Top Dog....

It should be clear from this photo who runs the show around our place. Not only has Sebastien taken over the doggie bed, he now owns The Bone! Poor Farrah.....

2 week long playdate....

Last month, while Elizabeth and I went off to California for a wedding, Farrah went for a playdate with her good friend Tartan (lab cross) and new friends Timber and Aspen (huskies) for two weeks. They were staying in Northwestern Ontario on the Canadian Shield the entire time. This meant she had unlimited access to the pristine lakes of the Shield, which apparently she took advantage of everyday. Today I received 536 photos from my friend of her adventures of early October...here are 14 of the ones I liked best. Thanks Ken and Justin!

Almost 15 months old.....

Next week Farrah will be 15 months old. She recently 'blew' her plush coat and is now in the process of welcoming in a new furcoat just in time for winter. She looked extra skinny for a while there, but now has filled out with her plushness. It seems she's grown a lot longer too in the last few weeks, but is still always ready to pose for the camera.

Tug with her good buddy Tartan

Before Farrah liked to swim

After she learned to swim

boat rider

Farrah figures out swimming....

Last week, while working at one of our research lakes, Farrah figured out that she can swim! Up until now, she has been content wandering into the water, but only up to her belly and only if the shoreline was a sandy beach. Even if you tossed a stick, which is her ultimate playtoy, into the lake, she would previously only go in up to her comfort level and let the stick drift away.

I was working on a raft on a small lake, and there wasn't room in the small boat for Farrah, so she waited on shore, as she has always done at this particular lake. I suppose I was there too long for her liking and she got fed up waiting on the dock. To my surprise, when I looked up she had swam out to us! The look on her face was, "Look Dad! I'm Swimming!!!" It seemed like half of her body was out of the water and she doggy-paddled furiously. We had just finished out work on the raft so headed back to shore, and Farrah followed suit heading back to where she had started.

Now she can't stop swimming. Especially if you toss in a stick for her to retrieve.

Farrah meets Fred Eaglesmith

This week Farrah attended her first outdoor concert. Canadian legend Fred Eaglesmith was the special guest at a celebration party for co-worker. The private concert was held at an outdoor stage in Northwestern Ontario, next to a beautiful Canadian Shield lake, with loons calling in the distance. Being a performer herself, Farrah hung out with Fred post-show.

We're Canine Good Neighbour certified!

Tonight. just 3 days after Farrah's 1 year birthday, we passed the Canine Good Neighbour Examination! (The CGN is the Canadian version of the Canine Good Citizen test performed in the US...click here to see test description ).

There are 12 discrete tests, and Farrah aced them all. I wish I could say it was all the 'handler', but in reality it was her that made us look good. The only comment from the chief evaluator was that Farrah 'whined a bit during the 3 minute supervised isolation test', but she stayed calm and in position the entire time. We had a great time and everyone was so impressed with Farrah's calm temperament in an arena full of dogs and dog smells (the test was occurring at the same time as a 4 day CKC dog show). For the heeling portion of the test, she pranced beautifully about just like the performer that she is! She's such a natural!

Me, Farrah and the CGN chief evaluator
(Farrah looks so small in the photo! I think it's just the camera angle (I'm 6'1")

Farrah the forest dog

We just came back from our 2nd canoe trip with Farrah and she's turning out to be quite the nature dog. She's great in the canoe, likes to keep watch of the camp and loves all the cool stuff to do in the forest. She hasn't taken to swimming much yet, and is content just getting her legs wet. But she will lay down in the water, just not swimming laps at the moment. She met her first lake trout in the canoe, but in a strange turn of events didn't get to eat it! A snapping turtle came and stole it off the shore before we could do anything with it! She also hasn't quite figured out how to eat the blueberries off the bushes, and prefers taking them out of the pail that you are putting your picked bounty into. Farrah is almost 1 year old now, and is starting to get some new markings around her face. There is a very prominent dark line above and below her eyes, which has been getting darker over the past few weeks. I've tried to include some extra photos that highlight her new markings.

chilling out in the cool moss

Farrah and her favourite toy, "Flea"

Soaking wet!