Sunday, October 26, 2008

Mojo Meets Newt

This is Newt, he's about 8 or 9 years old and has been around the block a few times. I adopted him from The Nebraska Humane Society 4 years ago after I lost Stache to a broken leg. Newt had come to NHS as an intact male tom cat. He was adopted, but returned due to litter box issues. He now leads a full-filled life in my barn and tack room, although, he secretly wants to be inside when the weather turns cold, as he displayed this morning.

Mojo had been playing, racing up and down the hallway, dragging his toys around. After about 30 minutes of that, it was time for a potty break. Normally, he runs off the deck, does his buisness and then wants back in. This morning though, he just sat at the stairs looking at something. Well, that something was NEWT! Newt jumped the fence and was coming up the deck, he wanted inside where he knew it was warm, well, warmer than it is outside! I thought for sure that Newt would nail Mojo when he pounced on him and I'd have a bleeding, screaming puppy on my hands. Nope, he just stood there, taking the mauling that Mojo was giving him. I mean, Mojo, all 12.6 pounds of him was sitting on Newt, biting his ears and swatting him with his feet. All Newt would do when he got sick of it was give the look as you can see below. I couldn't help but laugh! Stone and Kitten were not enthralled with the cat on the deck and wanted to eat him. Kitten went as far as to growl and swat the glass to get Newt to leave. Um, honey, Newt outweighs you by at least 5 pounds and lived on the street so knows a thing or two about cat fights.

Excuse the nose prints, foggy window!! Finally, I couldn't take it anymore and tried to shoo Newt back over the fence. It wasn't happening. Mojo wasn't scaring him and he wanted some loving. Mojo thought it would be fun to chase Newt, Newt just turned and swatted him a time or two, claws retracted so no damage was done. He needed to have them out just a tad though to get his point across. Mojo thought he was playing!
Poor Newt, all he wanted was to be picked up and cuddled a bit, not harassed by a puppy!

Save me momma!! That bratty puppy is after me again!!

You want some of me punk? I'll show you a thing or two, come here boy....

I'm warning you!!!

****Disclaimer--NO Animals were hurt in this photography session. Newt is happily tucked away in the garage on a bed, ever waiting for the door to open so he can come inside--sorry dude, not going to happen here, Kitten and Stone would eat you for lunch, well, they'd try anyway.

Wednesday, October 22, 2008

Mojo & Stone adventures




Monday afternoon was the last nice day that we'd be seeing in awhile. I took that opportunity and ran Mojo & Stone in the yard. Stone, being the great hunter that he is, found a mouse nest at the bottom of one of the many oak trees we have in the yard. I knew he had something by the way his tail was wagging. Mojo wasn't sure what all the commotion was about, but was right there with him smelling. I just happened to see the mouse boogie up the tree. What are the odds that I'd spot the critter in a fork, looking back down at us, shaking in fear? I was cursing that I didn't have my camera so ran to the house and back, hoping the mouse hadn't taken the opportunity to bail. He was still there, traumatized by the loss of his home.





After that excitment, Mojo and Stone got down to playing. This was the first time that Stone actually played with Mojo and Mojo wasn't scared of the rough housing that Stone does. It was cute when Stone changed roles and was the chasee instead of the chaser.











Excuse the blurry photos, the sun was going down and there was a lot of fast action going on.




















Thursday, October 16, 2008

Mojo-10 Weeks

Mojo!!!

Well, this little guy has taken over my life! Not much time to surf the web, catch up on emails or update webpages. Kitten was finally able to sleep in the bedroom last night. He hid under the covers until Mojo woke up at 4:00 am ready to rock and roll. Cora & AJ have had the past 2 weeks off, all that I've really done is feed, pet, fly spray them and clean the pen. What is wrong with that picture? Tonight I thought briefly about riding AJ until I saw how muddy he was from rolling. So, instead I took Mojo for a walk in the tall grass along our driveway and a little exploring in the woods. He was pretty comical running in the grass. It would tangle his legs up and he'd flop over on his side just to pop up and run again.

He also had fun exploring in the woods. Lots of scents and things to check out.


We worked on his recall and he has figured out that "Mom" has food in her pockets and is easy to pimp. A nice sit and a sweet cock of the head will get a piece of kibble.


He's not too happy right now, locked up in his crate to get some 'crate time'. He's been a little spoiled and allowed to run amok or is tethered to the coffee table. He needs to learn that the crate at home is pretty similar to the one at work.

Looking forward to this weekend though and getting some horse time. Cora probably has other thoughts about that though!

Saturday, October 11, 2008

Mojo

wow, this week went fast--part of the time anyway.


Mojo is fitting in pretty good. He needs to stop getting up at 3:00 am to play with the cat though. The alarm goes off at 4:15, so I'm hoping that he will start to sleep in a bit. May be that the moonlight has been shining in on us and waking him up around that time.
We got the little wading pool out since the weather has been warm. Mojo had fun jumping in and out and trying to dig to China. Water was flying everywhere!
He's adjusted pretty good to going to work. Sleeps on my lap going and sleeps in the back on Stone's duck down comforter on the way home.
Stone is starting to tolerate him a bit more and is actually trying to play with him. His tuff dog shell is starting to crack towards the baby.
Our home will not be the same for awhile. Mojo has drug out toys, crunched up waterbottles, articles of clothing-his favorite are Mike's socks and shoes. Typical Griff trait though is to carry the shoes around the house. I think they get a kick in watching me walk around with one shoe on looking in all of the rooms for it's mate. Sometimes it gets bad and I have to call Mike to see if he's seen the dang shoe. At least Mojo isn't taking them outside----yet. Stone has taken a few out in the past.
Kitten has become friends with Mojo. Guess he didn't have much of a choice though when the puppy would smack him upside the head with his paw. Kitten intimidated Mojo the first couple of days with his hiss and fake swat. When Mojo knew it was a bluff, the game was on. Saw Mojo grabbing Kitten's ear last night behind the woodburner. Bet Kitten was remembering when Stone used to drag him across the floor by his ears too. If the cat really wanted to be left alone, he could jump up on the counters, back of the couch or hide. He's not that upset about the newbie.
I should be outside mowing since "The Baby" is sleeping!!!


Sunday, October 5, 2008

Meet Mojo!




Whew, finally have some quiet time to write. Granted, I now have a sleeping puppy on my feet and am doing contorsionist moves to type on the keyboard so I 'don't disturb the sleeping baby'.

About 10 weeks ago, I found an ad for Griffon Puppies. I emailed the breeder and found out more about the bloodlines etc. I really liked what I saw on paper and asked to be put on the list for one of his males. Originally, I wanted a female, but dear sweet hubby talked me out of that.
Today was the big day to go pick up Mojo. Drove down to Mound City, Missouri and met Kevin. We ran a tad bit late due to Mike hunting this morning and then having to get something to eat. Who has time to eat when you are getting a puppy that you have patiently waited for the past 8 weeks??

I was glad to see Stone behave towards the pup and accept him. Mike started the spoiling on the way home. Mojo was crying in his crate so Mike grabbed him and put him on his lap. Well, it ended up that Mike also grabbed Stone's duck down comforter and put it on his lap for Mojo to sleep on. Stone was a bit miffed to say the least.

Had a quick potty break in Mo. Valley and onward towards home we went.

Did introductions to Tink and Kitten and did some exploring in the yard. He hasn't seen the horses yet, but they noticed him right away.

Stone is being a good leader and has only barked at him a few times when he's tried grabbing his hair. That correction is going to be allowed within reason.

I have to say though that Mojo seems to have more spunk and energy than Dunc and Stone did or it could be that I've put those initial weeks out of my mind :)

Mike and I are still toying with the registered name but are leaning towards Kansakaw's Crown Royal. Need to find the other "C" names that I sent to Mike for input.

Need to wrap this up, Mojo lifted his head at the cat jumping off the counter, luckily, he just stretched, moaned and went back to sleep!

Wednesday, October 1, 2008

Cowgirl Weekend, the rest of the story


Wow, I am so glad that I had this opportunity to travel with Tammy and hang out with 18 of my girlfriends. I was a little apprehensive on taking this trip. Mike was out of town and Lolly was in charge of caring for the animals. I also wasn't sure how Cora's arthritic joints would hold up on the ride and climbs that were in store for us. I shouldn't have worried at all as Mike got home late Thursday night and Cora was sound and ready for everything that came across her path.

Thursday morning, I was up early and ready way before the estimated leave time. Got on the road early and was to Tammy's by 7:45. Hit the road to Kansas by 8:00. That is a fast vehicle switch.

Played the "I Spy" game on the way down. Called some of the other ladies that were coming to see where they were at. Found out that some were in front of us by about 15 to 20 minutes and some were behind us by 30 minutes. Thought we'd all roll in around the same time. What a surprise when we rolled in first and we didn't even speed! Monica met us at the camp and helped us unload some things and drag our horse stuff to the corrals. Settled a bit and unpacked and organized camp, just a hair and then waited for the rest of the girls to come in. By 4:00, everyone was there and we were itching to ride. Were on our horses by 5:30 and on the trail to explore.

Cora was awesome, felt good, had a lot of energy and was ready to get out and move. Rode for 2 hours and then headed back to camp for supper. It was Team 1's turn to cook on Thursday so we gathered everything and were eating by 7:30. Crockpots, microwaves, grills were all going. Sam graciously gave up a few of her beers-Land Shark, not too bad either. But then again, most beverages taste good after a long haul and ride. My specialty for the Pot Luck was my crockpot lava cake. YUM! super easy to make, throw the ingredients in the crockpot and walk away. Timers work wonderful to make sure the stuff is done and ready when you get back. I was beat after a long day and not much sleep earlier in the week so I headed off to bed. Later, Tammy came in and said that Sully was colicing and that she was going to go walk him with Jan. Felt awful for Jan, but he was in good hands with everyone that was there.

Got up the next morning around 6:00, fed Cora and then got ready for some breakfast of my own. Again, it was our turn to cook and Breakfast Burritos were on the menu. I scrambled the eggs in the microwave, Tammy cooked the potatoes in the microwave and finished them up on the campstove. She also browned up some spicy sausage. Only thing missing was some Tabasco sauce or Pace. Hit the spot and we were ready to saddle up and ride. Friday we planned on hitting Horsethief Canyon and another loop, figured around 3 hours and then break for lunch and play some games in the afternoon. Horsethief Canyon was very cool. Sandy trails to rock, to limestone formations to stairsteps down the side of the canyon. Some of those stairsteps dropped 18 inches or so. Wish I could have taken photos of them as we were navigating. Had to concentrate on guiding Cora to the best place to descend. Also gave her her head to let her pick throw the rocky spots. Apache had a small brain fart when the terrain turned to yellow/red colored sand. He did not want to step in it.

Once through the canyon, we took a loop that took us up the other side and through a stream. Very pretty scenery and a few more creek crossings. Cora has learned to LOVE water crossings. I think she would have swam the last one if given the chance on Saturday. That cool water felt good and I could feel her start to sink through her shoulders. Didn't really wish to have a wet saddle though so urged her forward.

Friday afternoon was pretty lazy until game time. I rode Cora in the game of Polo, she wasn't too thrilled with a large green ball coming at her and bailed out of the area. Told her that I should have brought AJ!

Friday's supper was just as good as Thursday, but even a tad better since I didn't have to fix anything.

Saturday morning we headed out fairly early to beat the heat. Headed back to the water crossings and a new canyon that ended up being fairly narrow and had some slick rocks. Cora did ok, but a horse that had shoes on slipped and fell. A few minor scrapes and an injured ankle to the rider. Broke for lunch in a nice shady area, Cora took the chance and grabbed a few zzzz's. Shared a Pringle with her and she wanted more. Rode up another rocky outcrop and topped out on the prairie above. It got pretty warm up there and didn't have much of a wind to cool us down. Opted out of navigating back down the narrow rocky canyon and took the long way around. Met up with the rest of the riders and headed back to camp to rest before "Steak Night". Took some cute 20's cowgirl style photos to commensurate the 10th Anniversary of Cowgirl Weekend. Took a short bareback ride with 3 others through camp. Looked at the lake, laughed at the horses not wanting to cross cracks in the road and spooking at their shadows. Listened to coyotes yipping in the distance and loved how bright the stars and milky way were that night. Perfection.

Headed to bed fairly early as we were planning on getting up at 6:00 for a sunrise ride.

I made myself get up early for this ride, the weather was warmish, clear skies and great friends. Almost all of us went on this ride, in the past it's been fairly cool out and I haven't wanted to get out of bed! Kicked myself at Niobrara when the early morning group saw a cow elk!

We started out by having a doe and her 2 fawns following us as we were going to the trail head near the water crossings. Sure glad the horses didn't want to take a dip, it was a bit chilly! We then headed on a trail that we had taken Friday morning and hit another water crossing. Came across a very photogenic area and took photos of us. The rest of the group headed on to Horsethief Canyon and we had to lope/trot to catch up. Loved the lope through the narrow trail that wound around trees and brush. Cora follows that stuff like a dog trailing a rabbit. Hit Horsethief Canyon and had to take the stairsteps back up the side. Cora had a lot of power in her hindquarters that about launched me out of the saddle a few times when she hopped up the rocks. Lots of giggling and talking was going on between us 4 that were in the back. The 2 hour ride ended too soon and breakfast was waiting for us when we got back. Biscuits and Gravy, juice and fruit.

Cowgirl weekend was wrapping up way too fast for us. We gathered around 4 or 5 laptop computers and looked at the photos that were taken over the weekend. Pens were getting cleaned, trailers packed up and campsites cleaned.

Tammy and I were back on the road, heading North by 11:00. Had a nice south wind to help push us home, would have gotten better mileage on the first 50 or so miles IF we had remembered to take the truck out of 4 wheel drive!!!! Dang it. Got to Chester with a few gallons to spare and filled up. Continued up Highway 81 with Kelly and Sam behind us. We peeled off just north of York and hit Hwy 92 to head for home.

I was home by 5:00, AJ was extremely happy to see my rig pull down the drive. He was running, doing happy bucks and just couldn't get close enough to us. He had to check Cora out when she got in the pen. She just told him, ya, I got to go to Kansas and what did you get to do?? Play with the cats??

I know that this winter when the wind is howling and it's too cold to ride, I will pull the photos up from Cowgirl Weekend 2008 and have a few smiles on my face and try to feel the warmth of the sun that we enjoyed. I image too that we will be planning where the next adventure will be in 2009.