Rusty Chair and Dead Things

I'm so glad Charlie and I enjoyed a long hike and leisurely day at our favorite park/trail/beach on Saturday since it turned out to be the one nice day this weekend; the weather is turning colder and cloudier for the next week.

Charlie sniffed out, located and rolled in so many dead things and scat piles she earned herself a lavender bath on Sunday; I just couldn't stand the smell of her any longer!

I experimented with different settings on my fancy camera and am finally becoming more comfortable with this expensive piece of equipment. I'm so proud of myself!

Also, because we took our leisurely time exploring the woods, I found some neat treasures... including a very rusty chair that almost blended right into the scenery. Seriously, I was chasing Charlie away from a dead fish carcass when I almost tripped over the thing!

Here's a photo/video montage of our Saturday... enjoy!

And the dead raccoon we found at the base of a tree:

Photo Story: Fetch!

We could go on and on and on like this all day... Charlie LIVES to fetch!

Sojos - Part 2

A rainbow of all-natural goodness!

When the awesome people at Sojos heard how much Charlie loves their food, they offered to send me some more of their products to try! How cool is that?

Charlie was pretty impressed with the box of goodies! There were a few bags of freeze-dried dog food mix (Original Recipe, Fruit & Veggie, Raw Turkey) and an assortment of biscuits. I opened the box of Apple Dumpling biscuits first and the delicious aroma prompted me to pop one of these adorable mini-biscuits into my own mouth.

Yep - I ate a dog biscuit.

Once you read the ingredient list on the box, you might be tempted to eat one too because they are made with really awesome ingredients!

After having tried all the treats and dog food mixes, here are the top five things I love about Sojos:

1.  EASY TO MAKE! The freeze dried dog food mixes are so easy to make. I like to give the food plenty of time to rehydrate, so before bed I scoop out 1 cup of food mix into a container, add about 1+ cup of water, stir and refrigerate overnight. In the morning I scoop a serving into a bowl for Charlie and stir in her Omega-3 fish oil supplement. I don't have to get my hands dirty or use a lot of dishes; it's just one step and you're done!

2.  WHOLE INGREDIENTS! I'm so impressed with the ingredients used in the treats and food mixes and totally feel confident that I'm feeding my dog something healthy. As an example, here are the ingredients in a few of the packages:
Apple Dumpling Treats:  Oat flour, rolled oats, apples, canola oil, cinnamon, vanilla, eggs, honey.
Lamb/Sweet Potato Treats (grain free): Bean flour, lamb, sweet potatoes, canola oil, eggs.
Fruit & Veggie Dog Food Mix (add your own meat): sweet potatoes, carrots, broccoli, celery, apples, whole egg, cranberries, tricalcium phosphate, flax seed meal, parsley leaf, carob powder, dried kelp, alfalfa, ginger root, garlic, sunflower oil, vitamin D3 supplement.

3.  WHEAT-FREE AND GRAIN-FREE OPTIONS! If you've done any research on dog food nutrition, you probably know that wheat isn't good for your dog. All of the Sojos food is Wheat-Free and Corn-Free or completely Grain-Free.

4.  FREE TREATS! Every bag of freeze-dried dog food mix comes with a free treat sample inside. It's like finding a prize in a box of Cracker Jacks!

5.  VARIETY OF TREAT SIZES/FLAVORS! I love that the treats come in different sizes. Our box contained 3 different sized treats: BIG DOG in Beef Stew flavor, Regular gourmet biscuits in Bacon Cheddar and Lamb/Sweet Potato flavor and the tiniest little biscuits in Apple Dumpling flavor. These tiny biscuits are perfect for little dogs to prevent over-treating and my mom's Chihuahua-mix, Peanut, loved them! Additionally, if you like to bake your dog "special occasion" dog-cakes or pupcakes, these tiny bone-shaped biscuits make fun decorations!

Photo courtesy of Katzenbarkers Natural Pet Food & Supplies (www.Katzenbarkers.com)

I'm really happy to have healthy raw food options for Charlie, including Sojos. The raw food diet is still pretty new to me and Charlie and we're slowly becoming more adventurous. I've had fun experimenting adding my own fresh raw meat to the fruit & veggie pre-mix, but on the days when I don't have fresh meat handy (or forgot to thaw some from the freezer) I can opt to use the beef or turkey pre-mixes. Charlie has been excited to broaden her dietary horizons and Sojos is making it easier to provide her with a healthy raw diet. Thank you Sojos!

Roadtrip Saturday to Rib Falls

We drove north on Saturday toward the Harrison Hills Segment of the Ice Age Trail, enjoying a beautiful warm and sunny day with the sunroof open and fresh spring air swirling around us, looking forward to a long hike in the woods. Unfortunately I forgot that northern Wisconsin received 10+ inches of snow this past week. Upon arriving at the parking area off County Highway B, I realized our plans were going to have to change:  the parking lot and trail were snow-covered and I hadn't worn the proper footwear for these conditions.

On our way back south, we made a quick stop at the Prairie River Overlook and then drove through Merrill ending up at Council Grounds State Park where we were greeted with a chorus of frogs! Patches of snow remained in the shady spots, but the day was warm and pleasant. Charlie enjoyed a short hike along the Wisconsin River and we played a game of fetch at the sandy shore above the roaring dam.



Charlie waiting to play fetch!

BEACH VIDEOS:

(Only in Wisconsin:  the sign on the beach says - Snowmobiles Prohibited In This Area)

After a quick lunch, we hit the road again and drove west and then south toward Rib Falls. I wanted to see if the Big Rib River flooding had receded enough to allow us access to the beautiful rocky shoreline. We were in luck!

Charlie finding sticks.

Charlie found an abundance of sticks to play with while I explored tiny pools of water for tadpoles and small fish. We sat on the warm rocks and "zenned" out to the rush of water surrounding us.

Soaking up sun, breathing in fresh air and relaxing to the sounds of nature left us completely exhausted by the time we got home, where we immediately slumped into a late-afternoon nap.

Perfect day.

"Tide" pools at Big Rib River.

RIB FALLS VIDEO:

Charlie's Easter Basket

As a child, I always thought Easter was about candy... kind of like Halloween. Living in a non-religious family, I didn't learn about the true meaning of Easter until I was an adult and even though I know more now than I did when I was a kid, Easter still = candy!

So we're going to have a little fun this year and Charlie's going to get her own Easter basket with the kind of "candy" that she likes! Since she's on a 1/2 raw diet, I've begun incorporating dehydrated organs and animal parts into her treat routine... and she absolutely LOVES them.

Lamb lung, duck feet and chicken hearts.

And since some animals are associated with Easter, I've included LAMB, DUCK and CHICKEN in her basket, as well as some new Kanine Kitchen treats... DOGGIE BISCOTTI!

In case you were wondering, Kanine Kitchen DOGGIE BISCOTTI is wheat-free and made with oat flour, peanut butter, bananas, apples and eggs. It's a big hit with my test doggies and is available on the website now (www.KanineKitchen.net).

Charlie and I will be soaking up sunshine, breathing fresh air and stretching our limbs on a long hike this weekend. I hope you have a wonderful holiday weekend, and even if you're not religious (like me) get out and rejoice in nature's beauty!