Dog days of Summer

We’ve been pretty quiet lately but that doesn’t mean we haven’t been busy. Those of you who follow us on Facebook will probably already know this but soon after we got back to Georgia, we got two new puppies to join us in our adventures! Here’s a little background and how we ended up with our two new pups.

We’ve always had some sort of pet in the house from way back. When we started full timing, Adele and Brandy joined us (reluctantly) on our new journey. They were real troopers thru the whole thing but definitely missed their bigger house and yard at times. Within the past year we lost both of them which was really heart breaking. We decided it would be best to take a break, particularly since we had the North Carolina Trip planned and didn’t want to have new dogs at the same time. While traveling, we talked about adding a four-legged companion back into our home and started to discuss our needs and best fit for our current living situation. We loved Adele and Brandy with all our hearts but there were many things we needed to change for our next dog. Given our travels and history, here was a partial list we created:

• Wanted something small, a real lap dog that could sit with us.
• Wanted a non/low shedding dog (the hair really piles up in a small space!)
• Needed a dog with a very friendly and tolerant personality since they’d be meeting lots of new people (and other dogs!)
• They needed to travel well (Adele never got used to traveling in the rig, was a nervous wreck)
• Be healthy since we traveled a lot, wouldn’t have access to the same vet care

In the past, we had always adopted rescues and this was our original intent when we decided to start looking. Unfortunately, it was nearly impossible to find a dog that met all of our requirements and in addition, many shelters required us to remain in the area for a long time to ensure a good fit (which makes good sense but obviously eliminated us since we move so often) and others required us to have a fenced yard.

We finally agreed we’d be getting our dog from a breeder and settled on a mini Australian labradoodle breed. We found a breeder in the Atlanta area that was pausing their business due to family issues and were ready to let go of a couple of litters of puppies they had recently had that were ready for new homes. We arranged to meet them over the July 4th weekend. Needless to say, we were overwhelmed when we arrived to a pen full of small, cuddly, happy puppies! How to chose one from all this pile of furry cuteness? We spent a lot of time talking about raising a puppy (most of our previous dogs were already adults when we got them), expectations for our type of lifestyle, etc.

After a couple of hours, we decided we’d go ahead and dive in and thus the selection process began. We wanted the smallest of the small. This breed is similar than bigger Labradoodles you may have seen but gets the “mini” from being bred with a miniature poodle instead of standard. The “Australian” part comes from the introduction of a third breed – cocker spaniel – that originated from Australia (the idea, not the cocker spaniel). This gives you a non-shedding, hypoallergenic, friendly, low key dog that is small (from around 15-25 pounds).

After much holding and face licking, we settled on a flat coat (the breed is usually going to have a curly coat but this one had a recessive gene that removed most of the curl). She just had the most adorable face and gave the best friendly kisses we couldn’t resist. But then talk began about this poor little 8 week old being alone and maybe it would be best if she had a little buddy to play with. We very quickly decided if one was good, two would be great (which is mostly true :-). We picked out the smallest of the bunch, a curly little bundle of hair with beautiful golden eyes. After another hour or so, we were on our way back to camp with two little bundles of joy.

By the end of the evening, we had already settled on names. The fluffy girl would be Sugar and the flat hair would be Spice. We briefly toyed with them being called Sugar and Honey (additional irony since Jill has Diabetes) but Spice was already living up to her name, finding things to chew on, places to pee, etc. so we stuck with our original decision.

Upon arrival, Sugar weighed in at 5 pounds while Spice was a bit over 7. Sugar is eventually expected to reach around 15 pounds while Spice will be somewhere over 20. Most of the month of July was learning how to deal with two very hyper little dogs, teaching them (and us) how to behave and work together in our small space. Have to admit, there were several times that we asked ourselves what in the world we had gotten ourselves into! But after several months, it’s amazing how many things had fallen into place. They responded to their names, walked very well on their leashes, were starting to let us know when they needed to go out (which sometimes was as early as 5 in the morning) and generally getting into a regular routine.

Here are some pics of them during the first month:

On July 22nd, we headed to Kentucky for our next short adventure (two weeks) with our pups! This would be fun!!!

First stop was Cave City where we would be close to several caves and other attractions. Our first outing would be to the National Corvette Museum in Bowling Green. This sits near the factory for the Corvette which, unfortunately, was still not open for tours even after everything else seemed open post-COVID. The museum had the requisite huge assortment of cars of all ages and styles since the Corvette was first manufactured all the way up to the new present day mid-engine car.

In addition to reading and seeing all the history around this iconic car, there is also a special exhibit surrounding the amazing story of the museum sinkhole. In 2014, eight priceless corvettes were swallowed by a 40-foot-wide, 20-foot-deep sinkhole that opened up in the facility’s yellow Sky Dome wing. The museum unofficially estimates it caused millions of dollars in damage. All but one of the cars were restored after recovery from the hole. Today there is a section dedicated to how the sinkhole occurred and the recovery and aftermath. Today, one car is on display that was believed to be beyond salvaging.

Next up was a tour thru part of the Mammoth Cave system. We did not realize how huge this cave complex was or how many tours/walks you could select.

Since the 1972 unification of Mammoth Cave with the even-longer system under Flint Ridge to the north, the official name of the system has been the Mammoth–Flint Ridge Cave System. The park was established as a national park on July 1, 1941, a World Heritage Site on October 27, 1981, an international Biosphere Reserve on September 26, 1990 and an International Dark Sky Park on October 28, 2021.

Mammoth Cave is the world’s longest known cave system with more than 420 miles of surveyed passageways, which is nearly twice as long as the second-longest cave system, Mexico’s Sac Actun underwater cave.

Jill was less excited about being underground so Dan took this one on his own. And since availability was limited (tours book online and many book up in advance) his best choice was the Grand Avenue Tour. At 4 hours long, this lengthy tour explores the geologic diversity of what Mammoth Cave has to offer. Going through slot canyons, tubular passageways, tall canyons, and tunnels sparkled with gypsum, this tour is the longest walking tour offered. The tour included hundreds of steps and ascends and descends many tall, incredibly steep hills.  The tour covered a wide variety of the history and geology of Mammoth Cave.  The tour included the entire Frozen Niagara Tour route and all of the Domes and Dripstones Tour except for the 280 stairs descending the vertical shafts at the entrance. It truly was a great overall experience and would be worth going back to see more.

You start at the visitor center where it is a good idea to check out the exhibits that help explain how the caves were developed and have been explored over the years. Since there are many access points, you are then usually bussed to your specific tour entrance and then later picked up when you come out at the other end. The start of the Grand Avenue tour begins in a long running cave that seems more like a huge tunnel. It is completely dry with no signs of water or dripping, thus very few stalagmites or stalactites. This area was formed by underground rivers flowing under very strong sandstone that today, acts like a cement roof. As we hiked along at a brisk pace, it was amazing to see how large and open some of the spaces were (sometimes many stories high) and yet realize you were still several hundred feet below ground.

After an hour or so, we moved into an area that was more like slot canyons, with some areas barely wide enough to squeeze thru. Here, the rock tended to be very smooth from the water that had passed thru far in the past. The last portion included wetter areas of the cave where you could find water dripping from the ceiling, running along below us and coming off of various rock formations. Amber lighting helped highlight some of the more striking formations. After 4 hours, we emerged from our underground journey, picked up by another bus and soon were back where we started at the visitor center. So many other tours to be taken, hope to get back there some day.

This was also our first camping trip with the dogs. This mean it included many firsts for them. They got to meet many people and dogs while walking around the park as well as experiencing so many new sounds, sights, and odors! Because they were still getting many vaccines, they were not allowed to actively socialize with other dogs or go to the dog park just yet but they seemed to enjoy getting out in the world. A neighbor got into the habit of stopping by every morning when the dogs were out in the fenced area so she could get her “puppy fix”.

After a week, we moved on to the small town of Salvisa, KY and a campground located right on the Kentucky River. Although this seemed like a great campground on paper, it lacked some things. Being down in a gorge next to the river meant no cell signal at all. Even though they promised high speed Wifi, we found it to be lacking after the first couple of days. And since they had recently done some work around the sites and it had rained a lot before our arrival, it was quite muddy, buggy, and the grass was pretty high!

While in the area, we drove over to Danville, KY to visit the Doll House museum before grabbing lunch. Wasn’t really sure what to expect but we were pleasantly surprised at the detail of the houses as well as the dioramas and stories that were told in them.

Next up was a visit to a historic Shaker Village located at Pleasant Hill near Harrodsburg, KY. Many of the historic buildings have been completely restored. During our visit, a market was also going on so there were opportunities to see local crafts and listen to music. We even had lunch at the restaurant in the village and they have rooms to rent if you want to stay in the village over night.

The Shaker religious community was active from 1805 to 1910. Following a preservationist effort that began in 1961, the site, now a National Historic Landmark, has become a popular tourist destination. Many visitors to Pleasant Hill, observing the nineteenth-century architecture, crafts, and clothing, mistakenly assume that the Shakers, like the Amish, rejected technological advancements. In fact, the Shakers were inventors or early adopters of many new tools and techniques. For example, in the early 1830s the Shakers of Pleasant Hill constructed a water tower on a high plot of ground. A horse-drawn pump lifted water into the tower, and from there a system of pipes conveyed it to the kitchens, cellars, and wash houses. It is believed to have been the first in the state. In the wash houses, the members built washing machines (also powered by horses) to reduce the heavy work of laundering the community’s clothes and linens.

As mentioned earlier, we were not very happy with our campground and with more rain predicted, we decided to depart earlier than planned, find a campground somewhere halfway back to Atlanta and just settle for a day or two. We lucked out and found a nice campground in Tennessee that fit the bill. We never left the campground the two days we were there but enjoyed ourselves very much. They had a gazebo with an overlook as well as a nice trail to a waterfall. The dogs even got a bath!

We returned to the Atlanta area on August 8th and stayed in the area most of the time until the latter part of September. We did make three trips to north Georgia for long weekends – two to the Hiawassee area and one to Dillard. In our first trip to Hiawassee, we actually rented a cabin for a week which was a new experience for the dogs who, up until this point, only knew about living in an RV. It presented many new experiences to them including lots more space to run around and make trouble (like places to pee!), furniture to explore and the wonders of glass doors.

We didn’t do much but relax all week at the cabin but we did drive up the road to Bell Mountain for some great views of Lake Chatuge.

Of course, while in the Atlanta area, the dogs had to visit all their relatives including our son Chris and the girls, Savannah and Skylar.

And they had to visit their Grandma Jean too.

Given the heat and humidity, a lot of time was just spent in time doing what puppies do when not playing – sleeping in any place and position they can find.

And then, in mid September, it was time to get the girls spayed. This turned out not to be as bad as we had thought. We were able to get them special collars that kept them away from the incision without having to deal with the dreaded cones of shame. And the vet gave us some meds to keep them calm and cut down on the puppy “zoomies” while recovering. Unfortunately, while trying to get an IV started on Sugar, they shaved one leg and when they couldn’t get good access there, they shaved the other leg. That left her with a very odd “poodle cut” on her front legs!

On September 24th, the dogs were ready to roll and we headed south for a week outside of Gulf Shores, AL before heading over to our regular stop in Navarre for two months. Before we left, we got the dogs weighed again and Sugar was now 11 pounds while Spice was 16. That means they have doubled in weight since we got them 2 1/2 months ago!