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Duckie and Luckie (2 local ducks) were sunning on the dock. Lulu saw them first and decided to give chase. The ducks flew into the water just out of easy dog reach. Sofie started to swim towards them, but decided that maybe it wasn’t the best idea. I don’t let the dogs in the river often because of concern for bacteria etc., but at 110 degrees in the shade I figure they really needed the swim. Our daily walks are getting shorter and shorter and earlier and earlier because of the heat wave. This was a nice adventure.
Ducks are kind of funny creatures. They appear to be smart enough to stay safe but they sure are funny and like to tease the dogs. I have not seen any ducklings yet, which I usually do by now, so I am concerned if the heat is even effecting them.
Just another DogDaz morning at the zoo ❤ 
Tags: Animal, animal awareness, dog, Dog People, DogDaz, Duck, nature, Pet, pets, postaday
Friday’s Derecho aftermath. Pull out the chainsaws!
Mommy, it is really hot! When is the air conditioner coming back on?
I will just keep rolling in the grass and eating sticks. That should cool me off and help Mommy clean up at the same time.
They say we had a Derecho Friday night. Sounded like a freight train to us. Aftermath looks like a tornado. Thanks to Wikipedia and The Weather Channel, I now know that a derecho is a widespread and long-lived, violent convectively induced straight-line windstorm that is associated with a fast-moving band of severe thunderstorms in the form of a squall line usually taking the form of a bow echo. Derechos blow in the direction of movement of their associated storms, similar to a gust front, except that the wind is sustained and generally increases in strength behind the “gust” front. A warm weather phenomenon, derechos occur mostly in summer, especially June and July in the Northern Hemisphere. They can occur at any time of the year and occur as frequently at night as in the daylight hours.
The dogs were fast asleep already in their beds. Storm came through around 11 PM (23:00 hrs). Sofie started going crazy. I opened the kennel doors and lied on the floor with them. All the humans huddled in the bed room and we listened. Then the transformers outside the house blew – one then two. Power gone. The storm past in maybe 30 or 40 minutes. It was to dark to see outside but we figured we had ‘weathered’ the worst.
Morning came and it appeared mostly to be tree damage on the grounds and in the pool for us. My neighbor, sadly, had 2 trees fall, one into each side of their roof, totally destroying the upper level of the home and the deck (that is their yard in the picture). I can live with cleaning up leaves and no power compared to that.
The dogs were very good. When we first came out in the morning I wasn’t thinking, but of course, the gates would all have blown open (actually the wind was so strong that slates blew off the main gate). I ran to the main gate to find both dogs standing there inside the yard line, thinking about what this really meant and should they run. They didn’t, I closed and secured the gates, and life went on.
The current temperature is over 100 degrees Fahrenheit (38 Celsius) during the days with no end in sight. Because we live on a peninsula, we are the first to lose power and the last to get it back (or so it seems). After losing power for 2 weeks last year, I finally got a gas generator. To run the refrigerator, a light and some fans, I had to drive 30 miles into Baltimore to get gas, but it was worth it. The dogs are hot. They keep wanted to know where the air conditioning is. Everyone is napping a lot. I am worried about the old cat, Muffin, his breathing is poor even in a cool house so this is very stressful on an old system, so I am forcing him to stay down stairs with us in front of the fan.
You never know when a strong wind or a ‘not thinking’ person is going to leave the gate open. That is why the dogs wear name collars with my mobile phone number on them. I guess you just never know when a Derecho is going to blew through.
Just another DogDaz morning at the zoo ❤
Tags: Animal, animal awareness, Animal welfare, animals, Derecho, Dog People, DogDaz, Dogs, nature, Pet, pets, postaday, Storm
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Walks are a really important thing at our house. Not only because they provide much needed exercise for me and the dogs, but because of the solace and peace they provide us. My daily dog walks give me an opportunity to focus just on them, as well as be alone with my thoughts. I work a very hectic schedule, so my time with the dogs is sacred. I work 10 to 12 hours or more almost every week day and many weekends. This does not leave a lot of time for me to be with the animals or my other humans. I make sure to carve the 1 mile dog walk every morning out of my schedule. This is how we all stay in balance. When I don’t do that the dogs and I both go crazy. Rain or shine. Many days Mojo and his humans joins us for our walk, those days are a little more social than reflective, but that is nice too. The walking bond is very special between me and the girls. Louise is the kind of dog that really needs her walk daily. She likes to run around in the yard, but she looks forward to the walk with me and saves her ‘personal business’ for that endeavor. When I am not around, it is really hard for her. Sofie just comes along for the ride. She enjoys the sniffing and exploring, but I am not sure she would miss it that much if she did not have it for a while. Taking time to reflect, smell the flowers, and commune with my animals, keeps me whole. Do you have a special routine with your fuzzy?
Just another DogDaz morning at the zoo ❤ 
Tags: Animal, animals, Dog People, DogDaz, Dogs, Pet, pets, postaday, walking
Reblogged from For the Love of the Dog Facebook page.
Tags: Animal, animal awareness, Animal welfare, animals, Dog People, DogDaz, Dogs, Pet, pets, pit bull, postaday
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My big sister, Louise (aka the Darkness), and I like to toss and tumble a lot. Sometimes I could just be lying peacefully under the big tree and she will come over and pounce on my head and start something. Most of the time, Mommy says that it is me that starts things. But Lulu and I really enjoy our tumbling and mouthing of each other. I show her my teeth and she just bats me on the head with her big black paws. Lulu is bigger and stronger than me, and sometimes she can be a lot meaner too. She is the quiet type and we can be playing along fine until I say or do something that she does not like and then….. whack….. she hits me or bites my collar and drags me half way across the yard. Sisters can be difficult at times but I do not know what I would do without my bestest friend in the whole world. I love you Lulu Belle – Your lil’ sister, Sofie (the pain in your side) Bear
Just another DogDaz morning at the zoo ❤
Tags: Animal, animals, cute dogs, dog, Dog People, DogDaz, Dogs, nature, Pet, pets, postaday
We’re bored. Mommy has been working really long hours and we don’t get to play with her as much as we like. We have every toy in the world, but they are not as much fun when Mom’s not on the other end. I know that we have lots of cats to chase, and we run around the yard and eat sticks and chew mulch, but that gets boring. We chase each other a lot and fight over the toys and the balls, but if Mommy is not there with us, it is just not the same. So we mope. We make little whinny noises so that she understands that she really needs to stop what she is doing and interact with us, right now! Not later Mommy, NOW! She does not like when we get demanding. Actually, when we yell at her she seems to ignore us even more. Maybe if we sit nicely she will come down on the floor and play with us. Maybe we should go get jobs, like hole digging or security guards, so that we can bring some money in and Mommy could retire and sit around all day and play games. But then we won’t be here because we would be working. And then Mommy would be bored because she would not have us to play with. Oh well, I guess it is better if the human works and we hang out all day until she is free. It’s a hard life being a house dog, but someone has to do it.
Mommy can you play with us now?
Love, Louise and Sofie Bear, you darling dearest doggies
Just another DogDaz morning at the zoo ❤
Tags: Animal, animals, dog, Dog People, DogDaz, Dogs, Mother, nature, Pet, pets, postaday
There is nothing like lazing on a fine sunny day. Louise just loves to sit in her spot on the deck and take in all the warmth of the day, 
Sofie finds a nice cool hole to lie in somewhere under the trees (just like Squash used to). Don’t you wish sometimes you could have a dog’s life?
Just the other day I was thinking about how lucky I am. Though I work way to many hours, I have great friends and family, a ton of silly animals, have food to my hearts content, and am blessed with feeling safe in my home and surroundings. If I were a dog, I would probably want the same things (well maybe not the work part). I guess maybe I do have a dog’s life after all, with just a different kind of herd to tend. Well, I think I will go lie on the deck.
Just another DogDaz morning at the zoo ❤
Tags: Animal, animal awareness, animals, dog, Dog People, DogDaz, Dogs, Pet, pets, postaday
I am not sure why but my dogs seem to sleep like bookends a great deal of the time. Do we animals sleep with our back to our best friend because that is safe? This way you know your back is protected and that your best buddy will see things coming from one way and you will see them from the other? I just find it interesting because that is how I sleep as a human. I always turn out with my back to the center of the bed. Otherwise, it feels to vulnerable. I have tried to turn with my back to the outside but something about that just does not feel safe. A Travelodge survey found that 50% of British couples prefer sleeping back-to-back, either not touching (27%) or touching (23%). When I started looking into this for the blog, I found a ton of hits about dogs sleeping on their backs, but I only found one (http://dogs.lovetoknow.com/wiki/Dog_Sleep) that talked about back-to-back behavior. That blog talked about it being bonding behavior as well as safety. Since I do not sleep with my dogs in the bed, I wonder how people and dogs that do sleep together are positioned. Does your dog have your back?
Just another dogdaz morning at the zoo ❤
Tags: Animal, Animal welfare, animals, dog, Dog People, DogDaz, Dogs, nature, Pet, pets, postaday
Adopt the pace of nature: her secret is patience. ~Ralph Waldo Emerson
Watching and waiting. The dogs seem to spend a great deal of time watching and waiting. They love to look out the door and watch the world; some things they bark at, others they just watch walk by. The poor things seem to always be waiting for me to play with them. Waiting for me to make breakfast. Waiting for me to make dinner. Waiting to go for a walk. Waiting to go outside and run around. Watching me while I work. Watching me do chores. Waiting and watching while I talk to a neighbor. Watching squirrels that they are not allowed to chase. Waiting for the moment when I tell them to run free. I guess we all spend a lot of time in our lives watching and waiting. ‘Patience’ they say is a virtue. The ability to wait for something calmly. The secret to so many things in life appears to be just giving them time and having patience. I find this especially true when working with animals. Both my dogs require tremendous patience from me: Louise because she is fearful and Sofie because she is headstrong. So as they watch and wait for me, I, in turn, watch and wait for them.
Just another DogDaz morning at the zoo ❤
Tags: Animal, animal awareness, animals, dog, Dog People, DogDaz, Dogs, nature, Pet, pets, postaday, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Watchful waiting
firepaw:
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Follow up: Tainted Dog Food…Now Getting People Sick Too
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Tainted Dog Food Sickens 14 People.
Food safety News, Mary Rothschild
At least 14 people have been sickened with Salmonella Infantis infections in a 9-state outbreak linked to dog food. At least nine of the individuals have been hospitalized, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.The CDC reported Thursday that… Read more »
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Tags: Animal, animal awareness, Animal welfare, animals, CDC, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Diamond Pet Food, dog, Dog food, Dog People, Dogs, Pet, Pet food, pets, postaday, Salmonella, South Carolina
