Run Free

The day she was born I thought she was the prettiest horse I'd ever seen.  I still thought that on the day she died.  Saturday morning we had to let Slick go.  She was just too sick, and too weak.  I think she probably had a lot of things wrong with her and she just couldn't be fixed. 

I was blessed every day for almost two years to see her pretty face greeting me in the barn and gracing our pasture.  Now she is resting there forever. 

Here are a few of my favorite pictures of her while she was here and a lovely one shared by another owner and friend from when she was younger.

Novice and Elite at UKC

Legend and Epic went to the UKC container trial today. They both did great.  Epic passed his PT for all three scents that he knows so far-Birch, Anise, and Clove.  Then he went on to pass both legs for his Novice Container title.  He got one first, one third and a high in trial.  (It was a small trial, but still.) Legend earned a first place and high in trial for her Elite containers leg.  She got two of the three hides on the second leg but got a false.  I don't know if it was a distractor or just the wrong box or what.  But you can't be perfect all the time!  And her first leg she got all 3 in 31 seconds!

What was interesting is how Epic responded to the birch today.  It should be his strongest odor.  But it took him over a minute in PTs to find it, compared to 4 and 6 seconds for the others.  And even in warm up he was less solid on the birch.  In the trial runs he was faster than PT but it still took him more than one pass.  I wonder if this batch of birch is just a little different than ours.  It was a good learning experience for him for sure.

Getting this photo was a nightmare.  The lighting was terrible everywhere I tried, they looked like they were being tortured half the time and then the cat tried to help. 

NW3 try number not even sure

Saturday we were able to trial at our "local" trial for another NW3.  Legend was awesome.  Two of her interior rooms she was solid as a rock.  Vehicles in the rain she crushed.  Exteriors she got a little hung up in something but we still made it through clear.  Containers she was solid.  I made her show me twice just because of our history in containers.   But, she was right.

The middle interior room was where I messed up.  It was tiny, she wasn't really finding anything.  I thought it was clear but she was a little interested in the washer so I kept hanging around.  When they called 30 seconds i had to decide between alert and finish and against my gut feeling I chose alert.  One day maybe I'll learn.  But overall I felt a lot better about this trial than the last one and have renewed hope that we may pass again!

Canine Good Citizen

Epic recently completed an obedience class that culminated with taking the AKC Canine Good Citizen test.  Of course, he passed with basically flying colors.  I've always felt like the passing requirements are a little loose but overall he did well.  I hold him to a higher standard personally but there is plenty of time to improve.  Not bad for a little guy whose only been free from crate life for less than 5 months!

Poor Slick

Slick has not been well.  Her appetite has been slowly decreasing and she's losing a lot of weight and muscle. We have been trying GI ulcer therapy, nutritional supplement, and a deworming protocol. So far no improvement.  Baseline bloodwork was pretty boring so we are running some more specific tests.  Hopefully we find something treatable.  Here she is enjoying some grass on a sunny day this week.

Fall 2017

Here are some fall photos of the pups I got today. 

And a few of Epic working on a little agility.  We haven't done much but he's getting pretty reliable at calling over a jump.

NYC Day 4

This morning we went to the Top of the Rock (not Branson this time!). The lighting wasn’t great this time of day but the views are great. 

Then on to Central Park. We didn’t get to see all of it was it’s very pretty. The skyscrapers and other buildings contrasted with the natural settings is really cool. 

We ended the day at the Radio City Music Hall Christmas show which was really nice. 

And here is the Coach bag dinosaur and a few window displays on 5th Avenue. 

We’ve probably walked at least 20 miles in the last 4 days ready to head home tomorrow!

NYC Day 3

Less busy today. After a good nights sleep we checked out a few more landmarks-Madison Square Garden, Penn Station, the Empire State Building and Macy’s. 

We did a little shopping along 5th Avenue and then ice skating at Rockefeller Center. 

And a random photos 

Then we wrapped up the night with an Improv show and a late dinner.