We Love Lucy

I love my dogs, I really do. We got Lucy around the time we had J2. She is getting up there in years and she really is the sweetest dog. She is our hunter. She loves to catch mice, moles, gophers and the ground squirrels that we get here. She really loves to catch the wild birds that go into the chicken coop. I think it presents a challenge for her. Although she loves the hunt and the wild game that she catches she has never harmed one chicken and she has only gotten one pigeon. We do know that we have to keep the baby chicks away from her because she would eat them. Yumm-o, Chicken Nuggets!

Lucy is a Cocker Spaniel/Black Lab mix. She has these big brown eyes and is generally a good dog. Generally. She likes to dig and make these burrows in and around the plants. It wouldn't be a big deal because we haven't really had plants in the ground yet. She has undermined some big pots in the courtyard. I just pull out the pot and put the dirt back. Now she has started to sleep in the herb garden.

We have this big brick ring in the backyard that was from the original landscaping. We moved it and used it as a fire ring for a while until it started to crack. El Patron put Abuelo's strawberries in there but they didn't do well there. We had some flowers in with the strawberries when one day the chickens, who are not supposed to be in the backyard got in and decimated it. So we decided to but the herbs in it. I got a rosemary Christmas tree and put it in the middle and planted the herbs that I had in smaller pots in the ring. I put some decorative stones and it was doing really well. Oregano, two different types of Sage, Parsley, Chives, Tarragon, and Thyme.
They were flourishing. I was so excited! I have been using them in my cooking almost every day. I was planning on using them with all my vegetables that are growing in the garden. I was going to start making flavored oils and vinegars.

Then....Lucy decided that she liked it too and that it would be a good place to sleep at night. J. and I put some stakes to discourage this destructive plan that she has but to no avail. Now I have to chain her up at night and it breaks my heart. I don't like doing that to my dogs. They really are good dogs. When you open a side gate they both stay in the yard. They know they are not allowed in the garden and will sit at that gate. But I have no choice. I have to chain her up. My fear is that if I do she will cry and bark at night when a opossum, cat or another critter comes into the yard. But, as sad as we will all be, she cant keep sleeping in the herbs.

Poor, poor, Lucy.