Wordless Wednesday

A contemplative bobcat

A contemplative bobcat sat in front of my camera while he pondered the world. It's a moment of zen in our busy world.

Enjoy the video.

The Hachi Chronicle

Hachi had a great week. He seems more relaxed than he's been in quite a while. He and Shyla have enjoyed playing chase in the meadow daily.

We had workers here all week getting the site ready for our greenhouse. Since they started on this job ten days ago, we have taken Hachi outside to watch them work. We're specifically using a technique called "BAT" (behavioral adjustment therapy). That's a fancy name for taking him to a spot a sufficient distance from them that he's able to hang out without obsessing about them. I adjust how far away he is based on how he's behaving.

By the end of this week, he could hang out fairly close to the workers without barking or getting upset. That was a huge contrast to when they started the job, and he'd go way over threshold (barking and lunging in their direction) as soon as we stepped out of the house. It is SO good to see him adapt to having strangers around the house. He's always had trouble with understanding that some people come to the house but work independently of any of us. This is the first time that he made such strides in handling it!

It's been a happy week for Hachi!

Black Dog Sunday

The flowers are starting to bud, reminding me of the sweet times that I'd have with our Black Dog in the meadow wildflowers.

Every summer except his last summer, our Black Dog would run along side me as I rode my bike to a spot the meadow where we'd settle in to enjoy the beauty.  Even with an elbow that hurt and being almost blind, he loved our little bike rides so much that he'd bark joyfully while running next to me. I'd smile the whole way.

I think that our Black Dog believed in the motto "Live, love, bark" no matter what curveballs life had thrown at him. He didn't let a day go by without finding some joy.

Happy Black Dog Sunday!

Shyla Saturday

This week, Shyla started the second antibiotic in the treatment plan for leptospirosis. It made a big difference! Her water drinking dropped from 2000 ml per day to 1200-1500 ml per day. Now, we are truly in the "normal zone". I feel relieved.

Shyla and Hachi have been loving springtime at Lab Valley. Shyla is the best big sister that I can imagine. Our electronic photo frame has been showing photos from two years ago when Shyla was teaching Hachi how to play. This was during a very stressful phase in our dog life. Hachi was turning on our Black Dog, and we were awaiting a far off appointment with a behavioral vet. I've been so cautious with Hachi ever since those dark days that I am surprised that I trusted him and Shyla together. I'm so glad that I did!

I think that the days when Shyla was guiding Hachi on how to play cementing their friendship.

 

At this instant, Shyla and I are enjoying our first afternoon on the deck. The sound of the raging creek is peaceful. The air is warm. Shyla is snoozing, and I am relaxing. Happy Day!

 Happy Shyla Saturday!

Spa day for Tiny

At the bears' favorite bathing spot, Tiny was the first of the year to take a dip. Check out the video and smile along with me.

Thankful Thursday - For the beautiful and tough bluebirds

It is my favorite time of year, and I'm so thankful for the natural beauty around me. Some mornings start with beautiful sunrises over Lab Valley.

After breakfast, I head out for a mountain bike ride with Shyla. As I've mentioned, we put up a lot of bird houses in Lab Valley this winter. The birds seem to love them. In fact, this pair of Mountain Bluebirds have chosen one as their own. Others are occupied by wrens and swallows.

Usually, life at the Bluebirds' nest box is peaceful. The exception is when the tree swallows come around to search for nest holes. Then, Mr. Bluebird is on high alert watching for aerial assaults by the swallows.

Soon, he flies into the air to defend the nest.

My camera shows me the mid-air combat that occurs. Mr. Bluebird is tough!

 

He returned victorious from that fight.

But he did not get to rest for long before fending off another invader.

 

I was amazed how he held his own despite repeated attacks by the swallows.

 

One time, he returned to the nest box so frazzled that he flattened his mate as he landed.

For now, the swallows have turned their focus to other nest boxes, and the bluebird couple has continued taking twigs and grass into the box to build their nest.

I am so thankful for springtime! I love watching the birds in the warm sunshine.

Wordless Wednesday

We had a lunar eclipse last week that we woke up very early to see. Much of our world was under the cover of clouds but the moon found a clear spot of sky to shine. It didn't quite reach totality before it dropped below the horizon.

 

Soon after the moon set, the sky began to get light. A mountain bluebird appeared and began calling from a treetop.

It was worth getting up so early to see the mountains with alpenglow.

This post was not so wordless today but I needed to explain the photos!

Tiny the Black Bear on the Mating Trail

On the same bear marking trail as I featured last week, Tiny the Black Bear marked soon after the others. First, a sow came through, sniffing the tree to see what bears had marked it. It is possible that the sow was a long-time beau of Tiny's but I am not certain yet. Then, Tiny followed about six days later. He was in fine form, obviously ready for mating season to get underway.

Enjoy the video!

The Hachi Chronicle

A good week!

It was spring this week. The pups got lots of romping time in the meadows of Labrador Valley. Hachi seemed overjoyed.

 

There were some stressors this week. Two people worked on preparing a greenhouse site for us. That was outdoor work, and Hachi was fine with their presence when he was in the house. He wasn't so sure about them when he was outdoors. I hope to take him out to watch them from a distance this coming week. It would be great for counterconditioning him to strangers being near our house.

As soon as they departed each day, we took the pups out to romp. It was fun!

I've been doing his relaxation protocol with him each day. It really makes a difference. I've also been using shaping to teach him to take a deep breath to relax. I have reached the point where he takes a breath but it's not a deep breath yet. On another front, I'm also working on a new approach to helping him handle people who suddenly appear on trails. It's called a "pattern game". I play a game with him indoors where I say "1, 2, 3". Simultaneous to "3", I drop a treat on the ground. He now knows this game very well so that he looks at the ground before I say "3". The hope is that he'll get such an innate memory of this game that he'll be able to play it as people pass on a trail.

I've mentioned before that it can be very stressful having a dog like Hachi. I don't want him to bark or lunge at strangers like he sometimes does. He can really scare people. Then, I felt a little differently when we had a weird guy trespassing on our land a couple of days ago (three times within a day). I'll spare you the whole story but I am suddenly a wee bit grateful that Hachi won't let a stranger near me (especially a stranger who we are not welcoming). Our "Beware of Dogs" signs are for real but this guy ignored them.

I feel very glad about Hachi's progress. Even with workers near the house, he's doing a lot better than a couple of weeks ago.

Black Dog Sunday

Many of you remember that our Black Dog had very major elbow surgery in 2016. This was a few months after it. We still had a harness on him so that we could help him not injure the elbow. His sister was his nurse. I found her snuggled against him very frequently.

A couple of years later, he could run like the wind again. This was during a late May trip to New Mexico. We camped in a glorious spot, and these two loved running across the soft grass.

Our Black Dog was truly irrepressible. Nothing could get him down. I'll try to use his joyful attitude when the predicted snow arrives tonight. Happy Black Dog Sunday!
 

Shyla Saturday

Shyla has been on a streak of finding antlers that deer and elk have shed. It astounds me how well her nose leads her to them even from a long distance.

She's continued treatment for leptospirosis. She's on the 2nd week of 4 weeks of antibiotics. While her water intake plummeted in the first week of antibiotics, it has stabilized at about 2000 ml, which is the absolute top end of normal (and some literature says that it is too high for a 20kg dog). I have to admit to a bit of worry about it. I'll see what our vet has to say.

Despite that, Shyla seems happy and energetic. She loves playing with her brother. This photo makes me think that she's still wild even at nine years old.

Shyla is the perfect big sister for Hachi. She never gets angry when he is grumpy or when he plays too hard. She seems to truly enjoy playing with him - often acting as the instigator to get him to play.

Happy playful Shyla Saturday!

The Essence of Springtime - Black Bears marking trees

For me, the emergence of bears from their dens marks the true start of springtime. In the past couple of weeks, the bear marking trees have been busy. Tiny the bear was the first to mark a tree this spring way back in early April. Since then, a couple of smaller bears have been very active rubbing trees.

The first bear to arrive on a "stomp trail" on May 10 was a sow. She first marked the tree and then she walked back and forth. Notice her funny gait. She was placing each paw in a depression in the soil where bears have placed their paws for decades. She did this to leave scent from her paw pads on the ground. Then, when a male bear comes along, he can follow her by smelling the scent on the stomp trail. It's called a "stomp" trail because some bears hit those spots hard with their paws to maximize the scent they leave.

This sow was very enthusiastic about marking, so much so that she climbed the tree and then descended it like a pole in a fire station! Many hours after she departed, a male bear came along a sniffed (and licked) the tree with great interest. He also walked with his paws in the depressions in the soil.

I will continue this story soon with visits from other bears, including my favorite, Tiny!

Happy Springtime. The bears are out animating the forests again! Enjoy the video.

Thankful Thursday

I am thankful for the beauty of springtime. It is making me smile so much.

 

I was hoping that I'd be thankful for an operational internet connection (I wanted to include some more springtime photos but I cannot upload them). Our technician didn't show up for his appointment at our house. Maybe tomorrow.

In the meantime, I'll go outside and enjoy springtime.