Wanna Take a Dip-Dip?

This question gets our corgis all excited for they know it means swimming! Boy, do they like swimming! Apparently not all corgis do, but HoneyPie and Buster are all about it.

When HoneyPie was a puppy she would jump into the stock tanks. Good sign that she liked water.

HoneyPie’s puppy pool—the stock tank!

Buster being two years younger than HoneyPie is no less exuberant.

I am grateful for their joy of water. Corgis are active dogs. Swimming sure helps get energy out and offers great exercise.

Walking before me to the pond, they both turn around to check I am still coming.

We start slowly at the first of our swimming days. Cold months with no swimming means we must pace the dogs until their stamina is built up.

Buster goes full-steam ahead on retrieving.
HoneyPie and her big dive.

Looking for sticks, the right stick is a job. Once I tossed a stick in for HoneyPie and it sank!!? I realized the value of another one close at hand. She went after that one. Thank goodness, as I am not sure how long they would look, and tire themselves out.

Sometimes they are anticipating the wrong direction a stick is thrown and jump in before they see it hit the water. This puts them on a wrong path. I have learned to throw a stone in near the stick that grabs their attention and puts them on the correct path.

The stick caddy.

Well exercised dogs are happier dogs which makes for happy owners out here on our farm!

Water reflecting on the leaves is pretty.
Let’s go again says HoneyPie.
Buster on track.

Do your dogs like swimming?

Brought Over

I am a docent at the oldest home in Winchester, VA, Abram’s Delight Museum. It is a beautifully built limestone home constructed in 1754. Please come take a tour should you be in our town. To step back in time and walk through this lovely, well-built home gives visitors a true glimpse and feel for the arduous life of our frontier folk who fought hardships we have never seen the likes of. It is very nearly embarrassing the lack of knowledge and know-how we no longer possess.

As a docent, it is surprising how little of our own country’s history people know. I have heard some astonishing statements in regards to historical fact.

One of the most astounding is that Native Americans taught the white man how to ride horses!

Obviously whoever made that silly statement does not know history.

Here is the truth: Horses were not indigenous to America.

Horses were not in America.

I know there is “new” evidence of horses being here, oh around 20 million years ago and then became “extinct” 11 million years ago.” Really? Who was ever around to record that “history?”

For years all school children knew this fact because they read Misty of Chincoteague. They knew horses were brought over by the Spanish explorers.

Mans great advancements in conquering the world are in debt to the horse.

Even if this far-fetched idea was reality, American Indians, never saw or used horses before Spanish explorers brought them over. In fact, they used dogs. They fashioned a travois (as the French called them) for dogs. Dogs did the work for them.

Taken from Internet.
Wild horses roam the plains now, but they are descendants from the Spanish horses.

The Indians quickly learned the immense value of the horse. Stealing horses was very common in our country back then. Do you know horse thieves could be hanged for stealing them? So valuable were they to mankind.

There are many beneficial things the Indians taught the white man, but nothing to do with horses. Mankind truly owes more to the horse than horse to mankind. Thank God for the horse.

Horses were of huge value to mankind.

History, accurate and true history, is important. Nothing beats visiting real historic places and reading good history books.

Look back at our struggle for freedom,

Trace our present day strength to its source,

And you’ll find that man’s pathway to glory,

Is strewn with the bones of a horse.

——–Unknown

A Small Herding Dog

Do you know any of the small herding dogs? There are several breeds, and we have one of them, Pembroke Corgis. Affectionally know to many older folk as “the Queens dogs.”

As well they should be. It was because of Queen Elizabeth II that the Corgi officially became a registered dog. Someone wisely decided the Queen should have registered dogs, after all she bred them all her life, and she was the Queen of England!

I must like herding dogs too (of mostly mixed breed) as I have had several over my lifetime. They are energetic, active dogs—most certainly not lap dogs.

For the first time we now have purebred ones, the Pembroke Corgi. HoneyPie is five years old, Buster is three.

HoneyPie

They came from breeders in south-west, Virginia. We waited a couple years before getting Buster because we still had our good, old mixed-breed herding dog, Dandy.

Taking a walk with our old dog, Dandy, teaching puppy HoneyPie.
Dandy took his job seriously of watching the farm...
…he taught HoneyPie well.

We purchased Buster two years later. Bill wanted a tri-colored, HoneyPie. I wanted a gold and white one, so we got Buster.

My pal, Buster.

I have always admired the herding dogs ability with livestock. Sheep trials are thrilling to watch the way those well-trained dogs and owners work sheep together.

It interested me to train our dogs to herd. With only articles off internet I worked at training mostly HoneyPie. We do not have sheep. We have chickens. The articles I studied said it helps to have the flock (in my case) know where they were to go. This was very helpful because at dusk chicken head to the henhouse.

She learned as well, I suppose, as any greenhorn could teach her. We have had fun. She will do right nice with the cattle as well.

Having a second dog made for more difficulty with training two dogs. Buster is exuberant, but not as well disciplined. That is my fault.

They are waiting for Bill to whistle for the horses to come in.

They enjoy bringing the horses in, though they would never win any herding competition.

They love bringing the horses in.
They will go get the minis after High Hope and Duke come in.

Really, they are far from being a good herding dog, but we have enjoyed learning and trying.

Have you ever gone to sheep dog trials?

We do enjoy this active, happy breed of dog, now for a swim HoneyPie & Buster!

Meet Napoleon

We have a new addition to our farm. His name is Napoleon. This name given to him by his previous owner.

We like the name. It seems to fit this little fella very well. Good thing he is not a fit travel companion, otherwise he would now be on the PCT (Pacific Coast Trail) with our son, Gordon, who likes him very much. I believe if he could have figured out how to take Napoleon he would have.

I can see him right now riding on Gordon’s shoulder! Since he was not able to join Gordon, Napoleon sent him good wishes for hiking.

Happy Trails to you, Gordon, from Napoleon.

He earned the name Napoleon, because, well, he is tiny! He is a Bantam rooster. His previous owner did not want another rooster. Neither did we, but she gave him to us anyway. Such is the way with daughters that think we need more chickens!

In spite of ourselves we like him. He is so little. When he crows he sounds like a wind-up toy! He is also quite friendly. The hens do not seem to have any opinion of him. He is still a baby and has a bit more growing to do.

He is much smaller than our hens.
Actually he is very pretty. Blue, and green feathers shine in the sun.
He is so little.

We get a kick at how his tail goes straight up. Like a sail. He is fun to watch.

Enjoying his baby food.
Bantams are miniature chickens.

He has settled nicely into life here at the farm. He will be here when Gordon returns from his hike.