Cottage Inhabitants

[awanderingbard]

Our cottage is right on the lake, so we get a good view of wildlife, and we had a few encounters this year. Here's a few pictures I took, along with The Adventures of Ascii Being Really Relaxed. She didn't want to come home, she got on her favourite couch and pouted until we forced her out the door.



Our first encounter was with a family of geese, who were travelling with their babies.



They started out in a pack, and then they had a little swim in front of the dock, with the adults alternating with the babies, which was very cute.

Our second encounter was with a squirrel. My dad was eating nuts on the patio, and he tossed one to a squirrel, who took it and ran around to the side of the house to eat it, which was adorable. I did get a video, but my hand was in the way, as you can see in the photo. He returned the following day to look all around my dad's chair, and then the day after that, as well, but he was disappointed on both occasions.



And then the last encounter happened today. Our week at the cottage is a bit floating, as it's marked as the second week in which it is July, so this year it's a week earlier than usual since July started early in the previous week. So, we normally see a lot of loons around the cottage, but this year we didn't see any, and we wondered if it was because we were earlier in July, and that seems a valid theory as this morning, which we normally would have arrived, the loons came to visit. A breeding pair. Those things can dive forever. I swear one was under for a full two minutes.



And finally, Miss Ascii, who thoroughly enjoyed her week at the cottage.

Comments

[donutsweeper.livejournal.com]

Awww love this look at your wildlife and animals. And I always love seeing your doggie!!!

[awanderingbard.livejournal.com]

She's a very photogenic girl. She was a retired show dog when we got her, and I swear she poses if you point a camera at her. Shilling was terrified of the camera, but Ascii makes sure you've got her best angle.

[joonscribble.livejournal.com]

Oooh! It looks so wonderfully peaceful there!

I also don't think I've mentioned it before but Ascii is adorable.

[awanderingbard.livejournal.com]

Oooh! It looks so wonderfully peaceful there!

It is, it's the most beautiful place. We're really lucky to have found it. It's one of those places when you walk through the door and your whole body just relaxes. It's my favourite week of the year. :-D

I also don't think I've mentioned it before but Ascii is adorable.

This is trufax. She's lucky she's adorable, because she is also far too clever for her own good, and tends to get herself into trouble. But you can't be mad because she's so cute and you mostly just stand there going 'how did you even figure out how to do that?'. In other words, she's very much a Scottish terrier.

[joonscribble.livejournal.com]

I love Scottish terriers, they're one of my favorite breeds. They're so clever although that does often mean trouble for the humans. I'd totally get one but I'm sure my small apartment would drive one crazy.

[awanderingbard.livejournal.com]

Scotties are a hard breed to live with, from what I understand. There has been one in the house since my birth, so I don't really have experience of any other breed to compare them to to understand why they're difficult. They're sort of a dog to live with if you want a dog who thinks its an actual person and expects to be treated with equality. They make good apartment dogs, apparently, as long as you can get them out for a walk each day. Shilling was our most active Scottie, and even when he went out to the yard, he mostly just liked to sit on the deck and look at it. They tend to take on the mood of the household, really. Sometimes to their detriment; they're very sensitive and get upset if something is wrong with their family.

I base a lot of Gladstone on my Scotties, which is why I threw in some random terrier in there, to justify some of his behaviour.

[joonscribble.livejournal.com]

I fear if I owned a Scottie right now it would amount to this:

Me: *typing dissertation*
Scottie: Hey the sun's out! Time to walk!
Me: Later
Scottie: Walk!
Me: Later
Scottie: Walk!
Me: Later!
Scottie: Walk! Walk!! Walkwalkwalkwalkwalkwalkwalkwalkwalkwalkwalk!!!
Me: FIIIINNNEEEE!!!
[2 minutes into the walk]
Scottie: I'm hungry now!

[awanderingbard.livejournal.com]

HAHAHA! That is literally how Gladstone handles living with Sherlock.

Sherlock: *sciences*
Gladstone: *polite noise to attract attention.
*Louder noise to attract attention*
*Goes and picks up food bowl.*
*Nudges Sherlock with food bowl*
*drops food bowl on Sherlock's feet*
*pulls on Sherlock's trouser leg*
*gets up and places food bowl directly in Sherlock's lap*
Sherlock: *picks up food bowl* I don't need this. What is this? *examines food bowl* Oh. Well, you should have said something.

Ascii knows the walking routine. Before I take her, I go to the computer and have lunch. She checks on me every few minutes. If I wait too long, she sits mournfully in the doorway. Then she leaves. Then, when she really feels we should be getting on with things, she comes right into the room and sits in front of the computer table and stares. Then, when I close my laptop, she gets super excited, because that means walk time, and follows me all around the house until we go, including right into the bathroom, because I don't know, I might leave without her from there or something.

[joonscribble.livejournal.com]

including right into the bathroom, because I don't know, I might leave without her from there or something.

Probably because her Terrier deviousness would be able to figure out a way to escape from the bathroom.

[awanderingbard.livejournal.com]

Puzzle once found her way into the composter and got stuck there for an hour while we search everywhere for her, certain she'd escaped the yard. I finally heard her barking and opened the gate thing in front and she trotted out with a bagel in her mouth, very pleased with herself. I will never doubt a Scottie's ability to do anything. They are ninjas.

[joonscribble.livejournal.com]

This all makes me want to have a terrier and also never own a dog. It's all very confusing.

[awanderingbard.livejournal.com]

Basically, if you want a dog who will cuddle with you when you want and respect your life choices and do what you ask, do not get a Scottie. If you want a dog who will wait in the window for you to come home, and whine when you go away, and lie with you when you're sick, and spend all day being the most entertaining thing every, then do get a Scottie. Just prepare for lots of judging of your life choices.