Sam and Ernie are my two dogs, Sam a Pit Bull and Akita cross had done several prison terms at the SPCA before he was paroled to me. Sam was a Houdini, escaping any rope, chain or fence just to wander the countryside aimlessly. After several yamadori collecting trips he soon learned that to stay home was the best way not to miss out on any new adventures. Sam also created a new role for himself - Watch dog! Too many times I have gone out alone collecting yamadori or suiseki, one time while digging out suiseki from a tunnel I had dug, a bear was sniffing at my feet. Laying on my stomach with my head in a hole there was something nosing at my feet. When I turned and sat up I startled him and he ran off into the woods woow too close for me.
Now when we go out collecting Sam first circles the area several times putting the run on any
Cougars and Bears. The only thing he is afraid of is Wolves, if there are Wolves nearby he stays very close to me. Sam likes to find himself a look out perch, where sits and watches the surrounding area while I am busy digging out a tree or rock.
Ernie is another story, a Jack Russell Terrier that was too wild for his previous owner to handle. Ernie and Sam have become inseparable each looking out for the other and both enjoy yamadori hunting as much as me. Two pooches nobody wanted
