Walkin' the Dog

I decided to take Buster for a walk today. It's been a while; largely, I think, because it's too much work to try and take him on the more scenic hikes. Too hard to juggle him, the terrain, and the camera. So I took him along the canal instead. It didn't occur to me until we were on the canal that this was the first time I'd walked on it since a rather bad day. And being there didn't bother me, so I'm taking this as a good sign. Anyway, I saw a batch of ducklings and their mother, twice (at least, at the same general location on the way out and back, so presumably the same batch), a water snake, some magpies, a few redwinged blackbirds and some swallows. Also, there's a ton of showy milkweed in bloom and some yellow flowers that I want to call buttercups, but I wouldn't guarantee that's what they were.

I found out that Buster can swim. It might have worked better if I'd had a chance to loose the leash before he jumped in, but then I would have had to get it back on him. *shrugs* We walked from Dad's house down to where the interstate crosses over the canal. Hmmm... usually I see pigeons roosting there, but I don't think I looked up. I was too busy trying not to be dragged into the water by Buster.

I might have gone clear down to Chubbuck Road except that I had forgotten to bring any water. So I headed back and stopped at Mom's house for some cold water. Buster was confused; he's never been to Mom's house before. I tied him up on her front porch while I went in, and he acted very scared when I came back out: shaking, trying to wedge into me. I've never seen a terrier as...easily unnerved as he is. Makes me wonder what he's crossed with. He brightened up a bit when Mom came to see him, once he figured out that he knew her, but still didn't want to be left alone on a "strange" porch. Just as well I wasn't planning on staying long.