for nursing. Enjoy!
I expect that the next round of video clips will be very interesting because they'll include the mother and cubs spending time outside the den. I'm so excited to see what footage we get!
Happy Friday!
Thursday, March 10, 2016
One Step Back
I have time for only a short post today. Our plans for R's surgery went haywire again, and I've been on the phone seemingly continuously ever since, trying to make new plans.
Shyla is hoping that the plans get solidified very soon so I'm not so tense.
For perfectly understandable reasons, our east coast expert surgeon had to cancel his trip here. We have a back-up plan - a west-coast vet who is an "instructor" in the surgery that R needs. That vet seemed enthusiastic about traveling here when I talked with him about 3 weeks ago. I'm awaiting his reply to my latest call, asking that he head out here!
Shyla is begging him to come out and make her brother's elbow less painful.
While we wait, one other complication has popped up. R's liver enzymes didn't look great in a blood test. So, he will be having another blood test plus an abdominal ultrasound. We don't want R going into major surgery without us feeling certain that he's at full strength. My guess is that the anti-inflammatories are taking a toll on his liver. I hope that's all it is, although it would mean that he couldn't take Rimadyl anymore.
I never dreamed that a surgery that we first started planning back in February of 2015 (more than a year ago) would end up being so very difficult to get done. It's now spring of 2016 (as you can tell by the elk who are shedding) with no surgery scheduled.
We have our fingers and paws crossed that we will manage to get things scheduled and that R's liver is actually fine. We want him to run freely again before too long!
I have appreciated all the leads and information that you have sent me. They've all helped - believe me! I am more educated about this surgery than I ever wanted to be!
Shyla is hoping that the plans get solidified very soon so I'm not so tense.
For perfectly understandable reasons, our east coast expert surgeon had to cancel his trip here. We have a back-up plan - a west-coast vet who is an "instructor" in the surgery that R needs. That vet seemed enthusiastic about traveling here when I talked with him about 3 weeks ago. I'm awaiting his reply to my latest call, asking that he head out here!
Shyla is begging him to come out and make her brother's elbow less painful.
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| Shyla's latest, and now favorite, trick - "sitting pretty" |
I never dreamed that a surgery that we first started planning back in February of 2015 (more than a year ago) would end up being so very difficult to get done. It's now spring of 2016 (as you can tell by the elk who are shedding) with no surgery scheduled.
We have our fingers and paws crossed that we will manage to get things scheduled and that R's liver is actually fine. We want him to run freely again before too long!
Wednesday, March 9, 2016
Tuesday, March 8, 2016
The return of winter and coping with Shyla's fear
Winter returned for two days, yesterday and today. It was very welcome because it's supposed to be cold and snowy at this time of year!
I decided not to take Shyla into town for a little while, to try to let her fearful phase pass without letting her "rehearse" acting scared too often. We've had a quiet few days in the mountains.
Today, we met a nice hiker on the trail, and Shyla initially "hid" by hanging back and staying still. We called her, and she eventually came to us and had a fabulous time being petted by the hiker. Seeing her happiness while meeting a "stranger" today made me think that she's bouncing back.
I do find it tough to figure out the best strategy when a fearful phase hits Shyla. I know that she was so much more confident very recently, and then had a couple of meltdowns in town. That makes me believe that simply giving her a break from stress might solve it. Time will tell but it's looking good so far.
Do any of you have fearful dogs who sometimes regress? If you do, how do you handle the regression into fearfulness? Thanks in advance for any experiences you can share.
Both days, our morning fat bike rides included both intense snow (above photo) and intense sunshine. I took advantage of the sunny moments for photo opportunities.
Today, we met a nice hiker on the trail, and Shyla initially "hid" by hanging back and staying still. We called her, and she eventually came to us and had a fabulous time being petted by the hiker. Seeing her happiness while meeting a "stranger" today made me think that she's bouncing back.
I do find it tough to figure out the best strategy when a fearful phase hits Shyla. I know that she was so much more confident very recently, and then had a couple of meltdowns in town. That makes me believe that simply giving her a break from stress might solve it. Time will tell but it's looking good so far.
Monday, March 7, 2016
Positive Dog Training - Recalls and Nosework
I am joining the Positive Training Blog Hop today. The theme was supposed to be recalls. However, I have written about our training for recalls so many times that I decided not to do it again except a tiny bit.
I think that recalls are the most important skill for any dog - even if you don't plan on having your dog off-leash. You never know what might happen, and they may end up running free despite your best intentions!
My theme is to make recalls the most exciting thing for my dogs. When they do a good recall, we have a party. As my trainer likes to say, "if your recall party doesn't border on being embarrassing, you're not being excited enough". Until recently, our "party" consisted of treats, treats, and more treats, given one-by-one, as I excitedly praised the dogs. Very recently, I've started using tugging as a reward for Shyla, which works extremely well as long as she's in an excited mood.
My biggest folly is practicing recalls too much, which makes those "recall parties" become a little less exciting for the dogs. I think 10 per day is a good limit, making sure that everyone's enthusiasm stays high. When I am able to do so, I run away from the dogs after I call them to make myself a more interesting target. Running away is a key trick, especially when there are lots of distractions around.
For the rest of this post, I'm going to update you on our "nosework". We started nosework in December with a Fenzi course, and we've trained almost every day since then. We've done all sorts of training - including box training and interior searches (where I can hide the scent anywhere within a room, and the dog alerts on it).
Today, I'm going to show you videos of the Duo's first day of searching the exterior of vehicles. I placed 2 q-tips with birch scent inside a small magnetic tin. I stuck the tin to metal on the outside of the vehicles. I wasn't trying to truly hide the scent because it was the Duo's first time searching vehicles. Moreover, it was windy - making it harder for a dog to pinpoint a scent source. I placed the scent so that they would succeed quickly.
I tend to speak very softly to the dogs so it's hard to hear me in the videos. I say "search" at the start of each search, and then I say "yes" each time they touch their nose to the scent. You'll see that they knocked the scent off the car a couple of times. I put it back in its original spot... although I wasn't sure what I should've done in that situation (leave it on the ground or put it back). I'll learn.
Without further ado, here's the video (or you can watch it at Youtube). I was walking in an odd way in the video because I was walking on ice! Yesterday was the 1st day that it was safe enough to try this at all!
I think that nosework will be a game that I play with our Duo for a long time. It works their brains, and I cannot overemphasize how much they love it. I feel so good about having found something truly fun for R to do during this phase of waiting for surgery and then when he's recovering.
BTW, we live on a dirt road so it's impossible to have a clean car :)
Next time, I will video an "interior search" for you. It's amazing to watch the dogs work a room!
I think that recalls are the most important skill for any dog - even if you don't plan on having your dog off-leash. You never know what might happen, and they may end up running free despite your best intentions!
My theme is to make recalls the most exciting thing for my dogs. When they do a good recall, we have a party. As my trainer likes to say, "if your recall party doesn't border on being embarrassing, you're not being excited enough". Until recently, our "party" consisted of treats, treats, and more treats, given one-by-one, as I excitedly praised the dogs. Very recently, I've started using tugging as a reward for Shyla, which works extremely well as long as she's in an excited mood.
My biggest folly is practicing recalls too much, which makes those "recall parties" become a little less exciting for the dogs. I think 10 per day is a good limit, making sure that everyone's enthusiasm stays high. When I am able to do so, I run away from the dogs after I call them to make myself a more interesting target. Running away is a key trick, especially when there are lots of distractions around.
For the rest of this post, I'm going to update you on our "nosework". We started nosework in December with a Fenzi course, and we've trained almost every day since then. We've done all sorts of training - including box training and interior searches (where I can hide the scent anywhere within a room, and the dog alerts on it).
Today, I'm going to show you videos of the Duo's first day of searching the exterior of vehicles. I placed 2 q-tips with birch scent inside a small magnetic tin. I stuck the tin to metal on the outside of the vehicles. I wasn't trying to truly hide the scent because it was the Duo's first time searching vehicles. Moreover, it was windy - making it harder for a dog to pinpoint a scent source. I placed the scent so that they would succeed quickly.
I tend to speak very softly to the dogs so it's hard to hear me in the videos. I say "search" at the start of each search, and then I say "yes" each time they touch their nose to the scent. You'll see that they knocked the scent off the car a couple of times. I put it back in its original spot... although I wasn't sure what I should've done in that situation (leave it on the ground or put it back). I'll learn.
Without further ado, here's the video (or you can watch it at Youtube). I was walking in an odd way in the video because I was walking on ice! Yesterday was the 1st day that it was safe enough to try this at all!
I think that nosework will be a game that I play with our Duo for a long time. It works their brains, and I cannot overemphasize how much they love it. I feel so good about having found something truly fun for R to do during this phase of waiting for surgery and then when he's recovering.
BTW, we live on a dirt road so it's impossible to have a clean car :)
Next time, I will video an "interior search" for you. It's amazing to watch the dogs work a room!
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