Kendal may be eleven (almost twelve) yet he can still lay with his hind legs stretched out.
Tag: Kendal
Coming inside
Each dog has his own way. All three are allowed in the backyard unsupervised unless special conditions prevail. They are independent, certainly do not need minute supervision all of the time.
When each is ready to come in, each has their own way of announcing it. Achilles scratches the door and when it is opened, makes his graceful, slow way in. Both Kendal and Stella bark. Just once. When the door opens, Kendal comes right in, and that is fine. Stella typically (though not always) waits until given the release. Knowing each dogs’ ways makes it easy to set each one up to succeed.
Kendal
I’m unsure which of these photos of Kendal I like most. The out of focus one in which he is looking at the camera,
the soft, naturally-lit one
Or this one which makes the contrast between his coat and the orange throw really stand out.
What do you think?
Dogs at Play
I am sorting through photos and came across these from the time shortly after we moved back to this house.
Achilles kicks off a merry chase game and Kendal joins in, which he rarely did.
Achilles leads on with Kendal in hot pursuit of him. Achilles is so fluid and graceful, Kendal is pure power. Chilidog can outmaneuver Kendal but if Kendal caught him, Chili would be bowled over. Stella is in hot pursuit of Kendal. Stella and Achilles have been buds for seven years now. Sometimes she singles Kendal out for special attention more than I like.
Chase games happen less frequently now, the dogs are older. While it would be easy to be sad about that, I prefer not to be. I look at these photos and smile. I look at Stella and Kendal now, several years on. They are crashed on separate dog beds on the deck. (I would look at Achilles but he is inside, crashed on the love seat. They are our dogs. They are good dogs.
Froggy Dog
It’s remarkable to me that at eleven years of age, Kendal can still lay down with his rear legs splayed out like this for a minute, not the ten or more minutes that he sometimes does.
A Boy and His Toy
Kendal with his treat ball.
The Noble Hound
Time to rest.
It’s a rough life, being one of our dogs.
Kendal
Kendal, aka Dr. K, the Kendalator. Fayes’ special man. He is eleven years old now and getting a little gimpy, a little slower, a little more easily tired. And yet he is still up for a walk, some loving, some food – after all, he is a Labrador retriever. Early on I tried to train him in the same way I had trained the cattle dogs and it didn’t work, reminding me that dogs are individuals, and need to be treated accordingly. Once I relaxed and began using other strategies we get along much better. He’s a good boy.
previouslytexan 