Sadie & Stella Don't See Deer Again !!

I am beginning to think that Sadie and Stella need to go in for some maintenance on their noses. For the 2nd time this summer I've seen deer close to me and close to them with no response. For the 2nd time in 14 hours, two deer have been within 30' last night and at the first corner this morning ... no response by the hounds.


It looks like we may have a couple of curious new neighbors. Last night around 6:30pm Sadie, Stella and I were heading out for our 3rd walk of the day but NO CAMERA ... big error. Just as we turned the corner of the house and stepped toward the yard there they stood, two deer not 30' from the edge of the yard ... just as shocked as we were. None of us moved, the deer the hounds and I just stood still so the others could not see us. Even when the deer turned and sprinted for the woods, neither Bloodhound chased after them.  (strange)

This morning started like any other walk early in the morning. We were a little later today, just past 9am. At this time I did not see who was staring at us again. Sadie slowly strolled to the wet field and Stella stopped to eat some nice tall, wet, green grass. Little did I know what I would see up ahead.

I thought I saw deer at the first corner of the walk but without my glasses on I can't see distance that clear. So I focused the 200mm zoom lens and sure enough, there they stood. A mom and baby looking at us again. I don't believe it was the same two from yesterday. I turned to look to see if Stella was going to take off after them ... she had her nose to the ground totally unaware there were deer in the area.

Same response from Sadie. She had no clue that two deer were within eyesight and close enough to chase. I saw the deer turn and walk around the corner and knew they would not be there by the time we arrive.

The closer we got to the corner Sadie decided that yes, something had been in this area but didn't show that bent out of shape excitement that she usually has when her nose locks into a strong scent.

Stella was on her own pace, taking her time exploring the field. She finally came trotting toward me to catch up. Still, she did not show any 'deer urgency'.

By the time I turned the corner the 'light bulb' had turned on in Sadie's nose and she was positive there were deer in the area area and took off sprinting for the far right corner ... the deer entry ramp down into the gully.

She was a day late and a dollar short in her search. The two deer were long gone, back at their camp telling their comrades about the two idiot bloodhounds they saw and were never chased. I'll be looking for them again between 6pm - 8pm, from inside and looking out the window, not to scare them off.

With both hounds enjoying the field in totally opposite directions I was able to catch some butterflies this morning. I am going take the camera with me on the afternoon walk today because again last night the field was full of butterflies.

Stella met Sadie and I on our return trip. She had just crossed our path and was headed north when I said "over here", so she stopped and waited on us.

Sadie let the butterflies alone this morning. This one was about a foot in front of Sadie's nose but she didn't charge the butterfly this time.

Stella did a little trotting this morning during her walk. She does this in the same part of the path almost every day now.

On the way back, both hounds needed to check out the area again where the deer stood. Like me, they couldn't believe they had missed them.

I kept walking and decided I'd let the hounds come back to the house when they wanted to. I guessed that by the time I went in and changed from boots to shoes, then bring the boots back outside to dry out in the sunshine that they would be at the door ready to come inside.

I was right.

It looks like the utility crew is back to check on their new installation.

With the forecast of a high of 86° today, this will be the coolest part of the yard. I need to get a nice chair to put out there.

When I got to the corner of the house to go inside, Stella was still back at the edge of the woods. By the time I was at the door to come back outside with my boots, she was standing at the door whining to come inside.

With my new plants watered this morning and the high temps of today I'll not be doing much more outside until later this afternoon. The ACs have already turned on automatically so the heat must have arrived early. It's not quite 11am yet.

With spending time inside today I'll have time to put a couple, yes, TWO more posts today. I have some photos I took Sunday afternoon right after the hounds had lunch ... all three of them spent some time laying in the sunshine, even Sadie and that's something that deserves a blog post.

The other post will probably have a few readers shaking their heads ... but once again I can explain everything like I have before. Basically the day or month might be different than before but the story is still the same ... stay tuned in for that one.

I am in my 2nd business day waiting for the local utility company to at least stop by and check the tree limbs touching the transformer and wires that lead into my house from the utility pole.

I can already see it's going to be another fine day here in 'the tropics' of Southern Indiana.

A New Battle With Mosquitoes

Were these mosquitoes late Sunday night in the house because they were small enough to move through the small design of the window screens. I have brand new screens, no holes, and nowhere could I see where they could get in to infiltrate the house and attack me with vengeance just before going to bed. I kept dreaming about them and could feel new bites while I slept.
I know they were mosquitoes because I was killing them at a rapid rate, but where did they come from?

I wondered at the time this morning, why was I putting on my North Face snow boots to keep my feet dry during the walk. The past few days the temperature at 7:30a, was 76-78° and never dropped below the mid 70's during the night. Last night was different, mid-60's ... therefor a lot of heavy dew in the shaded area of the field.

I had not even walked out of the yard yet when my boots were already soaked. I had my first good idea of the day ... wearing the snow boots, rubber tops.

Sadie and Stella were not as energetic this morning as yesterday. Maybe the two walks we took yesterday satisfied them enough, possibly wearing them out. There was nothing planned out of the ordinary today. With everything planted yesterday I only had a few things to do as far as adding some mulch.

Stella has developed two calluses on each hip bone from sitting then slowly rotating on them as she scratches. I have a couple of options I can try from my shelf. K9 Klear Up was sent to me by a friend for Heidi in 2015. His Mastiff had the exact same calluses that Stella has and this stuff worked.

I'm not sure if the Wounded Warrior Ointment I also bought for Heidi last year would be the right stuff for "elephant skin" calluses.

By the reactions of the hounds this morning there seemed to be a lot of deer scent. In this area it could be nothing else. It's been a long time since Sadie or Stella chased deer. I remember their latest chance, I saw the deer but they didn't ... around 5 of them running along this back edge of the field.

Stella was moving along pretty well today on her own. Not a lot of 'herding commands' were needed.

Neither hound wanted to leave this area ... I practically had to drag them away.

Every time we make the final turn toward home, Stella always hangs back for one reason or another. She will then usually trot slowly in our direction. Today she never stopped and trotted right past me like she had somewhere to go.

That was until a very strong scent completely took over her nose and her brain. She raised her nose high and stood there and tried to process everything her nose was telling her. She finally took about two steps in that direction when I yelled "no" ... it was already hot and I had been bitten by something on my back in a place I could not reach ... causing pure insanity.

As Stella and I went one direction, Sadie went the opposite direction. It is a place that she has been running to for the past few days. With her I don't say a word and continue walking because no matter how far I get ahead, she will always come running to catch me.

Is it just me or is this field growing by the hour???

When I mentioned that I wanted to get home and 'eat' breakfast ... that word 'eat' was just enough to get them headed in my direction. Anything food related makes them quite motivated to follow me.

Heidi came outside again Sunday afternoon but only because I didn't have the camera with me. She walked a little in the field but was snooping all the scents instead of walking with us. At least she has finally moved off the couch ... but ...

For the first time in 5 years, since the Yew's are gone, Heidi has decided to move her area for dumping her tanks from the front yard now to the backyard. She has not gone any further than the corner of the carport since the Yews were pulled out.

Isn't that funny ... or strange?

It started first thing in the morning but it got worse as the day progressed. My allergies were out of control today. No meds helped and the allergy attack would hit almost immediately as I stepped outside the door. With the temps in the 77° range by mid-day it was cool enough for the windows to be opened but wasn't for my allergies. Windows closed - AC on.

It felt much cooler than it was showing on my iPhone weather app, so we headed out for our afternoon walk by 4:30pm. That is about 3 hours earlier than the past week or two due to the hot temps. Heidi raised her head from the couch letting me know she had no intentions of leaving her stretched out position with a living room full of cold air. She has enjoyed her time on the couch this summer, continuing the basset hound traditions.

What I found was more mosquitoes than I had seen all summer. When I returned home and was applying Benadryl, I counted around 15 new bites. There is nothing I hate more than mosquito bites. I'll be looking for my prevention lotion before we walk again.

I let the hounds go on their own, even though they did walk to the first corner together. I keep looking at Stella and wondering if a change in dog food would help her. I am thinking of going back to Fromm dry food. I checked Chewy so I could try them for the first time, with their offer of free shipping and $25 off. They carry Fromm products but not the kind of dog food I have used in the past. I can buy it at T&T Feeds in Bloomington, getting a free 40# bag after I buy 10.

As I walked along the back edge of the field, I could see Stella making her slow walk to where she had gone for the first time the other day. I figured I'd stop on the way back to convince her it was time to come home.

She would stop and look at me when I yelled her name from afar, then kept walking. LOL

The picture is somewhat deceiving. She is a lot closer to me, than she is the highway.

There it is, the new spot of interest.

With Sadie walking next to me and deciding not to chase every butterfly that was in the area having lunch, I was able to get my first two pictures of butterflies this year. I have enough of them from last summer, that they have their own folder in my Flickr photo library. (1Tb of Free Storage)

It was okay temps wise but at this time the mosquitoes had bitten me enough to feel miserable and a little irritable. I was able to catch the hounds right behind me with the lens set at 18mm. They were sound to sleep again within minutes of walking inside the house .... another day is finished for them.

Every time I attempted to get closer, this butterfly would fly away. The 200mm zoom was the best I could do to catch it.

It was a quiet day with no yard labor involved. It will be another night of ice tea and baseball, with a little reading as the game is going on. Benadryl has cured my irritability with the mosquito bites, while I checked Google for some strategic plans in the war against mosquitoes.

Some late photos from tonight ...

It was a great day here in 'the tropics' of Southern Indiana.