Balloon Fest...sort of!

This past weekend was one of the local hot air balloon festivals.  Always a pretty sight, the balloons that is, the kids and I were committed to help out our friends at TIRR for the Dog Adoption Rally held during the balloon fest.

Friday afternoon was designated the set-up time, and we got there just before 1pm.  Unfortunately for the whole event, it was cold, windy and rainy all afternoon!  Cold enough to want a coat!  Well, it was about 62*F, but when you consider the 25mph east wind, and rain, it was cold.  It was also 40* cooler than it had been the day before!   Talk about temperature shock...

The dogs had it better than the people I think, since they had the crates covered with tarps to keep the rain out.  The first day there were only a few dogs both at TIRR, and at the other rescues that were setting up.  Saturday was more crowded, and better weather.  There were also more groups set up with more dogs, so it was a bit barkier the second day. 

Deuce.

Kenzi

Jackson

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bootz!

The four shown above were just some of the Ridgeback mixes we were showing at the festival.  The purebreds were shown on Saturday, including showing off my baby, Indy, and my good buddy, Tucker!  Tucker is the King of Chairs...

Tucker, King of Folding Chairs.

I decided Saturday, to take Indy out with us.  For one thing, I wanted to show him off to the folks at the county shelter, so they could see how well he is doing with us.  I also wanted to expose him to new sights, sounds and smells.  This perhaps was not my brightest idea...

We knew Indy can be a bit spooky at times, afraid of brooms (guess somebody chased him with a broom at some point), moving cars (he must've come close to being hit at some point before the dog catcher saved him), and now since Balloon Fest, we are pretty sure somebody took a potshot or two at him.

Indy emulating Tucker.

Apparently the festival had brought in a group of cowboy re-enactors, to stage a gunfight (with blanks of course).  DH and I were walking Indy around the show, when the shooting started, and he freaked out.  4th of July didn't seem to bother him much in town, but the blanks at Balloon Fest really scared him.  So much so, that I am pretty sure some farmer/rancher has taken potshots at Indy when he was running stray.  He bears no sign of ever having been hit by pellets or rock salt, but he sure knew that sound.  Oddly enough, two other dogs at TIRR, reacted just the opposite to the mock gunfire.  Rodney and Rowdy both pricked up their ears, and spun around in their crates, at the sound to see where it came from, and were all excited, not scared.  I suspect they had been positively exposed to gunfire, perhaps in preparation for use as a hunting dog.

Finally, by the time Dog Alley ended Saturday afternoon, the winds had calmed enough for the balloonists to begin to inflate the hot air balloons.  They are so pretty, and it is fun watching them.