Lots of Dogs and Cats

Since we left Alberta in October 2023 we have been doing a lot of pet sitting for dogs and cats. We didn’t exactly plan it that way but that’s how it worked out. Right after Christmas we drove to Jacksonville in southern Oregon (near Medford) to spend two and a half weeks watching two big dogs, arranged through TrustedHousesitters. We had never watched big dogs before and we weren’t quite sure what to expect but it was a lot of fun. Willie is some sort of German Shepherd mix and Max is an Australian Shepherd mix. Max loved to play ball, even in the snow, and Willie loved running around barking at squirrels. The house was out in the woods on a fenced 10 acre property so they had the run of the place. Both dogs were well-behaved and affectionate, and they waited patiently while we slowly learned to respond to their communications. The town of Jacksonville was about a 10 minute drive away. It was a gold rush town in the mid-19th century but was largely abandoned with its buildings intact when the railroad bypassed the town and instead went through nearby Medford. Hence, downtown Jacksonville is full of beautifully preserved old buildings. We enjoyed several walks in the old town. Click on the first photo in each block to view larger images in a slideshow.

After Oregon we returned to Tucson to once again watch Rox, the dog, and Tasha and Trill, the two cats. We have watched them several times so Rox gets very excited when we return. The cats not so much, but they’re cats.

After we left Tucson at the beginning of February we had a gap in our schedule so we decided to spend two and a half weeks in Borrego Springs, a small and isolated town in the California desert east of San Diego. Along the way we made a brief stop at the Robert J. Moody Demonstration Garden in Yuma, Arizona. Borrego Springs is one of eight international Dark Sky Communities – the first in California. We had taken a day trip to Borrego Springs a few years ago and we liked it so we decided to return. The town is surrounded by Anza-Borrego Desert State Park, the largest state park in California. Our house had beautiful desert and mountain views and we enjoyed walking in the nearby neighborhoods and desert.