skip to main |
skip to sidebar
morning run:
Alice
Lucy
George
Ernie
Frankie
Maggie
Ziggy
Stella
(8)
To the swimming hole via the middle land bridge and the cut-over and home via the Au Soleil Couchant road and the dirty road: ~6k (maybe just short of 7k). In spite of Maggie lagging we did this pretty quickly. It was late and starting to get hot but they just went through the water and kept going. The swimming hole is pretty low now - not really deep enough to swim in but still fun and it helps them cool down. I had Stella on the hook the whole way and threw Ernie on the other end of the leash at the shrimpery on the way home to avoid any breakdowns in discipline in the last 100m. George was really up for it again; he seems to be getting in a better shape and having a lot of fun on runs. Lucy is too damned fat; she slept on me in the hammock for about an hour two nights ago and I could barely move my right leg all day yesterday as a result. This run loosened it up finally but the fact remains she is too heavy. She's doing well on runs but she needs more exercise and less food. Behaviorally, though, she and everyone else were very good, kept up and had a good time.
GRADE: A
late morning walk:
Zasu
Miles
Tito
Greta
Reggie
Lex
(6)
Roni took this crew out across the land bridge and over the main road to the next set of charcos and let them lark around and have some fun before heading back. Greta was good on the harness but tired herself out fairly quickly. Lex was inclined to chase things on the way back and Miles dawdled as usual but everyone was very good on the whole and a good time was had by all.
GRADE: A
morning run:
Henry
Ginger
Gowron
Monkey
Zoot
Mega
Petey
Amber
Steve McQueen
(9)
To the swimming hole via the land-bridge and the ridge, home via the dirty road: ~6k. Henry appeared out of nowhere when we were at the gate, ready to leave; since he's always good I threw him in because it would've been more of a pain to stop and put him back on the porch. He lagged a little compared to the rest but had a good time. Ginger is like a damned pup - she was frequently surrounded by the tribe and had them all over her the whole way. Everyone behaved themselves perfectly at all of the stress-points: crossing the road in both directions, out at the intersection when a moto went near, keeping up and staying with me on the ridge. Going to Mérida now to pick up Daisy, Twiggy and Linda so it was nice to get a few out first.
GRADE: A
walks:
Shirley
Buddy
Archie
Molly
(4)
Mark and Lin took out Shirley and Buddy first followed by Archie and Molly. They took the latter two up towards the palm tree on the beach. Everyone was good and did well.
GRADE: A
morning run:
Gracie
Posey
Frijolita
Godzilla
Chester
Reggie
Molly
Mo
(8)
Long and winding road backwards: ~10k. We left relatively early and it was pretty clear that everyone really wanted to run. I had Gracie on the hook at the beginning and out in the deep woods where the chances of her chasing something are higher; she was good both on and off the leash. Reggie was really up for it and did his little "yip-yip" thing several times. We only saw a handful of flamingos and everyone was good about it. I put Molly on the hook on the trail home just to keep her honest.
GRADE: A
mid-morning walk:
Bette
Frankie
Stella
(3)
Out on the beach with Mark and Lin and up to the north a ways. Everyone was good.
GRADE: A
morning walk:
Bette
Shirley
Stella
(3)
Mark and Lin took these on the beach and they were swell.
GRADE: A
morning run:
Alice
Lucy
George
Blue
Eve
Truman
Gowron
Steve McQueen
(8)
Around the southern charcos to the swimming hole and home via the dirty road: ~7k. George was really up for this run. I don't know if he was just feeling good today or if he's in a little better shape after going on more runs recently but he was definitely feeling his oats. McQueen hardly left my ankle but obviously had a good time and did horse around a bit with everyone; he's shy and will benefit from a collar and some work on the leash soon. We found a dead and half-decomposed dog with a rope around its neck right where the southern charcos start; hard to say what happened but grisly none the less. Other than that we saw nothing out there. Alice and Lucy continued their string of good runs and everyone was generally good.
GRADE: A
morning run:
Henry
Ginger
Osita
Rufus
Ernie
Frankie
Daisy
Amber
(8)
Southern charcos to the swimming hole and home via the dirty road: ~7k. Henry caught a nasty xmul just past the southern crossing. Before I realized that I thought perhaps he was having a hard time keeping up but that's all it was - what a guy. Ginger is more of a scamp than most pups and was darting off into the brush at several points. I let Amber come because I thought it would be good for the pups to start mixing in a little on not-very-long runs; she was excellent, mostly keyed in on Daisy but displaying her own personality. Everyone else was good and had a good time the whole way.
GRADE: A
morning run:
Gracie
Posey
Frijolita
Truman
Archie
Lily
Jack
Molly
(8)
Around the southern charcos continuing on to the road to no-man's land, across the berm to the swimming hole and home: ~8k. I had Gracie on the hook the whole time; she was injured recently at home and hadn't gone out because of that but I still don't trust her from her last two trips out. She was excited to go and very good on the leash the whole way. I let her leave the yard on her own and put her on at the shrimpery with no problems. Right past the tar paper shack we ran into an older gent with a trike and a large, white, male dog that I think we've seen once before; everyone was reasonably friendly but the other dog ended up getting a little freaked out by their interest and bolted in the direction of town, which naturally led to six of ours giving chase for a few hundred meters. They were back with me by the time I got to the turn east but it was still not a very nice episode; I'll have to find that guy and apologize. Past that everyone was good the whole way until just south of the berm where some of the locals left a little present for the dogs; most of them broke off when I called them but Molly completely ignored me and had to be drug out of the bushes. I put her on the other end of the leash there and she stayed on for the duration, which made the rest of the run not terribly fun, but no matter, she can't be allowed to ignore me.
GRADE: B
morning run:
Alice
Lucy
Rita
George
Chester
Maggie
Luna
Mo
(8)
East across the land bridge and south into the monte the now-usual way, around the southern charcos but then north/northwest at the circular crossroads south, north along the serpentine road, west to the intersection, north around the "hump" and then south immediately to Tuesday's ford, north along the dirty road and home: ~7k (not totally sure, have to look). It was a strange group but it worked out well. I put Chester on the hook at the shrimpery to keep him from jacking the pace up early; this worked out well and I let him off when we made the turn east into the monte. Luna and Mo still worship George and they're both good girls on walks, runs and the leash so I wasn't too concerned; those two could go much father but they don't really care. Everyone was up for it and had a good time. It was starting to get a bit hot towards the end so I didn't want to be out too long with George, Alice, Lucy and Maggie who drank most of the water between them. I put Luna on the hook at the end and again it didn't seem necessary - she might be over her need to bolt for the ocean when we get home.
GRADE: A
morning run:
Ginger
Eve
Blue
Godzilla
Rufus
Ernie
Elewah
Ziggy
(8)
Southern charcos plus the extra southern road to no-man's land all the way to the Au Soleil Couchant road via the palapa road, home via the trails behind the tortuga crossroads and the dirty road: ~9k. Ziggy was a total asshole getting out of the yard this morning. He simply will not shut up and brought the entire pack to an uproarious boil before I could finally get us out of the gate. It honestly made the rest of the run not terribly enjoyable I was so angry with him. We ran farther than normal and faster as I was in no mood to screw around. Ernie was on the hook at the land bridge to keep him from getting too far in front, but I let him off relatively soon thereafter. We ran into a moto just north of the intersection with no-man's land and everyone including Elewah was perfect - ran right by him alongside me without so much as a sniff in their direction. Eve and Godzilla rolled in some awful shit somewhere out there early on, but otherwise everyone was good while they were on the run.
GRADE: A
morning run:
Gowron
Monkey
Daisy
Steve McQueen
Amber
Petey
Mega
Zoot
(8)
Hidden trail a slightly alternative way: ~8k. We took the dirty road and the cut-over to the swimming hole and then the eastern branch of the road that heads to Au Soleil Couchant on the way out, and we went back into the monte at Au Soleil Couchant on the way back. This was the first time any of the pups have gone out since they went through some kind of stomach ailment; Lex was hit the hardest and is still not all the way back, so he sat this one out. Everyone was so enthusiastic that we got to the swimming hole in record time; they were obviously up for more so I decided to take them to the beach via the hidden trail. In spite of it being muddy and churning with last vestiges of a norte that blew through yesterday everyone but Zoot threw themselves into the ocean with great enthusiasm; there was a steep drop-off at the shore so that they were immediately over their heads in the surf but they didn't care. Zoot whined and barked excitedly at the shore but did not want to get in. Between where the hidden trail lets out and the Au Soleil Couchant access road we went into the water three times and on the third one Zoot finally jumped in with everyone else. The tribe are all strong swimmers; Amber in particular is a lunatic in the water with McQueen not far behind. Amber is also extremely brave and was on point with Daisy for most of the run; funnily enough her brother McQueen, being the largest of the tribe, hardly ever left my ankle and was constantly jumping up on me for emotional support and encouragement as we ran. Daisy, Monkey and PupG were excellent examples and everyone behaved themselves perfectly, holding up and getting with me before we even crossed the road on the way out and staying behind me and crossing the road all together on the way back.
GRADE: A
morning walk:
Shirley
Buddy
(2)
North on the beach with Mark and Lin while I was still out running. They tried walking apart a bit to see how that would go with Buddy and said that he definitely walks better when there is a girl around. Figures.
GRADE: A
mid-day walk:
Archie
Molly
(2)
Mark and Lin took these two on a longish walk north on the beach. They let them off the leashes far to the north where the beach widens out. Everyone was good about everything.
GRADE: A
afternoon walk:
Bette
Frankie
Stella
(3)
Mark and Lin got a little bit lost in the monte around mosquito hour with these three but had a good time anyway.
GRADE: A
morning walks:
Shirley
Buddy
Bette
Twiggy
(4)
Mark and Lin did their now-usual pairs for morning constitutionals. Everyone was good.
GRADE: A
afternoon walk:
Frankie
Stella
(2)
Mark and Lin took these two out for a walk on the beach on a blustery afternoon. All did well and had a good time.
GRADE: A
morning run:
Posey
Frijolita
Chester
Archie
Gowron
Molly
Luna
Mo
(8)
Southern charcos the standard way: ~7k. This was a high energy group. We left late but it wasn't terribly hot and we had some cloud cover in places; we all wanted to run and there were long stretches where we really flew. I had Molly on the hook for a bit after she chased a moto; she hasn't done anything like that in a while and I wasn't happy with her. I put Luna on as we were coming home so that she didn't jackrabbit off towards the ocean, but she showed no signs of doing so. Other than that everyone behaved and had a good time.
GRADE: A
morning walk:
Shirley
Buddy
(2)
Mark and Lin took these two on their usual beach walk. All good.
GRADE: A
mid-day walk:
Frankie
Stella
(2)
Mark and Lin took these two all the way to the palm tree and back, quite a nice hike: ~6k. They were both good.
GRADE: A
morning run:
Alice
Lucy
Truman
Osita
Ernie
Ziggy
Lily
Jack
(8)
Southern charcos to the swimming hole the more-or-less standard way: ~7k. I took Jack out again to reinforce his being good on the leash, which worked out well. Alice and Lucy both really ran well today, lagging much less and looking a little fitter. Increasing their runs is a good idea so they lose some weight but they can't go on runs much longer than this. We ran into two unknown dogs way out in the monte at the far south land bridge; Ernie led the charge of idiots to go say hi. Naturally nothing happened, they all turned around, Ernie was the last one back and was thus put on the leash for a couple kms. Other than that it was uneventful.
GRADE: A
morning walk:
Bette
Buddy
Linda
(3)
Mark and Lin took this trio out on the beach for a constitutional in the morning. Linda is in heat now so we're figuring that into our plans for trips to Mérida. Buddy was accordingly attentive and needed no help whatsoever walking in whatever direction Linda was walking in. Bette turns out to have dysplasia in her right hip according to X-rays. This explains her recent limp. No more runs for her for a while but some walks on the leash will do; of course she's always good.
GRADE: A
walks:
Shirley
Buddy
Molly
Mo
Archie
Monkey
(6)
Mark and Lin took the first two out for a quick walk on the beach to the north this morning; all good. A couple of hours later they took the second two for a much longer walk up the beach and again they were both excellent. Finally they took the last two out in the afternoon, again on the beach, and yet again all good. It was the first time Monkey went out with them and she had fun.
GRADE: A
morning run:
Ginger
Blue
Eve
Rita
Godzilla
Posey
Frijolita
Gowron
(8)
Around the southern charcos and home via the swimming hole the (recently) usual way: ~7k. Going to Mérida today so I wanted to get the run over quickly. This group really wanted to run and behaved perfectly. Everyone had a blast and ran like gazelles.
GRADE: A
walks:
Frankie
Stella
Molly
Luna
(4)
Mark and Lin took these four out for walks today, in pairs, the first two in the morning and the second two in the afternoon.
GRADE: A
morning run:
Chester
Truman
Rufus
Ernie
Molly
Daisy
Jack
(7)
Around the southern charcos to the swimming hole via the berm and home via the dirty road: ~7k. The real story of this run was Jack learning to run on the leash. Thus far he had managed to avoid ever going on the leash because he was always so good; this isn't really a good thing, though, it just happens because we have so many. Today, however, Jack and Ernie took off across the land bridge as we were heading out and shot up the opposite shore to the north after something in the brush. Ernie was irritating but it really was Jack this time, so he just had to go on the leash. For the first km he was truly a pain. I had to loop it around his body. He did his best boat anchor impersonation, biting at the leash the whole while. We crossed over to the terreno federal serpentine at the tar paper shack and I kept him on the leash until we got to the southernmost crossing, by which point he was actually moving with me more or less. I had him on and off twice more between there and the intersection on the way home and each time he was better - truly amazing when you consider he had never been on the leash before. Everyone else was good and when we were running we kept a high pace.
GRADE: A
morning walks:
Bette
Buddy
Frankie
Stella
(4)
Mark and Lin took Bud and Bette out first as has become their routine and they were predictably good. Buddy has really been enjoying his walks and it has improved his capacity to function in many ways. By the time Stella and Frankie went out there were a fair number of people, dogs and vehicles on the beach to the north but our team sailed through it all without a problem. Good job.
GRADE: A
morning run:
Alice
Lucy
George
Osita
Maggie
Ziggy
Linda
Luna
(8)
Southern entrance to the monte and then north on the terreno federal serpentine, east via the short-cut to the crossroads east of the main intersection, north to the swimming hole and the Au Soleil Couchant road and home via the middle access road and dirty road: ~7k. I fell on the shore of the charcos just south of the short-cut. It was that thick, red mud that is precursor to the salt that forms on the bottom, as slick as ice and difficult to make out until you're on top of it: a classic keystone cops pratfall ensued. My ankle was a bit tweaked afterwards but I ran it off and it seems fine now... I do smell of nature's rich, salty substance to an unsettling degree, though. Linda was a champ the whole way. I worked with Luna on the leash at three points, including at the end on our trail. She is acceptable but doesn't quite have the hang of running with whoever has the other end of the lead yet. Still, all in all a good run.
GRADE: A
morning walk #1:
Shirley
Buddy
(2)
Mark and Lin took these two for a morning constitutional on the beach while I was running and report they were both good.
GRADE: A
morning walk #2:
Molly
Mo
(2)
Mark and Lin took these two out into the monte after I got back. Shirley, Bette and Linda staged a mini jailbreak at the gate while they were trying to leave but we got them rounded up, no harm done. They reported that both of them were very good on the leash and had a nice walk.
GRADE: A
morning run:
Ginger
Gracie
Chester
Gowron
Rufus
Ernie
Lily
Molly
(8)
Long and winding road backwards: ~10k. Gracie was on a harness and on the leash the entire way after her recent backsliding. Good thing, too, as Ernie led a hit team into the woods out near the "Y" intersection that leads to doce. Gowron and Molly mostly stayed with me, but if I hadn't had Gracie on the hook I would probably still be out there looking for her. Ernie was the last one back so he went on the other end of the leash for a spell... I was not happy with them, and might've turned back except that we were already at the halfway point so it didn't really matter which direction we went. Out in the big flats there was a solid fringe of flamingo feathers in the mud around the charcos but no flamingos by that hour. It would be a good place to go to photograph them in the early morning. I put Molly on the hook when we got to our trail because she has a tendency to rush towards the road. Gracie wasn't thrilled about being on the leash but she at least did run with enthusiasm and had a good time for most of the way.
GRADE: B
morning walks:
Shirley
Buddy
Frankie
Stella
(4)
Mark and Lin took Shirley and Buddy out first and then Frankie and Stella. Mo got out when they were at the gate with Frankie and Stella but Mark reigned her back in. Everyone was good on the walks.
GRADE: A
afternoon lunch:
Bette
(1)
Mark and Lin took Bette out north on the beach to sit with them while they ate. She dug herself a hole and hunkered down while they ate behind a hillock.
GRADE: A
morning walk:
Bette
Buddy
(2)
Mark and Lin took these two out for another walk on the beach, like yesterday, with similar results. Bette is still limpy.
GRADE: A
morning run:
Blue
Eve
Truman
Archie
Elewah
Monkey
Daisy
Mo
(8)
Southern charcos, south to the road to no-man's land, north on the palapa road to the Au Soleil Couchant road, west towards the beach, south on the parallel access road, west to the trails behind the tortuga sign road and continuing on to the dirty road and home: ~9k. I had a different, more difficult group out in the yard at first but then I realized that I needed a good group today; Elewah was the one exception, and that worked out okay. We did this loop quickly and although Elewah was frequently on point she didn't seem so intent on kicking my ass the entire 9km; maybe I was tired the last time I took her out but it seemed that way to me. On the parallel access road a moto came up from behind us and slowly went through us and everyone was good; Elewah read my mind, in fact, and jumped right (west) onto the tiny dog-trail that leads to the woods behind the tortuga road just as I was thinking that's what we should do. Nobody so much as barked or broke stride for the moto, me included (I wanted to bark). I scooped Elewah up at the shrimpery and we all walked home briskly. I know I need to stop doing that and work with her on a collar but it just doesn't seem like the right time yet.
GRADE: A
morning walks:
Bette
Buddy
Frankie
Stella
(4)
Mark and Lin opportunistically pounced on the situation and snuck out with Bette and Buddy while I was running. Bette is still favoring her left rear leg; we fear hip dysplasia. They've been getting Buddy out more now and it's been doing wonders for him. This time Lin said that Buddy walked straight the entire way, up past the posts in front of the soldiers and back again. He is obviously enjoying the walks and it seems to be helping his dexterity and mood. They then took Frankie and Stella out for a long walk north on the beach near the palm tree. They ran into Nicole w/Xmul and terriers coming south at the poles, and said that both their charges and Xmul were all good (no barking, they gave each other wide berths). They saw Maria Weltin and dogs north of them further towards the palm tree and turned around. Stella and Frankie were good on the leash the whole time.
GRADE: A
afternoon walk #1:
Zasu
Miles
Reggie
Tito
Greta
Linda
Amber
Zoot
(8)
Roni and I got out together for a walk with this crew as Mark and Lin kept the chorus at bay back home. We went across the land bridge and north in the interstitial charcos next to the ridge, cutting across via our hidden path to the middle land bridge and then back via the dirty road: ~2k. It was nice out, perhaps even a little chilly and the dogs really had a good time. Greta was on the harness and on and off the leash as per her crazed behavior and our desire to keep our charges together.
GRADE: A
afternoon walks #2:
Shirley
Twiggy
(2)
Mark and Lin took these two out for a spin on the beach and they were both good.
GRADE: A
morning run:
Henry
Lucy
Alice
George
Rita
Tuesday
Ziggy
Maggie
(8)
Southern charcos to the palapa road and home via the swimming hole the usual way: ~7k. Tuesday was on the harness and leash the whole way and was the best she's been - I don't think she even got paranoid after we got home (maybe a tiny bit). Mags was lagging a little at the end but everyone was really up for it and had a good time. It was overcast, foggy and a little chilly so the heavier dogs like George had no problems. We saw no flamingos, people or marmots and there were very few bugs.
GRADE: A
morning run:
Ginger
Godzilla
Posey
Rufus
Ernie
Molly
Jack
Monkey
(8)
The southern charcos, road to no-man's land, palapa road to the Au Soleil Couchant road, immediately back south and home via the swimming hole, intersection, cut-over, dirty road: ~8k. All the work on the leash was preventative. I had Ernie on the hook early as usual and let him off before we ran across the salt flats to the intersection with the road to no-man's land. When we got back to the palapa road I put Posey on because she had consistently been jacking up the pace; she came off within 1km. The swimming hole is getting pretty dry but they still gave it a go, especially Monkey. We killed almost all of the water due to the humidity but the heat wasn't too bad nor were the bugs. Everyone was good on the way home except at the very end when Rufus, Jack and Posey ran north of the gate to the intersection. It wasn't very bad but it wasn't what they were supposed to do, and it was mostly due to Posey.
GRADE: A-
early afternoon walk:
Shirley
Luna
(2)
Mark and Lin took these two out for a stroll and they were both good.
GRADE: A
late afternoon walks:
Archie
Mo
Buddy
Frankie
Stella
(5)
Mark and Lin first took out Archie, Mo and Buddy for a walk on the beach. Buddy did extremely well, only spinning in circles a few times and otherwise walking straight the whole way. Amazing. Archie was off the leash and pretty good with them (needs to get better with other people). Mo was on and off and good. Frankie and Stella were both good on theirs.
GRADE: A
afternoon walks:
Stella
Frankie
Linda
Bette
Buddy
(4)
Mark and Lin took the first three out and then the second two. Linda is reported to be getting better on the leash but still a little willful off the leash. Buddy walked well on a leash, only going "spinny" a few times; he had a good time walking on the beach although he ran afoul of the many patches of xmul early on. Amazing, really.
GRADE: A
morning run:
Chester
Blue
Frijolita
Osita
Archie
Gowron
Ernie
Daisy
(8)
The southern charcos and then south to the road to no-man's land, north on the palapa road, across the berm to the swimming hole and home via the dirty road: ~8k. Today's group was as good as yesterday's was bad; I let Frijolita come even though she was along yesterday because she's so good and frequently gets shorted. I had Ernie on the hook early because he's out of his mind for the first ~2km, and I had Chester on for a short stretch out near no-man's land because he was too far ahead, but it was all preemptive. We saw a few flamingos and one bird-trapper on a moto. A slight chill in the air and a light wind made this a pleasant run.
GRADE: A
afternoon walks:
Bette
Molly
Twiggy
Shirley
Linda
(5)
Mark and Lin took the first two out on and then the second three. Linda is starting to respond to them a bit more. They said Molly was a very good girl on the leash and off - good to hear. Bette has a little limp.
GRADE: A
morning run:
Ginger
Gracie
Frijolita
Eve
Molly
Ziggy
Lily
Jack
(8)
North to the tortuga sign, north on the beach to Au Soleil Couchant, into the monte and home: ~5k. Gracie cut this short: she was simply awful. There was a point right at Au Soleil Couchant when we came off the beach and I thought I should put her on the leash; she's always worse when Bette isn't along and Bette had a little limp yesterday so she sat this one out. She was none too good the last time out even with Bette. I ignored my inner voice and left her off the leash so naturally she took off into the woods across doce and ditched me, but not after leading everyone else on a merry chase, myself included. I came home via the most direct route with the rest of them to find her already at home. She spent two hours in the box after crapping on my morning and screwing everyone else over on the run. At least the rest of them ended up listening well enough.
GRADE: F
morning walk:
Stella
Frankie
Linda
Shirley
Twiggy
(5)
Mark and Lin took the first three out first and then the second two. Linda is a bit dodgy on the leash but getting better. Everyone else was really good.
GRADE: A
morning run:
Alice
Lucy
George
Monkey
Daisy
Petey
Lex
Steve McQueen
(8)
To the swimming hole via the alternate land bridge and cut-over, north to the Au Soleil Couchant road, south at the road just on the other side of the near charcos and home via the cut-over and the dirty road: ~6k. George was in his glory and jacked the pace up a little more than I wanted at the beginning but he settled down. Pete, Lex and Steve were perfect the whole way. I put Daisy on the hook briefly on the way back because she was playing too roughly with Petey but it only lasted a few meters. I thought that Lucy might be coming up lame on the way home so I took the pace down and cut it a bit shorter than I was thinking; so far she seems alright.
GRADE: A
