Stella Starts Her New Diet Of More Food

After seeing Stella's side effects over the weekend from a rabies shot on Friday night, her running to start Monday morning's walk was a welcomed sight.

I could tell from the first minute she was up that she was feeling the best she had felt all weekend. She trotted through the house to the door to be let out, then howled for breakfast and was energized for her first walk of the day.

She had not looked this alert all weekend. I implemented my 'no shots' policy immediately for all the hounds after seeing Stella on Friday night and Saturday morning. I haven't given the hounds any kind of shots for years, annual checkup ... yes, but no shots.

I was up feeding the hounds and brewing coffee by 7:10am. That's really early most of the time but it was beautiful outside in the cool mid 40's. Sadie stepped into the computer room to let me know it was time for the first walk of the day a little after 8:30am ... so off we went.

With poor lighting for taking pictures and a field overflowing with very wet grass ... both of the bloodhounds took off fast and moved out in front early. Heidi stayed back inside, sleeping on her Marmot sleeping bag as the sunshine hit her shining through the window.

The new plan is for Stella to be fed a larger quantity of kibble twice per day, plus I am adding boiled chicken and rice as in between snacks for her. That means Heidi and Sadie will get very small portions of that same food ... you cannot feed one hound and leave out the other two.

As I was looking at Stella I hear tree limbs breaking and thick bushes making a crackling sound, only to see Sadie charging through the brush with her head down and not caring what was in front of her. A couple of times she stopped and stared down into the gully, knowing that is where the deer went.

I wasn't even halfway into the walk when I see my hiking boots are soaked more than normal. Thankfully the waterproof design kept my feet nice and dry.

Stella spent most of her walk with her tail up, which to me is a good sign that she is feeling better. Over the weekend after seeing a few pictures of her you would have thought she was taking her last steps. She did not look good most of the time, very lethargic.

Sadie had followed the edge of the field into the far right hand corner, then along the backside of the field. Pictures of that trip were too washed out, even with the lens hood, to be posted.

Stella did glance over at the 'no fly zone', probably remembering her trip fro yesterday morning, but once Sadie moved in my direction she followed her. I still find it interesting that Stella stopped in the same 3 places in the field to scratch herself. Why is that?

The owner of the field lives a couple of houses down from me. He is retired but does a little farming on the side. It looks like he made a trip early this morning around his field. Maybe the sound of his 4-wheeler is what woke me up although I didn't hear it. He turned before he got close to the house, but I could tell these were fresh tracks from this morning.

She doesn't look happy when I told her she could not head in the direction of the highway down over the hill. She wasn't really going to the highway but a spot out in the middle of the field, too far off the return path home. Her stare makes me laugh.

Mostly in the afternoons after school, I will hear a "large" bark from across the highway as the hounds start our walk. Only this morning I heard that same bark and looked over to see the large St. Bernard checking us out.

She is down over the hill and across the highway, all controlled by an invisible electronic fence for dogs. They are about the same distance from the highway as I am and I find it amazing the Saint has not ran anywhere close to the highway.

I almost bought this house ten years ago, but it doesn't have anywhere to walk in the back of it. The field across from my house curls to the right and goes right behind their property. Some find it strange I would turn down a better house because of a 7 acre field in back of mine for the hound walks.

I love these wild yellow flowers and that is why I keep taking pictures of them. They will not be there after 2-3 weeks. The temps are heading to the 70's today. I am going to try and get my act together and get at least one thing lined through as finished, on my 'to do' list. Then again, spending the afternoon outside enjoying the sunshine while reading a book might be a more enticing option.

We did a little of that yesterday. While Sadie roamed the yard and field, Stella slept in the sun and Heidi stretched out in the living room.

I know the urge to blog comes and goes sometimes but I've been having the urge to blog multiple times per day since changing the format on the front page to abbreviated posts and the 'read more' link to open it up for all the pictures and rambling.

I like talking and taking pictures. During a day I end up with more pictures than one post can handle. If I decide to do multiple posts per day instead of just one, some of them may be short with just a few pictures ... similar to the "routine' post I did yesterday afternoon.

I know it's my blog and I have been told before to do what you want but I also like to blog in a way the readers like. So send me some feedback on what you do or don't like about the blog. We will put all ideas/complaints in front of the three hound review board for discussion.

I am feeling much better about Stella's condition today than I was last night.

The weather in 'the tropics' of southern Indiana had been making me lazy.

Hounds Normal Routine After Lunch

These few pictures epitomize the daily routine the hounds have right after they finish their lunch kibble.

They are let outside to make any runs to the field, except Heidi, where they will dump their tanks. Heidi prefers the front yard to do that, under the Yews if it is raining. Sadie will wander in the field or backyard during rain, hail, sleet or snow and sunshine. If it's sunny, Stella will sleep either on the hot gravel in the driveway or in the grass. Heidi will cruise the front yard before coming around the house to the back.

Stella's thinking pose before every nap, inside or outside, then she flops to her side.

Unlike months ago, I can no long feel her ribs, hip bones nor shoulders. I still think she will be close to her original weight, 45 pounds, before the loss in June 2015. I did nothing more than feed her 3 cups of kibble per day but I saw the greatest improvement in her skin and coat after the last dog food change to Wholesomes SportMix manufactured by the same company that produces Earthborn Holistic Pet Foods.

The hounds are all asleep, time for my lunch and some Reds baseball here in 'the tropics' of southern Indiana.

Stella Must Be Feeling Better This Morning

Her morning walk today proved she must be feeling better. She runs away deep in "the no-fly" zone!

If you look at this next picture you would think she feels terrible. The camera caught her at a bad time and I debated whether to post it or not. She woke up at 6:45am to go outside with her tail wagging as she trotted toward the door. A fast trot around the corner of the house and into the field. I stepped back inside after letting the other two hounds out to serve their breakfast kibble.

This picture was taken during our 2nd trip outside, which happens right after their breakfast while my coffee is brewing.

She then came back inside and slept up until the time Sadie decided it was time for the morning walk. I figured we would be taking it slow today based on yesterday afternoon's walk. She already looked better this morning but was totally out of it Saturday for most of the day ... due to my mistake.

I haven't in the past for many years, had my hounds get rabies shots. I made that mistake for some reason on Friday's vet visit but after the way her side effects were yesterday I will not giving her any more shots, nor Sadie and Heidi.

That is why this morning I could tell she was feeling much better so soon after waking up. Compared to yesterday she looked and acted so much different. Her tail was high and wagging as she trotted to the door. She howled loud when she came back inside knowing it was time for breakfast.

While Stella stood and posed for that terrible picture, Sadie was out in the field searching for the latest scents. We finally headed out a few minutes before 9am for the first walk of the day in 48° weather.

Stella was cruising at a speed a little faster than I had anticipated and I think it was a good sign seeing her tail held a little higher than she has recently. She was a lot more curious about what she smelled and a few times caught up with Sadie ... so things were looking much better for her today compared to yesterday's afternoon walk without the camera.

All the way up to the last turn toward home I suspected nothing out of the ordinary taking place. Sadie was pretty relaxed in her walk today and I saw no signs of deer on the horizon. Little did I know what would take place in the next 10 minutes.

This is just a little past the last turn, toward the back of the field, not 10' away. I decided I'd let the hounds do what they do as I continued to walk home.

It wasn't until Sadie ran up next to me, acting a little upset. I'd seen that look many times over the last 8 years and 8 months that I have had her. As I turn to check on Stella I can see what Sadie is upset about ... Stella has not moved from the spot that Sadie found. When I looked before making the turn home, I saw nothing but bare ground where the grass had been mashed down and moved by Sadie's nose to get a better look.

One thing to keep in mind when you are looking at this pictures, I am really far away. I am shooting them with a 200mm zoom and still not even getting close to her. Yet, I could tell that she raised her head to look for us to see or smell where we were.

It wasn't five seconds after I snapped the shutter, that she turns and starts walking to the left, along the edge of the field into the "no-fly zone". You can barely see her in the center of the picture as she walks with her head down. I can tell she is in a slow trot ... she is going places !!

I immediately turned off the camera, slide the lens back into it's normal position and took off running up the path. She had a real good lead on me and I knew by the time I got to that tower she could be either in the woods or sprinting after a scent in the cornfield just behind those bushes.

Sadie realized what was going on and sprinted past me like I was standing still while my run turned into a jog up the path. At this point I thought Sadie had found Stella and she would be in view.

When she took off running I thought she had found her and was running toward Stella ... I was wrong.

By the time I got just past the tower, Stella was nowhere in view. By the way Sadie was acting I thought Stella had turned right into the cornfield. I stepped a few steps over the tall grass into that corn field looking every direction, calling Stella's name and did not see Stella anywhere in the cornfield.

Just about time that Sadie and I started heading straight ahead to the right of those trees, calling Stella's name, I make one more search along the tree line ... there she was, staring back at us and sitting as quietly as possible. It was almost like she was trying to hide from Sadie and I, as we were walking north instead of west toward her.

She finally came when I called her.

As she pushed her nose up nudging my hand to let me know she was okay, we made our slow walk back to the path. You can tell by the yellow field in the distance just how much of an incline there is on the north half of the field when it looks pretty flat as you walk on the other side.

So her excitement was over for at least this morning. By the time I downloaded and looked at the 45 pictures I took during the walk, Stella was sleeping right up next to my desk chair while Sadie slept guarding her water bowl.

I thought I'd include a couple of pictures from yesterday. This is Heidi's normal routine after she comes back inside after her lunch. She sprints from the door to the other end of the house in the living room, nose diving into the carpet, scratching each side of her face while growling to herself ... or most likely wiping her mouth clean.

I can only hope that Stella regains her weight as well as Heidi has. I am taking Heidi in on Monday to get on the vet's scales for an official weigh session. I have a feeling she will be back close to 45 pounds.

As I sat playing some Mahjong on my laptop at the kitchen table early yesterday evening, it looked like the field was turning more yellow before my eyes. I was too lazy to go outside at that time, so I took the picture through the window.

If you look close in the dirt, you can see the recently planted crop is staring to grow.

With the temps climbing to over 70° today, we will be taking another walk and multiple other trips outside. The 6' standard leash will NOT be taken but a closer eye on Stella will be. I am off to read more about dog food protein, how much is needed, how much is too much and hopefully find out why a hound stops processing it.

It's a beautiful Sunday here in 'the tropics' of southern Indiana.

Bloodhounds Walk Before It Rains

They predicted this and they were right .... it's cold !!!! Nothing like going from the high 70's on Thursday to the high 40's earlier this morning as we stepped outside. By the time we started our walk it had edged up over 50°.

That didn't bother Sadie at all, in fact she seemed a little more energized than normal but it might have been those new scents that were filling her nose instead of cooler temps. She did not even escort me to the field this morning and took off running from the very start.

With Wunderground being right on with their rain prediction time yesterday I decided I would believe them today. We needed to get outside and walk before 1pm when it was suppose to start raining.

Sadie spent the majority of the walk way ahead of Stella and I. We were cruising the path together, on a slower pace than I am used to.

By the time we hit the first turn, Sadie was almost to the far right hand corner of the field. I don't know what scent she picked up but she went from her head buried in the grass to sprinting around the turn. The pictures did not capture her speed.

Stella did not attempt to chase her. I have a feeling that Stella is feeling the effects of an annual rabies shot and a dose of NexGard yesterday. The vet office had the same offer as last year with a coupon, one that I did not bring with me. Nancy at the front desk fixed me up with free NexGard chews for all three hounds.

Last year after picking off over 100 ticks in the month of April from the three hounds and myself, a dose of one NexGard for the hounds only (LOL) eliminated the ticks for the rest of the summer. I decided as long as I didn't see any on the hounds, there was no reason to give them anymore doses.

As usual Stella was more than happy to eat breakfast as it was served about an hour earlier at 7:15am. Too early for a Saturday or any day for that matter but we were wide awake and coffee sound too good to pass up on a day that looked as if I was in Seattle, overcast cold and rainy.

Sadie cannot figure out where the deer are. By this time last year she and Stella had a couple of deer chases under their belt but so far in 2017 they are being shutout. It would be a good test to see Stella's response if any deer showed up on the horizon.

When Sadie has her head buried that deep into the grass, she gives off that strange sound that only a bloodhound makes with her jowls making a sound moving while Sadie is sniffing as deep as she can into the earth.

This wasn't a morning that Stella was interested in exploring. She walked at the same pace throughout the walk but did have time to check and see if I would catch her veering off to look at the neighbor's house where the mystery dog showed up last Christmas.

While Stella was doing that, Sadie was back on another adventure way ahead of us.

Once I yelled at Stella "over here" she slowly turned and started the slow walk toward my direction. It's her personality more than anything. She is just laidback and obviously has her thoughts on other stuff besides doing this walk.

Sadie was wondering what our problem was and why weren't we up to where she was. She waited and waited, then took off running for the house as soon as I caught up with her.

Stella did pick up her pace the closer she got to the backyard. I didn't have to call her to do that but she seemed anxious to end the walk and get back inside ... where she was back to sleep within minutes ... her normal activity until lunch is served.

I am not sure how long that nice blue 2017-18 rabies tag will last on her collar. It doesn't matter how tight I crimp them to the collar they always find a way to come off and get lost. In stead of scanning the vet receipts and rabies certification this year I decided to just use my iPhone camera. It's easier and faster than scanning plus gives you the same file as a scanner does ... a file that you will probably never use.

After talking to the vet yesterday I decided that I would give Stella even more food than the extra I was giving her the past few weeks to a month. It will double her quantity I gave her in the past and will end up 33% more than what a larger Sadie eats. Of course if I let her, Sadie would eat the 40lb bag in one setting.

As with any large breed dog, you have to be aware of them getting bloat. In all the years I have had a bloodhound, since 1997, I've been very fortunate not to have to experience that with any of the bloodhounds I've owned.

With the weather outside, all of us hid inside. The hounds slept, I watched baseball and read out of different books. It's too quiet for a Saturday.

BTW ... for those of you that read this far .... it didn't rain today and by that 2pm prediction time, it was nice and sunny outside.

It's been a good day here in 'the tropics' of southern Indiana.