all about murphy
Yes, it's time again--after a mere half-year-long break!--to put up a few photos from the last six months.

Murphy walks (but does not speak) softly--and he does indeed carry a BIG stick!

Murphy got in the woods and collected 23,451 seed-burrs cemented in his hair. They were removed during a half-hour shower with a lot of hard work with a wire brush.

There's an important part of Murphy's story that has not yet been told in these pages: Shamie the Cat! Shamie Lucky O'Fulton, a barn cat, was dragged half-dead from nearby Fulton Run Road not long after we got Murphy. Here are Shamie's "before" and "after" (now, as King of the Forest) photos; we were surprised when the vet told us that this then-one-pound cat was already about six months old back in January. He has grown from a disease-and-malnutrition-ridden half-corpse into a healthy, fast, crafty cat who generally makes a fool of Murphy when Murph chases Shamie.

See the little butterfly on top of Murphy's head? He loves playfully "hunting" butterflies.

This over-his-shoulders shot shows Murphy's view yesterday (right down to the nose-dominated dog's questionnable vision) from our bed yesterday: He began barking vociferously when he saw "another" dog in front of him through the "window" (mirror). This other dog looked amazingly like Murphy but did not bark back (though he moved his silent mouth). Murph wouldn't stop barking until I led him over to say hello to the other dog, and then the other dog dropped from view.

Here's Murphy as King of the Field after his recent haircut:

Murphy in the field. Yes, it's been awhile since the last post--but we were in Australia (home of the dingo and the first-bred Labradoodles) and New Zealand for three weeks, observing in both countries the many good dogs, always obedient!

Summer With Murphy


"Let's go!"



Faster than a speeding bullet



Murphy takes Teddy Roosevelt's sentiments to heart (well, maybe not the "speak softly" part).



Dog at Sea



A minute before I took this picture, Murphy was running happily through the wheatfield when a HUGE turkey exploded out of the field, squawking and flapping wildly. It wasn't very happy about being practically run over by a frenzied 50-lb goldendoodle, but Murphy enjoyed chasing it off into the woods nonetheless.



Always ready for more!

(As I type this, he's passed out under the computer table.)

Murph with favorite blanket