Another Boundary Waters Trip

Kawishiwi Lake with friend/coworker Betsy and Jewel.

Jewel's First BWCA Adventure

 

Here are a few pictures from Jewel's first Boundary Waters trip--I've noticed that I took a lot of pictures of Jewel on this trip.  One drawback to being in the canoe so much is not having the camera out.  Normally I probably would have kept it out and ready, but with Jewel in the canoe and never knowing how she would react to seeing wildlife on shore, I played it safe and kept it in the dry bag.

We went in at Entry #14 Little Indian Sioux River North and got a pretty late start.  Everyone, but Jewel was pretty exhausted by the time we pulled into the take out.  A rod equals 16 feet, and our first trek down to the river itself was 40 rods mostly downhill, but a lot of the trail was smooth boulders on a slant, so carrying a canoe overhead and some packs took some work--and we also took note that on the way out it would all be uphill.  When we hit the river we knew it was worth it.  We paddled about three miles to our first campsite, portaging another 60 rods downhill around some rapids {also taking note that the way back would all be uphill}.  We were grateful the first site off the river was open and actually it was my favorite site of the trip.  When it started getting dark the beaver chatter was unbelievable and the fireflies were everywhere.

It was a beautiful trip and even though I did not get to spot a moose, we saw plenty of beaver, swans, loons, deer, fireflies, otter, and eagles.  Jewel was in dog heaven.  The first night a beaver swam close to camp and slapped its tail at her before diving underwater.  She sat sentry looking for this odd creature for almost a half hour.  She never ran off, staying around camp and exploring or running along the portages, and she never once capsized the canoe.  There were times she didn't want to get in the canoe, but who could blame her--sitting around watching the water go by is much less fun than chasing after chipmunks.

The uphill portages on the way back were killers.  At one point Jewel came back down the trail and started pulling on our pants legs to try to get us to get moving again, because we had been sitting so long trying to catch our breath, but we made it.  Next trip I might need to get her a pack so she can carry her own gear!

Rabbit Tractors and Movable Chicken Coop

 

I can check two of the rabbit tractors off the to-do list as of this morning!  The movable chicken run is also just about finished.  All that's left is the actual coop and sliders.  It was an early morning, up and staple gunning at 6 a.m. with my coffee so that these could get finished before I take off for a few days.   It feels so good to have them done!

And what was Jewel doing the whole time I worked on these contraptions?  Digging a mega-hole of course.

Swimming in the Back Country

I will have to get some pictures up of the first canoe trip of the season, but here's one of Jewel checking out the water with her new life jacket.  She did pretty swell for her first canoe excursion!

Little Yellow Dog in the Woods {and Water}

Smelling fresh and eagerly waiting to hit the road...

Jewel is going out to the Boundary Waters on her first trip.  It should be interesting.  Luckily, the friend we're going out with has a good sense of humor and doesn't mind the possibility of getting wet {if Jewel capsizes us in some fit of terror or excitement at seeing something like a moose...who knows!}.

Yesterday, Jewel decided to dig a hole in the side of the many dirt piles around here.  She had a lot of fun doing it, but in the process got very stinky--I'm not sure where the stink came from.  So, part of the final trip prepping was giving Jewel a bath so she doesn't completely stink us out of the tent.

Love

This is the sneaky look.  What you are looking at is a dog getting ready to bounce off the bed and pounce on me.  A very fun sidekick for sure.

Lyme's Disease

Jewel and me chilling out in the camper

Tuesday Jewel and I went to the vet.  I haven't had much luck finding good vets to be honest.  I hope I've found a good one this time.  After Charlie died from Lyme's disease last fall I decided to switch again.  At the new vet Jewel got her vaccinations and they did the test for Lyme's that they do before they can give that vaccine.  At our old vet I started going to when I moved up here they never mentioned a vaccine for Lyme's and only did a test for it when Charlie got sick {in hindsight I believe I never actually saw the real vet at that office, but just the retired one who filled in, and I know when Charlie was diagnosed I dealt only with a tech}.  I didn't even know a vaccine existed until talking to people I work with.  Jewel was tested when Charlie got sick, but came back negative.  I should have brought Jewel in to get her vaccine as soon as I found out about one instead of waiting for time to renew all of her other vaccines.  I don't know what I was thinking.  This time her test came back positive.  I immediately broke out in a cold sweat when they showed me the little test strip's results.  Sometime between last October and now she was bitten by a deer tick.  She is showing no symptoms and the vet gave us medication and said in 6 weeks {the medication is for 3 weeks} she will come back in, be vaccinated, and then tested next year this time and it should have cleared her system, which it should without any bad effects after finishing the antibiotics the vet said.  I feel horrible.  I keep replaying all the mistakes I made with the dogs, wondering if the Lyme's has affected Jewel in any way before the medication was started, if the medication will actually work this time.  We got a new supply of Frontline--I had started putting some on Jewel at the beginning of April technically before the grass even started growing--next year I'm going to do it starting in March.  I've yet to ever find a tick on her, but they have to be coming from somewhere.

I absolutely detest ticks, but now I also despise them on a whole other level and am paranoid about their presence.  The {new} vet said he has never seen as many cases of Lyme's as he has in the past few years, but that doesn't make me feel much better.  I could have prevented this by getting her vaccinated at the beginning of last fall.  I can't wait to get Jewel completely healthy and hope all goes well.  I wish there was some sort of pesticide bomb that could be dropped and all ticks would be annihilated--and I'm mostly against pesticides or some natural tick predator who would just start pigging out on them and eat them all.

Jewel acts as if nothing is out of sorts.  She gets her medication two times a day in a peanut butter sandwich, so she is probably thinking life is pretty good right now.

Obedience School {Level 1} Graduate

Something BIG happened about two weeks ago that I failed to mention here...Jewel graduated from an obedience class!  Every Monday evening for about 2 months we attended a class with other dogs and worked on our basic commands and behavior.  During the final evening we had to show our stuff off {while everyone watched...} and she passed with only a few dings for having a tight leash at times and not wanting to stay down when it came time for the down-stay routine.  I was very proud of Jewel, who went through a full active day at doggy daycare and then went right into class.  She did spectacular.  We continue to practice our skills, but honestly, when we go out on the town or hit the trails she's pretty well behaved {although always on the lookout for squirrels and chipmunks} and when she's at home she's pretty good, except for the the whole deciding to chase deer once in a while and digging holes where ever she feels like it.  But that's what out-of-town dogs do, right?

Early Spring

This week it warmed up just like that.  It caught me by surprise, because I had gotten into a routine of cold--very cold.  The previous few weekends had been way below zero.  Then all of a sudden it was 45* even 50*.  Sunday Jewel and I stopped in at Itasca.  Jewel loves the place and every time we turn to go down the winding road that leads back into the park she gets excited and can't stop looking out the window for squirrels and chipmunk and deer. She even jumped into the Mississippi.  It was so wonderful to be out in the sunshine hearing the birds--I even got to hear my cat bird, which I have missed since moving to an area that isn't exactly right in the forest.  I wonder if I can lure some of them over to the new place eventually be planting lilacs--they love to hang out in bushy plants.

 Later on in the week with the warm weather continuing we went to the other close by state park a few times to take in the wonderful weather.  There's snow left, although it will be gone pretty quick, and the ice on the lake is of course still thick.  I love the aqua the jams are in the bright full sun.  Jewel is feeling especially peppy with the warm temperatures, and although I thought I was in pretty good spirits, this warm spell has made me feel extra good too.

This coming week it will be a little cooler in the 40's, but spring is pretty much here {although I'm pretty sure there will be some sort of winter weather before it's all said and done!}.  The trumpeter swans are even back on their lake.  Wonderful stuff.

Love: Chickens in the Snow

It's interesting at first....

but it quickly loses its appeal!

Last night and this morning windchills were down to -30ish*.  It was a balmy -4 by the time we went out for evening chores.  However, I got the impression from everyone that they wanted me to just hurry up and get them over with so they could go back inside and snuggle in to our respective comfy spots.

Love: Daycare for Dogs

After a hard day of play...I went to fill up with gas and came back to an out like a rock Jewel sleeping in the driver seat.  It took a lot of prodding to get her awake and moved over!

There's something very simple that's given a lot of peace of mind taking place around here these past few weeks.  Jewel is loving doggie daycare {and so am I}.  She plays hard all day and is ready for a nap when I pick her up around 5 p.m.  She has come out of her shell in the last two weeks.  She loves the people at the daycare and loves other dogs of all sizes...she seems to be getting over that whole shy, timid thing she does.  When I take her there in the morning her tail is wagging, and at the end of the day she greets me by jumping over the daycare gate.

After Charlie dog died it became apparent that Jewel did not like to stay home alone.  Even leaving her in the house to take out the trash made her distraught so that she tried to get out the door or windows.  Things got destroyed...lots of things--winter gear, window shades and curtains, blankets, a quilt, pillows, the grand finale...the couch.  Kennel training had begun, but she was not doing well with this.  She didn't want to go near it no matter what was inside and putting her in it even with the door open made her petrified.  Each day I had been trying to Jewel-proof, but after the couch realized there was just no way.  It was becoming very stressful wondering what she was up to each day...I found myself wondering what was being eaten in the middle of teaching.  I had heard there was a place that offered dog daycare in town and a friend mentioned it was a nice, clean set up.  The fact that the dogs aren't shut in kennels or pens all day made me consider it.  The first day I showed up around 7 a.m. and the place had a welcoming glow to it in the early morning dark.  We walked in and Jewel even wagged her tail at the lady behind the desk.  By the second day she was excited when we pulled into the parking lot.  And she has an appetite again and obviously isn't spending her days destroying things anymore.  Good stuff.

I never thought I would be someone to go the dog daycare route, thought maybe I'd have my own kid going to daycare by now perhaps...but my dog?! Life sometimes has this way of making the unexpected the everyday at times.  Someday another dog will show up on the scene, but for now it's doggie daycare Monday-Friday.  It's a pretty awesome thing.

Spring Routines

There are a few evening routines out here...going out to look at the stars {and Mars which is currently situated among the bows of one of my favorite pine trees}, feeding the rabbits and chickens and everyone else..., and usually sitting back with a book with Jewel who insists on curling up as close as possible to me on the couch.  The chickens roost in exactly the same spot each evening {and usually in the same order}, Charlie lays in the exact same spot on the floor, and the deer walk down exactly the same path to sleep in the thicket behind the house.  Now a loon is back and adding it's call to the evening routine once again.  So far it hasn't gotten an answer to its calls, but any evening now there will be a symphony once again.  It's all very comforting really.  And any day now garden routines will resume.  The frogs have woken up, the grass is growing.  It looks like temperatures will not get below freezing in the next week and beyond.  This means peas and lettuce--planting to begin this weekend!