Potential marketable product idea

I have a dog.

The dog produces... well.... "product" (different that that referred to in the title).

I bought a clever device that you dig a fairly deep hole in the ground for and then plunk this thing in the top of sort of like a lid for the hole with a reservoir at the top. It is essentially sort of septic tank for... "product". I guess it works. Not much fun though.

There are time that I just take the dog doo (yes, less polite... live with it!) on the shovel and fling it down the steep hillside where we live. I own 16 acres here so that's my choice. That got me to thinking about how much my action was like the action of a catapult (poop-a-pult?) and then got thinking of the Trebuchet (like a catapult only better) and wondered what sort of range I could get with one.

I might, I pondered, sitting in the swing and enjoying the evening, be able to hit the mud flats of the bay at the bottom of the hill. That would be very "green" I thought. Put the "pooh" in the mud and let the bugs get it. There is a road along the bay edge at the bottom of the hill so that presents a problem. Miss the bay and things could get sort of "out of hand". I reasoned that if I was careful and there were no cars coming it wouldn't be catastrophic. Still.....

Then it hit me... this could be a product to sell through EBay!!!! The "poop-a-pult"! Think of the advertising lines....

"Does your neighbors dog poop in your yard? Return the "gift" to the top of the neighbors roof! Even if the neighbor lives a few houses away!"

There are some technical problems to work out but I may be on to something here. I would have to carefully word the disclaimer to be sure people knew this was only a "fully functional conversation piece" and not intended to actually be used.

They are pretty silent. You could fling paint balls. It would be damn hard to tell where the "material" came from, as it would be falling pretty much straight down.

I could make them out of some nice hardwood and varnish it all up. It would look pretty slick!

The shovel works well enough when I feel like it and "doggie doo" device seems ok. There's too many complicated factors on the Trebuchet. Fun to think of though.

I have a dog.

We each have our jobs.

Regards,
WebMouse

Tail of the Dead Bird

I have a dog.

When running off the leash around the yard he seems to have an overdrive gear.

I saw the blur of my Golden Retriever going by on the little hill by the driveway and noted that a bright RED blur had become attached to his mouth.

While not exactly sedate when playing fetch in the backyard dog run, he is capable of quite exceptional speed when loose. Those long legs of his eat up ground in a hurry.

Ah... the red thing. Yes... it was, sadly, a dead "Red Cardinal". Fortunately it was a wood yard ornament. One of those things that is supposed to turn into the wind and the wings go in a circle. It had seen better days although it's bright red paint was still proud. It had rested on that hillside on a metal stake for 3 years.
It was gone in a fraction of a second. A blur of a moment.

By the time I realized what was missing from the hill side, Danny way long and gone. I found him in the backyard chewing of what was left of the poor bird.

I had found wing material scattered on the way and he was down to the "meat' of he bird. He gave the bird up, more or less readily. (we are still working on that "drop it" command!)
The missing parts of the bird will probably "show up" tomorrow. The polite term is "scat". "Poop" as Oprah Winfrey calls it, blushingly. Dr. Oz is more matter of fact on the subject and not embarrassed at all. It is, after all, a strange aspect of society that it is excluded petty much from all discussion.

I was out walking Danny a day or two ago and came across two piles of "bear scat". Now, that is a subject I would appreciate being mentioned and not excluded from common conversation. Sort of nice to know who is in the neighborhood.

I live in the forest and am not big on surprises. We also have Elk, Bobcat, Cougar, and deer. Any of which can flat ruin your day. I believe there is only one black bear in the area.

I used to live in Alaska and you were considered a total idiot if you went out in the woods (out of town) and weren't packing the best gun you could carry and use. It didn't matter if it was hunting season or not. If you were off the road, carry a big gun and know how to use it. That "use" part is pretty important.

Dead trees or holes in the sky don't impress bears, or moose.

Back to the dog...

I own a dog.

Dogs have an interesting set of behaviors around bears, They will generally bark and chase the bear... sounds good, right?
The bear eventually gets pissed and goes after the dog. Guess where the dog goes! Where it is safe naturally, right behind you!!!

Now instead of a calm bear just plodding along, minding his own business, as they generally are doing... You now have one pissed off bear at full speed aimed right at you. There was more than one tourist in Alaska that learned he should have left his yapping little mutt at home.

The ONLY good thing here is that a bear will generally maul you and keep on going. Not that the mauling thing is fun, but it is survivable. Remember, you are only incidental and an object to be run over. Moose or bear, same thing.

I have a dog.

I live in the woods.

My dog's excursions off the leash are kept very short and very local and mid day. (wild animals generally sleep during the day - if they have read the rules anyway).

Gun theory is a BIG shotgun with slugs or "00" buckshot. That related to accuracy being VERY problematic when you are VERY scared.

Second choice is the biggest damn handgun you can find. This relates to the fact that the shotgun is heavy and you will put it down, and the fickle finger of fate being what it is, the bear will be between you and your shotgun resting safely against a tree. Trust me, seen it happen and watched a fisherman wade a very fast and very cold glacial stream to put distance between him and a bear.

Which brings us to sheer craven cowardice being often the better part of valor. Very often...
That, plus bells on your boots, whistling, singing very loud and talking to yourself.

I am fortunate, Danny won't even chase a deer.

I have also found day beds from bears in the blackberry thickets where I go to pick berries. Down my neighbors driveway.

This isn't Alaska. Wear a big chunk of pistol and you get some really strange looks. In Alaska only the Tourists would look at you. Now if you were downtown, that was different.

Things are a bit different in the tree hugging, save our wildlife state of Oregon. I think if I paint the bullets green they will be ok though. I probably should check on that.

I have a dog. He is a very fast dog.

Regards,

WevMouse

The SPF of a dog lick

I have a dog.

My dog licks me.

He likes to lick the top of my head when we are sitting on the outside swing. Go figure.

It occurred to me that a dog lick (nice way to say dog spit) might have some SPF value. I googled the subject and there evidently has not been any research done on this subject.

There could be some grant money laying around for this. Never know. The government funds stranger research studies.

I can report, anecdotaly, that since Danny has been licking my head when we are out in the sun, I have not had a sunburn on my mainly bald head.

I do live in Oregon though.

That might have something to do with the lack of sunburn.

I used to live in southern California. I often got sunburns.

I would rather have dog spit on my head than move back to "Sunny Southern California"!!!

Regards,
WebMouse