Thank you Musher.
Only yesterday, I had to make the decision to have one of my pet sheep PTS ( yes, put to sleep). We knew her time was coming because she was retaining fluid. Tests indicated a liver or gut tumour. We kept her comfortable as long as she was happy, but this morning I found her cast ( stuck on her side) unable to get up. I righted her and after the stress wore of she went out with her friends to eat, but I had told myself we would let her go when this happened. I knew this would be the case, I did not want to get up one morning and find her dead in such a position, suffocating and being scared.
She was not really ready in this case but we knew her time was near and we could not control her condition which was making her uncomfortable. The vet came out and she was PTS quietly, with me holding her, in the field.
A post mortem showed she had a diffuse gut tumour, a uterine tumour and her liver was badly damaged ( she was a rescue sheep we took in a year ago). The vet was amazed at how well she had been, considering the level of damage to her gut.
Even though I am sad and upset, I feel I have met my responsibility to her. We looked after her, kept her as comfortable as we could and at the point where there was going to be suffering we could not control, we let her go humanely and stress free. That is my duty to my animals.

Thank you. I got a real good belly laugh from that.
I like to think Santa Clause is real. or I'm just bonkers for hearing and seeing what I did... ...dfrnt story.
I assure you I am real. I have a bunch of dogs..
I shoot, spear, snare, trap animals, pick berries and nuts and tubers, and even grow some veggies to eat.
I like the taste of some new foods but they sicken me.
I can tan hides for clothes but cloth is easier,
I can make dog harnesses from ropes made from spruce-roots and moose or caribou or deer hair and hide.
But cloth and nylon is easier,
Ready made nylon harnesses is easier yet.
I just need to trap more animals or haul more wood to make more money to but all that crap.
I think my mistake was/is trying to be someone I'm not.. using a language that has to many little subtleties that I don't know how to use and judging a book by it's cover... and not asking for clarification.... and..and..and.lol
I think I kind of know but not sure what is this/these "anecdotes"? Is that like when I say I use stories to relay what I want to say without saying it? Or is anecdotes the actual use of the stories to "say without saying"? Stories=say without saying=anecdotes

I'm not quietly crying now. I don't care who see's me. I'll get them to read this.
I have real insight into what your going through rightnow.
You've probably seen my post about my leader Okimaw.
I am having a time of it just now with feeling for you and still feeling the pain of having to PTS Okimaw. Well not the pain of having to do that but the pain knowing that I gota truck on with out my best friend of almost 17 years.
It's horrendous. I actually shut out my human family. Yes even my wife and kids. I suffered in silence for my Okimaw, and my family suffered in silence without husband and daddy. And my other dogs suffered because I had no patience for an insecure, whiny, half-trained leader and a bunch of half-trained stupid dumb stubborn half-grown pups. I wasn't even aware of it for 3 winters. Unlike you though, I had some respite in the 3 hottest months. My dogs weren't being trained/conditioned in RedBerry and Medicine Moons, so I never spent much time with them except to cut the grass to keep the mosquitoes and flies down, water and feed them and clean the grounds.. as well my dogs aren't house dogs.
It took 4 whole winters before I started to come out of it.
This past winter I am only now starting to be who I was.
So please be aware this sorrow and this kind of guilt for doing what we think needs to be done can go deep without us even knowing.

I was sitting watching the sun rise one morning a few years ago in June or July. Clear day, birds of all kinds singing, no human made traffic noises(air, water or land).
I was praying, asking, looking for guidance. It's just like I heard a quiet but very powerful voice come from ??? somewhere else but inside too. "At any given moment in my time I have always done my best with what I had at that moment."


You may quote me if you ever decide to write a book. I may have my moment of immortality yet.LOL

K. My Bad. I only just now read the first post on this thread. It is for people who "don't feed raw" aint it..
I apologize for my coming into the pot when the stew was already half done.

My mistake sure did make for stimulating conversation though didn't it. and humbled me.

I found out what "pontifications" means. Just like the ArchBishop or the Pope.
Apparently we are all good at it to one degree or another. Some of us are better at the subtleties of it though. especially if we are educated. Language of the forked tongue" comes to mind. I think I will never totally get it right.
Also I think there are a lot of "pontificators"&"condescendors" (are those even words?) and more-over in a self deprecating society. On the outside looking in really is double edged isn't it.

I don't know who Captain Planet is. I'm guessing he was an environmentalist. Dang that's a good 1. ** too. I got a good laugh. Darn good laugh. Still chuckling. Thank you. I needed that today. It's horrible hot here and 4 of my dogs have hotspots from the commercial dog food I've been feeding them, 2 have died from complications of the same diet, so yeah I really needed to laugh today.
I have been here all along. Doing what my G-dad told me to do. Camouflage my brother.
**..."round the twist"... =gone away?
Sorry....not me. Low profile....observing... to hot to do anything outside, sick from sunstroke, got a cold from AC in car last week going to store for lumber, bored, .... so I thought I'd emerge from the forest(is that the right way to say it?)for a bit.

You are too funny brother. luv ya(is that the way to say it?)
Your dogs be no good here much less the tundra. I'm quite a ways south of that.
I tried a Doberman once. Smart, fast, loyal, good feet, good stomach, but no hair. Shipped him south.
I appreciate the thought though. Good-on-ya

Gnasher please... I know you are only using the words in a joking manner but someone else may take offence.
OH???

Is this an example of pontificating and/or condescending?
Or is this what I hear people saying is rationalizing, intellectualizing and projecting?

I know all this is a long ways form "why not feed raw" but since you are talking about/discussing me I'm way too curious to not ask for clarification.
"ESL texts" I don't know what that is/means. Please clarify.
"..native speaker... claims to contrary..."?? again, please clarify.
.."Syntax..." ?????
"idiom...English" again ?????
I have a good idea what a "concept" is but what is "idiosynchratic"
Are you asking if I'm real?I like to think so.
By the way this reply took me almost an hr&1/2.

LOL!!

Welcome back Musher old friend!

OH = other half! My husband ... for better or worse!