Catching Up

No offense to the guy below, but
I prefer my reptiles to have legs and eyelids.

Wow, it's been a while since my last real post. Despite what it looks like, I've been doing more than just dressing up my lizard and taking pictures. In fact, something pretty big has happened. I was elected president of my local German Shepherd Dog club. This is a big deal, even bigger than I had imagined when I said yes. I'm still trying to process everything. I've discovered this newest endeavor is much like showing dogs -- it's harder than it looks. I'm looking for fun and exciting ways to reenergize the club. Any suggestions? (And like my dog show saga, I will share -- warts and all.)

 

The weather has gotten extremely hot, so we're putting our dog showing on hold for a bit. I am in no shape to be running around the ring in Hell-like heat! To keep Jedi from going stir crazy in the house, we're picking up nose work again. K-9 Obedience Club of Jacksonville is working hard to bring nose work trials and Odor Recognition Tests (ORTs) to north Florida. With some work -- and a bit of luck -- Jedi and I could earn titles in our own back yard! We've registered with the National Association of Canine Scent Work (NACSW) and have broken out the sweet birch oil. Unfortunately, the nose work classes at K-9 are full so we're just practicing on our own at the house. eek. We (OK, I) do much better with the accountability and structure of a class, so wish us lots of luck!

 

Actor portrayal, not the real snake

Work has been busy as well. I'll tell you all about it in a later post, but I'll share the weirdest call of the week with you right now: Yesterday a guy brought me a dead snake in a Ziploc bag. He told me it had just bitten his daughter and wanted to know if I could identify the snake. (I know! I couldn't make this stuff up if I tried!) I told him "I think it's a garter snake. However, I am not a snake expert. I strongly suggest you take your daughter to the doctor . . . and take your dead snake with you." And I said it with a straight face too!

Hope all is well with you. Until next time, stay cool. -- K