Twas the Saturday before Christmas and all through the house… there was activity!

The pack went off during the night when Ric took Shiloh by our bedroom door so Shiloh could use the backyard. INTRUDER ALERT!

Then when I got up Zenith went into the kitchen in front of Ric’s closed door and tried to declare an ALERT at 5:30 in the morning. That rebellion was quelled, but the tone was set for the day. Aurora was initiated in Dealing with Family!

Ric and Geoffrey went out shopping early, leaving the pack +1 with me. More whining and pacing!

Most of the day’s action was spent reassuring each dog, including the visitor.
Mid afternoon I had time tp watch an Apex/Aurora play session in the back yard. But, it was a gray day and most of the shot have motion blur — it was an active, combative play session!

This shot caught Aurora checking out the path by the lemon trees between attacks on her aunt.

Aurora continues to run for the hide-a-pet and protection when Shiloh looks at her. But, it’s a pretty peaceful invasion… so far.

Aurora definitely likes chewing the back yard.

This morning she started out in the middle-back on the side of the lemon trees. She hadn’t thoroughly explored this area before, so I hovered over her to see that she didn’t discover something poisonous or particularly icky.

Fortunately, there was just the normal garden detritus which Aurora thought was yummy!

Soon Aurora returned to the way back where Apex hangs out. Both girls happily munched on stuff. Aurora had her fallen tree to explore and gnaw on and Apex enjoyed one of her many rubbery balls.

Aurora can focus on her exploration/play. She’s very cute when she’s captivated by the smells and tastes.

Aurora was kept from her mid-day play routine today because I had to go to a 12:30 meeting. She made do, though.

When I got home the sun had already gone past her backyard, but the far outback was still warm and fragrant.

Day 72 — Afternoon Exploration in the Way Back

Aurora must chew everything, while Apex is very happy tackling just one of her balls.

Because Aurora had a good lunch, we weren’t worried about a late dog dinner due to the humans having a date night. When we got home, the adults chowed down quickly but Aurora was more interested in playing. (You can tell by her coat, that Apex had already her share of playing outside in the rain.)

Day 72 — Giving up on a Late Dinner to Play

Today Aurora reminded us of another home feature we used to have but which proved incompatible with puppies: a sprinkler system.

Day 71 — Examining the Roots

Aurora has consistently (so far) focused on chewing plants and their roots. She’s left the plastic bits of sprinklers alone.

However, this picture reminds us that previous puppies chewed enough parts to make the system leaking and unreliable. For a while — a few years, actually — we dutifully replaced the tubes and connectors gnawed by our beasts. But, we’ve stopped.

I’d like to say we stopped because we became more water conscious during the drought years. And, there’s some truth to that. Plus, our newer plants and bushes didn’t line up with the existing irrigation lines. But, the stop-stopping reason for no longer turning on the water is canine behavior!