The Evolution of Atlas: A Breeding (and Chat) Thread

[Mother of Chaos]

Yeah, so great.
I did get a kick out of the does spending the day with us, though. They were back this morning, but on the south side of the house instead. When we went to the barn, they walked toward the pasture. One doe had already gotten comfy on the ground and was slow to follow the other three. It was slightly warmer today, but back to 6* tonight. I'm just grateful that our power stayed on the entire week.

Yay for power, and possibly an even bigger yay for internet!

 

[1muttsfan]

It got all the way up to 25 today! Even though it's only temporary, and it snowed in a desultory way all afternoon. The chickens were very happy to be outside today.

 

[speckledhen]

It got all the way up to 25 today! Even though it's only temporary, and it snowed in a desultory way all afternoon. The chickens were very happy to be outside today.

We got up into the mid-40's today! We survived! All mine got out today, too, and boy, they were ready! That Angus charged out like a freight train after several days inside. I see a few 50's and even a 60* day in the forecast. It will be like Hawaiian vacation in the mountains.
By the way, Cricket is broody. Still too early to let her hatch. Maybe as she passes five years old in April, she'll give up on her own chicks. Not holding my breath, though!

 

[speckledhen]

Being nostalgic here. My dogs, old video and pics. When we moved here in 2002, they were only a couple of years old. Cody was a smart and opinionated boxer/retriever mix. Kes (pronounced Kess, like the character on Star Trek) was a yellow lab/bird dog mix. Cody was as dominant as Kes was submissive. We called her our "plush puppy". She did everything he told her to do, taught her to be less afraid walking through doorways and how to sit when being given treats. He was 12 when his kidneys failed and a few years later, she was about to turn 15 yrs old when she had to go. I miss her, especially. She rarely ever barked, but when she did, the ground shook, LOL.
You might enjoy the pics and there is one video of Kes running in the snow. She loved the snow. I couldn't find one video clip of her and Cody playing together. He couldn't run anymore so he stood and when she went by, he'd jump at her and keep her revved up.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

They were both so beautiful.

 

[speckledhen]

They were both so beautiful.

Thank you. I always thought that Kes was gorgeous. She was such a marshmallow. In the end, she had cataracts and was losing weight rapidly. Then, she became incontinent and couldn't remember how to go up the stairs. The vet said she had a form of dementia. It was time and she was ready to go. But, 15 years is a good age for a large dog, I guess. Both came from adoption days at PetSmart.
Cody was a royal pain, trainable and stubborn at the same time. He had a strong prey drive, barked at everything and would pick up his metal water bowl when it was empty and carry it back and forth in front of us, then drop it on the floor. He went out on his own terms at home on the couch. He was definitely more boxer than retriever in personality, never grew up. You had to stay one step ahead of him all the time. And he has this "snort-and-smile" thing he'd do when he wanted attention. He had to have an implant in his cruciate ligament and three years later, they had to take it out because he kept chewing on his hip, but his leg was stronger by then.
I will have a dog if I am left alone here, another set of eyes and ears. My husband was devastated when we lost Kes and he has refused to have another ever since.
Lisa, did you ever see the movie from 2019 called Togo? It is a fabulous dog movie. Stars Willem Dafoe, not a huge fan of him, but this movie, wow. Togo was a 12 yr old Husky who led a team from Nome to Anchorage in 1925 to bring back a serum for diptheria. Worst weather, worst time to go. His team went about 260+ miles and other teams who took over one last leg of the journey only went about 30 miles each. I think Disney+ took if off air, but my husband has ways of finding movies we want to watch. Best movie I've seen in ten years or more. You would love it. The lead dog in the final team had pulled into town and a reporter asked the dog's name and it was Balto, so there is a statue to Balto, though it was Togo who really saved all those kids. As a puppy, he was a runt and his owner tried to give him away several times, called him Satan, LOL. It's an amazing movie.