The usual routine every morning is that we first go upstairs to the (relatively) sound-proof room on the second story of the dog wing, where blind Widget and Dexter T. Dickens and any other night-howlers sleep, and carry them outside. Then we head to the dog room and start letting out the rest of the gang. By the time we get done with the ground floor group, Widget has come inside, gone down the hallway and made a bee-line for Travis' crate. (Having just written "bee-line" I wondered about the origin of the phrase.)
Travis, our dog with the fused jaw, eats -- well, slurps -- a liquid diet and makes a fine mess during the course of his dining experience. (His other name is "Pig Pen," though that might be a disservice to pigs.) In any case, there is always plenty for others to clean up the next morning, and over the years various dogs have enjoyed helping themselves. And none more so now than Widget, for whom the mad dash into Travis' crate is a part of her morning routine.
That is, except when Alayne and I get the sequence screwed up, as we did on Saturday morning, and somehow Widget got back inside before we had let Travis and friends out. (That's blind Louie on the left.) She bounded into the room, went straight for Travis' crate, pulled on the door with her paw, and found it locked. Then she realized that he was still inside. Uh oh.
So she milled around for a few seconds before deciding to sit back and woo-woo-woo to let us know that something-was-terribly-wrong-with-this-situation-and-must-be-fixed-right-now:
After the vocal protest, I put down the camera, let Travis out, and Widget zoomed in. All's well that ends well.
If only the rest of the world's problems could be solved so easily.
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Weekly Winner and $1,000 for the Animals!
Yes, the Shelter Challenge people finally posted the weekly winners for Weeks 4 and 5 (at the same time), and we -- or I should say, you -- won $1,000 for the animals here! Thank you so much! We thought we had won it a couple of weeks ago when we got a few emails from people congratulating us for the win, but the Shelter Challenge had not posted any results past Week 3 ... so we were reluctant to say anything. I gather the Animal Rescue Site must send out an email of some sort, but I don't know why they don't update their page at the same time. In any case, the check for $1,000 also just arrived and is now in the bank. Thank you for all your dedicated voting to benefit the animals at Rolling Dog Farm!
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The new Shelter Challenge started Monday, January 9 and ends at midnight on March 18. Grand prize in this round is $5,000, plus $1,000 for weekly winners and $1,000 for state winners. There are also other categories ... please see the Shelter Challenge website for details.
*** We are now LISTED UNDER OUR NEW NAME, ROLLING DOG FARM. State is still NH for New Hampshire. ***
Please remember, you can vote every day ... consider bookmarking the voting page to make it easy.
We just won $1,000 as a weekly winner for Week 4 in this current contest, and thousands more in the previous contests. The Shelter Challenge really does bring in a lot of money for the animals here!
You can vote in the Shelter Challenge here.
Big smile. They are all so darling! And must admit, I still have a crush on that Travis. Have a wonderful day all!
Posted by: Margaret | February 21, 2012 at 11:04 AM
One thing dogs can't abide is any deviance from the schedule - especially when it involves feeding time. Good thing you have Widget to alert you to when you have slipped up. :)
Posted by: Tonya Allen | February 20, 2012 at 07:22 PM
Too funny! Widget definitely has you trained...LOL!
Posted by: MsFitzTX | February 20, 2012 at 07:21 PM
Oh Widget, I just adore you. I have been anxiously awaiting a Widget story.
Posted by: Regis Dalton | February 20, 2012 at 04:18 PM
Overhead speaker: "Clean up, Travis' crate, Isle 4"
"I'm on it, not to worry" replies crew leader Widget.
Problem solved for another day.
Posted by: Anne in FL | February 20, 2012 at 04:06 PM
Love it!
Posted by: Lisa K. - San Diego | February 20, 2012 at 12:54 PM
Thank goodness Widget is there to keep you two sorted out! :)
Posted by: Kathleen Rivard | February 20, 2012 at 10:21 AM
*Good Monday Morning* from southern Manitoba to ALL the little sweethearts happily residing 'down on the farm' xoxox Valerie
Posted by: Valerie | February 20, 2012 at 09:51 AM
Ah, Widget, what a character you are! It's nice to know that you still have control over your minions :)
Posted by: Ann | February 20, 2012 at 02:20 AM
If only humans were so easy
to please!
Posted by: Glenda | February 19, 2012 at 09:55 PM
SMILE!!!!
Posted by: Shirley * James/Portland, OR | February 19, 2012 at 07:25 PM