White Shepherd Stories

Tattletale

 

While sitting at my desk, looking out the window toward the river and the woods, I noticed a fast running dog headed for the house.  His ears lay flat back on his neck and his tongue lolled out the side of his mouth.  Soon I heard the flap on the doggy door as he lunged through it, then down the entry hall, around the corner and down the long hall to my office.  He was panting and obviously had something important to tell me.  He had run all the way from the far corner of the property down by the pump house. 

He threw his top half in my lap making anxious whimpering sounds.  I hugged him, as it is one of my favorite things to do.  He accepted the hug for a second, but then pulled away and wanted me to follow him.  I looked out the window and by this time Quest and Pirate were out of the woods and in sight, moving along the fence that skirts the road.  They were accompanying a runner, who was enjoying the perfect fall morning. 

Journey would probably be considered a tattletale by Quest and Pirate.  He always notifies me if something unusual is going on.  When ever the other dogs are doing something he finds concerning, Journey lets me know about it before going back to join in with the others.  If he figures it is very serious, he will even come back a second time to emphasize his alert.   He is funny, in that he is not necessarily afraid of what is happening, he just feels a need to report it to me before he goes back out to confront whatever if may be, with the other guys.  I love it!

This runner has not been up our way in a while.  She is one of Quest’s favorites.  He and Spirit used to accompany her nearly every day as she passed our property.  I guess Journey had not seen her before, and he felt the need to let me know what was going on.  He is a funny pup and for all his confidence, there are certain areas that he feels he needs to consult with me about. Once he urgently reported two Rottweilers that were hanging around down by our gate.  Another time the neighbor’s Dachshund, “Emmy” was trying to fence-fight with Quest and Journey felt that was an extreme emergency.  It is fun to try and figure why he interprets some things as dire emergencies and others no big thing.

Journey just turned 1 year old on August 31, 2011.  He is sired by Surefire Obi-Wan Kinobe, out of Regalwise Gabriella, of Surefire.  He is one of the happiest puppies I have ever known.  If I look at him, his tail wags.  It is automatic ( and awfully cute).  If I speak to him, or he even thinks I am going to speak to him, his chin comes up, his ears lay back and his body just wiggles love at me.   When he was a baby, and he and his brothers and sisters gathered around the food pan I could always spot Journey, even if I could not see the blue collar – his tail was always up and wagging. 

 Journey (blue collar) with the wagging tail.

Now that I know what a gourmet he is, I am thinking he possibly was just enjoying it more than anyone else.  He eats, (or at least tries to eat) everything that I do.  He has a long list of gastronomical delights, some of the oddest (for a dog) are: oranges, tomatoes, various salads, plums, apples, kiwis, mangoes and all kinds of berries.    He loves many vegetables: yams, carrots, broccoli, artichokes, green beans and his favorite – I think – snap peas.  If I give him something new that he is debating about, he carries it around with him for a while, occasionally sampling it until he makes up his mind.  I never find it laying around, so it is usually a thumbs up – or toes up anyway. 

As much as Quest loves to eat, and he really does, he does not have anywhere near the adventurous tastes that Journey does.  Pirate is amazed by Journey’s appetite.  He watches Journey eat with fascination.  He usually tries what ever it is, eventually, but often just drops it and stares at Journey while he eats.   Once Pirate has something new in his mouth, he really tries to like it, but he does not always succeed.  He has learned to like a lot of things that Journey eats though.  He now enjoys bananas.  Even Quest will sometimes eat them.  They all like berries, but not near as much as Journey and they do not usually pick their own as Journey does.  He carefully puts his mouth around little bunches of blueberries and gently wiggles his lips to dislodge the berries from the bush.  He only takes the ripe ones that fall off into his mouth.  It is fun to watch him.  He is very good at picking blueberries.  He picks black berries too, but not quite as often.  He seems to like them just fine, but is a little more cautious because of the thorns.

 

We are lucky to have a wonderful selection of fruit trees in our yard.    We have about seven apple trees.  There are numerous different kinds:  some that bloom early and some late.  So there are apples available  for several months.  The dogs often help themselves to a fallen apple.  We have at least three different plum trees, and lots of pear trees.  Then the berries ….. blackberries, Marianberries, gooseberries, blueberries and several I can not identify.   My favorite breakfast is a toasted bagel spread with cream cheese.  I take it out to the blue berry bushes for a topping of sweet fresh blueberries.   Journey is as crazy about this breakfast as I am.  Pirate kind of likes it, but not as much as Journey and I do.  We sit on the lawn and enjoy it.  

If I encouraged the dogs to hunt, they could enjoy a pretty well balanced diet without leaving our property, for several months of the year.  As it is, we sometimes have a picnic of fruit that we collect, and maybe something I bring to go with it.  Their favorite picnic treat is to share a can of sardines, or herring between them.  

 Journey with ball.  Pirate by the apple trees.

   

Quest

Fall is in the air, the last few mornings.  Most of the leaves have not turned yet, just a few on the giant Maple tree.   Mornings are beginning to be a bit crisp ….last night it was 40 degrees.  Today it is 80 degrees, so maybe this is the last attempt at a summer day.

 Pirate

Many of the catalogs have been having sales on pool toys.  We got a new box yesterday with four new ones.  I thought of saving them for next summer, but decided not to. They will save just as well after being used for a few more swim sessions.  The  dogs are telling me it is pool time, so I had better sign off for now.     

 "Everyone in the pool"

Journey

Pirate

Journey and Pirate

Journey at UKC Show - St. Helens, Oregon

Journey was in the St. Helens, Oregon UKC Dog Show last weekend.  He got one Best of Breed,  three Champion of Champions and one Reserve.   He also acted so mature I was finally able to stand ringside to watch him instead of having to hide from him while Nicole was showing him for me.  

Thanks Nicole! 

 

Oregon Lake Camping

 Quest, Pirate & Journey on the right. 

The Northwest is full of lakes and rivers.  If I spent the rest of my life visiting them I would never run out of ones I had not seen.  (I may do just that).  We got home last Sunday night, after almost a week of camping.  We were tired and a bit dirty but we had a wonderful time. It was late as we wound up our road to our hilltop home.   As I pulled up to the gate the dogs became aware, and Pirate squealed in delight as he recognized his home. They could hardly wait as the gate opened for us and we drove up the driveway to the level area on top.   

I decided not to put the RV in the garage, but rather to leave the unpacking until the next day when I was not so tired.   The dogs all got out and began checking their property to be certain everything was the way it should be, and that there were no intruders.  They found a couple old Jolly Balls that I believe they leave out as bait, in order to detect any thieves that might visit while we are gone.   I try to put all the toys away before we leave but invariably as I am driving to the gate I see that someone has placed a few toys in strategic spots on the lawn.

I did take the time to bring the birds inside.  "Bogey", a small parrot type bird called a Nanday Conure and a parakeet,  "Cheepy" (I know, not very original), have to go with us. Bogey actually travels very well and he loves it.  I don't know if Cheepy loves it or not, but he objects to being away from Bogey and I don't have the heart to leave him alone or at a boarding facility.  We have had Bogey for about 28 years and he has traveled extensively.  He is a great "watch-bird" and he always alerts when someone is too close to the RV, or if he sees something strange out his window.  If a stranger comes to the door he literally screams!  So that is very handy if I stop to take a few pictures, or walk the dogs at a rest stop.  I don't need to lock everything up.  I can hear Bogey scream from probably a mile away.  I believe anyone intent on entering our RV would quickly change their mind with the racket Bogey makes.  We have never had a problem.

Bogey likes to have his travel cage on the table (secured by bungees), in front of the big window.  Now that Journey rides on the dinette seat part of the time, I usually leave Bogey and Cheepy (got to change that name) on the upper bunk.  It has a good view and they can see out several different windows.  Also, if I have the air conditioner going I can pull the curtains so they do not get too much direct draft.   My dogs love the birds and even the bunny (he does not travel with us), but Journey is still trying to be best buddies with Bogey and although Bogey seems to like him alright, he sometimes gets a little grumpy with all the togetherness and he has been known to nibble at Journey's nose.  Journey is pretty respectful.  

Bunny "Guido" does not travel with us because he would need to be on the floor and floor space is at a premium in our RV.  Our neighbor and handyman checks in on Guido and keeps watch over our house while we are gone.  When we get back, even if I have already put the RV in it's garage, Devin knows when we are home when he goes by and sees all the toys back all over the lawn.  It is colorful.  I will have to take a picture sometime.  It makes it difficult to cut the lawn.

It was nice to shower in my big shower, and sleep in my home bed.  It was very nice to have the temperature controlled automatically.  The RV is comfortable, but the shower space is a little cramped.  My double bed in the RV would not be bad except that Journey and Pirate insist on sharing it with me.  Pirate stays on his side and eventually gets down when it gets too warm, but Journey often sleeps cross-wise and he cuddles, even if it is way too warm for that much closeness.  Of course in the cold months I appreciate it.   

We set out on this trip about a week ago.  We were joining my daughter, her husband and his mother, Shirley - who is visiting from San Antonio, Texas.  They were leaving from Portland and since I was further north, we would be meeting them at the first campground - Detroit Lake, Oregon.  We took the Interstate 5 highway south to Salem, OR. where we turned off on highway 22 east to Detroit Lake.  Laura had reserved two campsites next to each other, on the edge of the lake.  It was very nice, although still very hot, even though it was dark when we arrived.   I parked and walked the dogs before we had dinner.  Kevin barbecued some incredible steaks on his Traeger grill while we sipped champagne.  

Coffee in the morning at Laura & Kevin's Air Stream.

Kevin's mom, ready to go for a sail with Kevin.  

 
 Pirate, Quest & Journey checking out the lake.

The swim team

After the morning run and swim we went back to camp and relaxed for a while.  It was unusually hot.  The temperature was in the 90's and the shade from the huge trees was welcome.

I took the dogs for a walk around the campground before dinner and then we all sat at the picnic table and fooled around on our computers.  The Air Stream has an elaborate wifi system.  The reception was not the greatest from this campground, but good enough for everything but downloading videos, or extremely large files.  It was fine for pictures or email.   We had fun visiting.  We skipped having our normal campfire - it was just too hot. We finished the wine and stayed up quite late, visiting after dinner.  By the time the dogs and I went next door to our camp it had finally cooled off a bit.

The next day I took the dogs to the beach, in front of our campground.  I threw sticks and they raced each other on the beach and swimming in the lake until they were exhausted.  About noon it was getting very hot and we went back to the campground.   We decided to rent a boat and do some fishing.  I turned on the air conditioning in the RV and put the dogs inside to nap while we were gone.   

Our camp is right behind this row of trees.

Detroit Lake

"You guys better touch land for a while"

We drove a few miles to the other end of the lake where they rent boats from the little general store.  I enjoyed hearing Laura request a boat with a lid on it.  Honest!  And to think she grew up on boats.  The woman in the store laughed and signed us out with a pontoon boat (with a lid to shade us).  

We loaded fishing poles and picnic lunch and headed out on the lake.  

Kevin & his mom, Shirley

Beautiful boating, but no fish.

Laura and Kevin dropped us off on the dock by our campground and took the rental boat back.  Shirley decided to take a shower and I took the dogs to the beach for another swim.   It was such a nice day.  Although we did not catch any fish, we were all looking forward to barbecued pizza. 

Pirate & Journey having a wrestling match before dinner.

Quesy likes to get dirty.  He works at it and is happy to pose for pictures.

This is our peaceful campsite. 

The photo above was taken just before a chipmunk came out from under the RV in the middle of the dogs.  That was when all heck broke loose and the dogs took out one leg of the awning and the ti-ki torch next door.  It was wild!  I could not really blame them.  They had been watching the little critters for a couple days .... and finally, there he was within reach.  Well, thank goodness he got away, but I will be taking the RV to the shop for an awning repair.  

The pizza was amazing.  It was finally slightly cooler and easier to sleep. 

A walk before breakfast (Eggs Benedict).   

Journey

Pirate with a big chunk of bark.

The dogs are going to miss this lake.  They have really enjoyed playing in the water.

We are on our way south-east, to Lake Paulina.

Paulina Lake is one of the twin crater lakes.  The other is East Lake, located 6,350 feet above sea level in Newberry Crater, Central Oregon.  It is in the Deschutes National Forest, near La Pine, Oregon.  The crater was built from 500,000 years of volcanic eruptions.  The lakes main inflow is from snow melt, hot springs, and seepage from East Lake.  Its primary outflow is Paulina Creek. The average depth is 163 feet.  The deepest part of the lake reaches 250 feet . The lake covers 1,531 acres. It is about 50 feet lower, and to the west of its twin, East Lake. Paulina Lake is known for its large number of kokanee salmon and brown trout.

Photo from Wikipedia - unnamed photographer.

We drove to the overlook and I  took the following pictures:

We hiked to the top of the crater edge and thought this little plate would have a higher altitude on it, but it was apparently just the surveyor's stamp even though it was probably twenty  or thirty feet above the altitude sign.  

We headed back down a very steep, winding  road, back toward our lakeside campground.  We stopped at the Obsidian Flow.

Back at the campground Kevin unloaded the Hobie.  It was much cooler at Lake Paulina than at Lake Detroit.  I am not that fond of hot weather and I was looking forward to sleeping much better.

Every time we sit outside and I place the mat out for the dogs, that is Pirate's signal to bring out all the toys.  He has always considered himself the distributor of the toys.  He gives something to everyone.  He puts thought into it and sometimes takes a toy back for himself and gives a dog a different toy.   He is funny to watch.  It is one of his favorite jobs. I believe Journey is studying how it is done.  

 

Everyone slept well at this campground.  It was unbelievably quiet - only bird sounds and the gentle lapping  of the lake at the dock.   The next day Laura and I went sailing.

 

 

It was a long drive home, over 400 miles.  We stopped for lunch.  I had brought the makings for tostados and we put them together at a rest stop.  I walked the dogs and met a woman whose nephew breeds Berger Blanc Suisse in Barcelona (I believe) .  She walked over to admire my dogs  

We stopped at Laura & Kevin's house in Portland and ordered some Indian food - delivery!  What a treat.  No one delivers food when you live out as far as we do.  I left for home, our last leg of the trip was about forty-five minutes.

   

I can hardly wait for our next trip.  I have such nice memories, and this picture Laura took of me when I was fishing on the boat with the lid.