Hound Hollow Farm and Boarding Kennel

Friday November 21, 2008

Otter — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 12:09:14 +0000

Woo hoo it’s Friday and the weekend is almost here. It’s another cold morning. I guess it hasn’t really sunk it yet winter is basically here.
I was up most of the night, tossed and turned so when I heard Ava barking this morning I got right up. I am not sure what she barks at but she insists on doing it every morning and night. Traci’s crew of four seemed to have settled in quickly. I think Chassa loves being with the other Borzoi. Wy, knows the routine as he has been here many times. Traci’s two new kids Ari and Snapple will get in the swing of things, using the doggie dogs,coming and going on their own in a day or so.
Meet Peg

Peg is a Red Sided Eclectus hen. Eclectus are one of the species where the male is a different color males are green with a candy corn colored beak. The hens are like Peg vivid red and a deep bluish purple in color. The wings can have some orange and yellow on the tips. They also have a light blue ring around their eyes. The Eclectus also come in different sizes, the Red Sided is one of the bigger sizes. The Grande is the largest, I believe. Peg has the funniest personality. She can be very amusing and loves and I mean loves all her bells. She rings her bells if you ask her too. She also says ring that bell Peg, in a very girly little voice. She does talk and mumbles at night while we watch television all the time. When she is angry she growls like a dog. Peg doesn’t have a favorite food but she has a favorite person she adores, our friend Joel. He can do just about anything with her and not get bit. If we would try it she would bite us.

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On the left is a male Eclectus, right female NOTE: these are NOT my birds pictured below

Have a great day and weekend ahead.

Thursday November 20, 2008

Otter — Thu, 20 Nov 2008 12:09:03 +0000

Good Morning, it isn’t nearly as cold this morning as it was yesterday. Snow flurries are in the forecast.
Today we have four dogs of Traci’s arriving. Wy the Scottish Deerhound and Arizona a.k.a. Ari the Shepadoodle you have all met before. We all get to meet her new additions Chassa the Borzoi and her Labrador Retriever Snapple. I love that name Snapple.
Today’s wild bird is a Bluebird so I thought BLUE, I’ll share Monty with you today. Enjoy
Meet Monty

Monty is a Blue and Gold Macaw, he came to us as a rescue and is totally Bob’s bird. He loves Bob and will even trust him enough to turn him on his back to play dead. It’s a game Bob has with Monty. He talks well when he chooses to, very clear and defined but most days he screams at the top of his bird lungs. Maybe that is why he was given away. He is beautiful to look at with his vivid blue and gold feathering. His wings have red on them as well. His tail feathers reach the lenght of two feet or more. I would say he probably weights about three pounds and is the size of a pheasant. He is friendly with people he knows. His diet is the same as our other parrots, fresh fruits veggies, pellets and seed. One on Monty’s favorite foods that he likes the most, is my meatloaf. Yes, meatloaf when he gets it as he is eating it he says..mmmmmm is that good. He had to of learned that saying from his previous owners. One thing Monty really dislikes is the vacuum cleaner, a fear probably again from his previous owner.

Have a great Thursday.

Wednesday November 19, 2008

Otter — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 12:37:59 +0000

Late Afternoon (4:15 P.M.)
OK, you asked for it via telephone, here is a photograph of “naked” Delilah. She really is a happy, delightful to live with bird, who just plucks. Delilah was a rescue and did minimal plucking when we rescued her. As the hens mature they tend to become compulsive with feathering plucking. Sometimes hens pluck feathers to line their nests with, a vet once told me that. I hope you enjoy her as much as we do. How can you not love that feathery face.

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Good morning, the sun is shining however it is blustry cold out there. It isjust 24 degrees and I personally don’t care for it being this cold. It’s hard on my old body and I am sure the bodies of our older dogs. A warm breakfast was served, the runs cleaned and all the dogs seem happy and content now.
Meet Delilah our “naked” Moluccan Cockatoo. The picture you see below looks nothing like her today. She has plucked out all her feathers with the exception of her head. She is basically naked… so to speak. She over preens, it’s something she can’t help. We have taken her to several avian vets, done all kinds of bloodwork and nothing is wrong with her, she is what is known as a complusive plucker.We have been told many hens of different species pluck feathers, it is not uncommon. I was afraid to post a current picture of her as people might think she is terribly ill and not cared for. She adores Bob when he holds her, she just shakes and quivers. She is generally very quiet and rarely sounds off. Her very favorite food are mashed potatoes. I make a little ball and she holds the potatoes like she would be eating a ice cream cone. Even totally “naked” we love her.
The Moluccan’s are peach in color, with a brillant tangerine orange crest. They are gentle in nature and like the other Too’s very affectionate.

Have a great Wednesday!

I Do Dog Tricks

Otter — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 17:56:48 +0000

TYPE IN a command under the dog and see what happens… Sit, roll over, down, stand, sing, dance, shake, fetch, play dead , beg, etc., and… It’s also very cute if you type in a command that’s not recognized…!! Make sure you type in ‘Kiss’, too, but do it last!!!
Don’t forget to do the kiss!
Click here: I Do Dog Tricks

Tuesday November 18, 2008

Otter — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 15:26:07 +0000

Bedtime
Bob went out and checked the dogs tonight. It is very cold and tempetures are suppose to go down into the teens tonight. He wanted to make sure it was warm enough out there for the dogs. I told him to give lots of hugs and biscuits.
I am off for the night, stay warm! I’ll post tomorrow.
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Brrrrr it’s a very cold morning. I am just not used to this typical late fall and early winter temperatures.
The dogs we excited this morning, I think there was a cat around the back of the kennel teasing them. I fed them a nice hot breakfast which was gobbled down very rapidly. Orea the little Yorkshire Terrier even eats right away now. Ava, the German Shephard still eats one piece of kibble at a time, You can’t stay near her run while she is eating otherwise she won’t eat.
Houdini

This is Houdini, our Umbrella Cockatoo aka our Love Sponge. Cockatoos are probably the most affectionate birds. They love to cuddle, cue and tuck themselves into your chest when you hold them. They are very comical and they have the ability to put people under their love sponge spill. They produce a white dander which is like a powder. A cockatoo without “powder” is a very unhealthy bird. You can’t help but love the Too’s. Houdini is our escape artist thus his name. From the day we brought him home, he found a way out of his cage. Today if you visit you will see small padlocks on all his cage doors. Dini as we call him, loves to scream very loud, dance, preen Delilah and grab you by sticking his foot out through his cage. His favorite food are mashed potatoes. He tries hard to talk but it is mostly mumbling. More on the other Cockatoo tomorrow.
I hope you all have a fabulous Tuesday
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To the world you may be just one person….
But to one person you may mean the world!

Monday November 17, 2008

Otter — Mon, 17 Nov 2008 12:16:49 +0000

Evening
I wanted to post now because I am extremely tired tonight for some odd reason. I am planning on getting all my work done early and relaxing until it is time for me to go out to the kennel. I hope you all have a pleasant evening.
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Happy Monday, it’s the start of yet another work week. It is mighty cold outside this morning, I think the temperature is around 34 degrees.
The dogs are always delighted to see me, tails wagging, looking for their hot breakfast. Now that’s is cold out, they quick run out and come back in. The three Borzoi and Trina our Cattle Dog are the only ones to stay outside.
As I am typing I am watching Priscilla and Cheetah wrestling on the floor. Now that all the felines in the household are together, it is great fun for the older kittens Sporty and Cheetah and of course the trouble maker Priscilla. Tidbit actually likes Priscilla(he likes all kittens) and plays with her also. LacyLou and Feather run for the hills.
Meet Spike
Spike is our other Cockateil. He’s a funny bird. He loves a water bath as Precious does hanging upside down to get the mist of the water. One of his favorite things to do is whistle into the bottom of a bell. He has one on the side of their cage and he takes his whole head, sticks it in the bottom of the bell and sings and chirps it’s a riot to hear. This goes on for a long time. The picture above is when he was still a baby, I will look for a more current photograph in my files later today. This is a picture of their home.

I hope everyone has a enjoyable Monday. Catch you all later.

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Life is too Short to wake up with regrets.
Love the people who treat you right and forget about the ones who don’t.

Sunday November 16, 2008

Otter — Sun, 16 Nov 2008 14:46:44 +0000

Evening
It was a cold, blustry day today and riding in that isn’t the best. We bundled up, plugged in the heated riding gear and we were on our way. It was nice to get out even in the cold and just ride. Bob and I both turned in our mileage for the Road Warrior program and also signed in for the first Polar Bear run of the season. After we signed in we road for coffee and came home. We weren’t gone very long but that wind takes a lot out of you. We pretty much crashed the rest of the afternoon.
The dogs all appreciated and hot dinner tonight and when I go out to the kennel later I will make sure all the dogs are nice and toasty and get extra biscuits and hugs.
I am off for the night, have a great evening.
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Good morning everyone. It is a cold one outside, the wind is blowing and there have been scattered flurries occasionally.One of my clients told me them temps are going down into the 20’s the next few days, brrrrrr now it beginning to feel like winter.
On mornings like this I think the dogs really appreciate that warm breakfast. None of the dogs were out except to potty this morning. I don’t think they care for the wind.
I told you yesterday this week I would tell you about our birds. Meet Precious

Precious and her partner Spike(Cockateils) who I will share with you tomorrow live in the same cage together. Way back, we wanted a smaller bird and when we went to the breeder she was moving and gave us a deal on three Cockateils. We took all three but sadly after 3 years little Cinnominnie passed away. Precious can be very sweet but she tends to be cage bound and never wants to leave her cage, besides Spike calls for her and she goes back to him. She is a plain grey, orange cheeks and greyish crest. She has laid several clutches of eggs but none have ever hatched. She sits on the nest, turns the eggs but nothing. She loves being sprayed with the water bottle, she hangs upside down, spreading her wings so you can spray her more. She is one of those birds you never hear making noise, she is just “Precious”
We are off for a bit, we need to turn in our mileage for the Road Warrior program and also this kicks off the Polar Bear motorcycle riding season.
Have a great day everyone.

Saturday November 15, 2008

Otter — Sat, 15 Nov 2008 14:19:06 +0000

Morning all, it’s another rainy fall morning. Out to the kennel I ran(ok walked fast) and fed all the dogs a warm breakfast. None of the dogs actually wanted to go out even though they are undercover. They are smarter then most people, I believe.
Our plans to paint went right out the window with all this rain, maybe tomorrow if the rain stops and things dry out quick enough outside.
No deer sightings this morning. I gather the deer are just as smart as the dogs and are keeping bedded down until the rain passes.
Next week I am going to enlighten all of you about our birds. I’ve talked to several people recently that didn’t know we even had a bird, let allow 7 of them. I have some older photographs I will share with you.
Our deepest condolences go out to our friend Tracie, on the loss of her father. Big hugs T. We are looking forward to seeing your babies(the dogs) next week. We only wish it were under different circumstances.
Thanksgiving is just 12 days away and many of you will be having family and friends in your home, that your dog does not see often. Your dog may get overly excited to see these people. The important thing is to keep in mind your dog is used to a normal, daily routine. Try to adhere to it so your dog can continue with their good manners. Remind your guests not to give your dog food from the table or treats(pretzels, chips, chocolates, crackers, etc) unless approved by you. That is my “Tip for the Day”
Try and enjoy your Saturday.

Friday November 14, 2008

Otter — Fri, 14 Nov 2008 16:27:10 +0000

Good morning, it is later then usual for me to post on a weekday however there was lots of excitement here this morning. I went out to the kennel a little later then usual and I heard all this barking. I went out the back and didn’t see anything so I proceeded with my morning feeding. I was out cleaning and hosing down the kennel runs and I heard this crackling through the woods and out came two does. With archery season open right now the deer are moving. I continued hosing down and the next thing I knew there were does running in the opposite direction, I counted seven of them. It’s going to be an interesting hunting season around here.
We welcome once again Gracie and Hank the Whippets. Later today Brady the Labrador Retriever will also be joining us for the weekend.
That’s it for now, have a great weekend.
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Tip of the day:
When cutting your dog’s nails have someone tap the dog on their head. YES, it is a great distraction and it takes their attention off the person cutting the nails.

Thursday November 13, 2008

Otter — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 12:34:23 +0000

Morning everyone. We are expected to get plenty of rain before the day is out.
The excitement around here is that the neighbor spotted a fox last evening. He called to let us know since we have the chickens and the cats. Bob went out gun and spotlight in hand but never spotted it. I kept my eyes peeled this morning, when I went out. Sadly, most of the foxes around here are rabid and it is necessary to kill them if seen especially during the daylight hours.
The dogs were all up when I went into the kennel this morning waiting for their hot breakfast. Since it is raining lots of hugs will be given inside today.
Weather providing I hope to finish painting the kennel this weekend.
This blog has been getting some spam and negative comments and so it was necessary for me to change the settings. Please note until this stops ALL comments will be approved before being posted to this blog. My deepest apologies to those who contribute so much in the way of decent comments that enhance the content. Your comments WILL continue to be posted so please post your comments.
Have a pleasant.