The Dogs And Cats Of Windswept Farm

Fergus likes to watch me from inside his fenced yard. His view was enhanced by the Daylilies just outside the fence:

 Seamus, atop his ramp, got a similar view as he looked through the Rugosa roses:

 I bought Sammy a new cardboard scratching/lounging toy, but Daisy took it over on this day. The toy beside them contains abundant catnip and a ball which rolls in endless, excited circles when they play with it:

 Jack and Daphne were hoping for a treat at the top of the stairs:

On the big, green floor pillow: Clover, Bugsy, Fergus and Daphne:

 Keeping their eyes on me through the fence again, the dogs were enjoying our beautiful weather. You can see the smile on Jack's face:

 Fergus, Seamus, Jack and Daphne by the Rugosa roses:

 Can we go with you, Dad?

Yes, they could go with me. All five dogs went for a walk at Debar Pond (posts on 8-28 and 8-29) with me and a friend, and we stopped for lunch at a small store in the Adirondack town of St. Regis Falls:

 Little Caspar is a friendly cat with lots of personality:

 Daphne, Bugsy, Seamus, Fergus and Sammy:

Midwinter Pets

Bugsy caught an upper respiratory infection which little Caspar brought home from the shelter. He's been getting better, but is less active than he used to be, often striking what I call his Buddha pose:

And the dogs still hang out in the kitchen corner. The giant green floor pillow was put there especially for giant Seamus, but the little dogs usually collect on it, leaving Seamus to find comfort elsewhere:

Bugsy and Sammy often take separate tiers on the favorite cat tree. Caspar or Daisy sometimes take the third tier:

A moment of friendly napping for Seamus and Bugsy. The yoga mats are handy for that:

And the yoga mats are also good for dog piles. Bugsy got close, but didn't join in on the dog pile:

Little Caspar, however, often joins the dog piles:

Sammy, Daisy and Daphne were watching me while I was at the computer:

Seamus, Fergus and Jack shunned the yoga mats in favor of a heat register:

All the dogs except Jack, who often keeps a bit apart from the crowd:

When my Amish neighbor came over to trim the horses hooves, he insisted that his horse wouldn't mind my barking dogs, so I left them all together. The little dogs never took to the big horse and they kept barking (though the horse really didn't seem to mind), but Seamus wanted to make friends:

When we had a big snowstorm, the dogs enjoyed playing in it. Seamus and Jack walked out into the deeper parts of the snow:

Fergus, Daphne and Clover hung back where the snow had been trodden down, but Jack was having a blast, running through the snow:

A Visit From My Sister

My sister arrived for a visit, and that included a cookout by the apple grove and a bit of silliness with the bug zapper paddle:

And of course it included saying hello to Remy, the miniature horse with the giant personality:

Remy is very lovable (and also mischievous):

Blue is sweet, but not as personable as Remy. He does like affection, though:

My sister visited the pigeons and held one of the birds which had been newly hatched only three weeks earlier, when she was here last:

And no visit is complete without taking the dogs out to some forest for a bit of fun:

We drove down to a town park on the St. Regis River and the dogs got to play in the water, something they've gotten quite used to this summer:

We humans stayed out of the water and just walked along the shady trail:

The trail was adjacent to the river so we could watch the dogs as they played:

It was hot, and Seamus knew just how to take care of that problem:

Fergus got a bit silly:

Daphne and Fergus got so wet I thought they may have been in trouble, but they were just playing. This park is little used and only 3 miles from home, a handy resource for a quick bit of recreation:

Happy Pets At Home

Clover is used to snow, and this small amount barely registered with her. We've had three nor'easters in a row, with great accumulations. Plucky little Clover handled them all with great aplomb:

 But as always, the gathering place is the kitchen corner. This collection was Daphne, Clover, Fergus, Bugsy and Jack:

 Bramble loves to push the boot trays away from the wall, sloshing the water bowls. I have no idea why, but he loves to do it:

 Daphne knows how to handle a snowy yard also. It's no problem for her:

 And when I'm using the computer, this canine collection often can be found right behind me. Clover sure knows how to find a soft, warm bed:

 Daphne, Fergus and Jack had decided they'd been outdoors long enough and it was time for me to stop the foolishness and let them in:

 The Siamese Fighting Fish is healthy and apparently as happy as a Fighting Fish can be. I put a calendar page behind him before I took the picture and the colors turned him on, causing him to display nicely. He would fan out his fins like this if he saw another male to fight or a female to breed with:

 Nap time in the bedroom. Jack was under the bed and Clover was behind it on the floor pillows. You can just catch a glimpse of Meghan (the guinea pig) to the right:

 Daisy follows me almost anywhere I go. At any other time, she can be found at the top of the tallest cat tree upstairs:

 Another kitchen corner collection - Jack, Daphne, Fergus, Bugsy, Clover and Bramble:

 Little Jack, playing in the snow:

I love this photo because Seamus was playing like a giant puppy. The vet told me that his ten year old heart may be failing. He also told me to start increasing his dog food, that he'd lost all the weight he needed to. Seamus is one of the dogs who seems to have an outsized love for me. I've had a lot of dogs in my life, but a few have stood out as exceptional. I've noticed that some of the most loving have also had independent streaks:

A Snowy Day

I was in Massena when it began snowing, and the roads were hazardous as I drove home. My driveway had deep snow, though I was able to drive in and park. The weather bureau predicted continuous snow, increasing in intensity, all through the night:

The neighbors' horses were outside, apparently ignoring the snow:

I went out to do my evening chores:

The cattle, on the east side of the barn, were peacefully munching hay. They didn't seem to mind the snow much either:

Blue and Remy were covered, but also peacefully munching hay. They could have gone into the barn and eaten hay at any time, so apparently they weren't bothered by the snowstorm:

It was quite a scene, and the snow kept piling up:

I moved the bale feeder off the remaining hay and brought out a small bale to supplement what was left. I would bring out another big, round bale in the morning. I threw a brick of hay to the side for Blue and Remy:

When I walked away to go back inside the barn, the two little horses followed me:

I let the dogs out into their snowy yard before I went inside for dinner. Jack thought it was fun:

Seamus seemed to enjoy it also, though Daphne, Clover and Fergus wanted no part of it. Jack ran back and forth between Seamus and the other dogs:

I finally got Fergus to come a little closer (and Jack tried to get him to play), and Clover moved a few steps. Daphne was not interested:

A Downy Woodpecker was working the suet cake when I returned to the house.  I added more seed and brushed off the snow before retiring indoors for the evening: