We’ve had a really cool spring this year. However, I don’t hear the dogs complaining. Yesterday, it snowed just a couple hundred feet above us on the mountain. The dogs didn’t mind a bit. I think they would rather have the cool temps than the summer heat. This weekend for a day or two for the first time the temperature got up around 85 degrees (F) here, and we all thought we were going to cook.

 

April 10th and we got more snow. I’m not complaining. It will make for a beautiful green spring, and the dogs certainly weren’t complaining. It will be too hot for them soon enough. They loved romping in it. Although later, Allie did decide to come in and warm up.

 

Here is a photo of what my kids call the Annabella Town Ghost. He is on Cove Mountain just south of town. They say the ghost only comes out during the winter. You have to use a kid’s imagination. He has two eyes and an open mouth and two upreaching arms, and is spooooky.

 

Thank goodness it is staying light a little longer now. Tonight it was light until about 6:10. I was able to make it out and train with several dogs this evening. It’s cold though. The cold makes it tough to keep them in water. It is surprising how much water a dog needs in the winter. If you don’t have heated buckets, here are a couple of ideas of how to deal with the cold. Bring the water buckets inside overnight so they thaw out, then in the morning only put about 3″ in. Then right when you get home from work you can add another 3″ of water to the ice in the bottom, then later in the evening you can add another 3″. This way, they can regularly have plenty of water, yet it is fast for you to give them more water. I have found that if you have to go inside and melt out the ice every time, you just don’t do it as often as they can use it.

As far as evening training during the winter when it gets dark so early, another thing that you can do is to use the dark to challenge the dog to use their nose. Tie a long length of string on a freshly killed bird, or a frozen one and drag it trough the snow, laying down a trail. Try not to drag the bird where you are walking so the scent on the bird’s trail is as unique as possible. Drag the bird out to a spot and plunk it down in the snow so it is hidden just a little bit. Then bring out the dog and put them on the scent trail with the “search!” command. Help them work out the trail and find the bird.

 

During the winter when it is snowy and cold it is especially difficult to get out and exercise and train. It’s often dark, cold, and let’s face it, it’s hard to get motivated. Right now it is probably more critical than ever that you get your dog out and exercise. The dog probably spends most of her 24 hour day either curled up keeping warm in the dog house or laid out on the living room floor in front of the heater vent, either way they aren’t getting any exercise or mental stimulation.

It may be tough to go, but just do it. Put the leash on and go for 30 to 45 minutes. When you get back, spend 10 minutes on a training exercise. It will do wonders for your dog, not to mention both your own mental and physical wellbeing. Go do it!