Three's Company on a Sugarloaf Key Dog Walk

We asked the princesses, nestled on their pad enjoying the afternoon winter sun as they lazily guard our bountifully verdant Earth Boxes (due in large part to the expert tutelage of Conchscooter and his wife), if they would like to meet up with their cousin Cheyenne for an afternoon amble on Upper Sugarloaf Key. 

It wasn't necessary to repeat the question as they bounded off their pad and headed for the car. We met up with Conchscooter and our goddog Cheyenne at the end of Crane Blvd. This "trail" is actually the northernmost portion of the boulevard closed off to traffic as it enters the Key Deer Refuge on Upper Sugarloaf Key. With the lack of shade this is a brutal dog walk in the summer. But it's a great walk in the winter when the sunshine is abundant and the cool north breeze keeps the bugs at bay. 

Cheyenne, leaving her master behind, eagerly hopped out of her car to greet us but was momentarily distracted by an enticing odor. 

Off she went happily tracking the smell...

emerging from the shrubs and trees to meet up with Zuzu and Tootie.

This was a first of sorts for Zuzu as we decided later into the walk to let her go off lead. Zuzu and Tootie had never been free to roam and sniff except for the forays on Marvin Key. Cheyenne was an excellent teacher showing Zuzu that she could sniff and explore without straying too far from the pack.

It was a very enjoyable afternoon stroll. The dogs enjoyed getting out on a beautiful December afternoon, and Conchscooter, with arms flailing, enjoyed a lively discussion with Wayne about the failing economy, the fictitious recovery, the mendacious banks, and the duplicitous government.

The next day, Zuzu and Tootie had a sleepover for Cheyenne at the house. Cheyenne loves spending the night with the girls. She knows that her dinner will be a bowl of warm brown rice and chicken with a touch of kibble and she can sprawl out on the rug while gnawing on a rawhide bone. After dinner, we all loaded up in the car to go to the lodge for an evening stroll to the bat tower.

There's plenty of parking at the lodge since the restaurant closed. The tiki bar, which is still open, tends to attract many of the locals for an after work beer. There are no signs or markings pointing the way to the bat tower, just a large sign and an old plane advertising airplane rides and skydiving at the Sugarloaf airport.

We parked under the Australian pines across from the tennis courts and leashed up the girls. Cheyenne caught a scent right out of the starting block. 

Zuzu and Tootie were naturally curious to see what the sniffing was all about. Happy dogs jostling to get to the source of the odor.

Cheyenne usually walks sans leash. Conchscooter probably will think we are daft  to worry about  her walk freely while in our care. And as evidenced in this picture, juggling three leashes as Cheyenne plods forth is no easy task.

Once again the three honed in on another enticing scent. Perhaps from the same source or a new one. If we could read their minds to know what they were thinking!

The sun was sinking quickly towards the horizon. Sunsets seem to be much faster than in the summer...maybe because it hangs lower in the sky this time of year casting long shadows. The landing area for the skydivers is off to the left. The bat tower is further down the road still out of sight.

The road leads to the lonely bat tower standing proudly amidst the mangroves. A failed experiment by Richter Perky, he built this bat tower in 1929 from plans bought from a Texan, Dr. Charles Campbell, who had designed a tower to house bats in order to help control the mosquito population. The bats never came to Sugarloaf Key. The mosquitos flourished. I understand that there were only four bat towers of this design constructed in the U.S. Two in Texas, this one on Sugarloaf Key, and one in Temple Terrace which burned in 1979. The Temple Terrace community is in the process of raising ample funds to rebuild the destroyed tower. It's a shame that this fine example of a Campbell bat tower sits neglected and unnoticed at the end of a county road north of US-1 at mile marker 17.

We made our way around the tower, a ritual for us. We try to visit the tower by foot or car a few times a week. Like an oversized bird house, it is remarkable in its size and presence.

We tried to gather the girls for a group photo...not an easy task.

Finally, they were all in line facing no doubt a scent wafting from the trees.

We headed on back, no-see-ums chasing us to the car as the sun slipped below the horizon. We'll take a quick ride in the car before settling in for the night back home.

Home Is Where The Vizslas Are

This past Thanksgiving holiday marked one year since Zuzu and Tootie were rescued from the puppy mill. Val, who leads the rescue program for the Gateway Vizsla Club, welcomed two emaciated and nervous vizslas not too long after each had a litter of puppies. She fostered Dolly (Zuzu) and Susan fostered Betty (Tootie). They visited our home several times before we adopted them. Separately at first and then both together. They were very nervous during their first visits to our home.

In this picture, Zuzu (Dolly) is peering at the camera from the safety of the bathroom, her ribs and hip bones poking through her skin.

And in this photo, Tootie (Betty) is keeping her sister company while keeping a watchful eye on me with the camera. 

On January 3, 2010, we welcomed Zuzu and Tootie into our home. It was the beginning of a new adventure in their lives filled with new surroundings, routines, and freedoms. Early on, days were spent sleeping in the closet or under the desk in the office. Mealtimes were filled with apprehension. Food bowls were first placed in their kennel in the bedroom, then next to the kennel, and eventually in the kitchen. Eating was anything but relaxing and enjoyable for them. This, like most other apprehensions, soon faded as they gained confidence and realized that the food was theirs and only theirs to eat and that they could choose where they went in the house. 

Zuzu and Tootie were only at our home in St. Louis a little over a month before we moved to Sugarloaf Key. The process of acclimating to their surroundings and establishing routines began anew but they settled in quickly and found a whole new level of comfort and confidence. 

Every morning, Zuzu stirs at first daylight (6:45 in the winter but much earlier in the summer) and is ready to check out the yard. Tootie goes along but is more interested in eating breakfast. After breakfast, they relax on their bed on the lanai while we drink our coffee. The lanai is one of their favorite spots to watch the world (and boats) go by and will often spend most of the day out there. From this perch, they espy the occasional iguana sunning on the dock across the canal, the cormorant diving for fish in the canal, or the flock of ibis probing the lawn for food. They particularly enjoy this time of year as the weather permits leaving the sliders and front door open which facilitates their quick descent into the yard to chase the iguana or investigate the ibises.

After our morning walk down the path during which we usually meet up with Bart, Tyson, Sparky, Spike, Brindle, and Sky, and sometimes Miss Scarlet, Winston, Sam, Spencer, Moose, Toby, and Bella, and often get pats on the head from Bill, Sandy, Alan, Charlie, and treats from Edie, an hour later once back at the house, they usually take their morning nap on our bed, Zuzu with a watchful eye on the canal.

When a cold front pushes south in the winter, a cool brisk (by our standards) north wind chills the lanai. The south side of the house, however, is a warm sunny oasis offering optimum sunning opportunities. We put their car bed (Tootie must have a soft surface on which to lay) on the walk in front of the stairs. Tootie takes most of the bed and Zuzu tries to occupy whatever space is left.

In the afternoon when the low winter sun casts long shadows, Zuzu and Tootie enjoy hanging out at the top of the stairs on their dog bed. From this perch Zuzu can observe the foot traffic (both two and four legged) on the path across the street. Tootie simply likes to take advantage of the soft bed in the warm sun for her afternoon nap.

And when it gets too hot in the sun, they will once again retreat to the shade of the lanai. Tootie has recently discovered the soft and comfortable chaise...she's such a princess...

Zuzu at watch. Tootie at rest.

I think they are getting more and more comfortable and confident in their new home.

Daddy's girl...

After soaking in daddy's affection, it's time for another nap...

This was a rare sight just six months ago. Tootie in a deep and comfortable sleep. Confident. Safe. Trusting. 

Zuzu and Tootie are usually sleeping together, side by side, but lately they have begun to sleep apart yet in the same area.

Perhaps they now know that this is their home, their space where they are safe and free to do as they please. While they still have some issues and insecurities to work through, the puppy mill is a distant memory. They are home...our happy vizslas.

Thank you Val and Susan for believing in us and giving us the opportunity to give Zuzu and Tootie a forever home.

Crab Traps

Since the opening of stone crab season, Sugarloaf Sound and Turkey Basin have become obstacle courses of floating buoys. The waters abound with recreational crab traps hoping to catch those delicious claws. Not to be left out of the hunt, we purchased a kit of five traps from Cudjoe Sales, a fishing license, and the bait, hogs feet, from the fish market. The following day, we assembled the traps in the garage. 

The assembly went smoothly and in no time we had our five traps ready for the concrete, rope and buoys.

Hmm, nothing in there yet. Especially without bottoms. The trap bottom is made with concrete. We lined the traps, sitting on plastic garbage bags, on the driveway, poured the concrete in the bottom of each one,  smoothed it out and let it cure. Before the concrete set, I wrote my name in the concrete for ID purposes. Poaching crab traps is taken very seriously down here!

Zuzu and Tootie were ready to head out on the boat. But first, Zuzu was eyeing Rusty the Iguana (so named by our neighbors) who was sunning himself on the rock while two other green iguanas were noshing on blades of grass. I guess the flowers on our neighbor's Hibiscus are not quite sweet enough.

Once the concrete cured and the rope and buoy were tied to each trap, it was time to load them up, head out and find a spot in the Sound and set the traps.

Puttering out our canal and across the shallow water, we eyed possible locations for our traps.

To start, we decided on a spot just inside the main channel. It's only about 3 feet deep here, probably a bit too shallow, but we'll give it a try and see what we can catch.

Zuzu and Tootie were a great help finding a spot and keeping an eye out for other boats. Once we set the traps, we took them for a quick boat ride. They like to go fast and smell the salt air. After our quick tour, we puttered back across the shallows into the sun towards our canal.

Zuzu is always on watch while Tootie was wondering where her blanket went. I guess she was ready for another nap.

Stay tuned. Zuzu and Tootie will go back out with us next week to pull the traps.

Return to Marvin Key

The recent cold front passed and the winds and seas calmed. It was time to revisit our summer getaway, Marvin Key. It was a rather nice autumn day in the Keys, a southeast wind and temperatures in the low 80s. Our good friends from New Hampshire, Gary and Rosanne, followed us out in their boat to lay the track in their GPS. Zuzu and Tootie were crazy with excitement as we prepared the boat for our midday excursion...they knew a trip was imminent. 

Once moored on the sandbar behind Marvin Key,   

Zuzu and Tootie were off like rockets running on the sand.

See you later...off they went to far edge of the sandbar...

...and across the sandbar...

...one in pursuit of the other...

...back to the boat.

The cool water (72.5 degrees cold!) must have felt refreshing. It was a bit of a shock for me being accustomed to the warm summer water. Tootie nipped at Zuzu and ran.

Zuzu took the bait and chased after Tootie through the shallow water.

Play time at Marvin Key. It doesn't get any better than this!

It was time for a quick water break and rest on the boat. They really like their floating kennel that takes them to new and fun places.

Just another casual and relaxing day in the Keys. Hard to believe it's mid-November!

A contemplative moment for Zuzu as she looks across Turkey Basin.

Scanning for boats and birds, anything she can chase. Tootie, however, is laying down not far from Zuzu. She'd rather be the lazy dog and let Zuzu be the watchdog.

Nearing the end of our excursion, the girls were intrigued by something floating at water's edge.

Just before pushing off the sandbar and heading back to Sugarloaf Key, Tootie visited Rosanne in her boat to give her a thank you kiss for coming along.

It was a good day...when do we go again?