English springer spaniel | wordsfromanneli

September 21, 2025
by wordsfromanneli 28 Comments

Emma’s Story

When I was just a baby, my older sister Ruby was the boss. She was always trying to tell me what to do.

One day, Anneli took my bed away, and I tried to claim what was left of it – just the inside part was left.

Ruby was playing the part of Miss Know-it-all.

Something moved out on the grass. Don’t forget, we’re hunting dogs. It’s our job to chase anything that moves.

But Anneli didn’t bring us food and she didn’t look like she was sorry for anything. She just laughed and said, “What are you doing in the wheelbarrow?”

Soon, while Ruby went to chase the rabbit, Anneli told me everything was okay. She had another bed fixed up for me on the deck. I tried for some compensation, but she didn’t go for it.

When she put me into the special bed on the bedroom deck, I was going to gloat a bit about how I had messed up her sliding door with nose prints. I was going to tell her, “Haha! So there! That’s what you get for making me worry about my bed,” but before I could tell her all that, I succumbed to the softness of the bed’s furry pillowcase, and off I went to Doggie Dreamland.

March 24, 2025
by wordsfromanneli 37 Comments

A Taste of the Good Life

Our old trailer has seen better days, but I can’t think of many that were better than this one.

The lake was peaceful, fresh, and beautiful.

An eagle patiently waited for a trout to be caught. Maybe there would be a little “something” left for him.

But first lick went to Emma. This trout fishing was new to her and she seemed to like it.

The next trout had Ruby interested. It was her turn.

Water lilies at the edges added tranquility to the scene.

Time to go ashore and stretch our legs.

Ruby and Emma found all kinds of wonderful smells there.

But right nearby, where even I could smell the animals that had been there, was the evidence of elk that had visited not long before.

A lot of peaceful moments, but never a dull one.

March 18, 2025
by wordsfromanneli 27 Comments

Unwilling Players

When Ruby (our springer spaniel) was still alive, she and Emma (our English field cocker spaniel) loved to go to the beach with us. There was always something to see.

“Hey, Ruby! Look at these ducks. We could play with them.”

“Come back! We just want to play tag with you!”

“Aw! C’mon, ducks! See how we can run and play with you? That would be so much fun.

They don’t seem to want to play, Ruby. I tried to get them to come closer, but they just swam away. Not very friendly!”

“Oh, I’ll go talk to them. Maybe they thought you were just a bit too rambunctious.”

“Nope! They don’t want to play with us. They just kept on swimming farther away. Hah!”

“Water’s damn cold too.”

“We were just trying to be friendly and have some fun. Go figure!”

August 9, 2024
by wordsfromanneli 31 Comments

The Apple Thief

The MacIntosh is “Oh my gosh,”

The loveliest of fruit,

If Adam ponders at its wonders,

Who can blame the brute?

I don’t see trouble in the rubble,

Just a pail of yum,

The sneaky nibbles taste like kibbles,

Hope no one will come.

You shouldn’t cheat, you shouldn’t eat,

Those apples that are picked.

But never fear, I’ll stay right here,

And then I won’t get nicked.

I just don’t care, I’m on a dare,

These apples are so good,

And anyhow, it’s too late now,

To stop me if you could.

So juicy sweet is apple meat,

It runs right down my throat,

Why don’t you grab a little dab?

And don’t just stand remote.

Come on and join, and let’s purloin,

Another tasty treat,

We’ll get right down onto the ground,

The flavour can’t be beat.

I’m in the mood to not be rude,

And spoil the missus’ work,

You go ahead, but filled with dread,

You’ll see you’ve been a twerk.

You make me feel like such a heel,

I thought you’d have some too.

I feel so bad, now don’t be mad,

My actions I do rue.

I hope you’ve learned, a page you’ve turned,

Those Macs were not for you,

Your ear is floppy, tongue is soppy,

Learn from what you do.

April 8, 2024
by wordsfromanneli 34 Comments

Emma’s Sea Monster

By the side of the beautiful Similkameen River,

A cooling off place needed to be explored.

The water was perfect.

Well … almost perfect …

Except for that sea monster sticking its head up,

Checking me out.

I decided to put on a brave face,

And challenge it.

Maybe it would go away and leave my swimming area.

And yet … it wasn’t to be easily intimidated.

I kept my back legs ready for a quick retreat,

Just in case.

I called big sister, Ruby, over to check it out.

I felt a bit foolish when she had a quick look,

Turned, and said, “Nah! It’s just a stick.”

“Huh!” I said. “I knew that.”

But now I have egg on my face.

Or maybe a piece of a pine needle.

Oh, well. It’s better than being eaten,

By a sea monster!

January 22, 2024
by wordsfromanneli 35 Comments

No Crowds for Me

Just when we got settled, away from the gun,

Along comes this dog, for an innocent run.

“He can’t catch us all,” says an old duck so wise,

“But what if it’s me and it means my demise?”

“Most likely it won’t be, so fear not,” I say,

“Fly up in the air if you’re chicken, and pray.

I plan to stay calm and not show him my fear.”

“In that case I’ll be brave beside you, my dear.”

But flying en masse is not what I prefer,

Wherever I turn, someone tries to deter

My flight path to safety, to freedom, and air.

I’m blocked by the crowds madly flapping up there.

Ah, this is more like it, with just a few friends,

We pick and we scrounge for a few odds and ends,

We don’t crash together in each other’s space,

A wonderful, so much more leisurely pace.

***** If you have spare time on your hands, why not visit my other blog, annelisplace.wordpress.com/

January 4, 2023
by wordsfromanneli 37 Comments

Anecdotes – Ruby and the Bug

The ten-lined June beetle lives underground for two or three years as a larva that looks like a hungry white prawn. It eats the roots of plants, and loves to destroy my potato crop.

When it is about 1 1/2 to 2 inches long, it hatches as a beetle, in those hot days of summer. It likes to fly around and land on an unsuspecting person’s back, where that victim can’t reach it.

These bugs freak me out. I always turn up my collar and stay close to the house when I take our dog out for last call.

Our English springer spaniel puppy, Ruby, had a different view of these beetles. She thought God had put them on this earth for her to chase and, perhaps to bring them into the house to play with.

At this point I would like to share an entry I made in one of my journals where I wrote things of note that happened on any particular day. (The Captain was away commercial fishing and might later be interested in reading how I spent my summer.) Our puppy, Ruby, was a little bit wild and crazy those first months of her life.

August 22, 2007

Ruby brought in a beetle again, after her last pee of the evening. She’s getting very surreptitious about it. She went straight to her doggie bed and put her chin on the bed, trying to look innocent. But I’m onto that fake innocence and sure enough, I heard bug screams coming from inside her mouth. “M-m-m-r-r-z-z-z! M-m-m-r-r-z-z-z!”

It was hard to make her give it up, but finally she spat it out, and batted at it meaning to play with it. I couldn’t just pick it up with my bare hands, but a little dog bowl was nearby, so I used it to try to scoop up the bug. I say “try” because it didn’t work out so well. The beetle has tiny hooks on its legs and they stuck to the fuzzy material of the dog bed. I tried scooping again and as it let go it brushed against my hand and I shrieked. The bug was flung into the corner under a chest of drawers, and Ruby, freaked out by my shriek, leapt up off the bed and backed off a few feet.

I laughed until I cried. Again. She has me laughing so often with her antics out in the yard. I’m sure the neighbours wonder about the old woman who lives alone and goes out into her backyard laughing out loud all by herself.

October 20, 2020
by wordsfromanneli 74 Comments

R.I.P., Ruby

Our springer spaniel, Ruby, has gone to doggie heaven as of two days ago.

To be honest, she was the worst puppy we’ve ever had – so naughty, into everything, and not listening. She bit holes in the Captain’s prescription glasses, took off and buried his special Uncle Henry knife (in the neighbour’s yard, we think), and helped me with the gardening by digging alongside of me (in places where I did not want holes dug) and helping herself to all the tools (which I then had to retrieve). She was SO bad, but we loved her.

She always had a mischievous streak, teaching Emma, the English cocker spaniel puppy, all her bad habits (like taking apples off the trees) and barking at passersby. She continued these bad habits right up into her old age.

But she was a loving dog, who turned out beautiful and enriched our lives.

She was an excellent bird dog who had all the qualities you could ask for in a hunting dog.

The bonus for us was that she was also the perfect family dog.

Ruby was almost 14 years old and the day she was ready to leave this world she told us it was time. We hated to let her go, but it would have been cruel to keep her with us a day longer. We miss her so much.

Rest in peace, sweet Ruby.

June 3, 2020
by wordsfromanneli 51 Comments