So Ex didn’t get a surprise party this year but he did get another pair of boots! This year not cowboy. Nope. This year they were dress boots! It was too mucky to car follow Old Dominion Hounds this morning but that didn’t stop us from going to Horse Country where Ex bought himself his first pair of breeches (and WAY nicer than any I’ve had in my years of riding, tehe). Marion gave Ex an awesome pair of boot pulls for his fancy previously new boots and, as always, it was awesome to get to see everyone there and just look around. I picked a second Rita Mae Brown book as I’m really enjoying her first fox hunting novel titled “Outfoxed” where we are introduced to “Sister Jane” and some of the great hound, horse and fox characters. I think Ex had a good day all and all. It was certainly relaxing to me to not have to work! Yahoo!

I was one of ten lucky lottery winners from our Quantico Officers Spouses Organization to be selected to attend a tour of HMX-1. This is a serious high security place and they had to run a background check (or some such) on me just to make sure I qualified to “get in” and see the birds!

They showed us a video about HMX-1 and its history before taking us up to security to sign out our visitors badges and finally through the security door. We got to go up in HMX-1, walk around and sit in the VIP chairs! It’s stocked with Starburst candies, gum and some other treats and even has it’s own toilet in case someone needs to use it on the ever so short flights the President takes on it! An interesting tidbit, H stands for Helicopter, M stands for Marine, X stands for Experimental and the 1 because there is only 1 squadron of them! It was truly a once in a lifetime experience!

Lucky me was able to car follow for the Old Dominion Hounds and Keswick Joint Meet and what fun! A quick view of the fox at one point and there was beautiful views of the hounds and field throughout! I’ve received quite the influx of emails with questions about fox hunting or fox chasing (whichever you’d like to call it) and hopefully we will answer some of those questions in our episode on March 15th. Oh and they enjoyed the beautiful countryside but all the foxes were safe in their dens which is the usual! 🙂

I’ve been working non-stop but enjoying every minute of it and we’ve been approached by several top western riders and trainers about episodes! I’m very much looking forward pursuing western episodes and learning more about some of these fine successful western and AQHA trainers! Yahoo!

Thanks for watching!

“The Love of Animals” by Ron Hevener

Over the years, I’ve been lucky enough to know lots of interesting animals. Horses, Dogs, Cats, Wildlife . . .
If they liked people, I had a knack of getting to know them pretty well. When I started my career as an artist, animals were a natural subject for me to explore, and, growing up in Pennsylvania’s Lancaster County farm country, animals — and people who love them — were all around me.

It would be great if we could grow up with a crystal ball and see what life holds for us. It would be fun if we had a friend who could tell us the future. That being said, as I look back on it, even an animal lover like me would shake his head in amusement and dismay if anybody told him there would be not one or two, but many special animals in his life — and he would hear stories of many more from other people who raise, care for and are inspired by animals, too. It’s enough to make us believe that animals and people have a lot more going on than scientists and scholars ever thought . . . or would like to admit.

I like passion and I like creativity. I certainly like to feel my emotions (good or bad) and I like to explore every natural sense with which we’re born (or which we are able to develop). Watching animals, touching them, playing with them, feeding them, listening to them, looking into their eyes, I feel . . . truly feel . . . that their hearts are “in tune” with the rest of themselves. And that’s healthy!

Animals don’t speak a language of words, but, for those who observe and listen, they do very well showing us what they mean. Why would scholars and scientists want us to believe animals aren’t intelligent? I don’t know the answer to that. I do know there are different kinds of intelligence and I know from experience that a “paper degree” we pay for and frame to hang on a wall isn’t the measure of them. It is a measure of our ability to gather and organize information, yes, I would agree with that, and it’s also a measure of our ability to pay for the privilege of getting a diploma in the first place. But, isn’t gathering information and knowing how to apply it the basis of intelligence for even the smallest living cell?

The debate over intelligence seems to be more important to those trying to prove they’ve got it, rather than from those who are secure in themselves. Animals don’t doubt who they are, why they’re here, or where they are going, like we do. Animals just “are” . . . they’re born mastering the principle of “Be here now” that students of yoga and psychology are struggling to figure out.

When it comes to emotion, animals are honest. When they mate, it’s with all the passion and fire in them. When they mourn, it’s with the sadness of all the heavens and all the earth. When they fear or fight, they give it their all. Animals don’t complicate their lives with politically correct terminology that confuses or denies honest, powerful drives and feelings. They don’t pretend or deceive.

It is often said that we resemble the animals to which we are attracted. Most of us have seen pictures of people and their pets, showing remarkable resemblances of expression, or hair color, or shape. Even though I get around to many public events like horse shows, dog shows, pet expos and things of that nature, I don’t often see much evidence of that. What I do see, however (and I see it often) is a similarity of personality, or spirit, between animals and the people who love them. Every species of animal, and every specialized breed within it, can be described by certain traits or characteristics. If you study the breed standards, you’ll find that different breeds are known for their nobility, or their tenacity, or for their herding, retrieving, or their hunting instincts for example. People who love them are quite often the same. If this is true, then does “something familiar about” the animal attract people who already possess this quality in themselves — or is the characteristic acquired by taking such an animal into their lives?

Many readers know that I raise Collies and the kennel was founded in the early 1940’s. No, I’m not a hundred years old. I inherited the kennel from a wonderful friend who took me under her wing and taught me about animal partnerry. One of the things she insisted upon was that I join as many dog organizations and associations as possible. As I was filling out an application for the Collie Club in our region of Pennsylvania, there was a question: “Why Collies?” I remember my answer very well: “Because they are always happy. They have a positive outlook on life.” It’s pretty tough to be down in the dumps when you’ve got a dog wanting to romp and play with you.

Should we take a tip from the animals we love? Maybe that’s not a bad idea.

If we aspire to better ourselves, to become true of heart and true to our deepest emotions, animals are the most genuine and unaffected examples for us to follow. Few people can show us the way to our own hearts because so few of us are permitted to discover our real selves in today’s society. We live in a social system designed to get us through school and into the tax-paying work force for dead-end jobs as soon as possible. Increasingly (and in spite of the principles of freedom pioneered by Baby Boomers), we don’t live in a system that generally encourages freedom of thought and expression any more. In the past twenty years or so, creative leaders and innovators have been lost to us from bizarre and sinister diseases that no one ever thought possible or disgraced and trampled in the media. As they fall — like trees being cut down in a forest — their places are filled by others less brilliant. The result is mediocrity in literature, the arts, music and movies . . . in laws, politics, and education.

When leaders are lost, their secrets and inner light are taken with them. Never again do we hear their voices or bask in their example of life being lived to the fullest. What remains is our search for something greater . . . a nameless yearning for something emotionally and intellectually real . . . A need for something to keep our emotions rolling, our souls laughing and our hearts alive. Something that we matter to — anywhere, anyone — in a world becoming more and more difficult for reasonable people to understand.

What remains unchanged — for those who let them speak — is the love of animals.

        Ron Hevener
        www.RonHevener.com

Picollo finally got to meet, nose to nose, Roxy.

Roxy is one of two Great Danes living next to us and sooooo friendly. She got up close and personal (and down to his height) as you’ll note from the picture.

Our neighbors are volunteers with the Northern Virginia Great Dane rescue. They have an awesome website at: http://nova-magdrl.org/ so check it out!