Walking On Sunshine

I love having dogs in my life. No other creature on earth will give you the love a dog will give to you. No matter what mood I may be in, my dogs always manage to "check in" with me and stop by for a scruff and a pat on the head. They are always eager to please and be nearby awaiting instruction from their Master. Today when I check in with my Master, let me be open to what is in store for my life.

Hanging with the Human Pack

There was only one wish that I had this past Christmas season and that was to have a family picture taken with all the kids and grand-kids. For most families that may be a simple request, but for my pack, it is never a simple process. We have referred to it as "herding cats" when attempts have been made to take a family picture. No professional photographer will touch this family, even if we could afford it.

We were able to have a family picture taken about 3 years ago. But that was before 5 grand-kids and one new spouse (son-in-law). We now number 20 in the immediate human pack and we have gotten spread out over 2000 miles from California to Minnesota. And this is not one of the most favorite things for my children. When it is known that the whole family will be together, a certain "look" and mumbling under their breath begins to travel through the kids. The look says, "Great she's going to want us all together for a family picture".  And that means traveling out into the Minnesota freezing cold where there is room to line up 20 moving targets, hold everyone still and face the camera with a smile.What typically happens is that about the time I mention it is picture time several children need to urgently go to the bathroom (group number one), several decide to bundle up and go down by the barn and look for Cat ( group number two) and the third group pours a cup of coffee because they know it will take several minutes to gather groups one and two. Meanwhile I am making futile attempts to set up the tripod, remember how to use the timer and find the "perfect spot" for a family portrait. Even Photoshop at its best is not capable of filling in all the missing bodies that are discovered after the picture is taken. Hence, several pictures of every one gathered in a heap are taken in search of that one picture that is worthy of the framed picture on the wall.

The family picture this year started out the same as always...."the look", mumblings, scattered children with parents chasing after them. But as I started to set up the tripod, my son, Ben came over and suggested we pull the tractor up and let the kids crawl up and find a spot and all adults fill in around them (usually the adults find a spot and grab a child to fill in an empty spot). Out of just wanting to get the task underway, I agreed and the tractor was hauled into the official picture spot. One by one all the grandkids eagerly found their spot on the tractor and adults filed in to the open places that were left. I checked the camera perched on the tripod and for the first time in 3 years we fit in the picture! No adjustments to kneel, pull closer, stand taller and show your face. Just the instruction to look at the little blinking red light on the camera and not at grandma running and diving into the picture. Smiles everyone......first shot was the keeper for the wall iniside.













Time Marches On

Rainey with her brown/hazel/blue eyes in a quiet moment of adolescensce

As I sit down to finally write a blog post, I am realizing it is already pushing into the Fall season, with Winter right around the corner here in Minnesota. In my last posting, I was mourning the loss of a good friend and loyal companion, my yellow lab, Tanner. Although still missed, I am grateful that he is no longer suffering here on earth. Over the past few months I have been kept busy with the daily antics and task of raising Rainey, our 5 month old Aussie. While she is a great dog, puppy hood to adolescence is always the time when many dogs wind up in shelters as the humans just can't get past this crazy teen-age stage. There are days I, myself, have to ask the question :"What have I gotten myself into with her?". But these are passing thoughts and Rainey is right where she should be in her developement.

Lessons Rainey has learned over the past 4 months:

1. Using the outdoors as your bathroom is a kind and generous thing to do for your Master- remember the garage is still considered part of the house
2. Waiting to go outside until a human is awake is even better
3. When an older dog or human approaches your food dish, step aside
4. Guarding or growling your food dish will get you in a lot of trouble
5. Fresh chicken dinner does not mean help yourself to the hens down at the hen house
6. Electric fences around the hen house give off a shock to make you never try for another chicken dinner
7. Come, Sit Stay Heel are not optional suggestions
8. No matter what path you take to your Master, always come when called. There will always be a treat or a "good girl" and scruff waiting
9. Run alongside the biker, not in front. Someone will always get hurt
10. Your human loves you in spite of your adolescence

Still Learning:

1. Jumping on toddlers/ preschoolers will get you sent to your kennel
2. Herding grandchildren, although helpful, causes fear in the "herdees"
3. Come: means come to me now
4. Sit still when you are getting petted
5. Use your nose for good, like finding my lost shoe you took to chew
6. Not a good idea to pace around at night when humans want to watch TV
7. No chewing on kid toys found in the yard
8. No chewing on things in the garage
9. No chewing on things you found in the garbage can
10. NO chewing on the above means no chewing....even tomorrow and the next day and next...forever

While Rainey is still learning, and I am daily looking for patience, she actually is a great puppy. In her learning she has taught me valuable lessons.

1. Be kind and courteous to  my elders and those in authority
2. When hungry, I can be quite testy and may want to growl and guard my food
3. Certain boundaries are an OK thing if it keeps me out of trouble with my Master
4. Run alongside my Master, it is the easiest and safest place to be
5. There are certain rules in life that are not optional (treat others as you would want them to treat you)
6. Settle down and enjoy the moment, quit worrying and pacing
7. Bad habits are hard to break.
8. Each day is a new beginning to try to do all things well
9. Sit still in the Master's presence
10. No matter what path I take, my Master will always welcome me with open arms and a "good girl", even if it takes me a few tries in getting there. 

Saying Good-bye to an Old Friend

Today is a day that will live in my memory forever. It is the day that I have to say good-bye to my old faithful companion, Tanner. It is a decision that I have struggled with for several months, as his health has deteriorated. But today, as he struggles to get up, the decision has been made, the arrangements are in place and time is ticking away as his last hours of life come to a close. It is a time of looking back at the day we met  (him with a big red bow around his neck... a Christmas present 13 years ago) and honoring the life of my old yellow Lab.

Tanner has served our family well for many years. Living on the farm, he has had free run of many acres..and yet never has left the property. He has had ample opportunity to have many a chicken dinner, and yet has never once gone after the chickens when they have been out of the pen....a bird dog that truly looks at birds as his little buddies. When new little grandchildren arrived he always has been there to welcome them into the family with a happy wagging tail, never once turning on those that would sit close by playing in his food as he ate.


Tanner has helped me raise 4 children, 12 grandchildren and at least 5 other dogs that we have had over the years. He has always been there to let the new puppy jump and climb on him...stretching his patience and yet only a low rumble would come from him, telling the pup "enough". His gentle, mellow personality has always rubbed off on the energy of the pack that calls this place home. And as a result, the dogs that live here are in turn mellow and easy going, and gentle with all who they come in contact with.

The vet has been called, his grave has been dug by the pine trees where he goes to wander. His master is tearfully and yet happily rejoicing that he will no longer be suffering with his aged body. May his spirit soar to the heavens and may he eternally chase amd romp in the green fields. Until we meet again, Old Boy.

Today as I walk my old friend to his grave, may my Master be walking alongside me giving me the strength to grieve and rejoice in the life of an old friend.

Walking with the Pack

Makwa, Charlie and Rainey

Grandpa Tanner and Belle

Each morning upon rising I have a routine that involves leashing up 4 of the 5 dogs and taking a brisk walk down the road about a mile and back. On a work day it is timed so that I can manage the walk, feed Rainey, the new puppy, and get ready for work. It is always a challenge to try to do this and get out the door for work on time. But I enjoy the time I spend with the whole pack, as they are so focused and intent on following me. It sometimes makes me feel powerful and humble all at the same time thinking that these 5 canines would trust me completely to lead them safely on a journey where danger sometimes lurks in the form of traffic and/or not so nice unbalanced dogs.

Our walk starts with leashing up Makwa and Charlie who will crawl up on the top step in the garage and sit to get the leash on. It is always hard for them to contain their excitement and often times they get a little tangled up in their leash. But most of the time, they leash up and step out of the way for the next dog's turn. Belle will crawl all around underneath the other dogs until she gets to me and stands to get her leash on. She reminds me of a P.O.W. tunneling out to freedom. But she manages to get the job of leashing up done and will go by the other dogs and wait as patiently as is possible for a dog ready to explore.Leashing our newest addition, Rainey, is getting easier, but let's just say it is still somewhat complicated. She is not sure what is happening, but she is certain that she should be excited since the older dogs are wagging and wriggling around. And last but not least, Tanner, the old yellow Lab who usually will just wait patiently until we are ready. Tanner has earned the honor of "no leash" since he is so slow moving he only walks half the distance and will wait for us to return and walk back home with us.

Let the walk begin...5 dogs, 3 different paces. The first few minutes involve everyone for them selves and there are leashes all over getting wrapped around all of us. Charlie, Makwa and Belle have mastered the walk quite well and will look to me to set the pace and then focus on my movements, never veering far from watching my leg movement and adjusting themselves accordingly. For the most part they will look to me and follow consistently wherever I walk. They will sniff and look down the road at things passing by, but they are always watchful of where their leader is taking them. But Rainey is still in training....bouncing and ducking under each dog and pretty much making a complete mess of the organized walk we are trying to achieve. She will not only tangle up, but will stop cold in her tracks while we keep moving forward, causing me to stop fast as the other dogs bound forward a few more steps. I'm never sure if walking the group is going to end in a dislocation of some sort someday on some body part.

After about 5 minutes of showing Rainey what is expected as we walk together, she finally figures out that it is in her best interest to follow her leader and not look to the other dogs to try and figure out where to walk. The rest of the walk is for the most part uneventful. All of us "get in the zone" and we manage to get home in time for me to ready myself for work.


How I want my life to be a focused walk with my Leader. Help me to not stray far from the path I am being asked to travel down with my Master. Help me to not get tangled up and trampled on as a result of taking my eyes of the Leader and focusing on others nearby during my daily walk.

What's Her Name?

Meet the newest addition to our canine pack. She is a blue-eyed 8 week old Australian Shepherd. She comes from the same rescue organization where Charlie came from. We now have 5 dogs ranging in age from 8 weeks to our old boy, Tanner, who is almost 13 years old. Some people think we are crazy having more than one dog. After all, they are just dogs. And they are quite a lot of work with caring for them and training them. With 5 dogs, it makes it difficult to be away from home for long periods of time. And rarely can you take more than 2 with you if you decide to bring them somewhere with you. And right now as I listen to her crying and whining to get out of her kennel at bedtime,there is a part of me that agrees. Puppies are a lot of work, along with their cute and snugly side. She is a loud little pup when she is stuck where she doesn't want to be. But most of the time she has been very quick to please and outgoing.

About a week before I got the pup, I decided to post her picture on Face Book and let friends and family help come up with a name for her. This has been amusingly interesting as friends and family have voiced their opinions and thoughts on what she should be named. There were family names, names I couldn't pronounce much less figure out how to yell it out in a hurry to get the pup's attention and names I am not allowed to use according to my children. They have a stockpile of names that may one day be called up to use for a future grandchild. It has been a few days since the little pup came into our lives and she is now in need of a name. I have held off naming her right away as I wanted to get to know her personality and to see just who she was before sticking a name on her that I would have to use on her the rest of her life.

This week as I have been reading through names and trying to decide on one, then deciding and changing my mind again, I am drawn to the words I hear from my own Master: "Before you were born, I knew you, I even knew the count of hairs on your head. I have called you by name."

How awesome to have such a close relationship with my Master that I was known and welcomed before I was even formed, before anyone else knew my name. Allow me to walk in the ways of my Master in a close and personal relationship.

Everyone, Meet Rainey

The Effort and The Outcome

I decided a few weeks ago to take this day off from work today. This was the day that I had scheduled Charlie to take the Therapy Dog test. I planned to keep everything low-key so as to keep Charlie's energy level at a nice quiet range.It has been a day that has been not as I had anticipated it should be. I had taken the day off to refresh and prepare Charlie for the test. But the day started out a little different than I had imagined.

I had planned on waking up leisurely this morning, maybe stay in bed and listen to the news, read a little from a book I started and you know... just lounge somewhat before starting the day. But that was not to be. I woke up to an early phone call  at 6:35. Just one of those "good morning" ones from the spouse. The one that translated says, "I've been awake and at work for an hour, so you should be up also".

So up and at it at 7:00 am, I let the dogs out and began to get ready to face the day. From a distance I heard water running in the front of the house. When I went to check it, I found that ,once again, Charlie had turned on the faucet and water was running at a steady force all over the front yard. Not sure when he decided to fill up his water bucket by himself, but from  the looks of it, it must have been awhile. Sometimes I feel like I am so outsmarted by the Aussie.

I brought the other dogs in and when I called for Charlie, in he bounded, covered in mud. Not only was he covered in mud, but he had a not so aromatic scent about him. I am still uncertain where or what he rolled in, but he was as happy as a....let's say... smelly pig in mud.

Determining that I could not dry him and get the mud completely off, let alone the stench, I was left with having to give Charlie a bath. Time was ticking by and Charlie's fur is thick and long enough to know that it would not be dried out by test time which was 3 hours away. But into the tub he hopped and the process of bathing a furry 65 lb dog began. He thoroughly enjoyed the bath, but insisted on giving his body a shake every chance he could. Needless to say, I was completely saturated along with wet precariously smelling Charlie. He was quite impressed with the hair dryer that kept blowing warm air at him and his energy picked up.
Two hours had passed and Charlie was clean, somewhat sweet smelling and had fluffy fur sticking out. The Australian Shepherd version of an Afro.

I had planned on taking Charlie for a long quiet walk at the walking trail just before we left for the test, so as to refresh Charlie on a few things, such as don't pull on the lead and please, please no sniffing where you shouldn't. But alas, we needed to be in the car heading in the direction of the test. So I hustled Charlie to back by the field and told him to hurry up and "do it", meaning go to the bathroom so it doesn't happen, God forbid inside during the test. He complied and I got him loaded into the Jeep.

Memorial holiday, everyone getting off work, construction and the fact that I should have left earlier began to allow anxiety to creep in and I found myself feeling rushed, annoyed at the drivers ahead of me and nothing I could do to speed up the drive to the test. We got there with 5 minutes to spare.

We walked in, or should I say, Charlie bolted in pulling me behind him. Definitely an entrance that is not one that will convince people that you are with a passable Therapy Dog. In fact, some people with there beautiful dogs and designer leashes actually turned away from us and pulled their dogs closer to themselves, looking appalled.

I attempted to fill out the paper work, while all the while, Charlie was bound and determined to sniff at every dog within 6 1/2 feet of him (I had a 6 foot lead). Needless to say, my forms are less than desirable in the legibility department. I stood there handing over the check, wondering how much of a fool we would be making of ourselves


As soon as I finished the paperwork, it was our turn to be called out to the center of the ring where everyone now began watching with anticipation to see how foolish we would look. The tester explained what she expected and would call out each instruction. Charlie looked directly at me and it was then that I saw him switch into work mode. The lights were on and he was home. He completed each skill with such mastery that I only had to let him do the work and go through the paces. One of the final skills was to have 5 children run closely by him, screaming and jumping. This was the skill that would later cause several dogs to not pass, especially the herding dogs. Charlie sat there without a flinch as the kids went by him. Just another day for him as this is the constant motion of the household with the grand kids always running by.

Charlie performed without distraction, or unnecessary use of the leash by his frazzled handler (me). He passed not only the therapy dog test, but also the canine good citizen test. He is officially a therapy dog....in spite of all my plans to not cause stress to him or me today before the test. His being able to complete the task and skills is not a result of a one day refresher course that I had planned to throw in right before the test. Rather, it is the result of many hours of being together and learning who I am and what I am expecting of him. It has been a long-standing communication between us, both verbal and non-verbal.

Today let me be reminded that I need to spend consistent and plentiful time with my Master in order to know what is being asked of me. Let me hear audibly and  be still to quietly feel my Master's presence beside me.

                                                       Charlie the Therapy Dog