Full disclosure: March is not my favorite month. It's a month of walking through mud to get to the icy places where you're in danger of falling if you don't take tiny baby steps, covering about 6 inches at a time. Then you cross the ice, and slip in the mud and fall down anyway. Besides, the month itself is too damn long, and is full of yearning for a real spring that hides just behind the clouds, and teases you relentlessly. Ah, but, there's also a lot to be thankful for! It's a time of more daylight, and returning Sandhill Cranes, and Chickadees singing their haunting spring song, Whoo hee! Whoo hee! This week it's all photographs again (I'm going to make it a monthly feature), and why not lead off with a Black-capped Chickadee? The chickadee was at a friend's feeder (thanks Read More

Paws Paws Paws. That's pretty much been the focus of life here for the last week. I mentioned in last week's post that Maggie and Skip might have had "frostbitten" paws; little did I know how deep into the weeds of frostbite and dog paws I would go. I've a learned a lot, (understatement of the year), and thought it might be helpful if I passed some of it on, not to mention giving others, with more experience, a forum to share what they know. First, let's talk about "frostbite." What is it, and how do you diagnosis it on a dog's paws? (By the way, if you live where it's warm, this might not be of interest. But then again, you never know.) Wikipedia has a great article on frostbite, although, not surprisingly, it talks about it in humans. But it's a great start. In simple terms, frostbite Read More

A thorough answer to this question is too complicated for any one article, but it's a common and important one. Actually, the question I am usually asked is this: "What breed of dog should we get?" The quick answer is simple: "It's not about the breed." Well, but, of course it is in some ways. A working-line Border Collie in a small apartment with three children under the age of 7? Perhaps not. (Of course, one needs to say in this case "Let's talk about why you want a dog in the first place, at least right now.") Perhaps a Labrador/Mastiff cross for your 90-year old grandfather? Maybe not. So yes, breed, in terms of size and activity level, among a few other things, is relevant. But as important is the deeper question, which is: Who do you want your dog to be? What made your last dog Read More

 I was going to title this "Skip likes it rough," but, well, you know . . .  the internet. But the fact is that Skip came to us loving to play rough and Maggie didn't, and we've gone through a year of managing and conditioning and innovating and despairing and come out the other side with two dogs who absolutely adore each other, and play happily and hard every day. Whew. Before talking about the two of them, let me preface this by saying that first, play is powerful stuff. As Karen London and I say in Play Together, Stay Together, "Play is fun, but don't be fooled into thinking it's just goofy or frivolous." Play is important for mental health (why not dogs too?), physical fitness, and social relationships. Second, watching dogs play well together is one of my greatest joys in life. I Read More

It's been a week. Two shockingly unexpected deaths in the family, one human, one canine. Jim and I are fine, but I'm taking a break this week and just focusing on photographs. First, and best, Skip is completely recovered from his surgery and able to work. As is often the case, I used Maggie to bring the sheep up a steep hill full of downed wood and brush, and into the high pasture that we call "The Moors." It's extra tricky work, and I didn't want to ask Skip to do it on his first time out. Here she is moving them into position for Skip. It was nice light, I thought, and was glad I had the iPhone in my pocket to capture it. Skip watched Maggie bringing the sheep from the woods into the pasture. He is remarkably patient, and will even run to the spot on the fence where the leash Read More