I should have known that bringing out the vacuum cleaner to clear up errant kitty litter would set our Liam off.
I paid the price, but thankfully this slightly stressful episode in an otherwise busy and productive day turned out okay.
Yesterday marked Liam's first day of long stretches of freedom WITHOUT a leash. A purple ball has kept him focused enough on the game of keep that ball away from Kiwi and Foster that he's becoming pretty trustworthy in the yard these days.
Only problem is---- by mid-morning Liam started to chew the ball into a million tiny pieces. The squeaky sound had gone and about a third of its white foam innards was scattered about in the north lawn by the time I snatched the ball from Liams chompers and scooped up the remains.
Knowing this item had been a key to our ongoing efforts to free Liam 100 percent, I picked up some new squeaky toys at North 40. Liam was happily playing with one of them when I decided to empty Festus' kitty litter boxes in the shop.
After emptying the contents and pouring in new litter, I brought the vacuum cleaner to clean up the mess around the boxes. That's when Liam ran by with his new squeaky toy.
He took one look at that Dyson and did like he always does inside the house---ran for the safest place possible, which happened to be the north lawn followed by Meserve's pasture where Bert Wood's cows reside. It might have been safe in Liam's mind but certainly not mine.
I don't know how he missed touching the electric fence with his tail, but he did, and that posed a real problem----how to get Liam with his nose to the ground and his ears turning deaf back to the Lovestead.
So, I shut the other dogs in the garage, grabbed some doggie biscuits and the leash and headed off to Meserve's place where I could go through a gate to get out to where Liam was happily in his own little world in sniffing the ground in deep grass.
The cow herd was taking a break in the trees to the north but close enough to see Liam and for Liam to spot them once his nose came up for a break.
Time was of the essence to catch him and get him the heck out of that field.
Sure enough, after he came for a biscuit and was secured by the leash, Liam saw those cows and launched off on a barking attack, wishing he could break loose and do whatever Border Collies are supposed to or not supposed to do with cows.
The herd began a collective stare down, inching oh so slowly our way. Liam really wanted loose, but I held on tight and managed to get him through the gate before the cows came any closer.
Situation resolved, thank God. I had learned my lesson about vacuum-cleaner visibility in the outdoors, and Liam came back to play with his toys.
As mentioned, that was just a small segment in a busy day, and, for the most part, all other aspects of the day went smoothly and without incident, including stocking up on lawnmower gas where I saw my sister Laurie out and about on my brother's horse, picking up some items in town, weeding my cukes and squash and attending to the usual daily chores around here.
The best part of my day came after dinner when Bill was watching a Mariners game, and the dogs were taking it easy in the living room.
With wonderful mild temperatures for a July evening, I saddled up Lily and went for a lovely ride. Lily behaved much better than last week so we set off down the road and I sat back just enjoyed the evening scenes.
When I can carry my big camera along and take photos and when I can send a cell phone photo to Annie who happened to be at a Sounders match in Seattle, it's definitely a good ride, and Lily is at her best.
This morning it looks as if the usual watering will not be needed as we had a good rain storm over night, and from the looks of this week's weather report of generally cool temperatures, I may be able to enjoy even more horseback rides.
Life is good. Happy Wednesday.
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