Birthing Hill, part 2

So I never actually finished the story about Birthing Hill....

I picked that spot for several reasons, but primarily because I wanted the puppies born out on the desert, and since the state officials closed Burro Wash, Craggy Wash was the next best idea.

Havasu Laura said she would help me with the puppies. She and her old man live in a beautiful tent in the desert like Bedouins. They are both artists and rockhounds. WIth Laura's fondness for animals, she said she would help me when the puppies arrived.

But then a couple of things happened:

1) That foul odor from the abandoned cooler made its way down the wash. (This is the cooler I reported to the sheriff. Could it be a body? "Probably just abandoned lunchmeat," the deputy said. "If you want it inspected, call Bureau of Land Management. They're the ones with jurisdiction out there." Not wanting to get tied up with bureaucracy, I just let it go.)

2) I freaked out about the idea of being there alone when Buena had puppies. What if she needed an assist? I didn't know anything about birthing puppies, and Laura's tent was about a quarter mile up the wash, closer to the cooler.

Around this time, my other friend, Bo, introduced me to Brenda. (This is Brenda of the tools and jet skis.) It turns out that she used to be a dog breeder! She said she would help me with the puppies, so I moved off the desert and rented a space in her driveway to park my RV.

Needless to say, the puppies came on Groundhog's Day. (We saw their shadow!)

The next eight weeks of my life were spent in puppy bliss. I couldn't focus on anything. I just wanted to watch the puppies and would spend 20 and 30 minute increments staring at them. In addition, during that time, I loaded all the puppies and Buena into a green kiddie pool and drove from Arizona to Missouri just so my daughters could also experience the puppies.

I was extremely blessed in that a few of my friends each took a puppy. Moose went with Jennifer to St. Louis; Tennessee went with Katie to Las Vegas; and, Brenda kept Cowboy. Shep stayed in Lake Havasu City, Batface (aka PeeWee) went to San Diego, Elvis (renamed Jack) took off with another RV lady, and Growler went to a family in Vegas.

Puppy bliss!