The new puppy

We were not off to a happy start early this year.  My big Briard, Barley, usually referred to as 'baby' had to be put down after a violent but short illness.  Winter was harsh, and I hate the cold.  Life pretty much sucked.

But when spring became a reality rather than a calendar decree, we knew that mourning was over, and we needed to add a new dog to our group.  Three was simply not enough.  I contacted a Briard breeder,  Terry Miller and became part of her family.  She considers us 'married in' family.  On Cinco de Mayo we welcomed our new baby Decibel home.
She was tiny when she arrived, sweet, so cute, and insatiable.  I picked her out of an unseen litter, because Terry said that she was a 'pig'.  Terry had considered our situation and had several pups that would do well in our home, but Decibel was 'food motivated', and I like to have the key to a puppy's heart in the shape of a milkbone.  It is so much easier to train a dog when they like to eat.

This is the new arrival still at the airport.  She ate every morsel before we could leave for home.

Just as a comparison to Ralph, Decibel was tiny when she came.  Her ears are glued together so they will eventually stand up nicely.  Ralph was not thrilled with the puppy, by the way.  Ignoring her was about the nicest he acted toward her.
With Decibel, things got busy in the house, on the farm and in my life.  Puppies need a lot of attention, socialization, time, training, patience, a sense of humor and caffeine, before they turn into dogs.  But I was ready, thanks to the breeder's advice and articles that discussed the how to's of  surviving your puppy and the importance of  socialization.
Briards do not self-socialize, so I was a very busy person, lugging Decibel everywhere to meet and see and experience new things, places, and people.
And I am not kidding about being busy.  I decided to quit my job, and get this done properly.  Just like raising children, you get one try at it, so you had better give it your best effort.  And, besides, and entirely by the way, I used this as an excuse to get a family cow, Ruby, to milk, and learn the art and science of cheese-making.
I milk by hand, and so far I manage to produce fairly good mozzarella, feta, ricotta, cottage, cream, and cooking cheese; the hard cheeses are on my to do list for the fall.  If you are curious about cheeses, and making them, either wait a while and keep on reading, as I am sure I will get to the topic, or go to cheesemaking.com, where you can order supplies and get the recipes for the above.

Oh, here is Ruby, who is a registered Jersey, and just about the nicest cow you could possibly imagine.

She wears an antique cowbell I had for years, just in case... She is 'mowing' our front lawn.