Woolly Monsters

Today I took first Bridget, then George, out for a walk. About half a mile down the road, a neighbor keeps sheep. We've never ventured that far in this direction before, but today was the day.

Here is what Bridget thought of the sheep:

Her neck felt as tense as it looks. But then she started to get the hang of it:

She even got comfortable enough to start grazing within view of the alien creatures:

Then there was an order of evacuation issued among the sheep, and they all bustled off through a gate into the next field, where they turned to look at the Bridget Monster from a safe distance.

George spotted the sheep from further off than Bridget had. His initial reaction was similar:

But then, where Bridget had tiptoed after me in the direction of the sheep, pausing often, ready to retreat at the first sign of trouble, George's approach was different. He would stop to stare, then step forward in front of me towards the danger, ready (I guess) to go deal with it if necessary. 

On the way home, he kept stopping and look off into the distance, all on the alert.

We've been doing quite well with the duckling walk. On the way out today, he maintained that relationship unasked. On the way home, I frequently asked him to return to the "nice soft spot" beside and slightly behind me. When Bridget and I walk, we do very well shoulder-to-shoulder, but I feel better with George in the duckling position - his reaction today shows me that he takes a lot of responsibility on himself, and I would like to show him that it's ok to put some of that onto me.

When we got home, we grazed in the hay field, while Bridget and Rose looked on enviously.

We've had so much rain, that there's water in the dry creek bed in the front pasture. It rarely runs, so it's fun when it does: