7:30 am. 24 degrees and snowing.

Had almost believed winter was a figment of my imagination until today. Skies are grey and flakes are sticking to the ground, houses and my car.

Got to work only to find Rimminy’s puppies didn’t survive the night. Two passed yesterday and this morning there were two cold bodies lying next to her in the house. As I gently picked them up, Rimminy tried to snatch it back from me. The one had been gone for a while and was stiff but the white puppy just felt cold. I rubbed it for a while to try to warm it to make sure there wasn’t any life left in it, but it was gone. The fifth puppy was nowhere to be found. I read recently that a mother might eat her babies if she feels threatened. It’s an instinct to protect them. Rimminy doesn’t seem too concerened. She was bred by a dog that broke loose so the pregnancy was a surprise and she might not have been ready.

As always, the day goes on. There’s still over a hundred dogs that need attention and care. We ran the last of the yearlings today. They have had four days of watching all the other dogs run to build up their excitement and get them really wanting to pull. They did a great job. We had fourteen altogether with veterans Stormy and Dexter in lead. The snow added a little extra friction for them and we averaged about seven miles an hour. They were tired when we got back but that didn’t last long. As soon as they saw food coming they were full of puppy energy once again.

Today is Bill’s first day of work. He hasn’t been scared off yet which is a good sign!