FarmLife: Labrador Retriever

Showing posts with label Labrador Retriever. Show all posts

Saturday, June 18, 2011

To all you Southerners

...who passed on this lovely little girl, in the words of Julie Roberts' Pretty Woman character, "mistake...huge." I'm guessing you passed her by and left her for last--for me--because she was the runt of her litter. Admittedly, she's smaller than the usual Black Lab female, only 51 pounds, but she is all heart, all love, all lab, and always willing to do whatever the moment offers. Call it spunk, heart, willingness to please, or just being a lab, she is the delight of our days, every day.

Allie is the companion of my long walks. She swims in the pond, jumps trampoline high, fetches frizzbees leaping lizards, lights up lives of senior citizens in nursing homes, waits patiently on a raft (in the shade, of course), flies off our dock to go fishing, understands the true value of stopping to smell the flowers, and I could go on and on. She has added a special dimension to our lives, has locked herself into our forever hearts, and life has never been the same since her arrival. If there's an easier dog to live with and love on this planet, then Allie has a double.

Point being so simple: you missed out on the dog of your lifetime and now she's mine, and we love everything about her, including her size because we know she has the biggest heart of all. Your loss.

Tuesday, May 3, 2011

It's A Dog's Life

When Allie entered our lives in August, the very first thing she did when she touched ground was to smell the flowers. Several seasons later and spring returns. She still smells flowers, ferns, everything growing above the grass level.

A kind, energetic, but growing watchful young dog, Allie lives to be loved. I guess that's the lab personality. We walk the farmland and I get a different perspective from her. What she notices is different and more than what I see, hear, absorb. She makes farmlife fun.

Sunday, March 20, 2011

Six-Legged Walks, Ecotips, and Beating Back Cancer: Life Choices to Beat Back Cancer

Cross posted on Beating Back Cancer.

Allie loves winter, water, but not ice...

Weathering winter can challenge the best in us, and despite a harsher noreaster season than usual, signs of spring revitalize. A thick sheet of ice blanketed the farm most of the winter months, thick enough to ice skate, really. All of which made walking a brand new ADHD Black Labrador Retriever puppy a challenge because she always has energy to burn, even after an hour plus walk. The snow stayed forever but still we took our six-legged walks. Not nearly as long but definitely more often, so it all balanced. And here's the cancer connection: in spite of being outdoors at least 3 hours a day in all conditions, I never spent a healthier winter, and I owe this feat to how I choose to live. Walking Allie keeps me fit and lets me sleep through the night without Allie wanting "out."

Hours old Golden with Rev and Aunt Tess

Clearly, having 7 llamas, one of which is a growing cria, 185 acres, a husband, a city home, and a teaching career, plus 5 blogs (farmlife, cancer, school, DEN, and tech), I am always busy. And that works for me. No matter how I feel, physically or emotionally, knowing my llamas depend on me gets me up every day at 4:30 AM to begin an hour-and-a-half routine of caring for my house and barn animals. After school, another hour plus (never minus). With a house, barn, and farm to keep clean, vehicles charged, cleaned, and all the seasonal work that comes with a farm plus grading students' work keep me very busy. Seeing a cancer connection pattern here, right... My cancer specialist Dr. Sunita Nasta at the Perelman Center for Advanced Medicine, part of Penn Medicine at the Abramson Cancer Center repeatedly tells me that exercise if the best medicine, but warns me not to get exhausted. Working on the farm is whole body exercise, with the added body and soul or mind-body connection. Despite occasional fatigue, I would not change my life an iota.

Gishpheol A Nalgene plastic~think before you drink

Then there's the issue of consumption. What we choose not to consume is as critical as what we opt to select. I've moved away from most canned goods, plastic as much as possible (yes, I read for numbers). The newest and best packaging of food has moved away from BPA (Bisphenol A) because it is a suspected endocrine disrupter, a chemical that can interfere with the body's gland and hormone functions. The FDA is "working on" deciding what safe levels are. I just avoid the claptrap by choosing glass, carefully prepared frozen foods, and choosing organic. I eat a balanced abundance of grains, vegetables, and fruit, some of which comes from our farm or our neighbors' farms. Meat is usually not on my menu. This summer I am beginning an organic garden, using carefully harvested heirloom seeds that are NOT irradiated. Can you tell I am moving closer to the "R" word (retirement). Watching what you eat and drink and how your purchased food is packaged can be a lifesaver.

Great online resource for living better

Affordable symposia @ $25

Another daily practice is to read and research about cancer, and I choose mainstream, nontraditional, and alternative research therapies in hard and digital formats. I read, read, read. I look for venues that provide me with possibilities for better living in harmony with the earth. I found a free magazine (supported by practitioner and business advertisements) called Natural Awakenings. It has an online presence, but exists nationally, and if your locale does not have a current NA magazine, you can become a publisher. Inside each monthly issue is a world of lifestyle changes from which you can choose those that suit. One of my best finds from this periodical (I still love hard copy although I live a digital life) is Twin Ponds Integrative Center, a place that aggregates healthful programs, integrative practices, holistic therapies, and vibrant options for moving forward with a happy lifestyle that supports beating back cancer.

Fourth and final daily approach: prayer. Although a cliche in a post-postmodern world, I believe in the strength and healing power of prayer. Whether I'm cleaning pastures or doing yoga, I tune into God, have conversations of the silent sort, thanking and counting blessings. I pray for others, because what goes around comes around and back to you. Better to receive prayers from others than to ask God yourself. And I've learned to listen. Silence speaks, and in the early morning hours with my llamas, or in romping six-legged walks, or in late-night visits to check on the girls, I carry God's presence in my life with me.

The end result: a healthier happier me. But then, I have said this so often, I've been really lucky. Blessed.

Saturday, January 15, 2011

From A Picture Window...A Snapshot of Farmlife

Picture Perfect Dream Come True

I always wanted to live on a farm. Always. It just took me a while to achieve my lifelong dream, to look out my window and see my animals in my backyard. Let me tell you nothing is more fulfilling, nothing brings more happiness than working hard to achieve a dream and then have it come true. Definitely blessed. Totally grateful.

Through our picture window, I see my world in microcosm. Almost everything that matters in my life (except school) is right here on The Farm. Everyday, when I look through this window, I give thanks to God for His Blessings. And I thank my husband for making it all possible.

Cat to my left

Cat on my lap

Usually at my feet on the bed

Saturday is my favorite day. We all sleep in. Life begins when Mickey awakens; until then, we keep the house in lockdown quiet, since weekdays my alarm rings at 4:30 AM. Today is R&R day; I get to catch up on posting to my 4 blogs, or at least make a dent. Calm sets in and the stress of the week dissipates. Is life on the farm idyllic. Nope. But it's the life I have always and will always want. Living your dream is not something everyone gets to do, but I have always been aggressive about living not existing, and getting there and not settling. And that, I think, sheer determination, is at the heart of achieving that picture perfect window.

Life in harmony

Friday, January 7, 2011

Allie's First Winter on The Farm

If you are an animal person, then this video needs no introduction. I believe the animals who share their lives with us enrich us, keep us calm and grounded. I cannot imagine life not surrounded by the friends I love.

Allie's First Winter on The Farm from RJ Stangherlin on Vimeo.

Monday, August 30, 2010

Picnic Time for Puppy Dog

I can hear the Teddy Bear's Picnic Song in my head as I type, having grown up with Saturday morning radio programs for children. Sunday was definitely picnic time for our puppy dog. When all the food courses were served and I could finally relax, I brought Allie to the picnic, and she really enjoyed herself.

Water dog. Yes. Loves the pond. Absolutely. Had a good time. Definitely. Can she swim. You betcha.

Did she love her bath. After she was almost dried, I had gone upstairs for another towel. When I returned, she was back in the tub. True Lab. Pure good dog. Love her.

Friday, August 27, 2010

O Happy Day

Loves the water. No surprises here.

Allie was waiting for someone who didn't care she was small. She was waiting for some who wanted a really good dog. At 9 months, she was the last of her litter to leave. She was a kennel dog, so EVERYTHING is new to her. All the time.

Taking time to smell each flower. Really!

For Allie, life is now one continuous surprise, an exploration of what is possible. She revels in each new exploration, looking to me for guidance. Over the (many) years, I have learned that whether you rescue an older dog or begin with a puppy, what you do in the first 48 hours will remain an imprint forever. So I have taken great pains to give Allie an enriched life. And that will not end in 2 days.

The newness of discovery.

She just won't take no for an answer.

Yesterday we did so much. We took 20 minute browsing walks, leisurely letting Allie chose her opportunities to scent, smell, look about, chose her pathways. So many good things to learn about on a farm; for a dog like reading the Times Union.

Best of all, she loves Mickey, and that very fact is the cause of so much deep and abiding laughter. Mickey wants Allie to be attentive to her, and that is NOT a problem for her. But Mickey does not want to be licked. Problem. Allie's a lover and a licker. Mickey hates to be wet. Allie love Mickey, so she licks him. Lots. What's so funny is Mickey's comments. The unprintable are funner, but things like I'm rusting away. The watch won't work. I want to eat that fruit. It's like getting a bath. And he loves every minute of it. So do I. So does Allie. O happy day!

Saturday, May 15, 2010

Me and My Shadow

She is my shadow; wherever I am, she is by my side. She looks like midnight, no white or gray on her. She is intimidating, because you have trouble seeing her face, so you cannot judge intent. Part Labrador Retriever, part German Shepherd, she is the best of both worlds. When properly introduced, she can be the most loving dog. That would be the Lab in her. And yes, she is the first dog that I can trust with children. She will protect and defend them. That part is the German Shepherd in her; she herds and she is one mean (and she means it) protector and defender of her terrain. And she knows every one of those 185 acres because we walk them throughout the 3 seasons.

She looks like a bear when she walks uphill, and she has stopped several cars wandering through our rural retreat. One actually parked to look at her. She has almost eaten the UPS guy, and her reputation has spread to include all delivery people. They do a drive-by and fling the package quickly. I was home one day when I saw the UPS man actually leap sideways when he saw and heard her barking behind a locked glass door.

Is she the best dog ever, among my many. Depends how I would define best. Overall, no. That would fall to our first Miss Emmie who was the most intelligent and perhaps most protective of me ever. But for guarding the llamas, for letting us know every move they make, even at 3 AM, she is unbeatable. And she is my great protector. She is starting to show her age, and so perhaps there is another dog is my future. I think I'll do what my friend Jennifer Brinson did, and get a puppy so this dog can train the new kid on the block. Something sad about our pets aging; still, she has, God willing, years left, and time has not dimmed her ability to protect and defend.

Wednesday, July 29, 2009

Inside Out

Almost all of my posts about life on the farm focus on the outside, but today I am tackling this post inside out (as soon as the MAC pinwheel disappears). When you think farm, you think animals and the progression usually moves to barns, pastures, fences, thinking outside, conjuring images of sheep, goats, cattle, horses, dogs.... Today, thinking outside the box, we're moving inside. Let's start with the house cats. Our tabby, Nina, weighs in at an unhealthy 20 pounds; Mamma Cat defines her household status and her role. Nina vets all the dogs, walking up to them, putting her nose on theirs, as it to say, okay, you're a keeper; you pass the test. Nina is the boss of the household (funny, I thought I was). Although it may be hard to tell from this photo, 6 years later, Nina still grooms Maggie, who consequently does not know how to do so herself.

Although she has never given birth, Nina adopted Maggie from the moment she entered our household. Maggie was a special needs cat. At 9 weeks, she fit inside my hand. She was born without a tail but with an extra vertabra, making her silhoutte regal with a high arch. Any creature who began life so challenged (the only kitten to survive in her small litter) deserves a wonderful life, unchallenged by complications. But Maggie nearly died twice; the first time from a single prescription eye drop. I was holding her in my arms as she went limp. Miraculously, the vets (local and UPenn Small Animal Clinic) saved her, only to have her go plantigrade several months later. She hopped like the rabbit she almost resembled, and again we took her to UPenn.

They could do nothing for her, but once again, like a miracle, three day later, she was normal and has remained so ever since. Weighing in at a long and lean 9 pounds, she is the joy of our life and definitely Mickey's cat. She is good about sharing her love, and still falls asleep on my chest, but, make no mistake: she's Mickey's girl.

How soon she forgot who took care of her for her first 3 months when she arrived. Does she remember that I slept on the pull-out bed downstairs all summer so she would have company? That's my girl.

Definitely not Mickey's girl is my dog Julie. She, too, was adopted, actually from the same very generous woman who gave us Maggie. Julie is an all-black (reminds me of the NZ soccer team) GSD and Labrador Retriever mix. A true hybrid, she carries a toy with her wherever she goes, is loving and great with children and guests, but is preternaturally protective of her farm and family. She is never off a leash, because her GSD instincts make her 120 pounds of reckoning. This photo was taken last winter; she has added some pounds since then, making her even more formidable looking. Clearly I need to add more inside images to my collection.

Moving to the outside (you thought you'd see animals here, right) presents the classic farm paradigm: problems with keeping equipment running. No matter how many tractors you have, normal use needs normal maintenance. Fortunately for me, I have the BEST help, bar none. Albert was cutting the orchard grass in the pasture, top trimming, when the bottom cutting tray just dropped off. Lucky for all of us, Titus was driving by. He's a great mechanic and a tremendous help while Albert battles gout in his one wrist (and he's still moving all these acres; told you I had great help).

Curious as their gene pool makes them, the girls just could not be keep out of the action. Although I did not capture the quintessential picture, Tess tried diligently to get as close as she could to the boys and the tractor. One of my earliest memories of Tess and Rev was how as young crias they edged under Carol's fence to get as close as they could to a mother and her new-born cria. Their inquisitiveness has never faltered. If something is going on, they desperately want to be part of it. That's what I LOVE about these two. Missing is Cierra, and since I just spoke with Carol, we are reasonably certain she is pregnant, and that is good news indeed.

The last image is definitely outside, almost an anomaly. If you look very closely, you will notice a light on two trees. Considering that I snapped this shot at 9:30 this morning, the lights foreshadow grey storm clouds gathering overhead, generating a scary storm warning for the PM forecast. Mercifully, we escaped damage and the girls are safe. I hate hurricane season, and although we are not in the Weather Channel's usual doom-and-gloom predictions, today was an exception that gave pause for prayer. We are not safely out of the warning until 8 PM, so the countdown to safety continues.