Monarch Butterflies are doing dances all through the butterfly bed in the Homeward Bound Memorial Garden. We have created a haven for them with Butterfly Bush, Milkweed, Lantana, Verbena and a host of others.
As long as they stay still, I can pretty much capture them.
In flight – not so much.
I was able to capture the dance of this rare specimen, however. Quite the ballet – don’t you think?
Take a bow, Dee Dee! Such a cutie.
“The human heart has a way of making itself large again even after it’s been broken into a million pieces.” ― Robert James Waller, The Bridges of Madison County
There is no right or wrong way to heal from loss.
Some people need time and retreat. Others find comfort among others.
Sometimes, the best thing for heartache is to open your heart to another.
Human loss and canine loss may not be the same thing, but canines have a way of healing a human heart. And when the canine is also in need of healing – the bond is more special still.
Fancy came to Homeward Bound from another rescue because the cancer inside her was malignant and they knew we could and would help at Homeward Bound. It was removed, but it will return. When? We don’t know. And to Chuck, it doesn’t matter.
Some flowers are perennial –
they come back season after season.
Others, have but one season –
and some – just one day.
Their beauty fills us equally – maybe even more so when we know our time with them is short.
A flower no more knows how long it has to bloom that we do. Ignorance is bliss. But humans who purposefully open their hearts to animals knowing their seasons are short have a special place on this earth and beyond.
“To live in hearts we leave behind is not to die.” ~ Thomas Campbell
Chuck says that Fancy will be treated like a queen. A queen doing an angel’s work here on earth.
Gardening requires a leap of faith. You prepare the soil, plant the seed, tuber or bulb, protect and wait. There are no guarantees about weather, water or rabbits for that matter. Loss is inevitable; an accepted exchange for the joy and beauty we are blessed with.
“Happiness, not in another place but this place…not for another hour, but this hour.”
~ Walt Whitman
The Sunflowers and Dahlias are late and smaller this year;
the Campanula did not even show; the Salvia and Rudbeckia, on the other hand, are prolific.
There’s no point in worrying about what might be – we just enjoy what is.
I met a woman in the garden on Saturday. She was visiting with Ned and contemplating adoption.
Clearly in love, she saw huggable in pudgy; enthusiasm in wilfulness.
But she worried a little about his age of eight. We hear this a lot. People think they need a young dog despite bonding with an older dog because they believe a youngster comes with a guarantee of time.
Just like the garden – there are no guarantees.
Loving an older dog requires a certain leap of faith, I guess. But there is no promise that we have longer with a young one. Life happens. Fourteen years; four years. We don’t know. What we know is that the connection is right when we look in a dog’s eyes and understand what is in their heart.
“Do not look back and grieve over the past, for it is gone; and do not be troubled about the future, for it has yet to come. Live in the present, and make it so beautiful that it will be worth remembering”
~ Ida Scott Taylor
We work to make each season of the garden beautiful and memorable – no matter what mother nature hands us.
The woman was told that we opened at noon on Sunday if she wanted to return. She was there by nine. By noon, she and Ned were gone together.
“Forever is composed of nows.” ~ Emily Dickinson
I ordered Rudbeckia for a drift with grasses, variegated iris, purple aster, and ‘Purple Emperor’ sedum.
It was supposed to be a deep gold with full petals and a deep black center.
As I watch it unfold, it looks more like a wild child –
all gawky and skinny and twitchy.
And then it settles into this. Not the perfect flower I envisioned – but beautiful in its own right.
So it is with Jack – a dog that has been with us a very long time.
I featured him on a post a year ago. In a place full of golden retrievers, Jack was definitely not one. He’s a bit of a wild child himself around other dogs and while he has benefited greatly from training and the dedication of everyone here, he’s still pretty gawky and skinny and twitchy.
What Jack lacks in classic looks and dog-to-dog skills, he makes up for in people charm. And this weekend, he was finally recognized for his own special beauty.
I can’t bring you the pictures because the parents have not given permission to share, but I can tell you the story…so get out the tissues.
A young boy, adopted himself, picked Jack from all the other dogs on the website. He and his parents – former adopters – came out together to meet him. Flaws in all, the boy fell in love. He had been working and saving for his dog and had a hard-earned $10 in his pocket for the adoption fee. Now, Jack is a senior dog in need of a very special home. He’s been with us for almost three years waiting for that right opportunity. We would, of course, waive the fee for his chance at a fur-ever home. But this young man has been instilled with great values. He and his parents insisted. So the fee was reduced to $1.00. And do you know what he did? He paid the $1.00 for Jack – and donated the other $9.00 in support of the waiting dogs.
Jack is finally home. The family sent pictures of him playing with his very own boy in his very own backyard. I wish I could show them to you here, but parents’ privacy concerns for their children have to be respected. Suffice to say, there was not a dry eye in the rescue.
It was a very good weekend. (Thanks to my friend Rob for his wonderful photos of Jack.)
9:09 PM. 94-degrees.
Today is supposed to mark the end of a seven-day stretch of 100+ temperatures in the Sacramento Valley. By some miracle, we are supposed to get to a high of only 95 tomorrow. Someone, please grab my parka!
The flowers in the Homeward Bound Memorial Garden are more than ready for some relief.
Pups too. This is Bailey. She’s hot.
This lucky dog has found his relief; not just a shady spot, but a long-awaited home.
Tom came all the way from Taiwan and has been with us awhile. He’s another dog with sight impairments,
but he has no problem following his ball, does he?
He is going home with Kevin next week. A former adopter, a veteran, a man with an obvious passion for this well-deserving dog.
Kevin says he knew the minute he saw Tom that he was the one. He has visited with him constantly while waiting for a family commitment to conclude before Tom can go home.
They both obviously look forward to that day. We look forward to a breeze,
and a much-needed break from this sweltering heat!
Here’s hoping for our promised 95-degrees and a 12 mph breeze. Wind chill of 92 anyone? We’ll take it!
In case you missed the news, we’re having a heat wave out west. No wait…a heat storm. A solid week (at least) of triple digit temperatures is more than a wave.
The Dahlias are loving it…and now outpacing Maria’s sunflowers (ha!)
And while everything else in the Homeward Bound Memorial Garden has survived so far, everybody is looking as tired of this as we are!
The doggies get regular runs in the sprinklers or splashes in the pool…including this little boy that you may have seen on my post yesterday.
His “best” name is still being determined; in the meantime, we call him “Monster”.
What I didn’t mention is that he is blind. We’re hoping that his sight is fixable. We’ll certainly do our best to change it. But he has adapted very well so far as you can see…
and he certainly has no problem finding the treat pocket!
Think good thoughts for our power grid, and more importantly, prayers for our firefighter heroes please. It’s too hot for man or beast.
Stay cool.
“I like dogs
Big dogs
Little dogs
Fat dogs
Doggy dogs
Old dogs
Puppy dogs
I like dogs
A dog that is barking over the hill
A dog that is dreaming very still
A dog that is running wherever he will
I like dogs.”
― Margaret Wise Brown, The Friendly Book
Many dogs travel lengthy distances to get to Homeward Bound, transported by our dedicated Golden Taxi team. But a group of dogs, including new arrivals Dimple and Moose, take that journey to an extreme.
Their arrival last weekend at the rescue was the last leg of a very long trip; a 6,449 mile trip – from Taipei, Taiwan to San Francisco.
Dogs are not equally valued in all cultures. Suffice to say, Taiwan may not be the best place to be born a dog. Johanna Quinn, an American native, and her teammates in Taiwan have made the rescue of Taiwanese dogs their life’s work. They recently formed their own group called “HOTAC” which stands for Heart of Taiwan Animal Care. Johanna pulls dogs from shelters in Taiwan and raises the funds needed to fly them to a network of rescue partners in the United States and other western countries.
The dogs’ journey begins with a long drive and wait at the airport, followed by an 11-hour flight. Upon arrival, they are met at San Francisco International Airport (SFO) by our transport team; in this case, John, his wife Beatrice and Rowena.
John and Beatrice – Homeward Bound adopters – have been part of the transport team for several years. They live in the Bay Area and wanted to find a way to contribute. Our network of caring individuals like them across the state is invaluable. In addition to transport, John and Beatrice also do home visits for adoption applicants in the area allowing us to extend our reach with confidence.
Dimple and Moose stayed overnight with them, then traveled in style to Homeward Bound in the morning.
Dimple was a breeder dog – “used up” by the age of six.
Moose is handsome boy,
but in desperate need of medical attention which has already begun.
Their arrival marks the end of a nightmare and the beginning of a journey ‘homeward bound’ for these lucky two.
Our sincere thanks to Johanna, her HOTAC team, and our own Golden Taxi transport team for giving them both a chance for a better life.
Saturday, it was 111-degrees in the Homeward Bound Memorial Garden by 2PM. The birds were seeking water…
and shade.
The Coreopsis was wilting…
Even the flowers were sweating! Kidding…but they would if they could!
White looks magnificent and cooling when it’s hotter than hades.
Kondos had the right idea. He makes a kiddie pool look dignified and cool.
We keep these little pools in each yard exactly for days like Saturday. When it is even too hot to trek the dogs to the big swimming pool, we bring the water to them before returning them to the air conditioning to nap away the afternoon. The pools are dual purpose; they double Steve’s Scuba Training Center. He taught Scrubs how to scuba by slyly placing his cookies at the bottom of the pool. We think he’s a natural!
The Delta Breeze mercifully kicked in Saturday night, and today we enjoyed a cool breeze while we worked, letting out a collective….ahhh.
Have a great week all!
Everyone needs a guardian angel. The first Homeward Bound volunteer that set eyes on Rainier was his.
Alex, a long time volunteer, transported Rainier from the shelter to us. His story inspired so many of you – thanks in large part to the team at Freshly Pressed who spread his tale far and wide, and all of you who so kindly reblogged the story, shining a light on The True Meaning of Rescue.
Rainier saw the vet; his lumps and bumps are thankfully not threatening; he has some chronic conditions to treat; and his age is determined at 12-plus. But the most important person he saw that very first day was Alex – a member of our Golden Taxi transport team. These angels travel up and down the state to provide a second chance to lost, abandoned and displaced dogs in need of healing and a home. For Alex, it was love at first sight. And this weekend, when I walked into the office, I found this joyous note on the board:
Rainier scaled his mountain and found his forever home. He found it the minute he set eyes on Alex and she on him. It just took the rest of us a couple of weeks to catch up.
As a permanent foster, all of Rainier’s medical expenses will be paid by Homeward Bound. Alex provides the love – of that we have no doubt. Happy life, Rainier. We could not have written a better ending to your story.
We have a lake view! The rice fields that surround Homeward Bound Golden Retriever Rescue have been flooded with water surrounding our eight acres of rescue paradise.
With the arrival of the water we have new visitors to the garden – most welcome. The birds were everywhere this weekend,
squabbling over territory and even feeding on our bees.
This particular creature is less welcome.
I’m pretty sure he is a water snake. I’m very sure he needs to return there post-haste!
With our heavy clay soil, I suspect the flooded fields around us help the plants by keeping the roots moist and cool. What a display!
This time last year, we were still planting. Sometimes I look in astonishment at what we have created.
Of course, we had our four-legged visitors as well. Tyson is a bounce-back; returned because his family’s circumstances changed and he was unhappily spending too much time alone. We need to find him a family that can give him the time and attention he needs.
Janie is recovering from cancer treatment. She’s doing great now, and while Judy enjoys having her as her “office dog”, it is time for her to find a family of her own as well.
These adorable pups returned for their vet check and last round of shots. They are from the litter we showed up in March – one of our First Signs of Spring. They are growing up so fast!
Our dog walkers and other volunteers pitched in to continue the foxtail eradication project. As if their other contributions are not enough, they have arrived early and stayed late the past few weekends working double time to get the weeding done. The yards and trails have never looked better – and ensure that the pups have a safe place to play and train.
But my crowning weekend achievement is this:
A spotless garden shed. And a word of warning to my fellow gardeners…it had better stay that way!!
Happy week, all! See you in the garden.
You can do more damage to a plant by overfeeding than underfeeding. Like kids with candy, plants will scarf up all the food they can find – especially nitrogen and phosphorus. Over-application of plant foods – organic or not – can be deadly.
Leaves turn a very dark green at first, then light green fading to yellow. The leaves struggle to keep their shape, and the stems lose their ability to bend and bounce back. Over production of flowers is followed by low or no production.
As it is for plants, so it is for dogs (and people by the way). Too much weight puts stress on virtually all of a dog’s organs, joints, bones and ligaments. Overweight dogs are at risk of diabetes, hypertension, heart disease and respiratory distress. People confuse treats with love and can quite literally “love” their dogs to death.
Duke just arrived at a whopping 150 lbs; way too much weight for his frame to support. He has to be moved on a stretcher to reduce stress on his joints.
Samson and McKinley are in a little better shape, but both have a lot of work ahead. Reducing food intake is an obvious first step. Pumpkin, which is loaded with fiber, can be added to meals. Calories are burned through walks and play, ensuring our pups do not overdo. It is very important to start slowly and gradually increase time and distance to avoid over-exertion or injury.
One of the most beneficial exercises is swimming as buoyancy takes pressure off the joints. Thankfully, a generous supporter gifted Homeward Bound with a pool specially designed for the dogs and their volunteer people. Swimming helps burn calories and strengthens joints and muscles.
And, of course, there is nothing better than a nice cool splash on a hot summer day – even for reluctant first timers! Click here for a short video of McKinley being introduced to the water for the first time.
As we all know, it is a lot harder to undo excess than to maintain a healthy balance in the first place. So do your dog and yourself a favor – show your affection with play and exercise instead of excess treats. You’ll love each other a lot longer that way!
Gardens For Goldens 