Airedales at the Ohio State Fair

Mum was humming "Animal Fair" when she wrote this post.  She only came up with words for the first two lines of the song, though.

Mum went to the 'hio State Fair,
And she saw some Airedales there....

My mum sees Airedales nearly everywhere she goes but I think this is the strangest one.  She said it was on the sidewalk.  I told her it wasn't really an Airedale.

And then she saw this sign.  She didn't buy it.

My pop saw some Airedale socks there but he didn't buy those, either.  We Airedales don't need socks!  Good thing he didn't buy them.

Do you ever see sidewalk Airedales?

--from Hannah.

Quieting the Firecrackers' Snap, Boom, and Crack

This time of year -- from Memorial Day to the Fourth of July to Labor Day -- is an awful time for our Airedales.  In the U.S.A. firecrackers snap, boom, and crack many summer evenings, and summer storms frequent the days and nights with thunder and lightening.  So many Airedales are terrified by these unfamiliar sounds.  It has been so for our rescue girl, Hannah, too.

Hannah turned 12 in March.  Her eyebrows have grown blonde and her gait has slowed.  She needs a boost to get into bed and help to get off the bed. 

I noticed a week or two ago that Hannah doesn't respond when called or given a command.  At first I thought she was ignoring me but as I've watched her these past weeks I've realized that she has lost most (and maybe all) of her hearing.  My dear Hannah is deaf!  (I now live with a nearly deaf husband and a deaf Airedale!)  I'm grateful that I taught hand commands along with voice commands because, it seems, that's the only way to communicate with my deaf Airedale.

There is one very small blessing to Hannah's deafness:  neither fireworks nor thunder cause her the least concern.  I'm grateful for this peace for her.

Hug your Airedales!

--Nancy.
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