Yet when we stepped outside this morning it felt cold enough to snow and luckily there was no wind to make it feel colder.
So far I have not noticed the time change, for me or the hounds. Setting their time for lunch last spring at the time change was a good move. It is basically stays the same for them year round.
I have had a few readers ask me if Heidi is okay or where's Heidi ... It's below her 70° threshold so she has moved back into her normal winter hibernation spot ... my my Marmot sleeping bag. It looks like she has taken ownership of that bag.
Of course nothing bothers Sadie. It doesn't matter what the weather is, all she wants is her walk. Lately she is becoming more and more demanding, if that is possible. She is willing to sit for longer periods of time, giving me 'her stare' until we go.
I could tell by the pace that Stella was doing to start the walk, that she would not be coming with us today. She was walking in slow motion while Sadie had already moved ahead of us.
I was beginning to wonder if I would be walking alone today when I saw that both of them were lagging behind my pace. My pace is not fast but that did not matter to them. Today was added protein day. I hate that habit but they are hounds and all dogs eat gross stuff at times.
Before I knew it, Sadie had charged up near me on the run and then curled back to some points of interest. She always likes to run up and hit my knee or leg with her nose just to let me know that she is back.
I set my lens at 50mm so I could take the a picture of what I actually see when I looked backed at Stella. She is right of center in the picture, if you have a hard time finding her. This gives you an idea how far out in front Sadie and I are.
Sadie was her normal excited self during the walk. It felt like a Monday to me and by the time we got to this point of the walk I had seen one single small snow flake dropping from the sky. Just one.
At first I thought Stella was going to make a run for it to catch up to us. It looked like it for a couple of her steps but she stopped when she found something. I knew then she would not be coming with us today. I was guessing we would see her over by the neighbors' woods on our way back. It's good for her to do her own thing as long as she is not near the highway (100')
The air was crisp, not as cold as you would think at 35°, but it kind of felt like it could snow. It will be interesting to see how today's forecast will play out. The hounds and I both need our food replenished, so no matter what the weather is going to be, I am going out to grocery shop and buy dog food.
As I near the back edge of the field Sadie has not moved to far from the spot pictured above. I catch her through my zoomed lens chomping down on something. I hate to think what it might be.
Once again within a minute of taking that picture, she came running up around me, slowing down from her full out sprint.
I think I am seeing a little weight loss for her and that's a good thing. At her age and breed I have to watch her weight as she gets older. The vet told me she was in great shape for an 'almost 9 year old'. He remembers checking her when she was 6 weeks old. I didn't bring her home until she was 12 weeks old.
As I made the final turn on the path to return home I glanced along the horizon. Since I don't wear my glasses while walk due to them getting in the way as I look through the camera viewfinder so I have to squint to see if I can find Stella. A lens at 200mm always helps me find her.
She was right where I expected she would be, around the woods behind the neighbor's house. Luckily she was more towards the field instead of the highway.
When I called her name she raised her head and started walking toward Sadie and I. Today Sadie did not have to run after her. She continued to walk and made it all the way to us, without me having to use a leash. That's pretty good for her.
That did not mean she would walk with Sadie and I back to the house. Don't be fooled by her. There were still things she wanted to check out and may have missed the first time when she started her walk.
Once again I set the lens at 50mm to give you a better idea how far away she is as Sadie and I get close to the house.
This was taken from the corner of the house. Sadie and I both went inside. I was pretty sure based on past experience that she would come to the door wanting in within the next ten minutes.
Sadie made one last look to see where Stella was.
I hear the splashing of wet pavement from passing traffic on the highway. Winds have shifted from the east, which is very rare to get winds from that direction. My iPhone weather app tells me it 'feels like' 27° and that crazy snow icon is stretched across the rest of the day.
One of my blog readers that I found through my Wordpress blog, has a Basset Hound and a Pyrenees. Her Basset Hound did not have skin issues like Heidi but her Pyrenees did. She told me that after a week of feeding Rachael Ray's Basic 6 kibble, her skin cleared up. She also added some coconut oil 2x per week.
So that is the food I am going to buy for Heidi today. I haven't tried that food yet and the way I see Heidi' has nothing to lose and everything to gain by trying it. I was looking through pictures of her taken this time last year and she looks exactly the same. Although her skin issues have stabilized these past couple of years you can still see slight changes of irritation based on what season it is.
Stella's coat has become very soft after 16 days on the SportMix kibble I bought. It is manufactured by Earthborn and is sold just a half mile from my house at the hardware store. I'll buy a 40# bag today for Sadie and Stella. Sadie has the softest coat of all of them and has never had skin issues.
Other than the shopping run, nothing else planned but staying inside and keeping warm. I have a couple of new books I want to start and one older one I want to finish.
Very light snow is falling now here in 'the tropics' of southern Indiana as I post this.
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