Hello and Seasons Greetings! Hope you had a fantastic Christmas season filled with the joy and blessings of the Christ-child.

Wow! I cannot believe 5 months have passed!!! So much has happened in such a short time.....

Jamaica made history with a medal sweep in athletics at the 2008 Olympics with Ussain Bolt the new local hero. We also lost some great artistes and musicians including the legendary rock steady singer Alton Ellis and soca giant Byron Lee.

We've managed to survive this year's hurricane season with only one close encounter with Gustav.

Closer to home Rebel and/or Zeeks are soon to be daddies...they were asked to father a litter with a neighbour's black Labrador retriever called "Puppy". Rebel's first such encounter was quite an event....we had to let Zeeks, the Casanova, take over...just in case... We are now looking forward to our pick of the litter, who unfortunately will not be staying with us to make the 5-Pack a 6-Pack.

Pic: Zeeks with Puppy

Queenie got another ear infection - 2 months of ear drops and an antibiotic cream and she is OK again.

Noah returned for a day.

Tunda chased a passer-by dog down the road out of sight while I was driving in one day. I can only imagine what transpired ... he came back on his own walking with a slight limp. He's Ok though.

One of our neighbours dogs unfortunately had yet another litter of mutts that strayed into another neighbour's yard and were snuffed out by their dog Taurus. A sad state of affairs.....

Jiggy is now socialised and holding her own with Rebel as they take their turn together around the back yard. She was scared stiff of him at first as he is so rough! But with a bit of encouragement from Pack Leader, Rebel has calmed down significantly!

Pack leader has been happily working on his DIY green energy project and hopes to complete commissioning come January. One third of the house, including my office, will be on solar power !
As for me...a new business venture has been keeping me busy. My Blog entries here will therefore not be quite as frequent.

I'm looking forward to a great 2009 (a year for the K9s! pun intended). It will prove to be a nice little challenge given the world economic crisis. Let us all take one day at a time and have faith that all is well. We have an opportunity to self-correct in many ways. I wish you and your families all the very best. For now from the 5-Pack and all of us here in Jamaica .....

HAVE A HAPPY, HAPPY 2K9 !!

All things bright and beautiful

Sometimes we forget just how blessed with beauty and diversity we are here on planet Earth. All caught up in our moment and in everyday life, we forget about all the other ecosystems and all the other creatures, great and small, that are living out their lives as we are.

I was reminded this week by my uncle who sent me a wonderful slide show. The author is due lots of credit and thanks for sharing it. Please take a moment and enjoy in wonder.



As you go through your day, take a moment to stop and look around. You may be lucky to observe another living creature that brings a smile to your face. Remember too that some of them are suffering and on the verge of extinction. Some may not be around for our children and grand children to enjoy in wonder. Take a look at some statistics.


Poodwaddle.com


We need to do whatever we can in our small circle of impact and influence to respect the diversity of life around us and protect our planet's fauna and flora. Let's protect planet earth!


Blessings.....

Unexpected house guest

This weekend we had the pleasure of the company of a small house guest called Noah. His owners are friends of ours and asked us at short notice if we could keep him for a few hours. Naturally I said yes! This would be my first pet sitting stint. Noah was a dream to keep. Unlike our pack he is friendly with strangers and, well, small ...... but his love of attention far exceeds his size. At nine months and still a puppy he is soooooo sweet!

Noah arrived with his bag all packed with favorite toys, treats, water bowl and left over breakfast, which actually came in handy later when he got a little peckish. He took a little while to settle down in the new surroundings. We kept him safe and sound on the upstairs balcony, away form our big shepherds. I stayed with him for a while after his owners left, to get him acclimatised and acquainted. When I moved to leave he'd start to cry. After a few episodes of this, I finally left him, shut the door and stayed a while at the window so he'd think I wasn't far away. Then I snuck quietly downstairs and listened. Silence ...... he was finally OK.

Our guest for the day was no problem at all. He stayed quietly most of the time by himself while I got on with things I had to do. I had to keep him on a long extended leash because as soon as I opened the door, he would dart inside, as if looking for his masters. Throughout the day I'd check on him occasionally to see if he was alright. A few times I opened the door and was greeted with such enthusiasm you'd think he hadn't seen anyone for weeks! I'd give him a good showing of affection and then reluctantly get back to my activities, but always with a short protest form Noah.
Later on in the evening when he really felt like playing and we got into a long and serious tug of war game with one of his favorite new toys. We played fetch with his chew bone too, after which he spent a good while chewing and eating it with great enthusiasm. That seemed to open up his appetite and he subsequently finished the rest of his breakfast. When our Rebel and Queenie started their routine evening romp, Noah peeped out and quietly observed the dog-on-dog rough play and barking that they usually enjoy. "Hmmmmm ...that looks like fun" , he seemed to be thinking.

Eventually when his owners arrived, he greeted them heartily. He was in his glee! He had a good day it seems but was glad to go home. In departing he was sure to leave his mark all over the yard. His final parting gesture when I sadly waved "bye Noah", was to lift his hind leg and fertilise the gate column.

Hmmm....what gratitude.......no reshpect Noah, no reshpect !!

Jamaica Blue Mountain Hike 2008 - Part II

It was pitch black outside as we started up the mountain slope. Apart from our flashlights and faint starlight from the starry sky, we could just see the glow of lights from the towns far in the distance. Later we were to learn that we were seeing the town of Yallas.

The night air was crisp but clear. I knew it would eventually get quite cold so I made sure to cover my mole with light headgear. With that, 3 layers of shirts a sweat top and sweat pants, I was probably the warmest dressed of the group. PL as usual was comfortable in a tee-shirt and knee-length shorts, with a camp shirt in case he got cold. The rest of the group wore varying degrees of protection between his and mine.

Our first challenge was Jacob's ladder. Now I know the reason for the name....it is an almost vertical, steady climb, twisting and turning past the different "rungs"of the ladder in an "S" like pattern as you ascend the mountain. It was a good thing we walked at night because shortly into the trek, most of us began to remove some layers. We were sweating and you could feel the burn in your hamstrings and butt as you stepped up the high rocks punctuating the trail. After a sweltering 1- 1/2 hrs, we reached Portland Gap.

Portland Gap is a ranger station set up by the forestry department. There are cabins there where you could also camp, it's the last source of running water and restrooms, flanked by a nicely manicured grassy area. None of this could we see in our upward journey as it was still very dark. All we knew was there was a nice piece of dewy grass to sit on, take a break, have a snack, drink something and prepare to move on again. It was also an opportunity to consume some of the load we were carrying in our packs that was by now beginning to feel quite heavy!

After only about 10 minutes, PL, "the General" was moving us along once again.
"No time to stop", he said, "We want to see sunrise at the peak! Saddle up and let's go!"

After Portland Gap, the two youngsters, or should I say young adults, in the group moved ahead of the rest of us a a pace! We lost sight of their flashlights in the distance. The trail is very clear though, so we knew they would not get lost. We would meet them at the peak.

The journey after Portland Gap was a steady walk in the dark. There was not much talking either as the older members of the group were now engaged in breathing heavily and focusing on that one more step! We couldn't even hear a peep from our usually most talkative member!

One step at a time, one step closer to the peak...yes we had to beat the sunrise. As the sky began to lighten, we started to ask that dreaded question...."are we there yet?" Our friend and guide from the area just kept urging us on. We passed what looked like the top of the mountain several times, only to find we had further to go.

Dusk met us about an hour away from the peak...yes, we missed sunrise. But I was certainly happy to see the surrounding mountain scenery and foliage quietly appear and hear the birds awaken with songs I had never heard before. With the sunrise deadline out of the way, we were able to rest more at a few view spots, take some pictures and enjoy the journey a bit more.

Finally, at about 6:50am we arrived at the peak! It was a fantastic feeling of accomplishment. We made it! Yes! While perusing the grassy knoll that is "the peak", we met two other small groups who were just leaving. Some of us climbed the trestle marking the highest spot on the island. We took out our breakfast supplies and got rid of some more load from our packs.

It was a clear morning, cold and breezy with bright morning sun kissing the dewdrops on the shrubs, flowers and grass. We looked up to see the clouds whizzing by. You could see almost 360 degrees around for miles and miles with the mountains and sea in the distance. It was fantastic !!! After about half an hour enjoying the peak, we headed back down. The young adults who had been up there for a while and were freezing their butts off, were anxious to get back down.

And so began descent, a torturous one for me and another member of the group who began to feel the body weight and pressure on our knees, about half way down the mountain. So very gingerly we took our time, sometimes with stick in hand, one step at a time. Despite that and with several stops along the way and again at Portland Gap, I was able to enjoy and take pictures of the beautiful and unique foliage and scenery. Even the painful trek down was great!

After a longer descent due to injuries, we reached back at Whitfield Hall just before 2:00pm in time for a rest, lunch and then to head down the mountain for our drive back to civilization. It was the first and last time for some of us but me, I will definitely do it again!

Blessings........

Jamaica Blue Mountain hike 2008

This week we left the pack to go on a long overdue overnight hiking trip to Blue Mountain Peak. I had been eagerly preparing for my first such hike for weeks by walking in our hilly neighbourhood and exercising along with Gilad DVDs. So well excited, I felt ready for the trip, 7 miles up and 7 miles down the steep mountain trails with a change in elevation of about 3,200 ft.

We set out from about 2:30pm to drive up to the end of the mountain road where you will find Whitfield Hall. We picked up a friend and our nephew along the way and were to meet four more friends up there. For at least half of the 2 hr drive, only a 4 wheel drive vehicle can make it....so you can imagine the country roads we had to drive on.

The scenery on the journey is gorgeous, but at no point in time can you actually see Blue Mountain Peak...the highest point in Jamaica at 7,402 ft or 2,256 m above sea level.

On arriving at the rustic Whitfield Hall hostel, nestled at 4,200ft above sea level, we were greeted by our hosts, Tiger and later Vinney. We also met the friendly farm dogs who we were told just might accompany us on our trip.

We were introduced to our 2 small rooms with bunk beds, bathroom facilities complete with running water like ice, the great room lit by a tilley lamp and the lovely outdoor garden. You could see, smell and feel the history in the old farmhouse.

When the others arrived, we had a lovely dinner cooked by Tiger in the small farmhouse kitchen, equipped with running water, stove and kerosene powered fridge and freezer. We then donned our coats and went outside to enjoy the starlight in the garden. Fireflies, called "peenie wallies", darted around, and cool mountain breeze enveloped us. I had never seen so many stars!!!

By about 9:00pm it was time to get some shut-eye as we were to start the trek at 2:00am in the morning. We eventually left at 2:30am for what we were told was a 3-1/2hr walk to the Peak. With coats and backpacks on our backs and flashlights in hand, our party of 8 headed off to greet the sunrise at the peak.

More later.......

Blessings to you and do come again!

It's Summer in Jamaica

Yes.....summer is here in Jamaica! We are a tropical island but we do experience subtle climate changes during summer and winter. So summer is here and it is HOT, HOT, HOT!!


With the summer comes the hurricane season, officially running from June 1 to November 30. We hope and pray that none come our way this year!


Schools go on holidays, just as well because it must be difficult to control and keep the attention of those little minds in this heat! And on top of the heat, the mosquitoes also increase in numbers. Oh so annoying!


Those pesky ticks begin to rear their heads and multiply! The dogs shed their coats again either to relieve themselves of the heat or because of excess itching from the ticks. As a result more frequent baths become a necessity and the perfect excuse for me to get wet and get some relief from the heat.


The plums are gone but along comes mango season!...and guess who's loving it? Yup, the Five-Pack are having their fill of mangoes from our blackie mango tree. Now laden with mangoes, the dogs feast on the bounty, sometimes spoiling their appetites.


They love mangoes and have learned to find the good ones on the ground and eat them with some amount of skill. Here is Queenie caught one day enjoying her morning mango.

Along with multitude of mangoes of every shape and variety come many other tropical fruit that are also in season in Jamaica. Summer time is a lovely, lazy, fruit-filled time in the tropics. How lucky we are to have sun, sand, sea, rhythm and music to enjoy it even more!

Till next time God bless and thanks for visiting. Do come again!

Five-Pack's Father's Day tribute

Yesterday was Father's day and I would like to take the opportunity to wish many, many blessings, courage & strength to all fathers and father figures around the world and in the blogosphere.

You all have a very important role to play. You are helping to shape the values of your "children" and our society as a whole. Thank you to those who are trying to play it well.

Today we would like to honour one of the fathers of the Five-Pack who passed on earlier this year. He was Admiral, father of Zeeks, grandfather of Queenie & Rebel, great grandfather of Jiggy. He was greatly loved by his humans and we honour his memory.

Here is a picture of Admiral. According to his owner, he was a "beloved Belgium/German friend of 13 devoted years (May 1995 to Feb 2008) of service.......Admiral was a faithful fellow, caring, obedient (most of the time) and always the protector. We miss him so much its hard to explain." Admiral, your memory lives on through the Five-Pack.

Till next time, thanks for stopping by. Blessings and do come again.

Animals That Adopt Other Species As Thier Own

I Thought I'd share this interesting digg story with you courtesy http://www.divinecaroline.com

Lions take care of baby antelopes; baboons befriend chickens. Within the animal kingdom, there have been several examples of animals bonding with others outside their own species.

read more digg story

A brilliant "Green idea" from Zeeks

With all the talk of global warming and climate change, our thinking dog Zeeks has come up with a "Green idea" for a environmentally friendly product.

I don't know what caused him to come up with this new thing. Maybe it is greed, maybe frustration. But Zeeks seems to have developed an after breakfast style of urinating in the dog plates.....and with perfect aim too. He collected quite a few oz. of the yellow fluid in two of the plates the other day!

Zeeks :"OMG finished already!" while Jiggy is still at it.

Tunda guards breakfast from Queenie

I didn't see who actually did it, but PL said "that sounds like something Zeeks would do". Maybe just to distract the others so he could get a bite out of their food, or to mark the plates so the others think they all belong to him. He's done similar things in the past.

Rebel patiently waits for breakfast ....Gooood booooy!

At first I was annoyed and quickly washed out the plates dashing the contents int the nearby shrubs. But then it hit me. What a great idea Zeeks! Dog piss is a great fertiliser, and it's free, no processing needed, just add water and apply! Why not retrieve and package Zeeks' collection for use in the garden. Now I'm encouraging him to do it.

So look out for it, coming soon to your nearest plant shop "Zeeks' Wonder Water plant food".

Blessings to you and do come again!

What have we done ?!! ...Tasmanian Devils May Face Extinction within 15 Years

The world’s most famous marsupial predator may face extinction within 15 years from a contagious cancer!!!! read more

Good morning and blessings to you !!

The Five -Pack is fine but sadly Taz is not. I came across this story and thought I'd share my thoughts with you.

It appears we humans have messed up again! For everything we do to our environment we must carefully think through the risks and the likely outcomes. Correct me if I am wrong, but didn't they say the Forestry Department poisoned the Tasmanian devil's source of food ? Mind you, it may have been with all good intentions, let's give them the benefit of the doubt. Hindsight is a hell-of-a-thing. But no wonder the poor devils are now ravaged by cancer and are facing extinction!

As a species, we've got to stop disrupting critical ecosystems all around the world. As individuals we should also be aware of the toxins in our environment, the harmful effects to human health and take precautions to stay as toxin free as possible.

Help take care of our environment, our ecosystems and preserve our cleansing rain forests today.

Click here for an easy and free way to help protect endangered habitat at The Rainforest Site!

Seeds are out ! ... and a few vacation pics

Hello again and blessings to you!

OK, so I've found the evidence of Tunda's plum eating spree. He's fine and he's passed the seeds through both ends! At least we know the seeds are not stuck inside and a tree won't grow in his stomach.

I have promised some pictures from my recent trip for some time now. Here are a few.

Enjoy and hope to see you again soon!

Pic 1. Sunrise over Gulf of Paria on the ferry from Trinidad to Tobago

Pic 2. Pigeon Point beach - Tobago

Pic. 3 Coconut trees in the breeze - Pigeon Point, Tobago

Pic 4. Parlatuvier Beach - Tobago

Newly acquired pass time and taste

Hello and welcome back!

Guess what's new. You can now subscribe to get updates of my blog delivered right to your inbox via email ! Just fill in your email address and click subscribe in the window provided. Happy reading!

Guess what's also new. The pack has developed a new hobby and taste. Yup! They have acquired a taste for tropical plums! They usually eat mangoes but never before plums. It is plum season here and our tree is laden with the fragrant purple plums that are both sweet and slightly tangy. It is the first mass bearing for the tree.

I love these plums and noticed the dogs enjoyed joining my harvest and would pluck the green ones off the low hanging branches and toss them aside. Idleness! This pass time was of course invented by Zeeks who is always looking for something to stimulate his intelligence. One day I decided to challenge him to catch the marble sized plums. So I threw one to him. He responded with precision and then spat it out. I threw another and again an excellent catch.

Then I squeezed one so he could taste the juice and again....excellent catch but this time he kept it in his mouth a while, bit down on it releasing more juice and seemed to like it. So he sucked on it, chewed the seed some more and to my surprise, peeled the skin and pulp off and spat out the seed. Spit it out! Good boy!

Queenie quickly picked up the rake and joined in the game and the feast. Tunda also joined in. They even started searching themselves for the fallen fruit. But alas, Tunda chewed on the plum for a while, turning it and sucking the juice. Then the chewing stopped ....and....Oh no! He swallowed the seed! He ate up to six plums, seed and all, despite my attempts to stop him. Right now I am a bit concerned that it may trouble his bowels and will have to become a stool inspector over the next few days. I hope he doesn't eat too much tonight!

Well that's all for now. Thanks for visiting and God bless........

From romper to rompee

The dynamics of the pack is interesting to watch. All this time Jiggy has been harassing the daylights out of her mother. Rushing at her, jumping on her, biting her scruff, grabbing and pulling her collar and generally being a nuisance trying to dominate. Queenie sometimes takes it, but sometimes she gives a stern bark and Jiggy backs off. Sometimes she has to get rough and snap and rush after Jiggy for her to stop.

Jiggy dare not try that with Tunda, her father, the mad one. Although he sometime humours her, he displays his annoyance when he's had enough. He warns her with a deep, continuous, disapproving growl till Jiggy stops the romping and cowers into a crawl position, licking him under the chin in apology. Zeeks tends to ignore her and move away. Jiggy however has met her match with Rebel. Only a year apart in age, they are both still very playful. But Rebel is very rough with his play. He doesn't realise his strength and size.

Now Jiggy has just come out of heat and her associated quarantine on the veranda. With freedom regained, she is allowed to join Rebel in the front yard. But she is having quite a hard time relaxing. Rebel does not give her a chance. Hmmm.....what goes around really comes around.

Rebel is doing the same thing Jiggy does to the others. But with his size and strength it is worse! He is behind her, running her down, leaping at her, jumping on her back, biting at her scruff and throwing her down. She rolls over to submit but Rebel continues the romping. She shrieks when he unintentionally hurts a soft spot. He just doesn't know when to quit.

Finally I call Jiggy back on the veranda to give her a break....but as soon as she gets in, there is Rebel right behind her squeezing through the gate. The two engage in a mad scamper of chase. Now cornering her, Rebel grabs Jiggy's collar as if to pull her up in the same way I pull him by his collar. So I grab his collar under the long, shaggy fur and calmly lead him away and put him out.

Had I not intervened, mummy Queenie would have jumped the fence separating back and front yards, and let Rebel have a piece of her mind. .....and surprisingly, he listens to Queenie's rebuffs !

Hopefully Rebel and Jiggy learn how to play without the wildness as they mature. And just maybe Jiggy will learn how not to behave! Meanwhile mummy Queenie remains the mediator, coming to Jiggy's rescue when she transforms from romper to rompee.

Back home and I missed the ordeal

Well here I am, back home after 3 fun-filled weeks in Trinidad & Tobago. Over the next few weeks I will share some pics from my trip.

While I was away reports are that all was not well with the Five-pack . The behaviour was not at all good, but to be fair it was not really their fault. There was accidental meeting between Rebel and the rest, which resulted on a wholescale attack on Rebel. Tunda, Zeeks and surprisingly Queenie turned on him for a foursome dog fight. Jiggy was no where to be seen, skillfully avoiding the confusion.

It all started with the meter man coming to read the electricity meter. Our helper Vee, who is normally very good with the dogs, called Rebel and Queenie onto the verandah so he could enter the yard safely. But she forgot to close the front door. Queenie, the escape artist that she is, quickly and quietly made her way through the house to the also open back door.

Well, Rebel decided that he would follow her! What transpired next must have been a blur of noise and action that only poor Vee was there to experience. I don't know who started it, but I can imagine the shock they all must have felt at the surprise meeting. From my own experience it is very difficult to stop the attacks even when separated by a chain link fence. So I knew Vee would have a hard time.

After filling and throwing a few pans of water at the rabble to no avail, Vee was finally able to grab Zeeks with two arms around his neck . Thinking it was Rebel, she tied him on a leash with relief that was short lived. She turned around only to see Tunda and Rebel still at it. Rolling through the grass they went, up and down the back yard, Tunda refusing to let go! Meanwhile Vee grabbed Queenie and ran her back through the house.

All this time Tunda and Rebel were still at it. Minutes must have seemed like hours. Eventually Vee said they got so tired they paused for a break and it was then she was able to grab Rebel and take him back through the house. By this time everyone was totally exhausted, including Vee, who was soaked with water from the futile attempts with the drinking pan. Rebel's exhaustion lasted for a few days well!

Vee checked out Zeeks and Rebel who seemed to get the worst of it and called the PL to let him know what happened. He was to check Tunda as Vee is afraid of Tunda. Although she knows him from puppy-hood, he barked at her when she came back to work ater 3 months of maternity leave. Since then she does not trust him.

There was no need for stitches. Zeeks got a few scratches, Rebel got puncture bites around his neck and ears, Queenie was OK and Tunda came through wihout a scratch. Rebel got a vet's visit, dressing with the magic purple Chlorotetracycline and Gentian Violet topical spray, precautionary screw worm powder, and some anti-biotic tablets.

By the time I got back there was little evidence of the ordeal. Luckily all's well that ends well. And poor Vee said she learned an important lesson - never again leave both the back and front doors open!!!

On their own for now......

Welcome again and blessings to you !

Well, Pack Leader is in charge ..... has been since last week ! I'm on a trip to my twin-island Caribbean home-land for a few weeks and trust that all is well back at the homestead. Yeah ... I'm sure all is well, but so sorry Pack Leader couldn't come this time. I miss the five-pack too ..... This trip is going to be filled with family, friends, music, jazz, sun, sea & sand...and a little adventure too!

Ever flew across the Caribbean? It's a long but enjoyable trip, punctuated by pit stops at at least two other islands....and in the warm, hospitable spirit of the Caribbean THEY FEED YOU A MEAL!! The flight was great! It was a beautiful day to fly...blue skies, blue sea below and dotted with mountains and flocks of cloud formations. Seems as though the flocks of "sheep clouds" tend to gather above the island grasses below! I got a few pics to share ...

Thanks for visiting! More next time.....