Flash and I hiked the 30 mile journey from Minister Creek to Ludlow Pa where we live. Here are the pictures of that trip.
Minister Creek to Ludlow Pa Hike
Exploring Plant Life in Ludlow Pa
One thing that I like to do is explore plant life around where I live. It’s not only fun, but learning the different plant species can be helpful. You can learn about the ones that are poisonous and the ones that are not. Ones that taste good and ones that do not taste so good. There are also a lot of health benefits that these plants offer.
Exploring Plant Life in Ludlow Pa
I have taken pictures of some of the plant life here in Ludlow. Can you name what they are? Below is a gallery of the plants, see how many you can name. I will make weekly posts about the plant life here and what you can and cannot eat. I will also share some recipes and the uses these plants have had in the past. Exploring plant life is educational and fulfilling.
Food Is My Medicine
I am of the philosophy that food is my medicine. Studies suggest you are healthier if you eat the plants around where you live. This is the perfect time of year to lean about harvesting wild plants for your dinner plates and there are literally tons of plans growing in our back yards here in Ludlow Pa!
Bleed For Your Belgian Malinois
If You’re Not Willing To Bleed For Your Belgian Malinios, then you probably should not have one. Every week I get a scratch or two, sometimes several. They are totally innocent but they are a part of Flashes nature.
Do Belgain Malinois Bite?
Well, do bears shit in the woods? Of course they do, it is their nature. It is our job as trainers to direct the “bite work” constructively. If we cannot handle that, then we should not be training top dogs like Malingatiors!
Flashes Training
Since I got Flash, he has been doing remarkable things. Obstacle courses, fetching, Tug-tug and now this week I have him finding deer sheds. He is 100% successful and has just blew me away with how fast he picks things up.
Deer Shed Training
After watching several videos and training manuals, I decided to put Flash on deer sheds. This happens when a male deer sheds his antlers and leaves them on the forest floor.
I started out by putting the sheds throughout the field, then putting deer roast on them. Once he found a shed, he got a treat and a lot of praise from me. After a few times of that, then I took away the treat and just gave him praise. It worked! He loves to use his nose, and he loves to hunt! I will have videos on Flash performing this task soon.
Harley McCullough Turns 21 | First Beer Kelly Hotel
Well now, how time does fly? Harley McCullough, when he was 10, said that he wanted to drink his first beer at the Kelly Hotel in Marienville, Pennsylvania. That is exactly what he did.
Our History with the Kelly Hotel
We have a lot of history with the Kelly Hotel in Marienville, Pa. We ate there like 3 or 4 times a week. The bartenders and servers know us by name, and we know them. So it was a genuine pleasure to see Harley drive 700 miles to buy and drink his first beer at the bar.
If you look up “Kelly Hotel Marienville” on YouTube, you will see our video is the first on the page.
Pictures Of Harley @ The Kelly Hotel
Flash Bad Ass McCullough
Hiking With My Belgian Malinois Around Home
Flash and I like to hike around home here since it is so beautiful. The people are exceptional and so is the scenery. I hear that hiking with our dogs though the forest really helps their senses and mindset.
Dog Senses Highened
I can see my dog’s senses being heightened as we hike through the forest. He smells coyote poop, bear skat deer and more. When he smells the distinct scents, I try to name them for him. I don’t know if this means much, but it does not hurt to associate a sound with a scent.
He loves running through the vegetation as well. He is tasting the grass, ferns, rocks, and dirt as we go. His sense of hearing is great as well. We both heard something snort in the forest at the same time. He was good though and never does he run off.
14 Weeks Old
I continually have to keep reminding myself that Flash is only 14 weeks old. Many older dogs could not compete with his talent and abilities. I want to continue to challenge him, but I do not want to over-train him either.
Natural Abilities of Belgian Malinois
Their natural abilities to understand and pick up on things quick are just blowing me away. It seems like everything I challenge him to do, he picks up on quickly. Thank goodness for YouTube where I can keep getting fresh ideas.
Supper Time
We left right after supper. There is nothing like a good hike after some beef stroganoff . I cooked it like grandma showed me and Flash even liked some of the burger, lol. 🙂
Pictures Of OUr Hike Today
Here are some pictures of our hike today, we hope you like them. 🙂
Progress Made With My Belgian Malinois Puppy Flash
The progress I have made with my Belgian Malinois puppy, Flash, has been incredible. He is so smart that he seems to get bored and wants to go onto the next big thing.
Motivating Factors
Food is not his big motivator however, his toys and affection are his greatest incentive. Most of the time, he just snubs the food and it does not matter what it is. Liver, high quality tasty treats. I do not know if this will change with time, but I will keep posting his progress here.
Very Fast Obstacle Course
The obstacle course is becoming very easy for him. He flies through it, especially when I have one of his favorite toys. I do not give it to him until he finishes the course. He is actually faster than me when he runs through the course. It is my hope that I can keep challenging him.
Giving Things To Me
Flash’s biggest challenge is giving things back to me so I can either throw them or play with him again. I am trying out something new that I saw on a YouTube video where a guy has a leash and a tug toy {one of Flash’s favs} and he tugs for a while, then lets the dog win several times in a row. This seems to resolve the issue slowly. I will have to keep it up and see how long it takes. With our brief sessions only lasting 10 to 20 minutes, it’s hard to get too much down.