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morning run:
Gowron
Monkey
Daisy
Zoot
Amber
Pete
Mega
(7)
To the beach at Au Soleil Couchant, back into the monte at the tortuga sign and home via the coco trail: ~6k. A quickie before I take Alex and Alex to town to catch their bus. I thought I'd try to get Petey on the leash but like Steve his neck is too big to use the trick that works on Mega. I did have Mega on at the end to keep the pace down but otherwise everyone was off and did well. At the very end Amber chased and barked at an old man on a bicycle on doce right where we crossed - she ran down to the next intersection with Petey and they came home from the north. I was not happy with her - she had been good about people all through the run, it was just the bike. We'll have to work on that.
GRADE: B
morning walks:
Frankie
Bosha
Linda
Bette
Stella
Twiggy
Xmul
Luna
Mo
(9)
Alex and Alex took these out on their final day here. Frankie, Bosha and Linda went out together followed by the rest in pairs. Linda runs ahead a little too much but otherwise all good.
GRADE: A
morning swim:
Greta
(1)
Our little mermaid swam until she was tired and then some.
GRADE: A
morning run:
Gracie
Blue
Frijolita
Chester
Ernie
Elewah
Lily
Daisy
(8)
Long and winding road backwards: ~10k. We left relatively early but there were already a ton of salt-workers out there, even though I deliberately took a route designed to avoid them. Everyone was really good about it; Elewah had ample opportunity to chase motos but did not engage the enemy. I had Ernie on early (idiot) and Lily on late (speeding, ignoring me). We made good time except at the very end where Elewah screwed around a couple times and had me yelling for her. Otherwise all good.
GRADE: A
morning walks:
Henry
Twiggy
Bosha
Mo
Luna
Molly
Xmul
Shirley
Ziggy
(9)
Alex and Alex took Henry, Twigs and Bosha out first and then the rest in pairs. Everyone was good despite construction workers yelling and digging up the corner just across the "street" from us to the north.
GRADE: A
morning walks:
Otto
Bosha
Molly
Xmul
Bette
Stella
Archie
Daisy
(8)
Alex and Alex took these out for walks in pairs as indicated. Everyone was good.
GRADE: A
morning walks:
Shirley
Bosha
Henry
Lucy
Luna
Twiggy
Mo
Frankie
Ziggy
(9)
Alex and Alex took these out as follows: (1) Shirley, Bosha; (2) Henry, Lucy, Luna; (3) Twiggy, Mo; (4) Frankie, Ziggy. All good.
GRADE: A
morning swim:
Greta
(1)
We went out on the black leash from the road-side gate instead of the beach gate. She was not bad on that leash - a little resisting arrest but generally she was good. We'll start taking her out on walks again soon. She swam well and had a good time.
GRADE: A
morning run:
Alice
Ginger
George
Osita
Maggie
Linda
Amber
Steve McQueen
(8)
Hidden trail the short way: ~7k. Took a highly modified route with a strange group today but it worked out reasonably well; I threw Osita and Ginger in at the last minute. There are lots of salt workers everywhere; Amber and Steve chased a moto out where the Au Soleil Couchant road meets the road from the swimming hole. Amber was the loser getting back to me so I put her on the hook and she was good, just like Mega. We stayed that way until we got to the ocean (via the short cut across the long charco); she's good about going on and off the hook, at least. I tried with Steve several times but he really needs a collar or maybe even a harness... his bucking bronco routine is much more powerful than that of his siblings and the knot in the rope leash doesn't fall in the right spot to actually secure the lead in his case (works perfectly for Mega). I tried tying another knot in a slightly different place while we were running but it was no good - he just gets out. At least he isn't a freak about shying away from me and not letting me get near him once I've tried to get him on the leash, and both Steve and Amber listened well while running and didn't bark at people. The fatties ran well and kept up and in general everyone was good and had a good time.
GRADE: A
morning walks:
Bosha
Stella
Otto
Archie
Daisy
Xmul
Bette
Molly
(8)
Alex and Alex took these out in pairs as indicated. All good.
GRADE: A
morning swim:
Greta
(1)
Today was the first day in a while that the ocean was calm enough in the morning to get Greta out for a swim. The water was chilly and deep but at least it no longer stinks when you stir up the bottom. Our little puppy.liebling swam very well and was tired at the end. Good girl Greta.
GRADE: A
morning run:
Eve
Godzilla
Daisy
Xmul
Mega
Lex
(6)
Hidden trail: ~8k. I had wanted to work with Petey on the leash today but yet again he got spooked at the last minute by general chaos and it didn't work out. Xmul was terrible out of the gate, chasing and barking at a moto that happened to be on doce when we crossed; it had been my intention to leave with her off the leash and put her on at the shrimpery but she obviously cannot be trusted and has to be on the leash at all times until she shapes up. This sucks and complicated working on the leash with the tribe - I should've known better. Since I had Xmul on one end of the leash the whole way I had to work with Lex and Mega on the other end of the leash. Mega is good on the hook now - no bucking bronco routine, no shying away from me, etc. I waited to try Lex until we went back into the monte at Au Soleil Couchant and he was not happy with me. He is smart, however, and did eventually start to get the hang of it, albeit under protest. It was easier dealing with Mega's energy when he didn't have all five of his siblings with him; I kept him near me and he listened well, on and off the leash. Not the most fun run ever but necessary and successful: three of six tribeians have now run home on the leash without having to be carried kicking and screaming. Three more to go.
GRADE: B
morning walks:
Luna
Mo
Archie
Molly
Frankie
Twiggy
Ziggy
Bosha
(8)
Alex and Alex took these out in pairs as indicated. All good.
GRADE: A
morning walks:
Frankie
Bosha
Otto
Bette
Linda
Stella
Twiggy
April
Ziggy
(9)
Alex and Alex took these out as follows: (1) Frankie, Bosha; (2) Otto, Bette, Linda; (3) Stella, Twiggy; (4) April, Ziggy. All were good.
GRADE: A
morning run:
Gowron
Monkey
Daisy
Zoot
Amber
Steve McQueen
(6)
Hidden trail the short way: ~7k. Rain spoiled our plans this morning; I had intended to go out with Petey and a couple of his siblings plus a couple more to work with Pete on the leash, because he needs it. For various reasons he got spooked during the process of getting it all together (and the rain didn't help), so instead I went with the six above. Amber ran on the leash pretty much instantly; Zoot and Steve were a little more problematic. Zoot was on the hook for a short while, Steve even shorter. I didn't want to freak them out and this is only the first time so I just kind of got them accustomed to the idea of it and kept them coming back to me to see that nothing was wrong. We took the shortcut across from Au Soliel Couchant to the hidden trail because I didn't really want to go for a very long one. Arriving home was a bit of a mess: Daisy kept lagging to sniff stuff and Monkey, as it turns out, charged off to check out the shack to the south when I wasn't looking. She's never done anything like that before and both Roni and I were upset with her, as she had us looking for her for 5min. Otherwise not a bad run.
GRADE: B
morning walks:
Bette
Stella
Molly
Luna
(4)
Alex and Alex took these four out in pairs in the end. Molly and Luna actually went out first but came back almost immediately due to weather and confusion; I then left and Roni sent them out again while I was out, with Bette and Stella first, then Molly and Luna. We cut it short today due to weather and general psychic environment.
GRADE: B
morning beach walks:
April
Daisy
Otto
Bosha
Twiggy
Molly
Ziggy
Mo
(8)
Alex and Alex took these out in pairs as indicated. Bosha has a limp; we don't understand why but she had a little limp before they left and it's a little worse now so we'll have to take her off of walks for a couple of days and watch her. Otherwise all good.
GRADE: A
morning jaunt:
Zasu
Ginger
Linda
(3)
Roni took these three down to the apocalyptic cove. Ginger rolled in some poop at the shrimpery on the way home which irritated Roni a bit but otherwise everyone was good.
GRADE: A
morning run:
Gracie
Rita
Blue
Chester
Archie
Ernie
Elewah
(7)
Long and winding road backwards: ~10k. This was an extremely fast group; Rita was the slowest dog and she didn't lag in spite of the high pace. We got to the turn to the hidden trail in record time largely due to Elewah kicking my ass the whole way there. I had Chester on the hook early to keep the pace down some but Ernie, Archie and Elewah were all in fine fettle and would have none of it. I had Ernie on the hook until we made the big turn out in the middle of the long and winding road proper and everyone was off the leash for the rest of the run. We saw a lot of salt workers out there even in places where they haven't worked for a while (especially way out there). Everyone was really good about it. We left relatively early and had some cloud cover but it was roasting hot by the time we got back... the sky was strange and beautiful the whole run.
GRADE: A
morning walks:
Otto
Bosha
Henry
Stella
Luna
Alice
Lucy
Bette
Frankie
(9)
Alex and Alex took these out as follows: (1) Otto, Bosha, Henry; (2) Stella, Luna; (3) Alice, Lucy; (4) Bette, Frankie. Everyone was really good.
GRADE: A
morning small-dog walk:
Zasu
Miles
Henry
Tito
Monkey
Diva
(6)
Roni took this crew down to the apocalyptic cove while Alex and Alex were out on their last walk. Everyone is getting much better about people and dogs coming and going through the morning, so it was easier for her to get out for a walk like this than it has been in the past; Henry really wanted to go in spite of having just gone for a walk earlier and he's such a good guy that Roni couldn't say no (can't blame her). The heat was terrible by this point in the morning but everyone had a good time and behaved for the most part. Roni put Monkey on the hook for running around like a wild thing, and both Tito and Miles screwed around a bit, but nothing major. Roni said Diva went from bush to bush in the heat but she was really up for it, stuck with her and had a good time. Nice.
GRADE: A
morning run:
Ginger
Eve
Posey
Truman
Reggie
Rufus
Lily
Jack
(8)
Southern charcos, road to no-man's land, palapa road, Au Soliel Couchant road, home via the coco trail: ~9k. Roni released Rufus at the critical moment to avoid too much insanity on the way out. He was on the hook for his traditional first 1km and off the rest of the way - a very good boy throughout. It was nice to be out with a group that I didn't have to really worry about. We ran into a lot of people and machinery the farther north we went and everyone was really good; although one especially large truck did spook Rufus a bit he got around it in the end and the truck driver was nice and waited. I put Lily on the hook where we turn onto the dog-leg near the hidden cow pasture because she insisted on nosing around in some salt workers' food instead of coming when I called her. No harm done but she should listen better. Everyone had a good time.
GRADE: A
morning walks:
Bette
Frankie
Linda
Shirley
Twiggy
Bosha
Mo
Daisy
Xmul
(9)
Alex and Alex took Bette, Frankie and Linda out first and then everyone else in pairs as noted. Everyone was good and had a good time.
GRADE: A
morning walks:
April
Bosha
Molly
Stella
Otto
Frankie
Bette
Luna
(8)
Alex and Alex took these out in pairs as indicated. All good.
GRADE: A
morning run:
Alice
Osita
Godzilla
George
Gowron
Maggie
Linda
(7)
To Au Soleil Couchant via the coco trail, home via the tortuga sign: ~6k. Quick one in the rain to test my sprained toes and get a few dogs out. I left after Alex and Alex had gone out with their first pair. Everyone was good the whole way and had a good time swimming in the ocean; it rained on us for the first half of the run but had mostly let up by the time we got to Au Soleil Couchant. We ran into three soldiers walking two dogs right at the shrimpery intersection on the way home. Linda bolted for home immediately, but Gowron wanted to bark at them a little - was not happy with that, but she got herself turned around and going with me in a few seconds. The soldiers for their part did control their dogs and kept moving towards their base so we were all disentangled in a few minutes; they seemed amused and waved, but I wasn't happy with PupG. We caught Linda on the trail home and all was well by the time we got to the gate.
GRADE: A
morning walks:
Bosha
Daisy
Shirley
Twiggy
Molly
Xmul
(6)
Alex and Alex took these out in pairs as indicated. All good.
GRADE: A
morning swim:
Greta
(1)
Our little puppy.liebling swam like a hippo - stately, plump and with great vigour.
GRADE: A
morning walks:
Bette
Bosha
Lucy
Twiggy
Ziggy
Mo
(6)
Alex and Alex took these out as indicated. Everyone was good.
GRADE: A
morning swim:
Greta
(1)
I took her out for mermaid duty while Alex and Alex were on their last walk. She did well as usual.
GRADE: A
morning run:
Frijolita
Archie
Ernie
Jack
Daisy
Xmul
Steve McQueen
(7)
Swimming hole, the beach at Au Soleil Couchant, back into the monte at Au Soleil Couchant and home via Tuesday's crossing: ~6k. First time out since I hurt my foot and it was probably a little premature: it hurt like a bitch for the first few kilometers and will probably hurt after the ibuprofin wears off. This is why I cut it short and didn't go to the hidden trail or further. I had Ernie on early (speeding) and Xmul on many times (preventative) but everyone was really good and had a good time.
GRADE: A
morning walks:
Frankie
Bosha
Molly
Stella
Luna
Mo
(6)
Alex and Alex took these out in pairs as indicated. Everyone was good.
GRADE: A
morning walks:
Frankie
Bosha
Lucy
Bette
Shirley
Twiggy
(6)
Alex and Alex took these out in pairs as indicated. A pair of huge, noisy construction vehicles showed up just north of here before 7am and were here the whole morning, in spite of which dogs still went out for walks and the dogs that didn't go were good. Amazing.
GRADE: A
morning swim:
Greta
(1)
I am still injured (toes on right foot) and cannot run without hurting myself, but I did manage to get puppy.liebling out for mermaid duty; I did more holding her stationary while she swam because I was trying to take it easy on my foot, but our little darling is light as a feather so it wasn't difficult. Good girl.
GRADE: A
morning walks:
Archie
Frankie
Lucy
Otto
Bette
Bosha
(6)
Alex and Alex took these out in pairs as indicated. Bosha has developed the irritating habit of behaving aggressively towards the other dog(s) that she's going out with when she's let into the "launch-pad" area. She should be put in first from now on and placed on the leash before anyone else goes in so she can be forced to stop it. Other than that everything went smoothly; neither Roni nor I bit anyone and everyone else was good.
GRADE: A
morning walks:
April
Bosha
Linda
Bette
Otto
Daisy
Stella
(7)
Alex and Alex took these out: (1) April, Bosha, Linda; (2) Bette, Otto; (3) Daisy, Stella. Linda came home a bit early on her walk: a jogger with a little poodly dog ran by them south on the beach as they were walking and Linda wanted to run with him, it seems. I saw her from the deck and went out to get her but she obviously knows where she lives (and was thinking maybe she could have a few minutes to sniff around in poop... I foiled her plans). Everyone else was good.
GRADE: A
morning walks:
Frankie
Bosha
Linda
Lucy
Shirley
Alice
Twiggy
(7)
Alex and Alex took these out as follows: (1) Frankie, Bosha, Linda; (2) Lucy, Shirley; (3) Alice, Twiggy. We wanted Ginger to go with Alice but she balked and Twigs was dying to go... everyone was good.
GRADE: A
morning swims:
Greta
Gowron
(2)
I took these two out together since the beach was empty and everyone was in and being good. PupG swam around a lot, coming out to get me and Greta on several occasions. I did more of holding Greta in place while she swam against me, much to her annoyance - it works, though.
GRADE: A
morning run:
Posey
Rita
Chester
Molly
Daisy
Xmul
Amber
Mega
(8)
Hidden trail w/shortcut: ~7k. This was not a great grouping; Molly should not come with other dogs that need a lot of leash/attention, like Mega and Xmul. This was Xmul's first run since she came back to us and I found out that she still has an annoying habit of barking at people. I had her on the hook for about half of the run. I had convinced myself that you can cut across from the Au Soleil Couchant road straight to the hidden trail at one of the larger crossing points where a charco runs the whole way from one to the other, so I decided to try it today and it turns out to be true. We surprised a somnolent bird-trapper as we ran by him. I put Mega on the hook on the beach because he tends to get too excited and run too far ahead, and then can't hear because of the surf. We went back in at Au Soleil Couchant and I put Xmul on one end and Mega on the other for the rest of the way home - both were good. Too many people and nasty surprises in the bushes all around and I should be wiser about who to take with who, but none of that was the dogs' fault.
GRADE: A
morning walks:
Otto
Bosha
Linda
Bette
Luna
Ziggy
Mo
(7)
Alex and Alex took these out: (1) Otto, Bosha, Linda; (2) Bette, Luna; (3) Ziggy, Mo. Alex said that Ziggy didn't squeal in pain at any point so maybe that's getting better - hard to tell with him. Everyone was good.
GRADE: A
morning walks:
Bosha
Stella
Archie
Daisy
Frankie
Twiggy
Shirley
Mo
Linda
(9)
Alex and Alex took these out as follows: (1) Bosha, Stella; (2) Archie, Daisy; (3) Frankie, Twiggy; (4) Shirley, Mo, Linda. Linda was off the leash and was good in spite of there being mounds of garbage on the beach from the weekend's revelries (semana santa). Everyone else was good and had a good time.
GRADE: A
morning swims:
Greta
Luna
(2)
When I got puppy.liebling out there I realised that the ocean was rougher than I thought; there was a strong current, whitecaps and even some swells. Nonetheless we persevered and did some actual swimming; Greta was a good sport about it but we didn't stay out as long as we usually do. I wasn't going to take anyone else out but Luna had been such a good girl when her sister Twigs went out for a walk and she had to stay that I promised her I would take her out for something, so what the hell - we went out for a swim. She doesn't mind rough seas and had a blast horsing around with me in the water and running around a bit on shore. Such a good girl.
GRADE: A
morning walk:
Twiggy
Stella
(2)
Alex and Alex took these out before Xmul arrived.
GRADE: A
morning arrivals:
Xmul
Diva
(2)
Nicole and Marie dropped Xmul and her little buddy Diva off on their way back from their morning walk. They are going back to Canada shortly. Diva apparently has a home waiting for her in Canada so Nicole will be coming back in May to pick her up... until then she's hanging with us. Xmul will stay with us until Nicole and Marie come back from Canada in the fall/winter. Roni managed everything perfectly on the beach and everyone is being good and adjusting.
GRADE: A
morning walk:
Archie
Bosha
(2)
Alex and Alex took these two out for a walk. Since it's Easter weekend we decided to cut walks short after that, since beach-goers were already beginning to arrive.
GRADE: A
morning run:
Ginger
Gracie
Blue
Posey
Rita
Elewah
Lily
Molly
(8)
Southern charcos, road to no-man's land, palapa road, berm, swimming hole, alt. land bridge, dirty road: ~8k. Early on I jammed two of the toes on my right foot when Rita stopped suddenly in front of me; it was worse than I thought at first and hurt for the whole run (partly why I came home via the berm and not Au Soleil Couchant). I couldn't blame Rita; she hadn't been out since just before her ear surgery and she was really happy about going for a run. I had Lily on the hook early to keep the pace down, Gracie on in the usual spots and Molly on the trail home to avoid any nonsense with people around. Everyone was good and had a good time.
GRADE: A
morning walks:
Bosha
Stella
Bette
Twiggy
Frankie
Linda
Mo
(7)
Alex and Alex took these out: (1) Bosha, Stella; (2) Bette, Twiggy; (3) Frankie, Linda, Mo. Linda was especially good at the end and came with them to the beach gate instead of poking her nose into the garbage next door. Everyone else was similarly good.
GRADE: A
morning swims:
Lucy
Greta
(2)
They both swam until they were irritated with me. Lucy had more fun and chased me around more; Greta is also fun but in a different way. The water is nicer than it has been in a while but it is still a little stinky... we must've had a lot more seaweed than usual this year.
GRADE: A
morning walks:
Bosha
Luna
Otto
Frankie
Ernie
Daisy
(6)
Alex and Alex took these out in pairs as indicated. Ernie got out of his collar at the gate so they went to the beach via the shrimpery but all was well when they came back.
GRADE: B (Ernie)
morning swim:
Greta
(1)
She swam until she was breathing heavily. Good girl.
GRADE: A
morning run:
Gowron
Monkey
Zoot
Mega
Lex
Petey
Steve McQueen
Amber
(8)
Hidden trail plus a little extra: ~9k. We went north via the swimming hole, but when we hit the first bend north of it our way was blocked by a large group of salt-workers and vehicles; I didn't really feel like dealing with it so we turned around and crossed that charco via the berm, then headed north to the hidden trail from where it lets out. At this point they were already moving really quickly. I put Mega on the hook at the swimming hole because I could feel him pulling up the pace the whole way there. This turned out to be a good decision because the closer we got to the ocean the more excited they got and the faster we ran, my best intentions notwithstanding. If I hadn't had Mega on the leash I think they might've just ditched me when we crossed doce but as it was they made it to the water about 10 seconds ahead of me, although it seemed much farther; I nearly had to puke while they were swimming as we had more or less sprinted the first 6k. I let them swim for a few minutes and took it easy on the way south to Au Soleil Couchant. They swam almost constantly the whole way there but were good about coming out and heading back into the monte. The rest of the way I managed to keep the pace tolerable and stayed off the roads for the most part.
GRADE: A
morning walks:
Frankie
Bosha
Molly
Stella
Twiggy
Mo
(6)
Alex and Alex took these out in pairs as listed. Everyone was good.
GRADE: A
morning walks:
Otto
Bosha
Archie
Stella
Bette
Twiggy
(6)
Alex and Alex took these out: (1) Otto, Bosha; (2) Archie, Stella; (3) Bette, Twiggy. Everyone was good.
GRADE: A
morning swims:
Lucy
Greta
Gowron
(3)
I took Greta out first and PupG tagged along - both were good and swam a lot. Lucy went out by herself and swam with enthusiasm, chasing me around several times and horsing around on the beach besides.
GRADE: A
morning run:
Alice
Eve
George
Chester
Ernie
Maggie
Monkey
Linda
(8)
Hidden trail: ~8k. This was a strange group but it ended up working well. I had Chester on the leash early to keep him from taking the pace up too high. Ernie was on for a while on the actual hidden trail because he also got too far ahead, and I wanted him under control when we got to the beach. We went back into the monte at Au Soleil Couchant and stayed off of the roads most of the way home. Alice and George did very well and never lagged in spite of the fact that I forgot the water bottle. Linda also did well; I had to pick her up and carry her around a couple of bird-trappers that insisted on standing dumbly in the road instead of moving ever so slightly to the side but I could hardly blame her. Chester mellowed out and was a good running buddy most of the way. Everyone swam a lot and had a good time.
GRADE: A
morning walks:
Henry
Bette
Molly
April
Bosha
Shirley
Ziggy
(7)
Alex and Alex took these out: (1) Henry, Bette, Molly; (2) April, Bosha; (3) Shirley, Ziggy. This was Zig's first trip out since he started having this mysterious pain that nobody can figure out; the vet said she doesn't think it's muscular or in his joints or bones and he's extremely hard to read, so we decided to let him go for a short walk and see how it went. He seemed okay. Everyone else was fine.
GRADE: A
morning swim:
Greta
(1)
Our little mermaid swam until she was out of breath and irritated with me, but in a good-natured way.
GRADE: A
