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morning run:
Lucy
Osita
Godzilla
Lily
Monkey
Floyd
Daisy
Mo
(8)
To the beach at Au Soleil Couchant via the shire and the swimming hole: ~7k. I was going to take Alice but she didn't seem to feel like it - we need to test her. Lucy was a champ and showed the young ones how it's done. We didn't see a single living creature save bugs, crabs, birds and fish, all of which were out in force. The rain yesterday topped off a lot of puddles everywhere. Everyone was really good.
GRADE: A
morning run:
Truman
Eve
Blue
Frijolita
Rita
Ziggy
Luna
Xmul
(8)
Hidden trail the standard way: ~8k. This was Luna and Xmul's first run after their surgeries and they did well. There were salt workers on the road to the tortuga sign three-way and Xmul predictably barked at them, so I put her on the leash when I could round her up and she stayed on for the duration. The last time we tried the leash she was absolutely terrible but today she turned the corner and became a good leash dog. She backed out of her collar once on the road east but I got her back on and tightened it a bit and thereafter she was fine - I was proud of her. The beach was nice and everyone swam a lot. When we passed those same salt workers on the way back the story was different: she still barked a little but she didn't fight me or cause trouble as we passed them. Everyone else was good and had a good time.
GRADE: A
mid-day swims:
Twiggy
Shirley
Greta
(3)
They did 8 laps a piece in choppy waters.
GRADE: A
morning run:
Bette
Gracie
Posey
Gowron
Molly
Floyd
Daisy
Mo
(8)
To the beach at Au Soleil Couchant via the shire and home via the tortuga sign: ~7k. Left a little earlier than yesterday but I didn't want to be gone long and this was a faster group so we did it pretty quickly. I noticed Daisy lagging a bit after we left the beach. She seems fine but we need to watch her a bit; she certainly swam with enthusiasm. There were bird trappers at the shrimpery on the way out and they had drifted north on the coco trail by the time we were coming home; the dogs were good in both directions. The beach is only clear at the shore in spots and gross everywhere else. It was nice at Au Soleil Couchant but by the tortuga sign it was thick with decomposing seaweed. Everyone was good, listened well and had a good time.
GRADE: A
morning walk:
Zasu
Miles
Tito
Reggie
(4)
Roni took this crew for a spin to the shrimpery and environs. Tito cut it short for reasons known only to him (something about a man and a horse). Everyone sniffed and peed on the world a bunch and had a good time.
GRADE: A
morning run:
Otto
Archie
Chester
George
Eve
Rufus
Ernie
Elewah
Jack
(9)
We left late, it was already quite hot and we had George with us so we didn't go far; to the beach at Au Soleil Couchant via the shire and home via the tortuga sign: ~7k. I screwed up the count when I let Eve down - I knew Elewah was out and included but I didn't see her when I re-counted. Then I had Roni let Rufus down at the last minute to avoid so much noise at the gate and that brought us to nine. Since everyone in this group has been pretty solid for a while I just went with it and it turned out okay, but I found myself counting them all incessantly the whole way. George was a trooper and was never really that far behind, partly because I kept the pace down and partly because he's the man. The swimming hole in the shire is low but still nice for the dogs to cool off a bit. I scooped Elewah up at the end but otherwise had very little actual dog-management to do.
GRADE: A
morning run:
Alice
Lucy
Frijolita
Osita
Posey
Godzilla
Ziggy
Floyd
(8)
To the beach at Au Soleil Couchant and back the usual way: ~6k. Alice bugged out on us somewhere on the way to the Au Soleil Couchant 3-way. She was with us at the turn off of the dog-leg road, but when we hit the three-way intersection I couldn't find her. We spent nearly 20min looking for her until I finally came to the conclusion that she must've turned around and gone home, which is strange since we were so close to the beach and she likes the water. The rest of us continued on. Sure enough, she was home when we got there, having arrived ~20min before. Not the funnest run, but everyone else was really good about it.
GRADE: B
morning swims:
Greta
Shirley
Gowron
Twiggy
(4)
The ocean near our house is fouled with decomposing seaweed, and since there is no wind and very little current right now it's all just standing still. Nonetheless our intrepid little mermaids did well. Since the sea was calm I dragged them out farther for their "laps" than I usually do. Greta did 8 and had a good time. I brought PupG out with Shirley, but she was more interested in larking around on the beach than swimming (probably due to the gross water). Shirley also did 8, after which I brought both PupG and Shirley back in and took Twigs out. Twiggy did 10 and was really fun; she swam in both directions and clowned around with me in the water. I told her that I thought it wasn't fair her hips were messed up and she responded with "SWIMMING IS FUN!". Naturally she's right.
GRADE: A
morning run:
Ginger
Bette
Gracie
Blue
Lily
Molly
Floyd
Daisy
(8)
Hidden trail the standard way: ~8k. We ran into some small puppies crossing doce on the way out - they must've been hiding in the bushes over to the south of us just west of the road. No harm done but it was a disturbing surprise, and I had to be mindful of it on the way back; I don't know how many there are and the one I saw was skittish. Everyone was good about it and kept on with me. Lily listened much better today than she has recently. I tried her many times and each time I called her name she stopped and gave me her attention. On the way back Molly got extremely enthusiastic about checking out some noise (salt loader) south of our normal turn on the dead-goat trail, so I put her on the other end of the leash for the rest of the way. It sounded like there was a pup over in the watering area next to doce when we crossed it on the way home but again everyone stayed with me.
GRADE: A
mid-day swims:
Greta
Shirley
Twiggy
(3)
Got out late and it was a bit choppy but still shallow. Greta and Shirley both did 8 laps. Twiggy did 9; most of the time she swam both on the way out and the way in. The waves bothered them all a little but even Greta seemed to have fun.
GRADE: A
morning run:
Otto
Archie
Chester
Truman
Rufus
Ernie
Jack
Stella
(8)
Long and winding road: ~10k. We haven't been out there in a while due to the heat, humidity and time constraints. Today it was overcast and we had barely touched the water by the time we got to the turn for the hidden trail so we just kept heading north. We killed all the water but not until we were well on the way home. I avoided the beach entirely this time and took us home via the shire so we could hit the swimming hole, mainly for Ernie's sake. I had to call Stella's name several times to get her to pay attention just past the circular intersection so I put her on the hook there and she was fine for the rest of the way. Everyone was stellar and had a good time.
GRADE: A
late morning swims:
Greta
Shirley
Twiggy
(3)
All three girls did 8 laps in their own particular way. The water was shallow and warm; for the first ~5m from shore it resembled a fish-tank that needed cleaning (including the smell), but beyond that it got nicer. Greta consistently pulls to the south for some odd reason, and Shirley to the north. Twiggy was enthusiastic and fun, swimming in both directions for most of her "laps".
GRADE: A
morning run:
Frijolita
Godzilla
Gowron
Maggie
Elewah
Monkey
Floyd
Daisy
(8)
To the beach at Au Soleil Couchant, back into the monte at the tortuga sign and home: ~6k. We just went for a short one today because I have to go to Mérida to pick up Xmul and Luna post-surgery. There was a local kid at Au Soleil Couchant when we got there and the dogs were all perfect - he was amused to see 8 dogs with me attached come running out of the monte and jump into the water. Everyone swam a lot on the beach and had fun elsewhere. I scooped Elewah up on our trail on the way home because I was sure she was going to want to go do her usual Queen-of-the-monte routine and we don't have time today, but she was really good about it.
GRADE: A
morning swims:
Greta
Shirley
Twiggy
(3)
Greta did 8 laps in calm, clear, shallow waters. Shirley did the same, although her laps might've been longer because she kept trying to stretch them out to the north. Twiggy was diagnosed with severe hip displasia yesterday; her X-ray looked almost exactly like Shirley's. Although this sucks we are going to make the best of it and start her on glucosamine and swimming - no more runs for Twiggy until she can have and recover from surgery. She had a good time swimming, doubling up her "laps" by coming out to get me faster than I could get away several times.
GRADE: A
morning run:
Lucy
Ginger
Osita
Posey
Eve
Floyd
Luna
Xmul
(8)
To the beach at Au Soleil Couchant and home via the monte at the tortuga sign: ~6k. We took the alternate road north which is overgrown, hilly and fun for dogs. Lucy kept up like a champ and swam a lot once we got to the ocean. At the very end Luna bolted for the beach on the south road and dragged Xmul with her a little, but they came to their senses on their own and ended up back at the gate where they should've gone to begin with. No harm, no foul. Otherwise everyone was stellar. Xmul barks a bit at people but shuts up when told to and listens well otherwise. Luna needs a bit of work on her name still, but she's coming around. They both had excellent examples in Osita, Posey and Eve, who were perfect.
GRADE: A
morning swims:
Greta
Gowron
Shirley
Buddy
(4)
Greta got out first for 8 laps, accompanied by PupG who swam THE ENTIRE TIME SHE WAS OUT. I think maybe she rolled around in the sand like a lunatic for about 30 seconds before jumping back in the water. Not only was she in the water, she was frequently coming out to get us at the apex of our "laps". Greta did well and had a good time but was tired at the end. I left PupG out while I swapped Greta for Shirley, who also did 8 laps. The water was crystal clear and shallow but a tiny bit chilly. After I got PupG and Shirley in I brought Bud out to see if being in the water could help him at all - it can't, at least not right now. He's too tipsy. I did manage to wash him a bit in the ocean at least. He was a good sport.
GRADE: A
evening walk:
Zasu
Miles
Henry
Reggie
Tito
(5)
Roni took this crew ("the little dogs") down to the land bridge and back at dusk. She said that an A was not good enough for them - they were better than that.
GRADE: A+
morning run:
Bette
Gracie
Frijolita
Blue
Godzilla
Lily
Molly
Floyd
(8)
Hidden trail the normal way: ~8k. Everyone was really good. At the very beginning Floyd knocked the water bottle from my hands in his enthusiasm, for which I was very stern with him. Sadly he managed to punch a hole in it (or a rock did when it fell), so I had to find another bottle at the shrimpery quickly and transfer the water. After I was harsh with him to start with he cleaned his act up and was perfect about the water thereafter: he waited his turn, remained seated while everyone drank and did not try to push in. Near the end on the road south from the tortuga crossroads Gracie started getting farther and farther ahead; it was because of our little disagreement the last time we went out, so I didn't get too spun up about it. She got home about 30sec before the rest of us, but she behaved herself. Everyone else was good the entire way.
GRADE: A
morning run:
Otto
Archie
Chester
Truman
Reggie
Rufus
Ernie
Jack
(8)
Hidden trail the long way: ~9k. A moto was heading west towards doce as we were getting to the end of the coco trail and Jack wanted to chase it but came back when I called him. Other than that not a person to be seen. Hot but not crushingly so. We killed all the water. Everyone was perfect and had a good time.
GRADE: A
morning run:
Rita
Gowron
Maggie
Stella
Floyd
Mo
Xmul
(7)
Standard shire shorty: ~7k. North the usual way, doubled back to the intersection, east and north through the shire, west on the Au Soleil Couchant road to the beach, south to the tortuga sign and home. This group was stellar for the most part - better than I thought they would be to be honest. As we crossed doce heading back into the monte at the tortuga sign a truckload of soldiers was going north; they waved and found us amusing, and Stella wanted to chase them. I called her back and she came but she got that terco look so I put her on the other end of the hook early. She was a little bit of a pain on the way home but other than that everyone was perfect. The ocean was nice today for the first time in a while.
GRADE: A
late morning jaunt:
Alice
Ginger
Osita
Posey
Frankie
Ziggy
Floyd
(7)
To the tortuga sign and back: ~4k. It was hot, we went late and I just took whoever was out with Floyd. We killed most of the water and everyone wanted to rest under a bush at least once. The tabanos were terrible on the beach but the water was kind of nice - the black seaweed has mostly sunk to the bottom and when the tide is high it's okay. Everyone wanted to swim home because of the heat but I'm a meanie and made us run back through the monte.
GRADE: A
morning run:
Ginger
Bette
Gracie
Frijolita
Blue
Eve
Lily
Floyd
(8)
Hidden trail plus a little extra: ~9k. Started out well. Everyone was great. I disciplined Floyd a bit on his water bottle etiquette but he was otherwise fine. We went north the standard way, back south to the intersection, through the shire to the swimming hole (very popular) and then took the dog-leg east to go straight to the large cross-over between the southern and the northern charcos, all of which added a little extra distance; from there we went to the hidden trail the normal way. There were three tourists (Mexicans) on the beach at Au Soleil Couchant and the dogs were all good but I put Lily on the hook before we got to them just to make sure she didn't bark at them. We went back into the monte at the tortuga sign and shortly thereafter the misbehavior began, inexplicably. First Lily ran ahead right past the turn south and barked at some old dude on a bike. I caught her, disciplined her visibly and put her on the other end of the leash; the old dude was amused by her (she is cute and her bark is funny if you like dogs), but I was not. Shortly thereafter Gracie pulled one of her disappearing acts. We had just passed some salt dudes loading a truck and I had gotten everyone around me when I saw Gracie wasn't there. It turns out that she did what she frequently does, which was go around in the monte where it's cleared there and come out way ahead, but I couldn't see her, she didn't come when I called her and I was stuck yelling her name, which does not thrill me. She knows better. She further compounded the misdemeanor by refusing to let me catch her and put her on the leash, which she knows is the protocol for this kind of crap. This infuriated me, perhaps a bit more than it should've. I guess I was expecting this group to be perfect and give me no trouble, which is something I needed emotionally, so I took these spats of misbehavior personally. Gracie spent some time in the box when we got home. I had to go to my dark place for a little while. All in all it was a pretty nice run on a beautiful day but sometimes it doesn't feel like it.
GRADE: B
morning run:
Henry
George
Godzilla
Osita
April
Molly
Luna
Twiggy
(8)
Odd group but a good one. We left late and had two slowpokes so we just went to Au Soleil Couchant via the monte, down the beach to the tortuga sign and home in the monte: ~5k (maybe a little more, I forget). George was the first slowpoke and it turned out that Twiggy was the second. She definitely has something wrong with her left rear leg; at times she was only using the two back legs together and she wasn't able to go fast for very far, preferring to stay back with her hero George for most of the way. We need to get her checked out, as this probably also explains her odd, recurring whining. April was off the hook briefly at the beginning but after a brisk 200m sprint I came to my senses and she was on the leash for the rest of the way. I put Molly on the other end of the hook just south of the tortuga sign three-way on the way home; they went together well, oddly enough. The black pups adore George and he thinks that's swell. Henry enjoyed his new haircut immensely and swam a bunch. Everyone behaved themselves perfectly.
GRADE: A
morning run:
Alice
Lucy
Eve
Frankie
Floyd
(5)
To the tortuga sign and back: ~4k. Left late, it was hot, everyone was good.
GRADE: A
morning run:
Otto
Archie
Chester
Truman
Rita
Rufus
Ernie
Jack
(8)
Hidden trail the long way: ~9k. We went back in at Au Soleil Couchant this time because I saw an odd-looking person carrying something large moving north towards us on the beach as we here heading south; they were pretty far away but it looked like they were carrying some large object over their head. I'm sure everyone would've been good, as they were angels throughout the entire run, but I just wanted to avoid any kind of issue today. We left late, it was hot, they killed all the water but we soldiered through. Everyone had a good time.
GRADE: A
final run:
Oscar
(1)
Oscar died Friday night. We don't really know why. He had been weak and slow to recover from a bout of ehrlichiosis coupled with giardia, but the fact is that the treatment he received for heart worm two years ago had been very hard on him; the vet thinks it weakened him. I had just taken him to the vet yesterday and he was fine on the trip and with her; his blood-work had improved since last time but he was still very thin and weak. Late at night he took a sudden turn for the worse. There was nothing we could do. We both miss him more than I can possibly say here and feel his loss keenly. Everyone who knew him loved him. He is buried in our yard with all of our fallen friends. He was the best and we will always love him.
GRADE: A
morning run:
Posey
Osita
Eve
Monkey
Stella
Floyd
Daisy
Mo
(8)
Shorty to the beach at Au Soleil Couchant plus a little extra: ~6k. I thought we might hit the hidden trail but we left too late, it was too hot and everyone said they wanted to go to the beach. We started east on the Au Soleil Couchant road but all the dogs jumped in the first swimming hole we got to and made it clear by the lazy way they were rolling around in the mud that they didn't want to go on one of dad's death.runs. The beach is kind of gross due to lots of lots of nasty black seaweed decomposing in the shallows but the tide was high so it was spread out a bit and not too bad; in any event nobody complained and everyone swam as much as they could between Au Soleil Couchant and the tortuga sign. We saw no people and very few critters; lizards and bugs rule the monte right now. The bugs were horrible. I did the usual Stella-on-the-hook-at-the-shrimpery routine and scooped Mo up as we got home. Floyd pulled a bit less than he usually does but it might've just been the heat. Everyone was good.
GRADE: A
morning run:
Bette
Gracie
Frijolita
Blue
Ziggy
Lily
Floyd
Xmul
(8)
Hidden trail the long way: ~9k. It would've been the hidden trail the normal way (~8k) but Ziggy was an ass on the beach chasing one of those stupid white cranes. I'm honestly not sure which was dumber, the crane or Ziggy. The cranes have the irritating habit of flying away from the dogs in the direction that we're already going so that they effectively just lead the dogs on farther and father, but then Ziggy has the irritating habit of doing it every single time and ignoring me until he's out of range, and I have to haul ass to catch him. Everyone else listened well and stuck with me, but I had to trick Ziggy by going back into the monte at Au Soleil Couchant instead of the tortuga sign; this added ~1km and about a million mosquito bites. Xmul barked a little at some salt workers we came upon suddenly (the only ones), but honestly she just made them laugh; I made her stop and come with me right away, which she did well, but we still need to work on that mouth of hers. I worked constantly with Floyd on his pulling, especially on the way home where he gets excited and leaps ahead every time he sees a lizard (he never catches them). He was better about it by the time we were rounding the last turn but he also needs plenty of work. It was hot, humid, mosquito-infested and exhausting, but also very pretty.
GRADE: B (not as bad as a C but definitely not an A)
