Crazy Cardiness

Prayers please!

2012-01-24T19:19:00.002-05:00

Well even writing this little bit is difficult at the moment so I will not go into details BUT anyone who is willing please pray for Beli AND I tomorrow. We have an issue however I can't go into details now. Beli will be going under anesthesia tomorrow for some procedures. At 14 it is of course risky and I'm worried sick. I'm not getting much sleep or able to relax until this part is over at the very least. So please pray for both of us, his safety and health and my ability to stay calm and strong in this difficult time. Thank you all!

Yummies and goings ons...

2012-01-19T20:27:00.001-05:00

We had a lovely walk this evening. It was another beautiful day here, though warm, its been cool in the morning and evening. Lots going on here as always:-)) I enjoy every time we have a relaxing evening walk in the light! The dogs love it when I have a day off too. Everyone but Beli came on the walk; Beli had snacks to find until the momma goat came after him:-))

Evy the golden child:-))

Suck up time!

Basking in the warmth

Which will last longer, the stick or the dogs?

I smell wabbit!

Since I had the day off with no lessons, I cooked! Well I cooked, washed dishes, went grocery shopping, washed clothes... You get the idea:-)) Strawberries are in season and are really good for early in the season. This was really yummy dessert tonight!

Strawberry Shortcake!

Of course citrus has been in season. Our neighbors gave us loads of lemons, tangerines and grapefruit. What do you do with all the skin when you juice everything? Well this is the first time I've made the candied skin before. It is a lot of work, but the finished product is yummo! Very sweet and citrusy, mmmmm.

Candied Grapefruit Peel

They passed:-)

2012-01-15T20:14:00.001-05:00

Congrats Rudy and Leslie(mom)!!

These two passed their Delta Pet Partners test on Sat. They are approved for complex situations in any facility! Rudy will primarily be used in a therapeutic counseling setting for children and possibly adults. I think he will do a great job and they will touch a lot of lives! Go Team Rudy:-))

Happy Birthday Boop!!!

2012-01-14T08:52:00.000-05:00

Happy Birthday to the old man. Beli is 14 this year, Woohoo:-)) I'm going to make him a pumpkin cookie "cake", if its food he'll enjoy it. He is doing great! Latest bloodwork showed nothing, looked like a 2yr olds!:-)) Eats like 5 horses, goes for walks with us, and even occasionally gets to help feed the sheep. He pretty much does what he wants, when he wants! He loves going to work with me again, he gets snacks all day there! I love my little guy and am so happy that he is still here! Here are a couple pics I snapped when on our walk a couple days ago.

Still has a big mouth!

Still nothing like a good roll in the pasture

relaxin with my peeps

Time to shake it off, its dinner time!

Heres to many more Birthdays with the Boop (aka Beli boop, the little guy and more recently "Old goat")

Awww... babies

2012-01-12T11:48:00.000-05:00

We've had babies coming all week, mostly goats but one set of lambs. I took advantage of the day off and snapped some pics, Enjoy!!!

Curling up for a nap in the hay.

Who are you and what are you doing here?

The epitomy of lazy

You've interuppted breakfast, do you mind?

I gotta itch, must scratch it!

Patsy is 1!

2012-01-05T21:06:00.001-05:00

What a fitting time to answer Taryns question on Patsy's Birthday! Happy 1 year my Aussie girl!

4wks

5 wks

6wks

4 months

Just shy of 1yrs

She is a pretty girl and you can sure tell its her still:-)) Well it is hard to compare dogs to me since they are all individuals. I will preface anything and everything I say next under the blanket that this is a WORKING BRED AUSSIE. I'm not taking anything away from other bloodlines but Patsy is working bred and I am mostly familiar with aussies from similar genetics.
First I love Patsy, she is different from the corgis not bad just different. The Cardis are more pushy and demanding about attention, toys... well just about everything! Patsy is a large lap dog and LOVES to be petted and given attention; she is very sweet:-)) The Cardi girls are just mean sometimes, I've not seen that from the aussies. Patsy is quiet(hardly ever barks) thats just her other Aussies are very barky! She plays well with others and didn't need the dog socialization that the Cardis do to be that way. Movement sparks more interest (good and bad) than it does from the Cardis. Her attitude is very workman-like most of the time. Even on walks she does play with the dogs but not because she starts it, they always force the play on her. I think the main difference to me is her quiet biddability, she really wants to please me. The Cardis have a very stout personal set of goals that they are not easily persuaded about; I like that about them. Its nice to have a dog that wants to do what you want too though! One other thing, I've not seen an Aussie with the clowney sense of humour that Cardis have either, that I would definitly miss!

So I hope that is helpful to Taryn and anyone else who wants to know. I really do enjoy and love Patsy she is just not the same as the Cardis. I do think that the two breeds compliment each other well!

Happy New Year!

2012-01-03T13:14:00.002-05:00

We are starting the new year out with being better about posting and taking pics again! I hope I can stick with it.

First I started out last week making my Great Grandmothers Chicken and Dumplings! Yummy:-))

Sally started out the new year by finding more gophers; they are tearing up the back pasture terrible!

The dogs are getting along great though we are missing Rosy, funny how one or two(Oliver) dogs being gone changes the dynamic of the whole group. Dory does add a little different point of view but she is still very puppy, as you can see below:-)) She wants everyone to get along.

Patsy is growing up! She will be 1yr old on Friday and she sure acts like it. Her work is coming along really well and all the dogs love playing with her.

Sally, Rudy and Patsy playing... some things won't change:-)) Amazing the contortions they make when playing though!

Mr Rudy. He is going to attempt is TDI certification in a couple weeks. I hope that he does well!

I hope everyone has a wonderful new exciting year planned! We have lots of stuff in the works here; hopefully a lot will come to pass:-)) Today is the first taste of winter in FL this season, we are cold and in the 20's/30's here today and tomorrow, its a nice change from 80!

Christmas and Updates!

2011-12-26T20:33:00.000-05:00

Well there has been so much going on here but I've been too exhausted to share. Not sure if I had a touch on the flu or what but I was almost not functional! Geez I'm feeling much better now and catching up on lots of things. I cancelled on my family and stayed home for Christmas; while it was sad not to go and hang out with everyone, I"m so happy I stayed!

Jill was here for the Eukanuba with Tigger and they brought Dory and Bolt for a visit. We had a lot of fun, helped at the breed booth, watched Cardis and stayed for groups and BIS. Lots of fun, got to visit with people we rarely see down here and see dogs we hardly see:-) It was a great day but VERY busy! So Jill left Dory here for us to try and get a herding title on this Spring and Jill took Rosy to try and get some points on for me! I sure do miss Rosy but Dory is having lots of fun running AMOK!

Patsy got to attend the Feast of Seven Fishes on Christmas Eve with me at a friends house. It was awesome food and she got to play with her friend the American Bulldog, Capri! They had a great time and so did I!

This is one of my Christmas presents from mom and new slab in front of my dog room! She was so thoughtful that she even took each one of the dogs to the slab and put their feet in it for me to treasure and remember.

She added her three in there as well so all the Hill dogs are in the concrete. Now the step is easier for the big dogs and will be easier for puppies when/if we have them!

Bubbles is the only one that is not represented, we were off having fun elsewhere.

We got lots of great things for Christmas! A tripod for my new video camera from Dad; now I can shoot lessons and my own dogs without needing a camera person all the time! The other part of my gift from mom is a sign for me and the Cardis; the hard part is that I have to design it! I'd better get to work, I've got lots of ideas but I'll need to make a decision on one and thats not easy for me...

The dogs got lots of treats too, from me and my friends! Bisquits galore, lots and lots of toys and yummy chews (sweet potato and beef puffs) Yummmm:-))

We are very blessed this year for wonderful presents and great friends and family!

Merry Christmas to All

2011-12-24T22:58:00.003-05:00

Here is our official Christmas card this year, not my best but the dogs did ok. Nobody was really into it with the 80-90 degree weather that day but we did our best:-)) I'm glad to have made it through another year and look forward to the next and what adventures it may hold. I'm home alone this year, no snow in NC or travel (which is nice) will miss the family though:-)) Looking forward to a relaxing day at home to work dogs and play, but most of all sleeping in and catching up!
I hope everyone has a wonderful Merry Christmas and it is exactly as you wish it to be! The dogs are curling up with their chewies for a relaxing evening. Pics and updates tomorrow!

Oliver Update

2011-12-11T20:46:00.001-05:00

I am happy to report that Oliver is fitting in very well at his new home. Look at that face, pretty happy, huh??

He attended a playdate today with Laura and Abby(a Beli daughter). Looks like he had lots of fun frapping with the girls! I'm so happy for Mr. Oli! Thank you Sheila, Scott and Wendy for having Oliver come live up in the great white north!

*** For some reason I cannot reply to comments on my blog at the moment. So thank you to those of you that have commented on the last couple posts!

Goodbye Mr Oli

2011-12-08T19:44:00.001-05:00

We said goodbye to Mr Oli today. Very sad to see him go, what a super sweet boy he is! It sounds like he will fit in really well with his new family. I'm sure he'll enjoy being the King of the house! So goodbye Mr Oli, Patsy missed you this evening; actually we all did:-)) I've been promised updates and pictures so will post those when I receive them

Cardi Claus has arrived!!

2011-12-05T20:13:00.001-05:00

What a nice suprize after a long day at work. A plain little brown box, but I know better:-)) Merinda sent some very yummy biscuits, smoked duck feet, marinade, candy and a fun one of a kind Cardi hat (I'll use that in NC) as well as a Raglan Christmas ornament (my first:-)).

A huge thanks to our wonderful Cardi Claus gifts from Merinda and Porter in KY!

The dogs heard the wrapping come off, Duck WHAT???? You mean we CAN eat this duck? They wholeheartedly agree with Porter, these are the best!!!

Our Cardi package will be leaving FL tomorrow headed north:-)))

Giving Thanks!

2011-11-24T10:41:00.001-05:00

What a beautiful Thanksgiving Day! The weather is glorious and the dogs are loving it.

Patsy and her fan club (Abby and Oliver), visiting puppy.

More play, Bubbles hunting in the background.

Our beautiful Thanksgiving plates and table setting. Nothing like turkey day!

Finally our table is set just waiting on the turkey and all the food to be ready. Giving our thanks for not only the wonderful day, but all of the things we have been blessed with this year. The dogs are healthy, Beli is here with me still:-)), Sheep have been productive this year and the humans health has been good. Thank you for everything and may everyone be blessed this year.

TDI Olivia

2011-11-21T19:45:00.001-05:00

I got news from Peggy, O'baby's mommy, that she passed her TDI test with flying colors. She was impressive to the testers with her work through all the distraction. Peggy has done a fabulous job with our miracle Olivia! I'm so proud, this is the 3rd Raglan puppy working towards a career in therapy work. O'baby is the puppy I almost lost to a very rare affliction almost exactly 4yrs ago this week. She had a lobe of her liver torse, making her extremely septic. The "what if's" are almost too much to bear! If I had not worked that Friday, if I had not chosen to do an exploratory, if I had decided to put her down when she was seizuring uncontrolably, if the vet hadn't taken one more look further into her abdomen... She was meant to be THIS! And she was meant to be WITH Peggy. I love the O'baby for all of this but I love that she was meant to be with Peggy:-)) Thank you Peggy and Olivia, you go girls!!!

Hanging out

2011-11-10T20:05:00.004-05:00

Got to hang out in the big field with the dogs for a bit today. Dogs had a blast, running and playing. Finally was able to get some pics and post them.

Abby and Patsy playing. Abby had a good workout and was feeling pretty good about herself; she even decided to do the scoot! What fun those two have together.

Sally got busted eating snacks, here she is moping back to me.

Oliver stalking Patsy:-))

Beli even found a stick. He has blown almost all of his coat and is quite naked at the moment.

Cute little Bubbles, always wants some attention.

Too long...

2011-11-02T21:23:00.003-04:00

Well, this is the longest I've been between posts since I started this blog almost 2 yrs ago! Life has gotten away from me. I'm working more than ever it feels like, though thankfully lessons are part of that. Travel and busy weekends for the next 6wks are surely going to keep posts at a minimum. I've been pretty depressed about Rosy as well. All looked and was to my knowledge normal in her pregnancy UNTIL 4-5 wks and then POOF! No puppies anymore, I'm not sure what happened but it is what it is...
Thankfully I do have things to look forward to... we have trials this weekend and 2 wks from now. Judging in between, which means a change of scenery from home but also a weekend with no training too. We will be watching the Eukanuba since its close to home this year and having Jill visit as well. So we have a busy Fall to take our minds off things that haven't gone as planned.

Farm work day

2011-10-11T13:11:00.003-04:00

It has been a great morning to work outside after our rainy last three days. I got limbs trimmed in the training area out back. Oak limbs got hauled to the goats who just adore cleaning tree limbs and the palm fronds that were knocked down in the storm as well as those I pruned got hauled to the burn pile. The dogs hung out with me while I worked, they had a great time!

Sitting area in the herding field, still shady but now you can walk under it without getting your head removed!

Our new patio! We got a new grill over the weekend and a fire pit. The pavers were laid a couple of weeks ago, its amazing how much work it takes to get a property just the way you want it!

Palm tree all trimmed up. Now you can actually get the sheep out of the roundpen without getting your head taken off by the limbs or the sheep drawing the dog in:-))

The Big news last week... Rosy is pregnant, she is just starting to show now 4 wks along. Only a month to go now!

Our eggplant this Fall has just gone crazy, great eggplant and isn't getting much up keep either!

Rest of the veggie garden is getting planted for Winter/Fall too. Collards, Carrots, Herbs... I better get some of my Lemon Grass before it gets killed by frost though.

Our visitor for the week is Rufus (f.k.a. Crush!). He is here until the end of the week, for a visit. He is enjoying all the other dogs and even has gotten used to playing with Patsy the crazy Aussie:-))

Pretty boy that he is.

Bubbles trying to stop herself from going after the gopher turtle. It is a hard job!

And her favorite pose! She is a natural just like her daddy:-))

Nice to get some work done today, I'll have dogs to be washed tomorrow. Trial this weekend to work, and my birthday too. This will be a good week!

Ahhhh...

2011-09-29T15:26:00.004-04:00

I feel much better having had the time to take pics of the dogs today! Lots going on since I got home from the ASCA Nationals, most bad but there is always some good amongst the bad:-)) First though the Nationals were fun to watch; lots of dogs and stuff going on the whole time. Quite a bit of rain so no pics, my jacket pockets were full!

Rosy update... still not sure though some positive prego signs, she's not talking. Only a couple more weeks til we can be sure or not.

Sally my co-pilot, dirty from an early walk roll in the dirt:-))

This is the second go at a roll, everyone was happy to be on a walk even though it was really hot!

Patsy Loves her sticks, almost as she loves the Cardis...

As evidenced by the Cardis all on top of her in the pileup!

My sentry girls, keeping the goats at bay.

Bubbles back for only a split second between squirrel hunts (1 down, thousands to go!)

My Mr Oli, always doing something goofy for attention!

Finally the foster puppies. They are here for a week or so to get better "new home" manners. They are learning to play with people and other dogs, sleep in crates, leash walking... Big stuff for babies to learn. They will resume the home search next week.

The goats, always in to stuff they shouldn't be... They have to come poking around while I'm walking the dogs, drives the dogs crazy! Damn goats!!!!:-))

More travel and some catch up

2011-09-15T20:27:00.002-04:00

Well I'm looking forward to heading out tomorrow morning for West Bend, WI. I am attending the ASCA Nationals with my friend Debby; although I was supposed to drive with her I had to shorten my trip. I'll be there for 5 days to watch the Finals and the Pre-trial classes. I am looking forward to watching and meeting new folks:-))
Also Rosy is bred so we wait 4 wks until we can hope for signs to show up. All fingers and toes crossed; tried to talk the dogs into it too but they refused. Another load of sheep is ready for market since the grass is so poor here this year... More baby chicks hatched yesterday though the hens are fighting over them so I don't know about that!:-/
Bubbles is fitting in just fine with everyone. She and Evy were cut from the same cloth, like peas in a pod! All the girls are getting along pretty well considering the hormones that have been flying around here.
Hopefully I'll be able to take some pics on the trip and post here or there.

Remembering...

2011-09-10T21:17:00.002-04:00

I can't believe its been 10years since the terrible attack on our country. I still remember the feeling of panic and fear I felt on that day. I also remember exactly where I was and what I was doing as I watched the first plane fly into the first tower. So much has happened since then
I am still proud to be an American and I am proud of our country! Most of all though my heart goes out to those that were lost both in the towers as well as those first responders lost as the towers fell. There are so many wonderful stories of courage and faith as we were under such duress.
So on this 10th anniversary of these terrible attacks, I will only say GOD BLESS AMERICAN-UNITED WE STAND, DIVIDED WE FALL!

Nugget

2011-09-06T13:55:00.003-04:00

Introducing Ch Coedwig's Alchemist (OFA prelim Good, DM normal and PRA clear) This pretty tan pointed boy is a son of Carbon and Lilac, from the first frozen litter. I'm really looking forward to this litter and how this outcross will work! So keeping our fingers crossed for November babies! Check out Nancy's blog for more on Nugget (www.galenacardigans.blogspot.com) He has two litters on the ground now with several puppies showing promise.

He is quite the model on the beach in the NW:-))

Catch up

2011-09-05T20:50:00.004-04:00

First I'm a very bad mom, I didn't post about Evy's Bday! Evy is 8 this year and enjoying every moment of her retirement. She still loves to share my bed, hunt lizards and rats and just be a general pest:-)) She is from my very first litter and I love her so much. Poor Weed, I'll try and be better next year!

Resting on one of our NC hikes.

Hanging with her pop Beli after doing chores this summer.

Second. Rosy is finally in season and will be bred in the next 2 wks. Plans change all the time for me, this is no different:-)) Nugget, Jett's brother is the lucky guy:-)) I will post pics and info on Nugget later! I'm excited about this litter and will continue to post updates as they come along.

We have a very busy Fall coming up with trials, judging and puppies I hope!

Last hike of the summer:-(

2011-08-27T16:57:00.007-04:00

Today was our last day up here so Carol and I went down to the Mars Hill Farmers Market. We wandered around there and bought a couple small treats then went down to Asheville. We shopped for a bit then got lost (always happens there...) but it turned out really great. We found an awesome little taco shack, The White Duck Taco Shack. I had a great Bahn Mi taco and a JerkChicken taco; what fun different flavors!

Once back at the cabin, I took the dogs(except Beli) and went on a nice long hike. The pics didn't come out real well; its been overcast all day and the woods I walked in were really dark and well shaded. I don't know how far we went but it was 2.5-3hrs of slow hiking. The Appalachian trail piece we walked was narrow but beautiful. Lots of cool mushrooms, pretty shade loving flowers and best of all no other people. All 6 of the dogs had a blast running along then waiting for the rest of us!:-))

Rosy was usually in the lead, as you can see (maybe) Bubbles joined right in and really had a great time hunting the chipmunks with Evy.

The three blue Beli girls. Evy almost gave me a heart attack walking along the edge of this rock. It was a long drop off on the other side of the rock...

Rosy and Patsy waiting for me on the trail.

We have the long drive home tomorrow and then back to work on Monday. This has been such a wonderful relaxing trip, well needed, I just wish it was longer!

Hiking

2011-08-26T13:38:00.007-04:00

The younger dogs, Carol and I all took a nice long hike today. What fun we all had! We took the trail up the smaller mountain and to the top but they were taggin birds so we turned around and went back down to the lower trail.

Trail dogs:-))

Patsy and Rosy leading the way

Pretty wildflowers, like bluebells.

Bubbles and Patsy with pretty flowers

Purple Aster

Evy, Rosy and Sally taking a trail break.

We found this pretty log while we were driving out, so we took a photo op.

Sally

The Weed!

Carols boy Tag (Beli X Abby)

Tag front

NC Vacation

2011-08-25T21:19:00.006-04:00

Well this is the first opportunity to post since leaving home. We took a small detour to visit Rita Hellegers in Alabama. Her home and property are beautiful! It was a fun, though short visit; we got to watch the National videos from this year. Its always fun to watch with someone else that wasn't there. We had such an enjoyable visit, looking at dogs and talking Cardis some:-))

Ritas hay pasture early morning

Dogs playing in the side yard, they had a great time!

The NC dogs! My friend Carol met me at the cabin with her two Cardis, Libby and Tag. So this is the NC crew. Left to right:Beli, Abby, Evy, Libby, Bubbles, Sally, Rosy, Patsy and Tag. Its quite the family reunion!

Sally enjoying some grass time

Sally trying to play with Bubbles our new arrival:-))

Sally and Bubbles walking the front yard. Bubbles is a Beli daughter and mother to Tigger; I very much like her and Rita was looking to place her so its a win win!!! I'm looking forward to working her on livestock and breeding a litter too. She is starting to get used to the dogs and I. This will be a good week for her to adapt to a different life with me and my dogs.

Vacation here we come!

2011-08-23T07:34:00.003-04:00

The dogs and I are packed and ready to head out of town this am. I'm so looking forward to a break from work and home! We are headed to AL, to visit our friend Rita, then on to NC for a week of hiking and R&R. I'm sure I'll be taking lots of pics!
Also I believe we are going to have a new addition, more pics and intros to follow.

WooHoo!!!

2011-08-21T17:11:00.004-04:00

I'm proud to announce that little baby Bolt is now *Ch* Raglan Rhydeffol Tigger in a Tux! Only needing a single to finish he was BOB/BOW today for that 1 point. He is just 1wk over a year! Way to Go Jill and Bolt, now hopefully Dory will come into her own and start gaining some points:-)) Will share the pic when it comes!

More important Birthdays!

2011-08-11T20:53:00.004-04:00

August 12th is a big birthday Day here!
First is the DIBBERS! Libby turns 10 this year! Hard to believe the fabulous and oh so talented girl,my second Cardigan is already 10. Libby is so enjoying her retirement with Carol, the sweet Dibbers.

Recognize these guys? The amazing 11 puppies! They are 1 yr old, wow how time flies.

Sweet Abby with her babies:-)) I can't believe its been a year already, I miss the babies!

So Happy Birthday to Bolt, Dory, Remy, Cooper, Rufus, Bella, Flora, Merlin, Alice, Elliot and Buzz! I hope everyone will send in pics for a 1 year update:-))

Rosy pics

2011-08-07T16:44:00.003-04:00

Had to get some pics of Rosy today so thought I would post some:-))

Pretty Rosy!

Drive work! She is coming along really well!

Flying Rosy!

I had to put that cute Christmas pic from a couple years ago, I love it. Rosy still reminds me of a hunter pony going over a log!:-)) Wishing for cooler weather, can you tell?

CGC

2011-08-02T21:08:00.002-04:00

I'm proud to announce that Rudy (Raglans Rocket Man PT) earned his CGC yesterday. Rudy is owned by my mom and is one foot closer to his therapy career with my mother. My mom is planning on using him in conjunction with her counseling degree to help children. Congrats Rudy, love those fabulous Cardi temperments!

Passion?

2011-07-31T21:45:00.002-04:00

This post has been in the back of my mind for some time now. In the not too distant past my passion for dogs was questioned as having been lost. It really made me question 1. What did that person see that made them say it? (If it was true) 2. Was/Is it true?.
First I don't believe its true! My life has always been surrounded by dogs and the life that I now lead is one I have wanted for many years. I love training dogs and maintaining a balanced pack BUT I love helping people that want to improve their dog and their own lives. I love seeing the change in "problem dogs" and the light in the owners eyes when they realize how simple the change is. So my passion is dogs but more specifically training herding dogs, what is your passion?
There are so many facets to dogs and the life that we lead with them. I think there is room for everyone and their doggie passion. I have been involved with purebred dogs since I was 14yr old, I started with a Golden in 4-H, then my Schutzhund GSD and finally Beli:-)) I loved each of those opportunities but herding is my passion now. It is such a wonderful thing to see a dog know what to do on stock when they have never done it. It is still the most challenging thing I've ever done! I guess it is a good thing its my passion!

Dog days of summer

2011-07-28T21:00:00.003-04:00

While its hot here, and everywhere for that matter, the dogs always enjoy their late afternoon walk. We go up to the top pasture and they run, play and dive in the water to their hearts content. Life is good!

Abby, Oli, and Rudy all think that the Aussie addition is for their pleasure only:-)) Patsy loves out running all the Cardis too.

I know this is a blur... if I want to know where Abby and Oli are all I have to do is find Patsy. It is a constant play time when they are out together. Patsy favorite spot is the roundpen, she races around the edge with all the others in hot pursuit.

I know I'm ready for summer to end but the dogs enjoy life regardless of the weather.

Another Bday

2011-07-24T16:45:00.003-04:00

Happy Birthday to the BeliXPeekers litter, they turn 3yrs today. Boy time flies! Pixel, Fern, Smarty and Bren hope everyone is doing well and having fun:-)) Pixel seems to be having a great time, I hope the others are just as well!

Not much other news, just hot as HELL here! Yuck drenched in sweat everytime you go outside, we are certainly in the dog days of Summer now. The dogs can't do much on our walks now, just play musical water tub:-)) Dory is really enjoying her northern vacation now! We may have a new temporary member of the pack soon, more later.

Yeah go puppies!!

2011-07-16T19:20:00.003-04:00

More updates!! First is Bolt was BOW/BOS over two specials, in MI today for his first major and and he is now sitting at 10pts/1 major. Yeah Bolt, unfortunatly Dory didn't fair as well but I know that she will hit full stride soon. Jill is doing a great job guiding her along!

Second is pics of Remy in his new job! THERAPY!!

Remy and his buddy Diva at the nursing home.

Remy and his new friend:-))

As usual...

2011-07-16T10:43:00.003-04:00

Been forever since an update, its getting to be a nasty habit:-))
Well I have updates! Dory's first point pic, we got it with her bro, since we hope to have more pics. Love this pic, its one I will cherish; you can really see the family resemblance!

Next the Buzz man! What a cute boy, not sure why the pic did this must be a format issue...

and Alice, pretty blue girl. She is enjoying the beach in RI/MA.

Patsy on sheep, she is growing up so fast. Pretty girl still, no puppy uglies for her!

The three FL Aussie siblings, left to right, Wick (w/Marti), Rize (Debby R) and Patsy. They were'nt overly cooperative but its a cute pic anyway!

4th of July... late

2011-07-05T14:15:00.002-04:00

I had planned to post this yesterday but never quite got to it. We had a nice relaxing day other than chores around the farm. We watched fireworks on the hill and curled up to a late movie. I had plans to work dogs but never got to that either. This was exactly the weekend I needed!

Mr Oli, in a rare ears up at the camera moment:-))

Siblings!

Patsy and Rudy, how they love to play but everyone needs a breather once in a while!

Evy's tired of waiting for dinner

Finally our current positions for today. The couches are really comfy but Beli would prefer the window seat!

Rainy Season

2011-06-28T19:18:00.002-04:00

I think its finally here! Yeah we have gotten quite a bit of rain this last week. The pastures are finally starting to grow, hopefully we can get caught up before Fall. So exciting!!

We have a tropical depression throwing us rain today too, very welcomed rainy day!

Also another update from the AbbyXTigger litter. Elliot was RWD both days in MN at his first weekend out. More updates soon!

Catch up

2011-06-26T22:12:00.004-04:00

So finally pics... We took a walk middle of the day but it was a pretty nice day.

The boys, they are whipped tonight but look happy here.

Sally monster having a mid day soak.

Rosy follows suit, wish she would do the same and come in season:-))

I dare you, says Oli!

and he's off!

Wow what a busy weekend. Lots of lessons and I'm exhausted! I'm ready to go back to work for some rest! It was nice to spend some time with the dogs this weekend. Also saw a really big bear this weekend! Not really common but not rare either.

Dogs and a toy

More toy play

Lastly, Dory and Bolt showed again today. Dory was RWB and made a solid run for WB. Bolt was again WD/BOW for another pt and he is now up to 6pts! Yeah puppies:-))

Finally the gopher turtle video. We have a wayward male gopher that has been all over, I'm not even sure where he came from... The dogs were just fascinated by it. I did help him out after the video and put him over the fence, hopefully he found his home.

Dory News

2011-06-25T20:47:00.002-04:00

Sorry no pics, next week should be better. I miss blogging:-((
Good news from Dory and Bolt today! Dory was WB/BOS for 1 pt and Bolt was WD/BOW for 2 pts! This is Dory's first point, yeah Dory!! It sounds like she is enjoying the life of a princess living with 3 boys! I hope to have a pic to post soon!

Birthdays and photos finally!

2011-06-12T16:57:00.002-04:00

Finally I get a post! I took the dogs for pics in the middle of the day, unfortunatly it was really hot so most of them didn't want to do anything! The young'ns of course still have energy to romp and play:-))

Sally and Patsy doing what they do best, play, play play...

The girls on the look out for trouble!

Sweet Mr. Oli, would love attention all the time:-))

Rosy the frog dog!

Sally the frog dog. Happy early Birthday to Sally and all the AbbyXBeli kids! They turn 4yrs old tomorrow, I can't believe its been that long! Also belated Birthday to all the EvyXGlade kids who turned 4yr on June 8th. Hard to imagine...

Sally the dog is always looking for trouble, enough finds her; I don't think looking for it is necessary!

Rosy ears, I just love her ears :-)))

Good herding weekend not much else...

2011-06-05T21:30:00.003-04:00

Well I posted on my training blog about how much fun the girls and I had herding this weekend. I've been negligent again to the blog because I can't seem to get done before 9-9:30 every night when I get home. The sheep are eating me out of house and home because we still have not had enough rain to get grass. The dogs are starved for attention cuz I'm working different hours and not around as much as before. I don't have time to take pics because I'm feeding during our walks now.... the list could go on but the bottom line is that I am negligent!:-))

There have been some good things going on elsewhere though. Dory is learning to be a show dog, though unfortunatly came in season ... Remy has his therapy dog vest (or at least its ordered!) Yeah for Ana and Remy, I'm so proud! Merlin has been working sheep as well and seems to be doing quite well. Also got a great update on Bolt from an instinct test and he seems to have promising capability. So even though we are a bit bogged down here, Raglan pups elsewhere are holding the banner high!:-))

Hopefully we will have time again soon!

Happy late birthday and other stuff...

2011-05-26T19:11:00.003-04:00

Well first the obnoxious Aussie:-)) Making a mess of herself at every opportunity... There goes all the water from the tank.

Sally and Patsy getting ready for kick off!

and they are off...

a moment of down time...

and we are back where we began, with a stand off.

Abby and Oliver celebrated their 6th Birthday yesterday with extra chewies all around. This one is mine, says Abby!

Beli wants another one, NOW!

Leader of the pack, if only for a day:-)

Oli even got in on the play with Patsy, he seems to like her now or maybe it was just on his birthday:-))

Flabby Abby looking really please with herself, having kept the stick for herself.

So Happy Birthday to all the LibbyXToken kids, my first eleven, could have been my last too:-)) Love these kids:-) Can't believe they are already 6 though, time flies!

Finally finished with the peaches, canned 20 jars of Blueberry-Peach jam and made peach ice cream, I can't wait to try it tonight! Now the tomatos are in full swing and I can't hardly keep up, made 5 qts of salsa today but froze it since I don't yet have a pressure-canner... I imagine I'll try to can a couple quarts of whole plum tomatos this weekend. Yikes, I'm ready to be done with this, my days off are taken up with processing all the produce instead of working dogs!

Growing babies and other stuff

2011-05-20T12:38:00.003-04:00

Well this is what is left of my 1200lb bale in 10 days... The sheep are eating me out of house of home.

The next crop to can is on the way, the figs are busting at the seams~

Yummy peach cobbler for Debby while she holds down the fort, the fork is mine.

The babies are growing up. These are the youngest babies

Two of the triplets, ram lamb is in front.

Bea is so cute:-))

The bantam chick...

The 9 ducklings are growing so fast! They are also pouring back the feed.

Litter plans...

2011-05-19T23:13:00.003-04:00

I don't know how impressed Rosy is by my plans but here they are:-))

When Rosy comes in season she will be bred to...

Ch. Coedwig Eye of the Storm - Jett

He is OFA prelim Good, DM normal and a very handsome boy

Rosy's hips are done and sent to OFA so should be getting the results soon. I am looking forward to seeing what she will produce for us! Jett's first litter is on the ground now you can see more of Jett at www.coedwig.com . Fingers crossed for another summer litter here.

Yummy peaches:-)

2011-05-18T20:40:00.002-04:00

Well I did get something other than chores done this weekend. In between lessons on Sunday I did three batches of peach jam. One is no sugar and peach mint, kinda tart but very tasty. The other two are just peach jam regular sugar and all. I'm hoping to have some on Memorial Day weekend and do peach ice cream. I also got a couple quarts of slices canned on Tuesday. Hopefully we'll have homegrown peaches for a couple of months anyway!:-))
Mom leaves for Switzerland tomorrow and I leave on Friday for NJ (judging). Busy household these days... Debby is coming up to watch the farm with her dogs Friday and Saturday thankfully, lots of stuff to do around here! Exciting litter is in the works, more on that later!

Still busy ...

2011-05-14T19:50:00.003-04:00

Well I keep thinking I'll post and then the day is gone... Anyway, the farm is hard to keep up with right now. The peach tree is engorged with peaches, they smell so good when you drive by. I'm hoping to can and maybe make some jam too! The peach cobbler is delicious though. Every evening I stop and pick one to eat on the dog walk, yummm! The green beans are off the hook too, can't hardly keep up with them. Corn is on the way as are the tomatos, yeah!!

Patsy is growing like a weed! She is so much fun to work too, I'll have to get some video soon.

Sweet Mr. Oli! He is such a happy boy these days. I know the right home will come along for him, though if it doesn't he can stay here forever! Just love my big sweet blue boy:-))

And finally we got rain this afternoon!! Its been almost 7weeks, March 31st! The only drawback was that it came with 70+ MPH wind. It took out our gazebo, which is now a pile of twisted metal as well as quite a few veggie plants. Thankfully all the livestock is alive and well! We do not have a well or any power to the dog building though. Hopefully it will be back on soon, I'm still happy to have the rain, with or without the wind.

Busy, busy, busy!

2011-05-07T15:06:00.003-04:00

I can't even begin to tell you how busy I am right now. I am working again 3 1/2 days a week, but they are long hours and I have a long drive again. I am not used to being away from home so much and its been wearing this week.

These are the triplets and a couple others resting in the nursery group.

This is Hope09's baby. She had twins but this ewe is the only survivor so far. She has really bad pnuemonia so its still touch and go.

Bumbly 08's twins. Girl and boy, girl is the darker of the two. Very healthy happy lambs!

A3008 resting with her ram.

and finally our suprize visitor this morning. I believe that it is a baby pygmy rattlesnake. I trapped him in a bottle and took him to an 11,000 acre preserve this morning. I haven't ever even seen an adult rattlesnake here so this was quite a suprize!

Travel day 2

2011-04-30T21:31:00.002-04:00

We had a big day today. First breakfast at the Dillard house YUMMY!!! Way too much food but very tasty if you ever have the chance, GO! So then we set off for some waterfalls and shopping.

Evy at Dry Falls on the rock wall.

Carol at Baucom art gallery. In the vine piece...

Evy with the hydrangas at Dillard house

Evy on the pasture fence at Dillard house. Cute:-))

Finally in front of the split rail fence at Dillard House.
We had a full day of sightseeing and driving. I'm so done travelling, now off to bed for judging tomorrow and then getting home for work!

Travellin again...

2011-04-30T08:23:00.002-04:00

This weekend is judging but Carol and I came up a day early and we are staying at the Dillard House. Plans were to stay with Rita but the power was out and crews were trying to get in to AL for relief efforts. This is the scenery out the front door.

Back door, looking over the horse pastures. The horses were fascinated by the dogs during our evening walk.

Evy making herself comfy in the room chair.

I did not realize that they had a tornado come through here too. The lake was heavily damaged area but there was also quite a few spots of damage down near Clayton.

House in Clayton that was up ended when the tree fell across the road.

Prayers are still in order for all those affected by the storm.

Happenings..

2011-04-27T20:53:00.003-04:00

Lots going on here but I've just been too busy to keep up! First Remy went to his new home with Ana of Cardigan Tales and he is getting along so well. I'm missing him in my pack here but happy that he seems quite content with Alice and Ana.

Next more babies born last night. Just what I was hoping for from my last black ewe, a black ewe lamb whose name will be Bea (for Bumbly!). She has twins (ram and ewe) and they were born easily and are pretty strong though the ewe did take a while to stand.

Also more new arrivals! We have 8 baby ducklings, mom is quite protective and tried to attack my mom and I so I didn't try a recount. I'll check when she brings them out of the nest:-))

The sky has been really neat the last couple days tonight there was this one really bright cloud coming out the top. It is brighter orange in person...

Last night this cool formation was all over. Don't know what it's called but really pretty to look at.

Available Cardi girls

2011-04-26T12:18:00.002-04:00

Wimberley in Texas has two 15 month old girls available to companion homes. Etta and Jillian are spayed, up-to-date on shots and heartworm. They love people and other dogs, Etta especially loved playing with my guys while I was there! She even jumped the small fence to come over and play!

Wimby's girls together

Under the cover

Etta being cute, looking for what is next?

Jillian waiting for the toy to get thrown.

See the toy under her? She's doing scoots!

Hijacking!

2011-04-23T23:47:00.004-04:00

My blog is hijacked by Aussies today. We had a fun day or at least a couple hours with the three siblings, Wick, Patsy and Rize. The pups had a blast! As you can see from the pics:0 We had fun hanging out and chatting while the pups played. Wick's mom, Marti, brought a great lunch and we all had fun. I know the pups are sleeping well tonight.

Patsy and Wick

Wick and his bud Mocha, thats Rize bringing up the rear.

Rize on the move.

Enjoying a bit of water before playing again

Patsy on the move.

Wick with his cuteness!

The boys just hangin

Abby and Rize hangin out

Patsy and Rize make quite the team, ganging up on Wick.

Farm life

2011-04-22T12:16:00.003-04:00

Sometimes life on the farm is idyllic and wonderful. Watching lambs romping in the pasture and running around their happy healthy mothers, other days it is full of difficult decisions involving life and death. Today is the dark side of farm life. I had to make the choice to "put down" one of my original sheep. She was down with lambing troubles and I did not have any other choice. I'm sad but its part of farm life. I still have 3 other younger ewes to lamb including her daughter, so life does continue! Poor Bumbly...

Have Element...

2011-04-21T13:53:00.002-04:00

... sheep travel! This is the third batch of livestock I've had to move with the Element. This is also the best, no stink! I had to take the boys to Lady Lake today to have them shorn. They are looking (and I'm sure feeling) much better after their haircuts. Now that they have to tow the line for students they needed to cool off. See Evy peeking over the seats? She was hoping it was time to take them out. I put her in the pen and out they come, pretty slick!

Finally...

2011-04-19T13:55:00.005-04:00

I am home and have half a brain again! What an exhausting couple of weeks. We had lots of fun visiting Wimberley and Nathan as well as friends at the Nationals. Got to meet a couple of new people and put names to faces. Congrats to all the winners!

Patsy is glad to be able to burn off some of her excess energy running amok at home!

Oli is healed and happy again, my sweet blue boy.

Remy is glad to have a puppy playmate again but is missing sister Dory! I'm sure he and Alice will have lots of fun when he goes to his new home.

Even Rosy was happy to be able to run and play again, I swear her coat is coming in now that we are home!

Silly Patsy face!:-))

Here is our last arrival from Friday morning, a pretty little ewe lamb. Mom has decided she is not the boogey man...

Cute spotted ram lamb from Thursday evening.

and finally the beautiful triplets! 2 ewes and a ram. The girl to the far left is on a bottle since mom won't let her nurse but they are all big and healthy.

Introducing Jumbo, father to my two new sheep. The 2 new ones travelled well and are acclimating ok, I'm very excited to see what they will produce here.

and the two new arrivals. The ram is white and is about a month and a half old; the ewe is the spotted one and she is a little over 2 months. Nice babies! Thanks Wimby:-)))

Home again, home again

2011-04-17T01:07:00.002-04:00

The National is over! It was a fun week plus but I am sure ready to go home now! There have been all sorts of happenings for which I am greatly needed! This was a fun time to visit with friends and have some fun as most Nationals are. Dory is going home with Jill, Tigger and Bolt to play for a while and two sheep are coming home with us! So the 4 dogs and I are joined by two lambs and Michelle, poor Dory is going to miss an adventure! Hopefully I can download pics and videos when I return to share.

Sweepstakes

2011-04-13T20:24:00.003-04:00

Well we got to put on the froo-froo clothes and trit trot around today. No placements for us but both Beli and Dory had a good time showing:-)) They loved the bait! Tomorrow Dory, Beli and Abby all show so more dress up time:-)) Oliver's grandson and Lilys brother, Harry's Griffiths Arylan Mint Proof, won his class and was Best Op Sex in Sweeps, he looks great! Congrats to all the winners!

Last day @ Wimbys

2011-04-13T00:23:00.004-04:00

These are my pics from my last day on the ranch. What fun Abby and I had! Went around the ranch and took pics and pal'd around Abby on the stream bank, Love this pic!! Abby and the gator, we were watching cows. Donkeys coming to greet us. Red molly mule baby a week or so old. Brahmas and wee baby up front

Sunday trials and more Ranch pics

2011-04-10T21:54:00.004-04:00

Well Abby was better she brought a B- game today. I was happy to finish the course and Q with 4th in the class, I'm not sure what her score was. I'll post videos tomorrow on the other blog. Rosy was pretty good as well though still more pushy than I would've liked oh well rather that than have to build her up! So she ended up with high Cardi in trial! Yeah Rosy! Funny I thought about it later and this is the 10yr anniversary of Beli's first National and he was also high Cardi in Trial though it was with a much lower score:-)) I hope that she continues in his footsteps! More babies in the bottom Road babies blocking our path Brand new molly mule was born while we were at the trial. Wimberley and I did some early socialization with her picking up her feet, rubbing her all over, playing with her ears and laying her on the ground, FUN! Very cute and so soft:-)) Mom wasn't very happy about all that but she did ok. Wimby thinks he is ugly I say he is quite cute with his mouse gray coat! Finally Mabel, the very cutest Hereford heifer ever! I think Wimby would take offense if I tried to stuff her in a crate!

CWCCA trial Day 1

2011-04-09T21:40:00.002-04:00

No pics tonight, glad Day 1 is done! I'm exhausted and don't feel really well still I hope sleep fixes that! Abby did not bring her A game today. I called the run midway through after yet another bad, pushy decision on her part... We'll see what tomorrow brings:-)) Rosy was pushy as well but didn't do a terrible job. She did an ok job overall, I think she was 3rd place and also Reserve High in Trial Cardigan. The sheep were very nice, ducks were as well. Hopefully Abby will come around tomorrow and take her princess cape off! Nighty night!

Dogs on the ranch mainly in the mud!

2011-04-08T13:59:00.005-04:00

Yup so I thought I would take a nice walk around the house with the pretty yellow flowers! These are my feet after I thought I would cross the mud pit. I lost my crocs and had to retrieve them at which point I was up to my elbows and knees in mud. I've finally gotten myself rinsed off, the dogs will get bathed Monday so they can just shed off the yuck... Post croc loss and mud stuck, it was a least 12" deep! You guessed it Patsy found it first! There she is after her inagural dip called everyone else to the death trap! Dory found a more princess mud hole, only a couple inches deep, however if you notice her legs she has already gotten into the deeper one! Beli went for the manly mud... So did Abby, only for pros no amateurs need attend! This is the idyllic pre-mud walk in the pretty yellow flowers, Beli catching up.. Rosy trotting through the meadow.

Wimberleys Cowboy came along as well, sweet boy, you notice he didn't get into the mud!:-))

Wimbys Ranch

2011-04-08T11:27:00.003-04:00

It is a beautiful day on the ranch. Slight breeze is blowing and the sun is shining. I went out early to see if I could find the missing calf, unfortunatly I did not but such is life on the farm... I did find some other cute babies though!

The nosey red bull calf, had to come check out the Gator and myself....

Cute painted donkey baby, she was not happy about me being there either!

How cute is she anyway??

Baby moo's

Baby Brahma moo...

Bottom pasture views, this is where I was searching for the missing one

Road down to the bottom, its a long way down and around the corner into the next pasture!

Vultures, probably waiting for me to be lost! On the other side of the beaver dam

Cute red baby moo stuck his tongue out at me! I bet I could pack him up in a crate!

Mama donk

I'm going to take some pics of the dogs later when I go out. The farm is so large these are only pics from the bottom, I'll take some of the mule colt if I can find it. I tried this morning but could'nt find them anywhere!...

We're here!

2011-04-07T22:06:00.000-04:00

It was a harder drive today but we got here about 4:30. The dogs got to run around the rest of the afternoon, everyone had a great time. Wimby took me on a drive around the ranch; got to see all her calves, colts and lambs, FUN! Got back, fed dogs and went to look for a lost calf. Unfortunatly didn't find her but now I have a job tomorrow to look again. I also want to try and watch the beavers damming up the pond:-)) I will take lots of pics of the ranch tomorrow and will be taking the dogs on a walk in the morning while the donkeys are out of the pasture. More tomorrow.

Mobile, AL

2011-04-06T21:50:00.002-04:00

Well we made it to AL, so only 2 states in one day:-)) Easy good driving day, great weather and not much traffic. I hope to have the same tomorrow for the last leg. Dogs are doing well, just would rather be able to run around and play; tomorrow kids! We have lots of space at Wimberleys to play:-))

Goodbye home

2011-04-06T08:42:00.003-04:00

Its always so hard to leave home and dogs... Poor Mr Oli still recovering from surgery but he'll get lots of attention with me gone, mom loves him:-)) Took the dogs on a nice long walk yesterday evening. Everyone has a good time running amok and chasing others. Abby just wants those darn squirrels but most of them run and play. The weed is doing well still, don't know what in the world caused her sickness last week but she is on the mend and well now. Cute girl I'll miss having her along. Rosy and Patsy had a big time racing around playing last night, I hope they gots lots of energy out!

Dory, cute girl watching the goats and checking out what trouble might be available to her. She found some as always but nothing too bad.

Still have ewes to lamb, hopefully that will go smoothly. The farm is in capable hands but its a lot of work to leave for one person. Looking forward to my time in Houston though, meeting new friends and reaquianting with others. So Houston here I come!

Gettin ready!

2011-04-05T15:25:00.002-04:00

Well the last couple days have been really crazy busy! It always seems to happen but not usually this bad. The goats are having a lot of struggles with worms now. This is the worst time of year for parasites, the grass is barely coming up and the worms are crawling up too GROSS! Anyway I've been treating several of them for days, 1 ewe with lambs is still being treated as well.

Plus Friday we started my new fence line in the back. Its now about 150x150 and a nice sized working area for students and my own dogs. That took two days to get up and I still need to set one gate but need new hardware for it. It looks really good just different to look at.

Finally I am packing for the Nationals and had to clean my car out. Before pics would have been just embarassing, so here are the afters only. Looks like plenty of room however I'm sure that it will be packed full with 5 dogs and all my stuff! I'll be leaving tomorrow afternoon and going most of the way but I decided it was too much to try and go all the way in one day. I got all the dog stuff set to go food, grooming, toys treats... now I have to pack my stuff, ugh... I'll be glad to get on the road! Oh yeah I also need to work a couple dogs before I go since thats not been done since last week sometime!

Do you see...

2011-03-31T11:00:00.003-04:00

...the grass and flowers growing?? This is our second rain day, started about 6am and hasn't really quit yet.

Our soil doesn't even usually hold water for 30sec much less all day. I'm so happy to have this rain it is a blessing! We need the grass to grow for the livestock and not running irrigation will save money.

Even our big oak is droopy with wet. The sheep have been taking advantage nibbling on the leaves since its so close. Only three up front here, the ewes are all in the barn staying as dry as possible. I let them out to graze and feed them early this am when it was lighter rain. The whole area is getting a good wash down to start fresh:-)) Now I can see the grass grow with every drop of rain, yeah!!! So as long as the tornados stay away from us I'm happy with the rain!

One of those days....

2011-03-29T19:24:00.004-04:00

We've all had them...

Most of my pics didn't work out today, just crowns the general mood of the day. Patsy and Rosy had a few minutes of fun though.

Remy is such a sweet cute boy. Sorry to say I am placing him, just didn't make the cut for the show ring. What a fabulous temperment though and would still do well for a therapy home.

Sweet little guy:-))

I also have Oliver available to a companion home, he is almost 6yrs old and would love to have a person of his very own. I would like to see him in a single dog household or with a female Cardi companion.

Poor Evy has been quite ill all day. Not sure yet what it is thinking could be Pancreatitis, but we should have bloodwork back in the am. She is acting slightly better this evening though still not 100%. Please keep the little Weed in your thoughts that she is better by morning.

When it rains it pours! Oliver has been struggling with an ear hematoma for the last week, I'm hoping that we can get it licked without surgery! I need to get everyone well before I leave for the Nationals next week.

Rosy Bday pic

2011-03-29T10:50:00.002-04:00

Here is a pic taken by one of my students husband. Rosy in the water tub after working on Sunday. My pretty blue Beli girl:-))

Belated Bday!!

2011-03-27T23:04:00.002-04:00

Poor Rosy and siblings, I forgot to post your Birthday! So belated or not Happy 2yrs old to all the BeliX Mara-2 litter (Sterling, Zsa, Rosy, Ozzie, Marza, Tulip...) There are more great things to come for this awesome group of kids!

Buzz and new baby

2011-03-27T09:11:00.005-04:00

Well first the baby. Came home to find this ewe nesting, thought it would be fun to sit up and watch. Well nothing was happening so I finally went to bed.

Before...

After... she had a single ram lamb that is huge! The stall looks like she had lots of trouble with him too. He appears healthy though exhausted and still shakey on his feet. Love his color!

And here is the Buzz man! Nice boy with lots of energy and a strong confidence:-)) Took him a while to warm up to his sibs but...

Remy broke him in and showed him how to pounce on his sister. Here is Remy and Buzz with Karen Buzz's mom.

Lambs and kids

2011-03-24T16:19:00.002-04:00

Below are the two goat kids born Monday evening, in the barn with some white muscle symptoms but are doing much better after their Bo-Se!

While I was in NM my mom had to keep watch on these two girls. They will be 3 wks old on Saturday. Both had a nice set of twins, each with a ram and ewe, just what I would have ordered!

Bumbly 09-1 She doesn't count very well, didn't want her ram but he is a tough little boy and found a way to the milk bar anyway:-))

A3009-2 She also had one of each. You can see in this pic but the ewe lamb(in front) has really cute light brown ear tips and spots all over. Both ewe lambs are the bigger nicer lambs in the the "litter" too which is odd.

Relaxation

2011-03-22T22:22:00.004-04:00

Finally got to spend some time with the dogs today. Took lots of pics, here are a couple.

Patsy with her game face on, though this is playing with the girls, she is starting to see livestock too.

Beli was in such a good mood today. He had bloodwork run and everything was Perfect! Yeah

Remy being bratty as usual, trying to steal Patsy's prize.

Rosy getting sand in her face playing with Patsy.

Patsy is such a water dog! Love, loves, loves water in all shades, chasing the spritz out of the hose here.

Rosy stalking Patsy, strutting her stuff:-)

Love this pic, such a cute girl. Sorry she is fresh out of coat right now.

My cute old guy with his stick.

Evy and Abby on squirrel patrol

Boop!

Such an enjoyable day with the dogs. After lessons tomorrow we'll se if there is more time for pics. The dogs and I are taking a couple days off of working, we'll get back to it soon!

Trial day 2

2011-03-20T20:25:00.003-04:00

Well again I have to say just how proud I am of the girls! Both girls did a nice job again.
Abby was good though pushy and didn't get any more points but her run was respectable, while an NQ...
Rosy was AWESOME! She finished her HSAs today in three straight trials with a 90 and HIGH IN TRIAL!!!! Woohoo Rosy:-)) She was almost flawless, just very nice work calm and pretty no points off her outrun or centerline. I'm so proud of her to step up like that. She will stay in Started for the Nationals since she's not really ready to move up but anything beyond this is icing on the cake! AND she gave Beli 4 more ROM points today:-))

First trial day

2011-03-19T20:16:00.003-04:00

So proud of my girls today and a couple friends too!
Abby first run was quite nice, I screwed her up didn't handle well but she was VERY good. 4th place just out of points... Abbys second trial was nice though not as good as the first run and the buggery sheep slipped out of the Z chute. Anyway it was nice enough for a 1st place and HIGH IN TRIAL! Woohoo that is her first major towards her HC, Go Abby!
Rosy did a fabulous job as well, her first run was almost flawless, just very nice. Took all of her downs and nice work overall. She was first in her class with an 83, took Reserve High in Trial as well just out of HIT by 1pt. Second run was not very good, she was tight pushy and her draw of sheep was a bit above her pay grade. Still for only her third trip off my farm to work different sheep it was very good. Got lots of nice compliments on her too.
My friend Debby and her Aussie Rosy did a fabulous job in the second trial for a 4th place and HIT Aussie, with a really lovely run. It has been a long road for Debby but she got it together today. We went out to celebrate at Outback with a steak dinner and the dogs got special chewies too.

Play, play, play

2011-03-18T08:51:00.002-04:00

Its the Sally and Patsy show all the time now. Sally gets jealous if anyone else trys to play with HER puppy. She is Patsy and she shall be mine!:-))

They are very cute together though and playing burns lots of energy.

Flying Patsy! Airborne the flyover Sally.

Our fluffy little toy...

2011-03-13T19:44:00.002-04:00

Yes it is Patsy! She looks innocent in this pic but she is a spitfire and Sally loves her!

Patsy and Sally played to their hearts content this evening, they like to play rough and its good for both of them. Patsy is a tough little girl and dishes out as much as Sally does!

Rosy isn't entirely sure that she wants to get that rough!

Patsy is the life of the party or talk of Cardi town here in Eustis!

Finally a tired (and dirty) puppy. She is soundly sleeping in her crate now. A tired puppy is a happy puppy!

Patsy and the corgis

2011-03-10T19:25:00.003-05:00

Took some pics on our first group walk with Patsy. I think she is going to get along just fine here!

Remy playing with Patsy

Sally happy to be home!

Patsy loves water!

She also loves playing with Cardis:-))

Abby enjoying the fresh air!

Dory checking out the new addition

Yup they love each other

Evy was the first to extend the olive branch, she loves puppies!

Oliver doesn't really care for Patsy but loves the new toys

Finally home!

2011-03-10T00:32:00.003-05:00

I have never had such a harrowing trip EVER! We left Amarillo and finally arrived in Mobile at 2:30 Wed morning, driving through rain for at least 5 hours. There were tornado warnings but we couldn't find a place to stay in Jackson, MS so had to drive on. We did find a La Quinta in Mobile that was great though really busy! They are a really great chain, very dog friendly and are usually very clean, wish their bathrooms were bigger though:-) 7 dogs and two people was a bit tight!
So anyway woke up after only 4hrs sleep to tornado sirens and reports of tornados only a few miles up the road. All told the last news report said 9 tornados touched down by 12pm. YUCK! We finally left at 1pm with all the dogs walked and happy as they could be... Had to hand off one of the pups in Tallahassee and the rain let up enough that we could walk them with just a raincoat and not getting drenched. The rain NEVER let up all day! Very difficult driving all day, stressful... I got home at 10:30 and Debby still had 2hrs to go.
On a lighter note, Patsy is GREAT! I'll share pics of our trip later as I'm very tired and trying to go to sleep now. Patsy had a big run with the corgis and everyone loves her, or almost everyone:-) I think she'll get along great here, very people oriented and smart as a whip. She is going to be a really fun girl!

Travel Day from Hell

2011-03-09T12:34:00.002-05:00

No pics today. We were on the road until 3am, don't even know how many miles it was at this point... Amarillo to Mobile, AL! Puppies want to be home right now and so do I. We are waiting out the storm in our hotel this am. Hopefully we will be able to leave in the next hour or so. We are really wanting to be home now, Sally and Abby are both done with this whole travelling thing! I will post our travel pics when I get home tonight.

Heading home day1

2011-03-07T23:41:00.002-05:00

Well we went into Albuquerque for the pups eye appt, all passed with no notations. So we left there to head for Amarillo. We are finally there.

Views of the outskirts of Alb.

Wick and McGraw in the hotel bathroom

Patsy, very photogenic.

Leaving NM

2011-03-07T15:34:00.003-05:00

We are leaving the ranch in a few minutes to take the puppies for their eye exam. Once done we will be leaving Albuquerque and headed towards Amarillo on our way home. Lots of reasons but we both need to get home!

Parting shot of the ranch. Beautiful scenery but a storm in rolling in.

The puppies in their last puppy pile after baths this am. Happy tired puppies for the moment.

So on the road again!

Quarai ruins and hiking

2011-03-07T00:24:00.005-05:00

Today we got to sightsee and get off the farm for a couple hours. We went just south to the Quarai (sp?) mission ruins. It was fun to walk the dogs through and see the mass of buildings now in ruins and how well parts of it have stood up to time. Beautiful, though very harsh area of the country. The hike was fabulous too.

This was my parting shot of the ruins from the trail.

The girls and I before starting the Corral Loop trail.

Hikin girls! Mother and daughter enjoying our beautiful day out.

Debby and Rosy in the ruins.

The girls and I on the hike in the cedars

The girls just inside the first mission building

The three girls almost at the end of our hike. They get along really well and enjoy each others company, very cute together.

Puppies...

2011-03-05T13:20:00.004-05:00

We got to take all the pups on a walk this am. The weather is beautiful, clear and calm. Not great pics but a couple anyway:-))

Everyone checking the duck arena.

Debbie and Garth, I think.

Shelton and Rucker

Miranda, now Patsy:-))

Debby getting mauled

Finally here!

2011-03-05T10:49:00.002-05:00

Well we made it yesterday, easy couple hour drive. Got to see the pups and play with them but it was indoors. I will get some today. The girls are so happy to be out of the car! Here are a couple of the girls out in the big field today.

Little dogs big world.

Sally looking towards the sunrise.

NM scenery

The girls camera posing

Abby wistfully looking towards the mountains

5 states 1 day!

2011-03-04T00:11:00.003-05:00

Well the pics are backwards somewhat but here is some of our trip today. I didn't take pics all day but...

This is Oklahoma lots of cows and horses, not as green yet.

Oklahoma cows

Arkansas, beautiful state really. Green and very pretty hills

Huge church in Arkansas, it was really really big!

Trip went ok, big stop in Memphis for an accident but otherwise pretty smooth and easy driving. Glad the big drive day is over though! Yuck! My whole body hurts from being so cramped up all day. So our grand total miles for the day was 845 miles! Under 300 tomorrow and then 3 days of puppies, dogs and rest:-)) Hopefully a little sightseeing too, maybe some other fun stuff, we'll see. There is lots to do in NM.

Tupelo, MS

2011-03-03T08:13:00.002-05:00

Well we are getting ready to leave this am. Pretty good sleep last night, the dogs were happy to veg out.

Sally on our morning walk.

Sally and Rosy, the travelin girls!

The girls with a pretty flowering tree, I'm guessing that it is a pear but not real sure. They are everywhere and just light up the roadside with color!

Amarillo here we come!

On the road again...

2011-03-02T19:46:00.002-05:00

We are in AL, great driving weather beautiful flowers. All the trees are blooming pretty views! More later
*** Update, we got to Tupelo, MS and are staying overnight before trying to get to Amarillo tomorrow. That will put us pretty darn close for a short drive on Friday morning. Will try to upload some pics in the morning before we leave since we've got good wireless here.

And we are off!

2011-03-02T08:41:00.002-05:00

Well when we are the computer won't still be out:-)) Couple pics before I leave to test the camera I'm taking, its new to me so want to make sure it works ok.

March flowers, climbing rose, redbud and loropetalum.

My little guy wondering why I won't let him follow me everywhere. He knows theres something fishy going on... Poor guy, I'll miss him lots!

Lots to do!

2011-02-27T19:35:00.003-05:00

Still so many things to do in the next two days. It never ceases to amaze me how fast time flies! Still two dogs to wash, packing to do, dogs to work, lessons to give, puppy stuff to pack and the house to clean. Yikes, I guess its a good thing that I don't work Monday now! If I was a glass is half full kind of person I would look at the 4 dogs I've bathed, the laundry being done, dog room clean and dog stuff packed already.

Then.... I finally get to meet Miss. Patsy! Excuse the dead grass in her coat, puppies will be puppies! Can't wait to work the dogs out west too!

Babies @ 6 months

2011-02-26T19:26:00.003-05:00

Carol came over today to help me take pics of the babies. Abby also had a bath so we took a couple of her as well.

Remy at 6 months, still a bit high in butt, it is already starting to improve though. He also has a backup career as a therapy dog in the works.

Dory freestacked on the ground, she is getting better at this:-))

I want you to notice her tongue, always moving, thanks Sam:-))

Finally Mom! Check out her tongue too, like mother like daughter!

Goodbye

2011-02-22T19:42:00.005-05:00

I am very sad to say Ch Cornerstone's New Light ROM, left Rita today at just over 13yrs old. Being Belis sister made her family but her quiet very sweet demeanor endeared her to my heart forever. Shimmer was such a dear girl and even though she was not mine I feel like a part of my pack died.
I remember seeing Shimmer at only a couple weeks old, she was "Miss Piggy" in the litter. She grew into a beautiful regal Cardigan girl. Only a couple years ago we went to visit Rita and Beli and Shimmer had such a good time playing in the front yard when I went to say goodbye to Rosy (Ch Maranathas Cornerstone Rosy ROMS their mother). That was the last time Beli and Shimmy got to play but we did get to see her one last time in FL. The picture above is Beli/Shimmers "Goodbye Pic". Tears roll down my cheeks now because this loss is so close to home, I know that my future holds that difficult day for Beli and I. I hope it is years away but you just never know. So hug your dogs tonight in memory of Shimmer. Goodbye dear sweet Shimmer, see you over the Rainbow Bridge!

Heres the story

2011-02-22T13:59:00.003-05:00

This is how it ended, but our walk started looking great. Its a beautiful warm breezy day here in FL. So here's the story...

These are my co-pilots for our walk today. Evy, Abby, Lily and Sally all decided they wanted to sit on the cart with me instead of running amok with everyone else.

Abby hung out on the seat in my lap just basking in the beautiful day. Look at the sky! Really very pretty:-))

Evy trying to get my attention, surely Abby is not worth my affection! Don't worry Evy and Abby both get plenty of attention, I'm sure thats not what they think if you ask

.
So then Abby jumped off the cart and I heard a little whimper and she was lame. Poor girl ripped her nail clean off the outside toe. Only left the quick. What is it with my girls doing this when they are entered in trials? Sally did it last time she was entered and had to be sedated to rip it off... I think Abby will be fine but I put some meds on it and wrapped it with a bandage to keep it clean for a few days until I can dry it out. Poor flabby Abby:-(

Cute baby Aussies

2011-02-21T12:49:00.003-05:00

6wks is such a cute age, no matter the breed! The weather has finally improved in NM so the puppies are getting frequent trips outside. They got even more toys and the agility tunnel this weekend. The above pic is two of the girls and two of the boys in the litter on their trip out. Below is Miranda (soon to be Patsy). We leave in 9 days!

Retirement...

2011-02-20T10:24:00.003-05:00

Yup I can't wait for it either! The retirees took over my weekend movie bed from last night and are currently napping. AHHHHH thats the life:-)) I am going to have to remove them soon so I can clean house, maybe I'll wait for a bit:-))

Libby and Tag

2011-02-19T21:46:00.003-05:00

My bestest friend Carol has my bestest girl Libby and is giving her a wonderful retirement life. Carol also has Sallys brother Tag. I got these pics from her yesterday.

Tag doin the scoot

Dibbers going in for the kill, thats why she scared sheep so badly.

Tag awaiting his playmate. Such a pretty boy!

Lunch anyone?

2011-02-17T12:21:00.003-05:00

The blog has been hijacked in the name of food!:-)) No work today so I went grocery shopping yesterday and picked up a fresh ball of pizza dough and of course pizza fixins! Our local grocery chain started selling fresh dough a while back and we've gotten some here or there. Every time I make a pizza with it I think this is so pretty I should take a pic but alas I never do, until today. So here it is my little personal pan pizza:-)) Yummy pepperoni!

Happy Valentines Day!

2011-02-14T20:14:00.003-05:00

Last post today I promise:-))! This was my special treat for my mom and I this evening. Strawberry crepes, first time I've made them and boy oh boy were they good! Look up Alton Browns recipe at www.foodnetwork.com if you are interested. My mother leaves tomorrow for Africa so she needs to fill up with yummy food before leaving for that long trip:-))

Silver is good but BRONZE is better!

2011-02-14T19:06:00.003-05:00

I got word today that Beli's girl Marzi (Cornerstone's Marzipan NAJ) recieved her first agility title today to finish Belis ROMB! Beli must have known, he was VERY full of himself this afternoon. I am hoping we still have a few prospects who will be helping him gain his Silver!

So the list of contributing Beli kids is as follows
Raglans Hippie Chik HXAs
Raglans Jazz Man HSAs
Raglans Lump of Coel PT (RIP)
Raglans Keepyohoovestoyoself PT
Raglans You're it PT
Raglans Ewe Too HSAS
Ch Cornerstone All My Wishes HT PT HSAsd HIAd
Ch Trinity River Curlin PT
Cornerstone Raglan Rhedyn PT
Cornerstone Marzipan NAJ

Ch Cornerstone Lady Liberty ROMb also finished the requirements for her ROMS with her contributing children as follows
Ch Raglan Oliver at Arylan PT
Ch Raglan Burna Skid Mark HIAs
Raglans It had to be Ewe HXAs
Raglan Lump of Coel PT
Raglans Hippie Chik HXAs
Raglans Keepyohoovestoyoself PT
Raglans Jazz Man HSAs
**Of course all of these are pending approval

Back achers...

2011-02-14T14:33:00.005-05:00

Sorry for the lack of posting! I've had pictures on my camera since last week to post. My back has been out and I've been super busy! I have a few updates, first my Aussie baby is now 5.5wks old, they've been having terrible weather so not many outdoor pics but they finally got some this weekend. Of course I know just how busy 8 puppies can keep you but they got some fun pics, more shown on their site Legends Aussies. I am hoping this will be my girl known as Legends Honky Tonk Angel "Patsy":-)) A couple of weeks until our trip out there to see them and pick up our pups!

Next Rosy is taking a show week vacation with our friend Michelle. Sounds like Rosy is enjoying some special attention and winning hearts everywhere she goes, I wouldn't expect anything less! Wishing them good luck at the shows this coming weekend.

And now for the pics that I took last week. We've had some very pretty weather here so lots of photo ops lately. Though I do need some sunset ones, we've had some gorgeous sunsets lately!

Sally on lookout on the picnic table. I used my newly downloaded Microsoft Cloud to filter some of the pics this week.

Remy with his stick trying to get someone to play with him!

Lily very pleased with her thieved toy

Evy found a nice patch of grass and shade to rest her bones after correcting all the puppies and other dogs:-))) Its good to be queen!

Abby in the shade while I took pics of the sheep for sale.