The Thaw

Its finally here! After 8 weeks of snow, icicles from the gutter to the ground, 10 foot tall snow piles from the plow and needing to wear 15 layers to stay warm, The Thaw is finally here.

One the one hand, I'm ecstatic. The snow is melting just enough to make snowmen and snowforts again. The frozen lumps of ice the plow never gets are gone from the driveway. Its warm enough to follow the deer tracks, bird watch and even stargaze and watch for shooting stars without risking frostbite.

But on the other hand, I hate The Thaw. I've just gotten used to the cold. I automatically put on my long johns in the morning and then my boots. The paths are finally tromped perfectly and solid for walking. The sledding hill is fast and banked perfectly. With The Thaw, the sleds stick, the paths collapse and I'm too hot in my jacket in the balmy 34 degrees F. The crust is weak, so that dogs and humans now sink up to their knees in the wet snow. And now, we have a flood watch for the next 3 days, because the melting snow has no place to go. The rivers are iced over, the ground is frozen, the melting, running water melts more snow and becomes a raging river and will find someplace downhill to go, which is usually a few basements, the floodplains by the rivers, and a few roads.

Yet the worst part of The Thaw is yet to come. February. Eventually January will be over and the Vermont Mid-Winter-Summer will be done. Those hardy folks who have been skiing in shorts and t-shirts will once again bundle up 15 layers deep. We'll huddle under blankets, throw another log on the fire, and count the days until March and Sugaring Season. We'll watch the woods for those tell-tale signs of spring - the colored tubing for the sugar lines that "sprout" in late February. And, if we are lucky, February will bring enough snow to refresh the paths, refreeze the lake and give us a beautiful Spring Ski Season.

But for now, I'll enjoy the tropical heat wave and start planning the garden, because sometime, somewhere, someday, it will be Spring in Vermont, someplace.

Traveling with older pets

(This is the third in a series of articles about traveling with pets based upon my experiences as an Innkeeper here at the Silas Griffith Inn and my almost 30 years in the Hospitality business.)

As we age, although we don't like to admit it, we start feeling more aches and pains that weren't there when we were younger. The same holds true for out pets, no matter how good out care is of them, no matter how wonderful our vet care of them is. Arthritis, joint pain, stiff muscles, and love handles are all aging problems for cats and dogs, as well as us humans. But do these issues mean that Fluffy and Fido can no longer go with you on your traveling adventures.

No. It just means you have to prepare a little mores for their comfort and be prepared to make certain allowances for age.

Fluffy and Fido might not be able to take that 10 mile hike with you, but a 5 mile hike would be fine. Their stomach might be sensitive to new water or food, or even too many snacks. And, if they are tired, they may show it a little more a be a little crotchety. Here's a few tips to make your traveling experience more fun for everyone.

• First of all, call the Inn or hotel where you will be staying. Explain that you are traveling with an older pet and see if anything can be done to accommodate Fido or Fluffy. Here at the Silas Griffith Inn we have 4 rooms that open onto a wrap-around deck that allow easy same-level access to the meadow and fields for ease of walking. In the Winter we shovel a path to the deck, and in the Spring, Summer and Fall you walk across nice, soft, pesticide-free grass.
• Talk to your vet about traveling with Fido and Fluffy. He or She might have some insights and suggestions such as pet-safe pain killers or even mobility exercises and stretches to reduce stiffness.
• Bring your pet's regular food. A change of diet in an older pet is the commonest cause of upset tummies and intestinal issues. Keeping them on the same food also reduces stress and gives them something familiar every day. The stress of traveling can also cause tummy issues, so the more you can reduce stress for all of you the more you will enjoy your vacation. Write the feeding directions on the food container so that housekeepers or pet sitters know when Fido and Fluffy expect to eat.
  
• Bring water from home or use bottled water. As for humans, a change of water can cause digestive nightmares.
• If you are traveling to an area with different weather than your pet is accustomed to, plan accordingly. Older pets get cold faster, as do smaller pets. And in the summer, your pet's may overheat faster. Sweaters and blankets for your pet (although I have yet to see a cat keep a sweater on) are a blessing when traveling to snowy areas. And make sure your room has air-conditioning if you are traveling in the warmer months or to warmer areas.
• DO NOT leave your pet in your car for extended periods of time. Extreme heat and extreme cold are very dangerous to your pet. Many Inns (including us) and hotels have pet-sitting services available and either the housekeepers or Innkeepers would be glad to check on Fido and Fluffy while you are away and even take Fido for a walk if needed. But it is up to you, the Innkeeper to ask for this, as the pet sitter will need to schedule times and meet your pet and have written permission from you to care for your pets.
• If your pet is on medications bring enough to last your whole trip plus 2 days. This gives you extra just in case Fluffy decides to spit the pill down the heat vent one morning. Make sure the medications are clearly labeled to prevent any problems.
• Bring copies of all rabies vaccinations and other vaccines and inoculations with you. This is extremely important. If you are traveling most vets also recommend Kennel Cough vaccines just to be on the safe side.
• Spend time with Fido and Fluffy when you travel. From their point of view, they are going with the family to a new and exciting place, and then left alone in a room without mommy and daddy. Take time to play with them and explore the grounds with them safely on their leashes. Find out which channel has animal shows on and leave the TV on low for your pet. The Discovery channel and Animal Planet channels are perfect choices. Move a chair with a pillow beside a closed window so Fluffy can look out and watch birds and people, or just sleep in the sun.
  

Above all, traveling should be fun for all involved, and not a stressful hassle. Fluffy and Fido deserve a good vacation as well as you. Remember that in calendar years they may only be 10, but in dog and cat life-years that's equivalent to early 70's in human life-years. Fluffy and Fido might be a little slower, and more apt to watch the kids play ball than join in the fun. This is to be expected.

Happy Traveling!

Happy New Year 2010!!!

While 2009 started out just fine, it seems that I couldn't wait until I saw it end. With the economy, war, terrorism, freaky weather and everything else its hard to remember the good things about 2009, or if there were any good things at all. But let's see what happened.

Up here in Vermont, we again had one of the wettest years on record. The rain started in April and went all summer, all the way through September and into October. The good thing about the rain was we had an awesome Leaf Season with color lasting almost 6 weeks, and temperatures in the 60's almost to Halloween. We had a true Indian Summer for once.

The rain also was great for some vegetables. We harvested over 200 lbs of zucchini and about 100 lbs of summer squash in our little garden out back. Peppers did well, as did all the herbs and the quince bushes. But the wet was bad for the Rye and hay crops. And for tomatoes. We had 4 beautiful patches of tomatoes in the beginning of summer and lost 2 of them to the blight. I saw with my own eyes proof that the blight was wind born. 2 of the patches were in the open and they were totally decimated by the blight in a mere 24 hours. 2 other patches were shielded from the wind and did not get the blight at all and we got lovely, huge all natural tomatoes out of both patches.

Looking back at my gardening notebook, I'm amazed we had a garden at all. June 1, 2009 gave us a killing frost at 22 degrees F. We lost everything we had planted and had to start all over. Luckily my niece and I had planted 2 batches of seedlings 3 weeks apart so we had plants to go in, but many people were not that lucky.

We also experienced first hand the bee problem. Our corn grew to a wonderful height of over 7 feet tall, but did not get pollinated so the ears never developed. So, this year we will either borrow a beehive or learn how to pollinate corn ourselves.

The best part of 2009 was hosting wonderful people at the Inn. We are very lucky and have many guests who return year after year and we are very thankful and appreciative. We also met many new and wonderful people and their families and hope to see many back again.

We also hosted couples and families from Switzerland, Sweden, England, France, Norway, Germany, Scotland, Ireland, China, Japan, India, and Jamaica. Thank you to all of out International guests for sharing traditions, stories, and spending part of your vacation with us.

On the Nature front here at the Inn, we had 3 pairs of hummingbirds this summer. Sitting around the pool you could watch them dart in and out of the lilies and bees balm, and one of the Ruby-Throated males even would come down and hover by guests, as if he was introducing himself. Watching them zip and zing all over was wonderful fun. Other birds identified this year include the Pileated Woodpecker, the Red Eyed Vireo, Ruffed Grouse, Golden Eagle, Wild Turkey, and although I never saw it I found tail feathers from a pheasant in the field.

There is a young moose who lives in the neighborhood and he made his way through the yard every morning all spring. I saw him twice in 2009, and saw his tracks and scat every week. We also have a family of White Tail Deer in the area, and the fawns last spring were adorable. Daddy White Tail Deer has learned which garden sections are his and which are mine, thanks to a strategic walking path I take with our Australian Shepherd.

This year we will continue work on the walking paths through the field. We are also moving a few large rocks to make an outdoor sitting area by the apple tree grove for relaxing and picnics. My quest to identify all the wildflowers here at the Inn continues. I never knew there were so many different species of goldenrod!

So, I guess 2009 wasn't all that bad overall. We've managed to reduce costs by replacing almost all the bulbs with compact florescent bulbs, increased our recycling, increased our composting to include applicable paper waste to enhance the soil in the garden. We also discovered an old garden area in spring 2009 when lots of iris started poking up out of a rubble pile in the back area. Spring 2010 will see that area either restored or the plants relocated to a better area for everyone to enjoy.

We are still working diligently on restoring this wonderful old Inn properly, which takes time, sunny weather and lots of hard work. The clapboards were all made in the 1800's by Silas Griffith's lumber mill, as they are stamped on the back with his business stamp. This means hand scraping and painting when they are totally dry so the paint doesn't peel right off due to moisture buildup in the wood. So, section by section we will paint. We also found several more original storm windows in the barn and repainted, re-caulked, repaired and reinstalled them in their proper places. Each of those windows was individually made and only fit 1 window. I felt like I was doing the world's largest 3-d jigsaw puzzle at times, but we found their proper places finally.

So, thank you everyone! Your comments in the books in the rooms have been uplifting and helpful. Thank you to those of you who reviewed us. We appreciate the time you took and are truly grateful for your comments and criticisms. We've learned alot this past year and look forward to applying our knowledge to the years ahead.

Happy New Year!