Grammys Corgi Country

Proverbs 17:6 says “Children’s children (Grandchildren) are a crown to the aged…” Now I’m getting a bit “long in the tooth” as they say, but don’t exactly feel “aged” yet. Still, when I get to spend some time with my grandkids, I feel like royalty… or at least an especially blessed person!!!

Today, I got to have my “Little Bear” all day long, and it was so much fun. He is five years old now, and until recently (about 3 months ago) I had gotten to spend at least 2 days a week with him, and sometimes more, so he was a BIG part of my life. When his father, my cowboy son, got a new, much better job, they had to move to a town about 2 hours drive from here, so now I only get to see him a couple of times a month, sometimes for only a couple of hours a visit. I really miss him a lot, and he says the same to me.

This weekend, though, I saw him on Christmas day, and then today, he got to spend most of the day with us. It was a little bit of heaven. When we first got home, his Papa took him out to show him how our neighbor had plowed up our back pasture and planted the seeds to grow grain if it rains enough. He had saved some of the grain to show our “Bear,” and we plan to plant some of them in a pot or two so that he can see them grow.

I got to show him that big tarantula that I mentioned in my blog of about a week ago. It had died, and I kept it so that he could get a good close look at one. We had lunch, and then went out and picked some of the tomatoes that he had helped me start growing several months back. He was so excited to see that the plants had finally grown real tomatoes that we could eat.

After that, we gathered wood for making a fire since it is so cold out here, and he loves to help me with that task. We fed the horses, and then he came in and helped his Papa start a fire in the woodstove. It got dark, and we went out into the backyard for a while to listen to the coyotes and look at the stars. When we came back in, he and Papa watched cartoons while I made dinner. The time came, way to soon, when it was time to take him back to his parents.

He had wanted to spend the night (which we wanted, too) but his parents had other people to visit tomorrow, and EVERYONE wants to see my “Bear” when he is in town. They are a well loved family, which I am happy about, but they have a lot of friends and extended family that love them as much as I do, so I’ve had to learn to share, and just be thankful for the time I do get to spend with them and/or him… it doesn’t keep a little rain from falling, though…

If you have a chance to spend time with children that are special to you, cherish every moment you are given, for they grow up way to fast. Your life can be a model for them and others you know… make it a good one…

I had gotten to bed so late, that I slept in today, and then had a wonderful breakfast of leftover turkey, dressing with a fried egg, and mashed potatoes with ham gravy. I LOVE leftovers… just pop ‘em into the microwave and fry an egg real quick!!! Hubby had taken the day off work, so we watched several episodes of Eureka… he’d gotten the first season of the TV show on DVD as a Christmas gift… and then we watched the corgis play.

My son started playing with them with his laser light. He is very careful not to get it in their eyes so they don’t get injured, but BG, Sadie and Dott just love chasing that “little red bug” around the house, skidding around the kitchen floor and ripping at full speed down the hall. They chase flies or moths the same way, leaping and jumping around. It’s funny, too, when they catch one of the real bugs because they will get a weird look on their little faces and then spit it out real quick.

Later, while I was feeding the horses, Sadie caught a mouse. She has a tendency to play with them like a cat, too, pitching them up in the air and catching them. We always praise her a lot when she gets one, because she’s turned into a great mouser, and catches them in the house, too. That is one of the problems of living in the country with fields all around… the mice come in the doggy door.

After feeding, we walked the dogs around the pastures, so that they could run and play. They ran around like crazy dogs, checking every big rabbit hole, weasel hole, and squirrel hole. We’ve had rabbits and squirrels since we moved here, but a couple of years ago, when they had a big fire on the other side of the hills from us, some weasels moved from those hills to our place… at least that’s what we think happened.

My son was really surprised when he saw the “weirdest looking squirrel” peeking out from the woodpile, and then again a few days later from a hole by the ditch. He came in telling me that he’d seen a ferret and was wondering if someone’s had gotten loose around here, though it is illegal to keep them in California. We looked online and when we came across a picture of the animal he’d seen, it turned out to be a weasel.

It was such a nice, restful, fun day. It was extra nice because Hubby rarely takes a day off work during the week, and we will still have two more days before he has to go back. BG, especially, loves having his Dad home. He is his Dad’s dog, just like his grandma, Mist, used to be, and loves it when he gets the chance to go to work with him (rare now), or spend any extra time with him.

Oh, I almost forgot, the recipe to Nana’s Candied Yams:

You need 1 lb. of brown sugar, 1 Piloncillo cone (or another lb. of dark brown sugar), 2 c. honey, 1 c. water, and 3-4 lbs. of yams (peeled and cut into large chunks– about 1.5 inches each)

In a large pot with a lid, place the brown sugar, honey, piloncillo and water. Heat on high until syrup is in a high rolling boil for several minutes. The syrup should be almost hard crack candy when scooped with a spoon and dripped into a cup of cold water if done correctly… CAREFULLY (don’t splatter) put yam chunks into syrup and cover. Keep heat on high so that the rolling boil will restart and continue for about 45 mins. DO NOT stir!!!

The boiling syrup should be boiling over the top of the yams and coating them (Just peek to check, but don’t open lid to much). DO NOT be tempted to put in more water as fluids come out of the yams and all the liquid will not boil off in time if there is to much. While still fairly hot, spoon yam chunks into a couple of large cake pans. Coat a cookie sheet lightly with butter, pour syrup in and let sit until cooled to make candy chunks for later enjoyment.

I hope that you had a restful day after the rush of preparations for Christmas, and I pray that the rest of the weekend is a blessing for you as well.

It’s twenty minutes to midnight and I finally got a chance to sit down at the computer. Christmas is almost over. I just came in from feeding the horses and it is REALLY blowing out there… hard enough that I had to lean to walk against the wind while carrying the hay to Cory’s stall. At least once in the stall, it was nice and cozy, so his hay won’t blow away.

I put Dancer and Tuffy’s hay by some other outbuildings so that they can eat without their hay blowing away either. They do have a stall available, but I’ve only seen them in it when it is really hot and they want to stay out of the sun… I don’t think they like the creaking of the tin walls or something when it’s windy.

The stars shone so brightly that I could see the sweep of the Milky Way, which only happens when it is extra clear and dark. It made me think of a very interesting television show that I watched a few days ago. It talked about this lawyer that had a computer program that star researchers use, and how he had used it, along with all the references in the Bible about the star that the Wise Man followed, to pin-point what he thinks was the Star of Bethlehem. It was a fascinating program, and I plan to purchase it for our Church Library (I’m the librarian.) If you are interested in checking this out, his website is: http://www.bethlehemstar.net/.

It turned out to be quite a day. Last night, at about 1 a.m., I found that there had been a hole in my purse and my lower partial (which I had taken out because of a sore on my gums) had fallen out and the dog (probably Sadie) had chewed them up… This is NOT GOOD!!! I had recently had the dentist check to see how much it would cost to make a new set, and the part we would have to pay, even with the great insurance I have, is WAY more than we could handle. This partial is of the four lower, front teeth, so it is VERY noticeable. I guess I needed to be humbled a little or something. There is nothing I can do about it, so I guess I’ll just have to live with it until the Lord makes a way for me to get some new ones.

I finally got the last gift wrapped and went to bed, and when I got up this morning, my cowboy son called to ask if it was alright if he came by to bury one of their old dogs who had passed away. Cheyenne had been a rescue dog that they had found and befriended a little over 9 years ago. She acted as though she had been abused before they found her and was terrified of most people and just a bunch of skin and bones. My daughter-in-law finally got her trust and, like most abused or neglected rescue dogs, she won the COMPLETE love and devotion of the beautiful animal.

Cheyenne looked as though she was probably a cross between a Golden Lab, and a German shepherd. She looked like a Golden Lab, but with German Shepherd coloration. She was beautiful, and once she learned she could trust some people, she was very sweet, though still a bit wary around strangers. She was really good around my grandson from the time he was born. She was several years old when they took her in, and had been showing her age quite a bit lately. Cheyenne will be greatly missed by those that loved her. My son buried her out in the side pasture where several other doggy friends we’ve had over the years are buried.

The rest of the day went pretty well, though. There was tons of food, (tomorrow, I’ll give you the recipe to Nana’s Candied yams) lots of love, and fun opening, and watching the little kids open, presents. The Corgis helped clean up the wrapping paper, as usual, and enjoyed their jerky treats and the many handouts of food and leftovers during cleanup time.

It’s a good thing they don’t get to eat like that all the time or we’d be rolling them around from place to place. Corgi’s DON’T have very long legs, so if their bellies get to big, they tend to drag the ground… remember the picture of O.C. when she was pregnant with those eight pups?!

I hope your day was a full and satisfying one, and that you were able to give God your problems and count your blessings. .

Merry Christmas everyone! I hope your day was a special one filled with love and joy.

We always go into town to my sister’s house (used to be my mom’s before she left for Heaven), and join with the rest of our extended family for the whole day. There is always a ton of food, (not great for someone who is trying to change their lifestyle away from dwelling on food…) and the company of many friends, as well as family, as people drop by off and on during the day.

Three of my kids will be there this year, and four grandkids, as well as nieces, and grandnieces. The two of my sisters live next door to each other, so all of the dogs come over, too. That’s a minimum of 12 adults, 6 little kids between the ages of one and 8, and 8 dogs. Needless to say, it gets quite crowded at times.

One of my sister’s dogs is a one year old German Shorthair dog that is HUGE. Actually, she belongs to my BIL. She is all legs and energy, and, like most puppies, she’s not always careful about others when she is playing. You have to be careful that she doesn’t knock you “head over heels.” She’s such a silly girl, too, in the way that she drinks water. She puts her head way down to the bottom of the bowl to drink, so she sprays water all over the place when she’s done. She usually ends up having to go outside after a little while, though she has been able to stay longer as she’s grown older and gotten a bit more disciplined (like all pups…)

My sister, the kids call her Mimi, has two little Chihuahua mixes named Dolly and Kisses, and the other sister, the kids call her Naunie, has an older yellow lab named Daisy, and a black and white Shih Tzu named Mia. Our three corgis have all gone to Mimi’s since they were tiny pups whenever we go in, so they play quite well with Dolly and Kisses. None of them are too happy with the bouncing, careening, gigantic (as far as they are concerned) Molly, though.

One of our Christmas traditions is to all sit around the living room before opening presents, and talk with the children about the real reason for the season, and sing some songs, including Happy Birthday to Jesus. I’m writing this on Christmas Eve, so I will have to let you know how the day went in tomorrow’s blog. I’ve got some last minute wrapping to get done tonight.

May the knowledge and joy of what God did when He sent His Son so long ago, bloom like a beautiful rose in your life, and may you have a wonderful, joy filled day. Again, have a very Merry Christmas!

Today, I wanted to talk about foods that can cause problems for dogs. There are a lot of people foods out there that we wouldn’t think would cause problems for dogs, but they do.

Some dogs have problems with to much corn in their diets. They will develop what we call “summer itch,” around here. This is a type of dermatitis (skin irritation) that causes them to be VERY itchy and their skin sort of gets something that resembles “cradle cap”… a scaly, oily crust over oozy skin. We have had several dogs that developed this problem and the vet said that happens with a lot of dogs that get fed dry dog foods that contain a lot of corn, so we’ve had to switch to lamb and rice or some other types of dry dog foods to prevent reoccurrences.

TOXIC Raisins:

There are several things that are VERY TOXIC to dogs that many people don’t realize. Some people use raisins as dog treats, but as few as 9 raisins or a cup or so of grapes can kill a small dog and make a large one very sick. Usually it takes a while for the toxins to reach lethal amounts and the problem is that they do damage to the dog’s kidneys, so the dog builds up the toxins that the kidneys should flush and becomes lethargic (lazy, dumpy, etc.) and eventually sickens and dies. (See Snopes for verification: http://www.snopes.com/critters/crusader/raisins.asp )

Xylitol = Deadly !

Another new thing that has been found to be especially toxic to dogs is Xylitol. This is a new, sugarless sweetener that they are starting to use in a lot of foods for diabetics, like Sugar Free Jell-O’s, puddings, breath mints and gum. Chewing a piece of this kind of gum or eating even a small amount of any food with Xylitol can kill a small dog within an hour. While it is a wonderful sweetener for diabetics because it helps to lower blood sugar, it will lower a dog’s blood sugar to much and to fast, and unless immediate IV glucose treatments are started, the dog will die just like someone who takes to much insulin or lets their blood sugar drop to low. (See this Vet blog for verification: http://www.dolittler.com/2008/09/16/dog.cat.veterinary.Xylitol.veterinarian.toxin.poison.html )

Other foods that can cause problems are: dark chocolate which can cause irregular heartbeat and possible heart attack, green potato sprouts or green skinned potatoes (also toxic to humans), turkey skins (too much fat can cause pancreatitis), green parts of tomato plants, yeast dough, and large amounts of broccoli.

Onions are very bad, in ANY form, because even small amounts that are eaten consistently over a period of time will build up in the dog’s system causing the red blood cells to burst which can cause acute anemic problems: listlessness, loss of appetite, weakness, breathlessness (red blood cells carry oxygen), blood in urine, vomiting and diarrhea. Garlic, in LARGE amounts or along with onion, can also cause this problem, but used sparingly with no form of onion, it can be helpful in preventing fleas. If the problem is caught before it has gone to far, a dog can recover if all onions and garlic are removed from its diet so that it can rebuild its supply of red blood cells again.

I’ve gotten into the habit of doing web searches of most any new food I am tempted to give to my animals now-a-days, because it takes such a short time to do, and I love my pets and don’t want to cause them any problems from my ignorance. I just put in “dog (name of food)” and hit the search button, and then do a quick spot check to see what is said. You could do the same type of search if you are a cat person… Better safe than sorry.

Have a safe and healthy day… for you AND your pet.

P.S. Please feel free to leave me a comment if you have found this information to be helpful…

A couple of days ago, I mentioned that my dogs have been happily munching carrots lately, and that carrots will give them a shiny coat (horses, too). I knew they wouldn’t hurt the dogs because a vet had told me to make my own food for O.C. when I first put her on a diet. He had said to cook a little hamburger or chicken, with rice and put sliced or shredded carrots in it.

I decided to do a little research, and I found that carrots also increase the fiber in a dog’s diet which helps their digestion and will help them to have regular eliminations (poop regularly…) They won’t get constipated and carrots also help to stop diarrhea. Another fresh vegetable that is good for them to chew on is a yam. There is even one company that makes dried yam chews for dogs. I know my dogs love it when I cut a yam up into half to three-quarter inch slices for them to chew on.

I found out that they can also eat lettuce, green beans and peas. (B.G. will eat salad IF it has dressing on it, but the other dogs aren’t crazy about lettuce.)

It is recommended that they only be given cooked potatoes and never potato peels or green potato skins as they are poisonous for both humans and dogs (Dottie LOVES potatoes… mashed ones the best).

These can be added to their regular food a little at a time over a period of time… You should never switch foods suddenly on ANY animal because it can cause intestinal distress (a belly ache, usually with gas, and you DON’T want that!), but they grow to tolerate some of these good foods over a period of time, and can use the extra vitamins and minerals.

Fruits like apples, persimmons, bananas, and melons are also good in small amounts (so they don’t get diarrhea). You have to be careful, though about the seeds or pits. Apple and pear seeds have cyanide in them, which is a poison, so you don’t want them to eat the cores. The pits of persimmons, peaches, etc. can choke a dog as well as be toxic, so only give them the fruits without the cores, seeds, or pits.

Dogs can eat small amounts of grains too. You do have to be careful about uncooked grain, though. I had a friend that had a dog get into her horse grain and the grain swelled up and killed the dog. I am very careful about the horse grain because there is molasses in it and the dogs LOVE it, so I make sure that I keep it in containers that don’t allow them any access to it. They go nuts trying to pick up what little the horses drop when they are eating.

Tomorrow, I’ll talk about foods that can cause problems for dogs, or even be toxic enough to kill them, like grapes, raisins, etc.

Eat well and stay healthy…

P.S. I’d love to hear from you if you found this info to be helpful or have a comment to make… just hit the comment button below this post.

The day Tuffy came back, was a beautiful day and it was nice to be able to be out in the cool breeze with the Corgis running around playing with their Auntie Sadie, and getting to watch the horses out in the pasture. Dancer and Tuffy decided to climb the little hill in the side pasture, and it made a really pretty picture to see them standing up on the top of the hill with the clouds and blue sky behind them. It was like a little piece of heaven. I really thank God for such neat days.

While we were out there, we decided to harvest a lot of the pecans from our pecan tree out back. My husband and son took turns using a long tree trimmer to pull the nuts off of the tree, because it doesn’t take long for your arms to get sore holding up a heavy pole with metal on the end of it.. I worked with the one not pulling nuts. We held a big king-sized bed sheet out to catch the nuts as they fell so that we wouldn’t have to pick too many off of the ground.

At least some of the ones we missed, the dogs picked up and gave to me, and my son used the long grabber-stick I have to pick up the others. It seems that the dogs have learned that they can eat the nuts, as well, because I saw them crack and chew up a couple while I was out there. I know that out old Sadie (the part wolf one) used to eat them all the time, too. I checked the web, and pecans don’t seem to be a problem for dogs although one website said that walnuts could make them sick while another site said that the people there had a walnut tree and their dogs ate them all the time. I also know that macadamias and cashews are bad for dogs, while peanuts are fine.

We put the pecans in a big cage out in the sun so that they can dry and the rinds can be taken off without the squirrels getting them. This is the most nuts we’ve gotten for many years. Thanks, Sadie Girl, for helping to keep the pesky squirrels out of the yard!!!

I pray you will have a quiet, peaceful, blue-sky day…

P.S. I’d love to hear your comments or “nutty” stories… Just hit the comment button below.

We had a wonderful thing happen for us… Our neighbor called and asked if we would like him to come and plow up our back pasture and plant barley and oats out there. He had finished planting his pastures and has several bags of seed left. It’s been a long time since we’ve gotten the chance to do that, and it would be wonderful to get a big pasture full of grain hay to feed next year. Praise God !!!

If we get some rain this year, we should get a pretty good crop. The past couple of years it hasn’t rained enough to get much of a crop, but we had such a good heavy rain a week or so ago that the ground is just right to plow and plant. Hopefully we will get another several good soaking rains over the next couple of months. We will see…

In the past, he has done that for us, and it has been such a blessing because, as I think I mentioned before, alfalfa hay is going for $13.50 a bale, and oat hay is running around $11.50 a bale around here now. If we get a good 2-3 ft. tall crop, over the whole back pasture, it would be the same as about 90 bales, and you can see how much of a savings that would be to us. I don’t want to “count my chickens before they hatch,” but it’s nice to think about the possibility… God has always provided what we need, and this might be a way He will do it this year…

I pray that God will provide for your needs this coming year…

Yesterday, I talked about “eating like a horse…” Well, a few days ago, I got a 25 pound bag of carrots so that I could give a handful to each horse when I feed in the evening. I opened the top of it and left it in the kitchen where I could get to it easily and Sadie found it and knocked it over.

I guess the corgis and Sadie think they are rabbits, or horses, or something because they’ve been chomping on carrots (2 or 3 a day!) ever since. I know they won’t hurt them and will give them good coats, so I don’t mind. I just didn’t know they would like them that well. Besides, I’ve had to have O.C. on a diet for quite a while to keep her weight down because of her painful hips, and these help her feel fuller and not so hungry.

We used to have several goats, which I may have mentioned in one of my earlier blogs, but I got rid of the mean ones when one of them hurt O.C. by butting her against a wall. O.C., her mom, Mist, and Buddy, her dad, used to work together before we got Sadie, to herd them. O.C. had her hips and back injured, and it took about a year before she was completely healed.

I believe it is that old injury that has been giving her trouble now that she is older (about 10 years old). She has done quite well the past 3 years, by taking an MSM, Glucosamine, and Chondroitin tablet, wrapped in Velveeta, every day. Sometimes, if it is cold and/or she has overworked trying to keep up with Sadie and the pups, I also give her a half of a baby aspirin (as recommended by a vet) with her evening meal so it won’t bother her stomach (also wrapped in a little Velveeta or cream cheese). I sometimes give her a few dried cherries a day when I have them because they have helped my joints when they get bad in cold weather, and she seems to do better, too.

I had been taking MSM, Glucosamine and Chondroitin for quite a few years, and cherries the past couple of years, and they have helped me a lot. I started checking, and found that horses and dogs can also take it and cherries, too. I started giving it to her a few winters ago when she was having trouble standing during cold weather, and she got a LOT better over a couple of weeks. She doesn’t have much trouble during the summer, but gets worse (as do I) when the weather turns cold.

I am very careful about what I give my animals because some of the things people take will mess up or even kill a dog. Drugs like Ibuprofen and Tylenol are VERY BAD for dogs!!! I am careful about the dosage, of course, because they are smaller by weight. MSM does thin the blood some, so I keep that in mind as well, especially if I am giving baby aspirin, too. O.C. weighs about 30 pounds so she gets 1 tablet that contains 150 mg. of MSM, 200 mg. of Chondroitin, and 250 mg. of Glucosamine a night.

I hope you are enjoying a happy and healthy week. Take care and I’ll type at you tomorrow.

Today was a totally foggy day… again. We drove into town in the fog (which was a bummer) to go to church… at least it was a very nice service. Our pastor talked about God’s teaching about finances, and how He promises to help us when we follow His ways. With all the problems with the country’s economy, I figure that we can use all the help that God will give.

I feel that he knows us better than any human person, and that’s a good reason to follow His teachings. After all, He made everything and a Creator knows how to fix what He made in the first place… at least that’s what I believe.

After church, we went to my sister’s house along with my other sister and the BIL (Brother-in-law) that cooks so well. We had lunch and then spent a nice day talking and watching football. I even got a chance to do some drawing. My BIL made a wonderful dinner this evening with noodles, real crab legs, large shrimp (doesn’t THAT sound like an oxymoron) and a garlic and parmesan cheese sauce. It was wonderful!!!

It had stayed very misty all day, and it got terribly foggy again just about the time we had to drive home. Since this area has a problem with fog, the roads have shiny reflectors on each center line, and a white reflecting paint down most of the sides to help drivers stay on the road.

The fog was so bad on the way home that you could only see from one reflector to the next. It took about 3 times the normal amount of time to get most of the way home. About a mile from our house, since we are at a higher elevation, it cleared up suddenly and we could see all the stars shining so brilliantly above us. It was awesome!

The horses were truly glad to see me and their evening feed when I got home, too. Of course, I don’t know of any horses that AREN’T happy to see someone with food… I guess that’s where they get the saying, “He/she eats like a horse!”

Hopefully the weather was nicer where you are, but all in all, it was a pretty good day for us. I hope you had a great day, too !!!