Passing through the annexe dogyard behind Isa's cabin a few days ago, I stopped to look over the population there. I got a shock. Where a couple of months ago I still saw unformed puppies, I now see TWO NEW 8-DOG TEAMS that weren't there a year ago! Dogs like the O-litter's Orlov, Olaf and Olga have shot up and attained adult proportions, though they are still months short of being official yearlings. The boys and girls of the F-litter who looked so unformed through the summer now look like grown dogs. The U-litter threesome that were staked there as puppies not long ago are now robust thirty-pound youngsters who will obviously be running with the rest this winter.
And sure enough, Isa has started moving one or two, like beautiful light-silver saddleback Gorki, into the main yard; and today two of Lizzy's callow puppies, not yet even four months old, have nevertheless been staked out. They were starting to fight seriously in the puppy runs, starting the dominance stuff about three weeks early! Of course, Volk and Valianka, the ones who got staked, are howling dolefully, doing the "poor pitiful puppy" act. All the same, they have hardly tangled at all, and already on their second day they look like they're getting used to the stakeout. And the puppy runs have been more peaceable without the two main combatants.
Today the equinoctial gales have howled unremittingly. Most of the leaves are gone from most of the aspens, but some of the late-turners still have a full load of brilliant gold. This afternoon the Yukon sun has that lovely, delicate, old-gold colour. There has been ice in the dogs' water buckets most mornings for the last week or so. This morning the mountains of the Miners' Range were thick and white with fresh snow. As the length of day and night balance temporarily, the year turns on its axis. Winter's coming.
Posted by ditkoofseppala at September 22, 2006 06:34 PM