Experiments with Hope

As you know, I've had a little extra free time on my hands lately. Rather than waste it, I've kept myself busy with productive work and education. I've always been interested in science and now I have the time to explore some ideas that have often kept me up at night.

Like, what can I get Hope to eat?

Hope is not an Australian Shepherd. Aussies will eat anything...without thinking. If I offered Bruce a rock he would have it swallowed before it even occured to him that it might not be food. Hope is a kibble eating kind of dog. A meat and potatoes, hold the potatoes kind of dog.
However, he's also a desperate to please kind of dog. I wanted to see just how far he would go to make me happy. Hence, the following series of experiments.

No animals were harmed (physically at least, I'm pretty certain that the Border Collie needs therapy now) in these experiments and the scientist was highly entertained for at least an hour - objective achieved!


Cranberry

He's all innocent and trusting here. Sweet.

The cranberry went down fairly quickly. Happily? Maybe not, but gone none the less.

Pecan

Somewhat more careful this time.

Maybe if I hang on to it for a while it will improve with age.

5 minutes later, with a whole lot of pukey looking faces - mostly gone with a few crumbs left over for the rest of the family. Hope's a sharing kind of guy.

Grape

No need to send me emails telling the grapes are toxic when fed to dogs. It was one grape. Four days later and he's still running around so I think he survived the experience. Before grapes and raisins were pronounced toxic to dogs I happily fed them loads of them. Ignorance IS bliss.

I'm pretty sure I've heard through the grapevine that you're not supposed to feed us these things...

Loyalty did win out and eventually the grape disappeared. I haven't found it stuffed into a potted plant either.

Celery

Definitely the piece de resistance.

Are you KIDDING me??

Behold the power of a dog's jaws.

Failure. In the end he just couldn't do it. He gave it a good college try though.

Good boy Hopey! Looking forward to another couple of months cooped up in the house with me?

Kate diversifies

and tries her hand at tech support.


Travis insists that she's very helpful.

Holy hoar frost batman!

We've had hoar frost this week. The first day I thought, "How beautiful. I love hoar frost".

The second day I thought, " Everything looks better with a touch of hoar frost. It's like living in a post card."


The third day the sun peeked out for about 30 seconds and I loved how everything sparkled.

By the fourth day the novelty had worn off. Hoar frost weather is damp.

Hoar frost weather is cold to your bones cold. Hoar frost weather is grey.

Bring back our good old fashioned Alberta winter I said. Be careful what you wish for.

It's windy, snowy and icky today...but hey...there's no frost left on anything!

Two peas in a pod

A different kind of dog

Sun dogs

are nice to look at

always by your side

think you are the center of their solar system

and warm your spirits on the coldest of days.

Cats are solitary creatures

I AM a lame dog for once.

Last week I decided on a whim to go in for fairly major back surgery. I can definitely strike that, and "stay in an Alberta Hospital" off my bucket list. I don't want to repeat either experience.

Now I'm home and pretty much useless around here for a few months. Of course one of my first thoughts on getting home was "gotta update the blog", "can't let the blog sit idle - the readers depend on me", "meet the unofficial once a week minimum or Jenny and Louanne will take me off their "favourites" lists.

I was planning to blog about the usual stuff, dogs and sheep and cats and the other things in the neighbourhood that entertain me, but I wasn't hear all week to be entertained and at the moment my get out there and "find the story" abilities are rather limited.

So for the next little while expect lots of pictures of stuff like this:

lucky you - no graphic scar pictures or x-rays of my new bionic parts.

Nope, it could be a whole pile of shots like this.

6 more weeks of crate rest and leash walks for me until my next vet check - yep - readership is going to soar!

What dogs do on holidays

It's not all snowshoeing and exercise around here. The dogs know how to kick back in style in the evenings.

Kate catches up on her "stories".

Hope gets the days kinks worked out with a massage.


Bruce kills something

And finally feels satisfied with his day.