NELLIE TURNS 13

Our German Shorthair Pointer Nellie turned 13 on Sunday, Sept. 11. She’s officially retired. The hunting which she once took seriously is now just a hobby. She was a good hunter and worked hard in the field, but at eleven, she gave it up.

Nellie is well past the average life span for a German Shorthair (I think it's 10), but she continues in good health for an old dog. Mike opined in May that she might not tolerate the summer heat, but she did. However, it’s clear that the cooler temps are to her liking and she’s been more active and vigorous the last few weeks. Her spirit was also renewed when her girl Hallie (and Nick) came to visit.

 

Oh, she minds not going hunting. When the hunters leave without her, she snorts and curls into a ball with her back to the door. But she has shown disinterest in the field. She gets in the way or gets tired and has to be delivered back to the vehicle, so she must stay with me now. I have observed that the old dog becomes my dog. For her years of previous service, however, she receives pension benefits of food treats when the hunters return.

Sunday afternoon, Mike took off on his bicycle, so I agreed to walk the dogs. Nellie said she’d like to go, but when Bess saw that Mike was not along, she declined our invitation and stayed in the back of the pick-up. Bess is a very active dog anyway, so if she doesn’t want to walk, that’s okay.

The pictures here were taken on Nellie’s birthday walk. Notice that some of the rape is growing. KW