Nature Friday: Big cats in the Night very Close to the Camera

I have one trail cam very close to a small spring. Every summer, the mountain lions love to drink from the spring. I think that this big male had stashed a kill nearby because he drank there on two nights in late May.

His muscular front limbs and neck are almost scary from so close. After his drink, he walked up the trail to a spot where lions have scraped frequently for years. Of course, he left a scrape. He's a big male mountain lion, and they never miss a chance to declare their dominance!

A few nights later, he passed the same spot again and stopped for a drink. Look at his reflection in the water.

Lions often like to mark in spots where other species mark. In this case, a lion scraped under a tree where bears frequently mark. This "leaning tree" may look familiar to those of you who follow along with this blog. Tiny and other bears mark it regularly.

Here's a short video from the drinks and travels of our late May mountain lions. Check out his tongue in the "cover still" for the video.

Thankful Thursday - For Play!

In the midst of the tumult in our lives, a great source of happiness has been continuing to let Hachi play outside. Despite his issues, he's a puppy at heart.

The behaviorist felt that we could let him play outdoors with the Duo. He has never been aggressive toward them anywhere but inside the house. Each morning, he plays outside with R. And, each evening, he plays outside with Shyla.

He's been doing a lot of appeasement behaviors with both of them, licking their chins and acting deferential. They seem to accept his good intentions. Dogs are amazing with their capacity to forgive.

He and Shyla mostly play chase games. They are SO fast, zooming in circles around us as we hike. They both seem to have a blast. They are very well matched in speed and play style.

I hope with all my heart that the fun that they can have together continues! I am filled with gratitude for this good sign in the midst of a ruff week.

Many thanks to our friend Brian for hosting the Thankful Thursday blog hop.

Wordless Wednesday - Springtime, finally

Tiny the Black Bear takes an Early Spring Bath

I've been searching for good news in my life, and I found some. Tiny the Black Bear appears to be walking more comfortably. He's still not standing up to mark trees but his walking gait looks much smoother. Here he is next to a tree that he's been marking for years and years.

The other day, I checked a cam that I haven't checked since late last winter. It is pointed at a pond where I tend to get footage of elk and moose.

Much to my surprise, Tiny was there in early May. He took a bath, probably his first one since before he went into his den late last summer.

He seemed very relaxed as he floated in the pond. Then, he picked up a stick from in the pond, and he used it to scratch his head. As far as I know, it's a very rare observation of a black bear using a tool.

Enjoy the video!

The Hachi Chronicle - A Big Step Backwards

This week with Hachi was challenging, to put it mildly. A week ago, his "attacks" on R became more frequent. Hallways or any spot mildly confining seemed to trigger them. Thoughts of food also triggered them. Or, any outside stress like recent training seemed to trigger them.

I became increasingly worried that his non-injuring "attacks" were escalating and might end up badly injuring R. I got extremely upset, even coming down with a migraine due to my stress as I realized what we were facing. We finally decided that we needed to separate the Duo from Hachi, effectively splitting our pack within one house.

This is not an easy thing to do, either logistically or emotionally. Logistically, we have an open floor plan with a few rooms with closing doors off a big multi-functional room. Since we don't (yet) own gates or ex pens, it has meant that one half of the pack is behind a closed door or in crate(s) while the other half is out. We hate that. And, Shyla gets very upset, barking non-stop, when she can't be with us, creating yet another stress source.

Emotionally, it stinks not to be able to be with all of our dogs at once. It feels as if we are constantly letting someone down - whoever is closed up away from us.


Fortuitously, months ago, I'd made an appointment for Hachi with a very booked up Behavioral Vet, and it fell last Thursday. We drove a very long way to have him evaluated. Suffice to say that the outlook was not cheery. His aggression started quite young, and he is classified as "very reactive" toward strangers. The vet started him on Prozac. Then, this week, we add in another anti-anxiety drug. The hope is that we can calm his fears using pharmaceuticals to bring his reactivity and aggression under control. That will help him to be more receptive to training.

The conversation with that vet was sobering and heart-breaking. The vet absolutely feels that Hachi should be kept separate from the Labraduo, at least for now, until if/when the drugs start working. Her prognosis is not great but we will do all that we can to help him. There are only so many hours in a day but we are doing everything in our power to retrain his brain to see the world as less scary.

The vet rightfully pointed out that none of this is good for our exceptionally fearful Shyla. We are seeing that very clearly as her anxiety is escalating because she wants the reassurance of being close to us all the time. We need to get her evaluated too so that she doesn't end up regressing into the non-functional state that she was in when we first met her.

I am still feeling incredibly sad and afraid. Leaving the behavioral vet, it felt like we'd gotten a diagnosis of similar severity as cancer - because she was so strong in her words about Hachi. I am guessing that I'll feel less sad as we get used to our new normal of having a split pack. And, I'll really feel better if the drugs seem to help. The Prozac takes a long time to become therapeutic so we won't know about that for a while.

No matter what, Hachi has always been incredibly sweet and loving with us humans. He melts our hearts every day. We love him like crazy so we want to make this work. I hope that someday, this update will all be a faded memory when Hachi is a well-adjusted dog in our pack.

Black Dog Sunday

It's been one of the ruffest weeks that I can remember in a long time (more about that tomorrow). Our schedule and daily routines were disrupted but one great side effect was that I had some time on the trails with both halves of the Labraduo.

We made a beeline for my favorite place, where the Duo hid behind a rock with the towering Continental Divide behind them.

Shyla loves to play hide and seek games, and she taught this one to her brother. They made me smile!

Later, after the mountains were back in the sunlight, I had the two of them stand atop the hill together.

I feel so lucky that R can, at the drop of a hat, head out for a mountain bike ride with me and Shyla. I don't take him as far as I did when he was a young pup but he is so enthusiastic about a short ride!

We've had lots of pairs of Labs over the years. Each pair had their special attributes. This pair is distinctive for their bond. They love each other, and they are so relaxed when together. I feel lucky for every single day that we have with them.

Happy Black Dog Sunday!

Sunset Saturday

It's feeling like summertime, finally. The sunset lights up at around 8:30PM. And it is often gorgeous. In this one, I loved the sky reflections in the snow.

And a sunset silhouette.

I remember when the idea for photographing silhouettes hit me. The Duo and I were out for an evening hike, and I spotted a few coyotes atop a huge boulder. They were silhouetted against the sky. I didn't get my camera ready before they fled. But then I realized that a dog silhouette looks a lot like a coyote silhouette. An idea was born.

Happy Saturday. I hope that all of you from the Northern hemisphere are enjoying the long days and warm sunshine!

Nature Friday - Baby Animals in our Forest

'Tis the season for baby animals. Our elk herd winters here and then goes up very high in the mountains for the summer. That's where they usually give birth to their calves.

The herd broke into smaller groups and began departing toward the west a couple of weeks ago. So, I was surprised when I repeatedly saw a cow elk lurking in the trees on a trail near our house. It seemed so odd that she didn't go with the herd.

My trail cam told me why... She must have given birth unexpectedly early. Look at the long legs on that calf!


 A few miles away, this photo popped up on a trail cam.

Soon, their mom appeared behind them. She is a fat and healthy sow! I'm not sure which sow she is - but I will work on figuring it out. I am absolutely thrilled to see her and her cubs.

The cubs were sniffing the pine needles in front of the cam. I must admit that I know why. This is where mountain lions mark regularly. One marked there pretty recently.

So, as bucolic as summertime feels, it is a scary world out there for those moms trying to shepherd their young to adulthood. I know that I'll be cheering them on.

I have a video for you if you like seeing baby animals in action.

Thanks to the LLB Gang for hosting the Nature Friday Blog Hop!

Thankful Thursday - Desert Scenes

On this Thursday, I am thankful for my Shyla and for the wonderful time we had out in nature while we were in Utah. Life has been difficult since getting home. I have tried to cast my mind back to the desert when I need a zen moment. I still have photos from that trip to share!

The desert makes my inner photographer so happy. I love the light at sunset.

And I love this girl.

On one of our last evenings there, a double rainbow broke out by K's Rock during our sunset photo session. You can see the shadows of me and my girl watching it. The pot of gold looks so nearby!

Ah, it was wonderful!

After the rainbows were over and the sun had set, the glorious desert stars would twinkle. April and May are the most interesting Milky Way months in my opinion. The Milky Way rises in the east shortly before dawn. Its stars begin parallel to the eastern horizon and slowly rise above it. This photo was a few hours after it had risen because we didn't have a view of the eastern horizon from K's Rock.

After reading about how the Milky Way rises in springtime, I was so determined to make some time lapse videos of the Milky Way rising after we arrived home. The forecast was good enough that I tried for the first two nights but it clouded up both nights. Since then, there has not been a single night with a good window of clear sky for star photography. It has been so rainy and stormy. Maybe next year...

But I am thankful for our serene time in the desert this spring and the view that we did get of the Milky Way.

And, I thank Brian for hosting the Thankful Thursday blog hop!

Few Words Wednesday

I've been watching a colony of tree swallows almost every morning since early May. One pair amuses me endlessly. This post would probably work wordlessly...

Grooming for the day....

More grooming...

She yells at him about something. He looks confused.

He joins in the yelling.

He says, "Sorry honey, but I'm taking off."

He keeps yelling as he flies away!

Of course, most of the time, the pair is like this...

Happy Springtime!

Limping, Tiny keeps on marking his territory

Tiny is limping again. The limp is not as bad as late last summer but it looks painful for him to walk.

He looked normal on May 23rd, a snowy day in his territory. He walked with ursine grace and marked trees in his normal bipedal way. Something happened between then and May 28th, when his limp had returned.

He appeared early on May 28 in a beautiful scene. It had snowed a little overnight, and a water hole was full but frozen. You can tell right away that this is a really big bear because his ears are so small compared to his head. Of course, we have only one bear that big, "Tiny".

He broke the ice and drank some water. Then, he marked a tree - while sitting down. I wasn't fully aware of how much his right hind paw was bothering him. That was the one that he was dragging behind him late last August.

He traveled a lot that day despite his injury. It is the start of mating season. A male bear walks all over his territory, leaving scent marks on trees by rubbing his back on them. Then, sows pick up his scent and track him down. So, it is very important to a male bear to be able to walk throughout his territory. That's why Tiny kept moving.

That afternoon, he marked the leaning tree, which is a couple of miles from the water hole where we first saw him. He marked it while sitting down.

Then, he walked a short distance to another tree that he marks many times every year. He marked that one while sitting down too.

Tiny is about the same height as a normal bear when he sits down.

I have to guess that Tiny will keep marking all of his territory for as long as he can. At least we know that many cubs will carry on his legacy. And, I'm holding out hope that he will improve again.

I have a video of his travels.

The Hachi Chronicle - Young and Goofy!

I adore the photos of Hachi from the desert. He was so happy-go-lucky in the solitude of the desert and looked like a classic goofy puppy as he romped.

Here at home, he's maturing at warp speed. It feels as if he grows between morning and night.

Plus, his intensity about life has ratcheted up, which is not necessarily a good thing for a fearful and reactive dog. We've had a couple of instances of resource guarding against R this week, which upset me a lot. I wish that he would mature into a peaceable dog. That may still happen - we hope.

This coming week, we are taking him to a behavioral vet for an evaluation - not because we have any kind of crisis - but rather because we want to get as much professional guidance as possible while he's still young and malleable. It may even be helpful to get him on meds to reduce his stress level... so that he can learn that the world is not as worrisome as it might seem.

We love this boy - but we do wish that life were less stressful for him. Then, his goofy inner self could shine through all the time!

Black Dog Sunday

R does absolutely everything with exuberant energy. This photo shows him galloping at top speed across Shyla's Mesa.

It's one of my absolute favorites, with his flying ears, graceful lines, and even a few teeth showing.

On this Black Dog Sunday, I am feeling huge gratitude for R. His personality is so sweet yet his drive to live life to the fullest is extreme!

Happy Black Dog Sunday.

Stormy Saturday

While we were in the desert, I spent almost every evening on photography. One of my favorite places is "Shyla's Mesa". It's the far right flat-topped hill in this photo. It's just barely in the sunlight.

It's my favorite place to photograph our dogs sprinting. The beautiful rocky walls on the east and west sides of the mesa make great backdrops for silhouettes. And you all know how I love silhouettes.

This was one of my favorites that I made on Shyla's Mesa in April. Shyla is in front, and R is chasing her. Look at how hard R was galloping. He was frantically trying to catch Shyla. He has such an incredibly strong spirit.

I get so involved in photography that I often don't notice what is happening around me. Suddenly, as I was photographing the dogs, I heard a rumble from the sky and looked to the south. Oh my!

During this desert trip, I learned how huge desert storms can be. They can suddenly fill an entire horizon. I quickly switched to a wide angle lens to get a better view. The sky had already become even more threatening.

I watched the storm change colors, and I listened to the rumbling. Huge bolts of lightning zig-zagged through the cloud. Yet again, I didn't manage to capture one with my camera.

We soon hid in the LabMobile as the storm enveloped us. It was Hachi's first lightning storm in his life. We played the game where he got treats after each boom of thunder. It's a game that we play with all of our dogs to help ward off thunder-phobia. Hachi didn't seem at all upset by the storm.

Even the storms in the desert are gorgeous!