No Birds, Hydration, and Adding to the Pack

First off, we have added to our "pack". Before my divorce in 2009, I had an Australian Cattle Dog named Tess who worked cows with me on the ranch. I couldn't keep her while my living situation was in limbo so I sent her to live at the breeder's farm until things settled down. Well she's back with us now so we currently have a herd of dogs. It has changed the dynamics of the dog situation because Tess hasn't been as well socialized as my other two dogs. Artus thinks she should play with him which makes her grouchy. Aili thinks she's a threat so they have issues. Tess is great with the kids and an awesome cow dog but we just have this adjustment period to get through getting the dogs used to each other.

Artus and I have been searching for wild birds with no luck at all. Even places I've never failed to find grouse have turned up nothing. I'm thinking now that I'll need to buy birds and plant them to get us ready for hunting season. It's been frustrating to say the least.

I learned a valuable lesson the other day. Always stay hydrated! I was using a camelbak to drink from and still ended up dehydrated. Always drink more than you think you need while working dogs in the summer heat. It's important to keep the dog hydrated as well but sometimes we don't notice how little we've had to drink while we're out hiking. Be safe!

I'm including pics of Tess and also some more of the water work Artus and I have been doing. There's some pictures of this last Friday in the grouse woods as well. It was a treacherous hike through steep and thick territory. We didn't find birds but it was beautiful and Artus did a good job of staying out there and searching. Enjoy.



















Thick underbrush. The only reason I know Artus was in this pic is his orange collar.