Thanksgiving Monday: The way that our barn is setup, there is one gate area where the boys and girls can see each other. In order to minimize how frisky the boys get, we've been hanging blankets over the gate to block out the view. We decided to do some arts & crafts, and to weave some fabric through the gated area to make the "curtain" more solid. The other side of this gate doesn't have any fencing on it, it's simply bars. We wove fabric through it, too, but it's a lot less structured. We'll see if it can withstand Dixie and the insistant boys!
Update on Tuesday: Our good looking gate totally withstood the boys through the night. But it lasted only 2 hours until Dixie chewed through the un-fenced portion and snuck out to be in the paddock.
Today, she had absolute full-moon fever! Lately she has been breaking into the duck pen so she can check out the ducks and swans. Then she hops onto a rock and hops out of the pen into the driveway. A convenient way to escape the confines of the pasture! We had fixed the vulnerable fence area which seemed to keep her out. But today, when confronted with the newly shored up fence, Dixie jumped over another portion of the fence. Back into the duck pen, back over the fence along the driveway and freedom! One of the boys caught her and put her back into the barn but didn't put her in the locked area - he just shut the barn door. As soon as I opened up the barn door, she took off running. And run she did - it was an excellent game, apparently. She had 3 of us chasing her, and she managed to keep out of our clutches. We were scared because she kept getting closer to the road, and showed no sign of listening or stopping. Finally, I crouched down and called her - and wouldn't you know it she came galloping right up to me. So once again she was tied up.
Sometimes we get discouraged - she seems to take a step forward and 2 steps back. I try to remind myself that she is just 1, that she is a ruckus-y teenager almost. She can be so GOOD and then the next day be back to chasing lambs and escaping the field.
Slightly disheartened, we left her under the lean-to with the animals. But then FULL MOON FEVER hit the house dogs! Michele was letting them out of their run - and normally they would run right back into the kennel. But today, not a couple of hours after Dixie's mad dash for freedom, all 3 of them took off running. Running up towards the road! Almost the exact route that Dixie took. I wasn't there at the time, so I heard about it 2nd hand. But the same guy that caught Dixie once also caught Duke the Great Dane. Chaos all day - and then we realized that it will be a full moon tonight. So there you have it. Full moon fever makes dogs run for freedom.
Today, she had absolute full-moon fever! Lately she has been breaking into the duck pen so she can check out the ducks and swans. Then she hops onto a rock and hops out of the pen into the driveway. A convenient way to escape the confines of the pasture! We had fixed the vulnerable fence area which seemed to keep her out. But today, when confronted with the newly shored up fence, Dixie jumped over another portion of the fence. Back into the duck pen, back over the fence along the driveway and freedom! One of the boys caught her and put her back into the barn but didn't put her in the locked area - he just shut the barn door. As soon as I opened up the barn door, she took off running. And run she did - it was an excellent game, apparently. She had 3 of us chasing her, and she managed to keep out of our clutches. We were scared because she kept getting closer to the road, and showed no sign of listening or stopping. Finally, I crouched down and called her - and wouldn't you know it she came galloping right up to me. So once again she was tied up.
Sometimes we get discouraged - she seems to take a step forward and 2 steps back. I try to remind myself that she is just 1, that she is a ruckus-y teenager almost. She can be so GOOD and then the next day be back to chasing lambs and escaping the field.
Slightly disheartened, we left her under the lean-to with the animals. But then FULL MOON FEVER hit the house dogs! Michele was letting them out of their run - and normally they would run right back into the kennel. But today, not a couple of hours after Dixie's mad dash for freedom, all 3 of them took off running. Running up towards the road! Almost the exact route that Dixie took. I wasn't there at the time, so I heard about it 2nd hand. But the same guy that caught Dixie once also caught Duke the Great Dane. Chaos all day - and then we realized that it will be a full moon tonight. So there you have it. Full moon fever makes dogs run for freedom.
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