Dog Friends

Last year, we were in the "no dogs" area at Fiesta Grande RV Park in Casa Grande.  I called it "The Dark Side."  Generally speaking, folks in the dog section are out and about more and seem much friendlier - every dog owner loves to talk about their special dog (or dogs).

This year, we were in the same park, but moved to a spot in the dog section even though we don't have a dog.  I just need to be around dogs, so I started a little dog-sitting enterprise.  I posted a notice on the bulletin board in each laundry room and began getting calls right away.  

People in houses might have a doggie door or leave their dog in the yard while away for a day, but in an RV, you don't have that option.  I met really nice people and such fun dogs that I thought I would share pictures of the dogs with you.

Tasha is a beautiful Samoyed.  She is so friendly and cries if you don’t stop and pet her as you go by.  She gets a bath every three weeks so she just sparkles.  A few years ago, she had a hip replacement and is as good as new now.  I didn't get to dogsit her, but she was just a few rigs away so I got to pet her often.

Annie, a sweet Boston Terrier, is not quite two, and her people have done a great job of training her.  She does get excited and hyper, but she calms down eventually!  She comes to stay at our house with “everything she owns” according to Alan – her bed, blanket, toys, food, treats, dishes and is almost always in an “outfit.”  No wonder she feels at home.  She will play fetch with her ball or one of her toys until we give up.  She never gives up!

From left to right - Molly, Maggie and Riley.  These three border collies are so beautiful.  Molly and Riley are Blue Merle Border collies.  They tried to herd every dog and person they could find.  Molly was just seven months old.

Max is a sturdy boy, such a contrast to the more delicate, typical RV dog.  He is a very good walker and lots of fun to pet.  I know where his treats are, so he always gets one when we get back from a walk.  When he pees he lifts one leg and then, keeping his front legs in place, lifts the other.  Probably TMI, but it is pretty cute.

 

Three more Boston Terriers, Bridgette, Sam and Max.  Bridgette is 15 years old and can still walk up and down the steps of the motorhome and even walks around the block once a day.  Sam and Max love to go to the dog park and play ball.  They are outstanding at catching the ball and always bring it back and drop it (Max) or roll it to you (Sam) since they want to have you throw it again.

Pal is a Chihuahua mix.  He is really a sweetheart with people but will fight with other dogs.  He spends much of his day cuddling on his dog dad's lap.

Jake, the Jack Russel Terrier, was also a neighbor.  He is high energy and will also play ball as long as you will throw it.  Alan liked him too - that is Alan scratching his chin in the picture above.  In the lower picture, I was fixing our dinner and Jake kept hoping he would get something to eat.

 

We had Lucy stay with us for eight nights over Christmas.  She is a Chihuahua who is a little pudgy and very loving.  Her favorite place was sitting next to us in our chairs like in the first picture.  In the final picture, Alan is trying to put on her coat so I could take her out to potty.  Kind of a major undertaking and she doesn't look all that happy, but it was really cold outside.  We had so much fun with her.

 



 Princess was our next door neighbor.  She is quite a barker and it took me weeks to even get to pet her.  You have to be careful of her because she will turn around and bite you even when you are petting her.

 

This is Izy, Princess's new sister.  Izy was rescued from the animal shelter the day before she was to be euthanized.  She was skinny, trembling and terrified when I first met her.  I have never seen a dog tuck her tail under her so far.  Now, a few weeks later, look at that tail!  I used to be able to pick her up but lately she is getting independent and even aggressive.  I don't know if that is good or not.

Tiny Holly and Abby, both Yorkies, are a little spoiled, as you might imagine.  Holly is so little that the vet thought she wouldn't live beyond 6 or 7.  She is now 11 and doing really well.  I took good care of them, but they both refused to walk with me.  They certainly have minds of their own.

Cali was also rescued this winter from the animal shelter.  She is a funny little terrier type dog who loves to be cuddled and played with.  She sits in the window of the motorhome and watches the world go by - at least when she isn't digging holes or throwing her toys into the air.

Oscar, another neighbor, sitting in the front window of the motorhome.  Not just small dogs do this.  A few years ago, I saw an Akita on the dashboard of a motorhome. 

I was thrilled to see Cher, this Keeshond.  She was very shy so I didn't get to pet her, but, of course, she brought back great memories of our sweet Shadow.

Sally is a little dachshund who is very shy.  She would immediately hide in the back corner of the dining room when I tried to pet her.  After crawling around under the table awhile, I finally did get her leash on.  She was fine then and even went for good walks with me.  My last time of keeping her, she came right up to get her leash.  I hope she remembers next year.

Sataya (the Collie) and Teanna (the Pomeranian) belong to Millie, my walking partner.  Millie feels Sataya may not make it through the winter – she is getting old and has lost her hearing, but she loves all people and all other dogs.  Teanna came from the animal shelter and is really a character – one of those sweet dogs that everybody loves.  I am so glad she found such a good home.

 

Casa Grande Gourd Show, February 2013

We went to the 6th Annual Wertz Farm Gourd Show on February 3.  It is held at the Pinal County Fairgrounds and has outside displays, food vendors, gourd supplies, booths where finished gourds are for sale, and a large building showcasing the gourd competition.  Most of these pictures are from the competition.  We could hardly believe the talent and the huge variety of gourd creations.

A colorful welcoming display.

These large wire bins hold gourds for sale.  They come in every possible size and shape and are sold by the size.  These show the "before" gourds.  The following pictures show the "after" gourds.  Gourds are carved, wood burned, painted, beaded, made into bowls, purses, decorative items, etc.

Gourd nativity set.

Two turtles.  A little hard to see, but the one on the left has a saddle and cowboy hat on - very Western.

Not so scary witch.

Cinderella's coach and the next picture is a closeup of the mouse in front of the coach.

Picture those bumpy gourds you get at the grocery store to put on the Thanksgiving table.

A beaded gourd, of course!

This was the people's choice winner and took the artist 3 months to complete.  This globe depiction shows just one side of the gourd - it was decorated on all sides and was really beautiful.

This is an example of a gourd mask. The gourd is cut in half and is hung on a wall as a decoration.

An outside display called Gourds for all Seasons.  The little building named Kindergourden is full of fun information about gourds and how they are grown, harvested, etc.

We didn't  put our faces through the holes in this display, but we should have.  It was just so cute this way.

Grandma and Grandpa by the Shetland Ponies.  Notice the riders on the ponies are made from gourds.

Gourdbye!

We were welcomed to our Shamrock Farms tour by Roxie, their spokescow!  She is quite the diva and has 10,000 of her live friends living on the farm.  You might think ewwwww the smell from 10,000 cows, but you can hardly imagine that it is virtually smell free.  Amazing.

In the lobby, there were three of these big cows to welcome us.  This one is signed by all the employees.  One is plain and the other one is covered in brightly colored hand prints of the 4th and 5th graders at the local school.  Unfortunately, our picture of that cow did not turn out.

We mooooooved onto our tram all painted like a dairy cow and there was even a dog in the tram front seat.

Our tour started at 1:00 pm and there had been 13 calves born on site since midnight of that day.  There are approximately 30 calves born every day.  Young calves are each kept in a separate "crib" so they can be carefully monitored for growth and health.  At 3-6 months of age, the calves are put into groups of about 25.  This is called dairy cow kindergarten and they learn how to fit their heads into small stanchions and do all the things they will have to do later.  They will remain in this same group for 6 or 7 years - the whole time they will be at the farm.  Somehow the cows pick the leader of their group and when they start giving milk, in about 2 years, that leader is always the cow that  leads her group into the milking barn.

In this row of cows entering the milking area, the 6 or so black bodies you see in front are already in their places.  The white cows beyond them are still filing into place.  The leader comes in first and puts her head through the first stanchion.  That releases the second stanchion and the second cow files in.  They know exactly where they going and it works like clockwork.  They have received a bath (from underneath, not from the top) and their udders are cleaned and sanitized with iodine.  Then the milking begins.  When each cow is done, the milking machine automatically disconnects and when the whole row is done, the complete row of stanchions lifts up and all the cows file out.  The cows are milked twice a day.  Can you imagine milking 10,000 cows twice a day.  Whew.

The milk comes out at 102 degrees and it is cooled to 36 degrees within 5 minutes.  There were two horizontal stainless steel pipes to demonstrate this with the top one at the temperature of the milk after milking and the bottom pipe at 36 degrees.  A very effective demonstration.

The packaging plant was not located on the farm, but there was a very good (and comical) film about how the bottles and packages are made, filled, stored and shipped.

We learned that each day each cow eats 100 pounds of feed, drinks 35 gallons of water, produces 30  pounds of waste, and gives 8.5 gallons of milk.  While the cows are being milked, the wet waste material is removed from their pens and dried waste is brought in.  This keeps the smell down greatly and gives the cows a dry place to live.

We stopped at a very nice play area where kids on the tour can run around, climb a big milk bottle, go through a maze, climb on this vehicle and we all got to put our fingers in a "milking machine" to feel what the cows feel when they are milked.  It is just a gentle pulling motion.

My favorite part was getting to feed and pet a 6-week old calf.  There were people from Wisconsin and other dairy states on the tour that had seen so many calves they had no interest in this part, but for me, a city girl, it was lots of fun.  You might notice I am wearing gloves.  Everything on the farm is so clean and they wanted to keep these little girls healthy.

All the cows have "earrings," tags that show their age, health history, how much milk they give, etc.  This little cow was born on December 14, 2012, as  you can see from her tag.

Back in the main building, we received free milk and ice cream.  While waiting in line, we were entertained by this cute homey setting with an old fashioned bathtub, bed and dining table, all done in bright colors and black and white cow print accents.  Very cute.

Just a few of the Shamrock Farms Products.  There were many informative displays including a timeline of the company and some important events.  My favorite item on the timeline was in 1912 - it said "Oreo cookies introduced - let the dunking begin!"

There was a fun gift shop with all kinds of cow-type gifts, even footballs painted to look like cows. 

It was a fun, informative afternoon and well worth the $8 it cost us to get in.  As we left, the tour guide said "raise your hooves if you had a good time" and we all did!