Tess

Trouble in River City

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Tess

See that happy face? That’s Tess showing her good self. Yesterday she showed her real bad self and mom was NOT happy.

The papers from the shelter said Tess is an Australian Shepherd like me. Tess says nobody asked her when she got picked up as a stray. She would have told them she’s got lots of border collie in her background.

Anyway, you know we live on some acres. We have goats and chickens that live together in their own space.

When Tess first saw the goats she went crazy, but now she can behave herself when she’s around them. You can see in this picture she’s giving them the stink eye, but she’s not barking.

Tess and the Goats

If you look real close at the gate you can see that it’s a little off plumb. If the people don’t get the peg just right, Tess can stick that nose of hers in between and force the gate open.

Well, somebody was careless and Tess got her chance. She pushed the gate open and in we went. I went off to inspect the goat droppings. Tess headed straight for the chickens. Nobody noticed for three or four minutes. That was plenty of time for Tess to corner a bunch of the chickens and grab a mouthful of feathers.

The chickens started screaming. Mom came running. I grabbed a couple more goat raisins while Tess kept the chickens pinned up against the fence.  Mom grabbed Tess and put her flat on the ground. She told Tess in no uncertain terms that the chickens were not her personal squeaky toys and to leave them alone.

I kinda felt sorry for Tess. She was so excited about her first taste of chicken but boy did she get in big time trouble. I quick ran back on the right side of the gate. Tess had to heel all the way back on a short leash. She was temporarily insane but quite pleased with her bad self.

Tess drank a bucket of water and crashed on the patio. Jack didn’t have a clue what happened. He slept through most of it and woke up just in time to see Tess slinking back through the gate. I told him later about Tess having taste of chicken. He laughed and said he’s glad he’s not a herding dog. Whew! That was a busy day. Anyway, gotta run.

Asher, Tess

The Twins

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The Twins

Lately we’ve been barking about some serious stuff – the rainbow bridge, quiet listening, memories…Tess and me decided I should bark something fun today.

What’s more fun than my goofy pals, the evil twins? If you’ve been following our barks, you know Tess joined the pack last August.

Tess didn’t now how to play but Ash was real patient with her and taught her his favorite games. Here they are a couple of days ago.

Sometimes they play the mouth game and make silly sounds. Other times they’re real sweet with each other, like two young lovers.

The Sheepdog's Eye

All the snarling and jumping around used to make me real nervous. But now I know it’s just their way of having a good time. It sure makes the humans laugh.

Ash gets wild sometimes. He makes like a whirling dervish. After about five circles he’s lost his mind. Then he tears out the door and runs laps around the backyard.

Tess knows to get out of his way. Once she didn’t move fast enough and he knocked her flat. Oh, she was mad, but we were all laughing so hard she didn’t get much sympathy. I think Ash was laughing too.

Asher, Codie

Quiet Listening

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Ash

Ash feels like he’s letting us down. Since Codie put it in his head that she would bark to him, he spends hours by the gate hoping to sense her presence.  He tries real hard to be still so he can hear her silent barking.

Ash has always been a busy dog so it’s hard for him to stay still. He’s the first to greet a visitor, the first to bark at the neighbor dog. Wherever there’s action you’ll find Ash. He’s got a sheepdog mind and he’s always watching.

Maybe Codie chose Asher as her listener because he needs to learn how to be quiet. He’s such an extrovert. It’s gonna be tough for him. But he wants so much to hear Codie, he’ll do anything to make it happen.

I was born with the gift of quiet listening. Once I’ve barked enough to satisfy myself, I’ll sit real still and watch. I don’t miss much. When mom’s upset I sit right in front of her and stare into her eyes. Then she tells me her troubles. I give her a little kiss and she feels much better.

Jack’s the best listener in the pack even though he’s deaf. He listens with his soul. We know that Ash can learn to listen quietly because he has so much heart. We’re gonna start practicing with him this afternoon. First he has to run the goats around and play a little ball. Then he’ll be ready for a lesson. Any maybe while he’s practicing he might hear Codie. I hope so.

Respectfully, Tess.