Life goes on. . .

Well, the girls have caught and killed two ground squirrels. It seems that Butterscotch does the flushing out and Duchess joins the chase and goes in for the kill. We don't encourage this behavior, but hunting for vermin is what Scottish Terriers were bred for. They would rid the farm of vermin. Probably anything on/in the ground was "fair" game. I am surprised that the girls are fast enough for the 13 banded ground squirrels, as they have multiple holes dug which provide a safe haven. The dogs need to catch them far enough away from an access hole to nail them. Duchess grabs them in her mouth and delivers a couple fatal chomps. She releases them then and they are normally breathing their last. I know when the girls lived on their farm, they hunted daily and it is good exercise for them, so they get a bit of that here. Duchess is afflicted with Scottie Cramp, which is an episodic condition when she is excited and results in her back legs going stiff and her gait changes to a "goosestep." Once she relaxes, she is back to normal. We had not seen this but once with her, but with the ground squirrels all around, she has done this several times. My concern is she might hurt herself if she were to take off running and her back legs weren't working, so once we observe it, we slow her down to a slow walk and allow her time to relax. It has no lasting effects. Those of you who knew my Neal who was afflicted with Cerebellar Abiotrophy or CA. . . this is not the same condition and it is not progressive in any way. Totally different conditions.

Yesterday was grooming day and off they went early in the morning. We picked them up later in the afternoon and they looked and smelled so good. I took the opportunity to wash their bedding while they were gone. They are beautiful. We walked yesterday afternoon and ended up down at a friend's house in the park. Butterscotch wanted up on Roger's lap where she lay until it was time to go.

Today we are headed over to the "storage condo" to clean. Jocelyn, Tom, Ronan and Aenea are coming this weekend. We are anxious to see them. It's too long between visits when wee grandchildren are involved!

Till next time. . .

Dale