Yes, I am very aware at how late this update is... I'm very bad at remembering to keep in touch with just about anyone, and I seem to be just as bad with a blog.
The past year since the pups went to their new homes has been busy and quite a lot of fun. The dogs are always ready to play, and their favorite place to play is always under their humans' feet. Sending them to play outside doesn't solve the problem, as if their humans are not nearby, clearly the only thing they should do is nap... which they do on the steps waiting for the door to open and either let them back in, or let their human back outside.
This means that playing outside, and going on walks to the pond are something to be incorporated into the day as much as possible, in hopes of wearing out the dogs. However, they seem quite ready to keep running around long after their humans are ready to stop. The pond is a wonderful outlet for this, as the dogs are quite happy to run around while we watch.
Even as the year grew colder, water has still proven to be a favorite - including if it is frozen. Raiju in particular is quite fond of jumping in any water, from our small pond in the front yard for birds to bath in, to the stock tank for the cattle. He also has no qualms with using a frozen stock tank as a height advantage when playing with Shisa, even if the ice keeps breaking under him.
You'd think after breaking through the ice, he'd learn to be careful, but no, he broke through several times, and then would forget that it had broken, and try running across the broken areas again, only to fall right back in the water.
For those of you who are worried about the dogs getting too cold, I made sure to dry them off thoroughly when we went inside a few minutes later, and the dogs happily curled up on their beds to nap and regain all the energy I'd managed to help them expend.
For Christmas, my husband and I decided to get a large rawhide for the dogs to chew on. Shisa in particular loves rawhides, while Raiju isn't really sure what is so special about them, and typically gives his to Shisa (or lets her steal them and seeks attention from us instead).
Shisa could barely contain herself when she saw the rawhide, and getting any pictures was quite a challenge. Raiju had no interest in the massive thing, and Shisa kept trying to carry it away to the bedroom so she could curl up and have it all to herself. It was with some effort we convinced her to keep it in the livingroom.
The dogs have loved winter, and roll and bury their faces in the snow. They chase each other around, wrestle, and thoroughly enjoy playing in the white substance. They don't seem to understand why their humans don't want to stay outside in it all day.
Raiju in particular loves laying in the snow. He would roll on his back and try chewing on Shisa's ankle, in hopes she'd stop nosing around in the snow and wrestle with him. He was always the one most covered in snow.
Along with enjoying playing outside, the dogs spend time inside with us. This can result in some rather entertaining chaos. We quickly discovered that setting strong magnets on the livingroom table is not a smart idea when your dogs are inside with metal dog tags. We searched for the magnets for probably 40 minutes till we found them on Raiju's collar.
Raiju is also the one that has now resulted in us not being able to give the dogs a bone from our roasts - at least without cutting the bone first. Shisa had already cleaned the marrow out of it, and decided she would graciously share, and Raiju decided to get it stuck wrapped around his lower jaw... He was not very happy with this, and was constantly trying to use his paws to push it off, to no avail. The following morning, when he still had made no progress, and since he was not wanting to hold stay still for us to help, it was time to go to the vet for professional help. However, the moment we pulled into the veterinary clinic... he managed to pull the bone right off. From now on, any bone that has the slightest chance of getting stuck around his face, will be cut in half so that we don't have this situation again.
One thing winter has brought, is that our chickens are now roaming further, and exploring more. This means the chickens regularly wander into the dogs' pen, and look for seed scattered around that may have fallen out of the hay we put in the doghouse for insulation, or blow there from the hay we feed the sheep. This results in watching the dogs at times having to find new napping spots, because the chickens start pecking at seeds a bit too close for the dogs comfort. It also has meant the dogs sometimes find themselves curled up in their doghouse, with the hens invading. It is almost a regular thing to see one or more hens hop out of the doghouse, often followed by one or both dogs that aren't sure what to make of their small feathered intruders. Typically, this results in the dogs walking up to the door and wanting to come in again.
Overall our year has gone quite well, and the dogs have brought us much joy and laughter. I'm looking forward to what this coming year has in store for us, and them as well. For those who are curious or anxiously waiting for news, our hope is that Shisa will have pups this coming April. I know many were hoping for pups sooner, but if I was to let her have pups earlier, they would have been born around Christmas. This may seem wonderful, but with how moody and attention needy she gets when pregnant, it didn't seem fair to have her give birth during such a busy time, or when we possibly wouldn't be around. Waiting till April means I can be around to give her all the attention she wants, to make sure she, and by extension, the pups, can be as healthy as possible. More updates will come as the time gets closer.
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