1
00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:10,840
Canines are our passion.

2
00:00:10,840 --> 00:00:13,160
They are our addiction.

3
00:00:13,160 --> 00:00:19,200
They are our way of life right down to the very core and without them we would be lost.

4
00:00:19,200 --> 00:00:22,840
The canines of this world really are something to behold.

5
00:00:22,840 --> 00:00:28,680
They assist us at work, they accompany us at home, and they perform for us in the field.

6
00:00:28,680 --> 00:00:32,200
No matter where we go, they are by our side.

7
00:00:32,200 --> 00:00:36,880
Canines really are a ride or die and for that we are grateful.

8
00:00:36,880 --> 00:00:41,440
This podcast will showcase working canines of various breeds and disciplines as we search

9
00:00:41,440 --> 00:00:46,040
for those canines and their handlers who are always striving to be the best at what they

10
00:00:46,040 --> 00:00:47,560
do.

11
00:00:47,560 --> 00:00:49,760
Those who are always grinding.

12
00:00:49,760 --> 00:00:52,440
Those who are always pushing the limits.

13
00:00:52,440 --> 00:00:55,560
Those who are always dogging.

14
00:00:55,560 --> 00:00:59,680
Join us on our adventures as it is sure to be a wild ride.

15
00:00:59,680 --> 00:01:01,980
I'm your host, Bryce Matthews.

16
00:01:01,980 --> 00:01:04,880
And I'm your co-host, Stephen Basham.

17
00:01:04,880 --> 00:01:20,000
And this, this is Simper Dogging.

18
00:01:20,000 --> 00:01:21,960
Dear Houndsman, what a day right?

19
00:01:21,960 --> 00:01:25,040
You just picked up your new pup and can't wait to hit the woods.

20
00:01:25,040 --> 00:01:28,880
It's starting off strong and over the years you've walked hundreds, if not thousands of

21
00:01:28,880 --> 00:01:31,120
miles chasing behind them.

22
00:01:31,120 --> 00:01:36,960
A song so strong your heart drew to it before your own two feet began to move.

23
00:01:36,960 --> 00:01:42,120
So many victories and setbacks, yet the two of you couldn't be closer than you are now.

24
00:01:42,120 --> 00:01:46,680
Like with everything in life, time catches the two of you like game up a tree.

25
00:01:46,680 --> 00:01:49,800
You and the Hound have both aged both mentally and physically.

26
00:01:49,800 --> 00:01:54,920
Though you have only gained some sore muscles and lines on your face from lack of sleep,

27
00:01:54,920 --> 00:01:59,280
the Hound has grown gray and its legs aren't as strong as they once were.

28
00:01:59,280 --> 00:02:01,560
Their eyes have begun to fog over.

29
00:02:01,560 --> 00:02:05,480
You would think they were looking back in time to the night the swamp seemed to suffocate

30
00:02:05,480 --> 00:02:07,200
your eyes and mist.

31
00:02:07,200 --> 00:02:11,520
Unfortunately, it's just the age hugging the once sharp eyes of your partner.

32
00:02:11,520 --> 00:02:14,360
And the gray has overtaken the shining coat.

33
00:02:14,360 --> 00:02:17,400
Your heart starts to panic and the what ifs flood your mind.

34
00:02:17,400 --> 00:02:21,800
Then you remember back to those days when you yourself were struggling.

35
00:02:21,800 --> 00:02:23,880
So you turn to them for comfort.

36
00:02:23,880 --> 00:02:26,040
It's now your turn to be the strong one.

37
00:02:26,040 --> 00:02:30,600
The two of you go for one last ride and walk through the woods you both grew up in.

38
00:02:30,600 --> 00:02:35,120
You share memories of the late nights that ran into mornings and you soon feel the gentle

39
00:02:35,120 --> 00:02:37,840
eyes gaze upon you in acknowledgement.

40
00:02:37,840 --> 00:02:43,480
You don't want to turn around, but the appointment is set and it is the right thing to do.

41
00:02:43,480 --> 00:02:48,120
The waiting room begins to feel big and you have the urge to run now, yet your feet remain

42
00:02:48,120 --> 00:02:49,120
still.

43
00:02:49,120 --> 00:02:54,480
You're greeted with a friendly face as you walk into the strange but comforting room.

44
00:02:54,480 --> 00:02:58,560
You know all too well you aren't the first to sit within the four walls and you won't

45
00:02:58,560 --> 00:03:00,280
be the last.

46
00:03:00,280 --> 00:03:05,400
Draping your hands on the head, tears begin to fall and the final syringe is emptied of

47
00:03:05,400 --> 00:03:07,800
the unforgettable pain medicine.

48
00:03:07,800 --> 00:03:11,440
One last listen confirmed your unasked question.

49
00:03:11,440 --> 00:03:13,320
There is no more heartbeat.

50
00:03:13,320 --> 00:03:18,320
In that moment your heart stops and your knee grows weak and fall to the floor.

51
00:03:18,320 --> 00:03:23,160
You'll never be able to call their name again or chase that familiar song through the beautiful

52
00:03:23,160 --> 00:03:24,160
timber.

53
00:03:24,160 --> 00:03:28,720
In the passing days you catch yourself looking out the window hoping for one last glimpse

54
00:03:28,720 --> 00:03:30,800
of the hound that built you.

55
00:03:30,800 --> 00:03:34,080
Being a houndsman is so much more than running and training hounds.

56
00:03:34,080 --> 00:03:38,520
It's about being there for them until the last heartbeat and losing one yourself.

57
00:03:38,520 --> 00:03:41,480
It's not an easy life, but it's so worth it.

58
00:03:41,480 --> 00:03:48,480
Sincerely, Lauren Elizabeth.

59
00:03:48,480 --> 00:03:52,800
Wow, guys.

60
00:03:52,800 --> 00:03:55,600
That just needs a whole podcast right there.

61
00:03:55,600 --> 00:03:56,600
Yeah it needs to be.

62
00:03:56,600 --> 00:03:58,040
It needs to be.

63
00:03:58,040 --> 00:04:00,040
Guys welcome.

64
00:04:00,040 --> 00:04:01,760
I don't even know where to start.

65
00:04:01,760 --> 00:04:07,920
Welcome, welcome, welcome to another episode of Simperdog and podcast.

66
00:04:07,920 --> 00:04:13,720
Right there who you just heard from that was miss Lauren Elizabeth Brown down in North Carolina.

67
00:04:13,720 --> 00:04:17,980
Lauren thank you for joining us today and thank you for starting us off with that beautiful

68
00:04:17,980 --> 00:04:18,980
short story.

69
00:04:18,980 --> 00:04:22,040
Yeah thank you for having me.

70
00:04:22,040 --> 00:04:23,880
Absolutely guys I don't even know where to start on this one.

71
00:04:23,880 --> 00:04:27,680
We originally brought Lauren on here because I have followed her for a couple years on

72
00:04:27,680 --> 00:04:33,960
Facebook and those stories that you just heard are the stories that I have read and that's

73
00:04:33,960 --> 00:04:34,960
what captivated me.

74
00:04:34,960 --> 00:04:41,080
What drew me to Lauren is the way that she puts her feelings about her hounds into words

75
00:04:41,080 --> 00:04:46,920
and for the public to see and to read and to be a part of is unlike anything else that

76
00:04:46,920 --> 00:04:51,120
I've written from anybody else.

77
00:04:51,120 --> 00:04:53,240
It really embodies what it is to be a houndsman.

78
00:04:53,240 --> 00:04:57,240
So Lauren great job.

79
00:04:57,240 --> 00:05:04,320
And I think when we all think back to how we started, whether it be from a father or

80
00:05:04,320 --> 00:05:10,600
grandfather or whether you picked it up yourself and pass it on to your kids, I think it's

81
00:05:10,600 --> 00:05:17,160
more what she wrote about was more than just about a dog.

82
00:05:17,160 --> 00:05:20,240
It's about just a camaraderie.

83
00:05:20,240 --> 00:05:26,040
It's about the feeling that you get and then what me and you talked about before in our

84
00:05:26,040 --> 00:05:33,640
other podcasts and that is just being closer to dogs than we are people because no matter

85
00:05:33,640 --> 00:05:38,120
how bad of a person you are or what you've done wrong or what you've done right, they're

86
00:05:38,120 --> 00:05:44,800
always there to show you unconditional love and I think you captured that.

87
00:05:44,800 --> 00:05:48,440
You hit that nail on the head with that story.

88
00:05:48,440 --> 00:05:49,440
Thank you.

89
00:05:49,440 --> 00:05:50,440
All right.

90
00:05:50,440 --> 00:05:51,880
Well, let's lighten the mood a little bit.

91
00:05:51,880 --> 00:05:52,880
We're going to get into this.

92
00:05:52,880 --> 00:05:54,600
We're going to get into this hot and heavy guys.

93
00:05:54,600 --> 00:05:58,160
Like I said, we've got Lauren Brown sitting down with us recording tonight and we just

94
00:05:58,160 --> 00:05:59,720
really appreciate her taking the time to do this.

95
00:05:59,720 --> 00:06:02,480
So Lauren, why don't you tell the listeners a little bit about yourself, where you're

96
00:06:02,480 --> 00:06:05,880
from and maybe tell us how you got started into hounds.

97
00:06:05,880 --> 00:06:06,880
Yeah.

98
00:06:06,880 --> 00:06:10,680
So I'm from North Carolina.

99
00:06:10,680 --> 00:06:15,800
I got into hounds when I was, I think I had just turned 15 years old.

100
00:06:15,800 --> 00:06:18,040
I come from a family of deer hunters.

101
00:06:18,040 --> 00:06:21,160
I mean, nobody knew what running dogs was.

102
00:06:21,160 --> 00:06:22,160
It wasn't a thing.

103
00:06:22,160 --> 00:06:25,440
It was never anything that actually ever crossed my mind.

104
00:06:25,440 --> 00:06:30,200
And for a while when I was younger, when my brother used to squirrel hunt, I used to hate

105
00:06:30,200 --> 00:06:31,200
it.

106
00:06:31,200 --> 00:06:33,800
I was like, that's so mean, that's so cruel.

107
00:06:33,800 --> 00:06:40,040
And then once I was in eighth grade in middle school is when an old friend of mine had reached

108
00:06:40,040 --> 00:06:42,560
out to me and he said, you know, you want to go coon hunt?

109
00:06:42,560 --> 00:06:45,120
And I was like, what the heck is that?

110
00:06:45,120 --> 00:06:47,440
And he's like, come on, like you'll love it.

111
00:06:47,440 --> 00:06:48,920
My mom dropped me off at his house.

112
00:06:48,920 --> 00:06:53,640
He had a bunch of property and the first dog I ever coon hunted behind was Rosie's dad

113
00:06:53,640 --> 00:06:56,960
and his name was Finks Texas Pete.

114
00:06:56,960 --> 00:07:00,440
He was an amazing, amazing dog to hunt behind.

115
00:07:00,440 --> 00:07:06,200
I mean, when this dog opened, it was like it shook the whole timber around you.

116
00:07:06,200 --> 00:07:07,400
Like you couldn't miss it.

117
00:07:07,400 --> 00:07:09,440
He would drown out other dogs.

118
00:07:09,440 --> 00:07:14,400
I mean, it was the first strike of that dog that completely hooked me onto this whole

119
00:07:14,400 --> 00:07:15,840
life.

120
00:07:15,840 --> 00:07:22,600
And truly it's like Rosie made me who I am, but he following that dog is how I found who

121
00:07:22,600 --> 00:07:24,280
I am.

122
00:07:24,280 --> 00:07:26,160
So it was incredible.

123
00:07:26,160 --> 00:07:28,360
And I'm really thankful for that night.

124
00:07:28,360 --> 00:07:35,080
I'm thankful for the friendship I had that got me into it because it started everything

125
00:07:35,080 --> 00:07:41,480
of who I am today and who I want my kids to grow up to be and what I want them to follow

126
00:07:41,480 --> 00:07:42,480
in life.

127
00:07:42,480 --> 00:07:43,480
Yeah, absolutely.

128
00:07:43,480 --> 00:07:47,160
And you know, that's very evident to see is, you know, if anybody follows you on social

129
00:07:47,160 --> 00:07:49,400
media, it's easy to see your love for the hounds.

130
00:07:49,400 --> 00:07:52,760
It's been easy over the years to see your love for Rosie.

131
00:07:52,760 --> 00:07:57,360
It's been easy to see here recently, your love for faith and the way that you want to

132
00:07:57,360 --> 00:08:02,200
have your kids involved in those dogs and in those hounds and to experience what you've

133
00:08:02,200 --> 00:08:03,200
experienced.

134
00:08:03,200 --> 00:08:05,600
And we're going to dive into all that here later in this podcast.

135
00:08:05,600 --> 00:08:07,120
But it's just so it's so evident.

136
00:08:07,120 --> 00:08:08,520
You can just hear the sincerity in your voice.

137
00:08:08,520 --> 00:08:09,960
And and I just absolutely love it.

138
00:08:09,960 --> 00:08:10,960
Bastrum, do you remember?

139
00:08:10,960 --> 00:08:15,160
Do you remember the first time you went hunting?

140
00:08:15,160 --> 00:08:19,480
I must have been four or five years old.

141
00:08:19,480 --> 00:08:20,480
Yeah.

142
00:08:20,480 --> 00:08:21,480
Yeah.

143
00:08:21,480 --> 00:08:22,480
With your dad?

144
00:08:22,480 --> 00:08:23,960
Long time ago.

145
00:08:23,960 --> 00:08:33,480
I come from a family of coon hunters, so I mean, my great uncle took my dad and I remember

146
00:08:33,480 --> 00:08:36,360
when I was a teenager sneaking out of the window.

147
00:08:36,360 --> 00:08:38,640
Yeah, absolutely.

148
00:08:38,640 --> 00:08:42,880
You know, I I kind of have I mean, I wasn't I started a little bit further in life than

149
00:08:42,880 --> 00:08:43,880
Lauren was whenever she went.

150
00:08:43,880 --> 00:08:46,120
I didn't go till I was in college.

151
00:08:46,120 --> 00:08:50,800
You know, I kind of grew up running deer dogs down in North Carolina with my granddaddy

152
00:08:50,800 --> 00:08:51,800
down there.

153
00:08:51,800 --> 00:08:54,360
And that's what I look forward to every December was going on there and running those deer

154
00:08:54,360 --> 00:08:55,360
hounds with him.

155
00:08:55,360 --> 00:08:58,320
But as far as listening to a coon hound shake the timber, that didn't happen till I was

156
00:08:58,320 --> 00:08:59,880
20 years old in college.

157
00:08:59,880 --> 00:09:05,840
So you know, I can vividly remember that night and what it sounded like and walk into that

158
00:09:05,840 --> 00:09:10,800
first tree and seeing that coon in the tree and seeing the excitement and the dog.

159
00:09:10,800 --> 00:09:14,680
And I can remember seeing the look on Quentin's face whenever he looked at me and he was like,

160
00:09:14,680 --> 00:09:16,720
yeah, dude, this is it.

161
00:09:16,720 --> 00:09:18,080
Well, welcome.

162
00:09:18,080 --> 00:09:19,080
Welcome to coon hunting.

163
00:09:19,080 --> 00:09:20,760
And it wasn't with a hound is actually with a cur.

164
00:09:20,760 --> 00:09:23,960
But you know, I remember every bit of that.

165
00:09:23,960 --> 00:09:27,820
So I can relate, you know, to your first time out there.

166
00:09:27,820 --> 00:09:30,040
So why don't you tell us a little bit about Rosie?

167
00:09:30,040 --> 00:09:31,540
Let's make this.

168
00:09:31,540 --> 00:09:38,380
Let's make this a podcast of of who made Lauren Brown.

169
00:09:38,380 --> 00:09:39,520
And I believe it's Rosie.

170
00:09:39,520 --> 00:09:41,080
If it's correct me if I'm wrong.

171
00:09:41,080 --> 00:09:42,080
It was Rosie.

172
00:09:42,080 --> 00:09:45,320
So I got Rosie when right when I turned 16.

173
00:09:45,320 --> 00:09:48,560
Neither of us knew a thing about the sport.

174
00:09:48,560 --> 00:09:52,760
You know, I had gone a handful of times with her dad and then her mom.

175
00:09:52,760 --> 00:09:54,280
But I didn't I didn't know anything.

176
00:09:54,280 --> 00:09:59,240
I didn't I didn't know what it was to be a houndsman.

177
00:09:59,240 --> 00:10:01,600
And so Rosie and I kind of made each other.

178
00:10:01,600 --> 00:10:04,320
You know, it was a lot of trial and error.

179
00:10:04,320 --> 00:10:07,600
Rosie did not treat her first coon until she was a year and a half old.

180
00:10:07,600 --> 00:10:09,820
That was her first solo coon.

181
00:10:09,820 --> 00:10:16,600
And I remember that, you know, that season, it was literally we probably went out three,

182
00:10:16,600 --> 00:10:18,320
three, four times every week.

183
00:10:18,320 --> 00:10:22,960
I mean, I was always going to my buddy DJ's house, you know, to his property.

184
00:10:22,960 --> 00:10:27,200
And it was, you know, so much of, you know, slick tree, slick tree.

185
00:10:27,200 --> 00:10:29,680
But she would always she was very tree minded.

186
00:10:29,680 --> 00:10:31,640
It was just we always came up short.

187
00:10:31,640 --> 00:10:33,640
It was either she wasn't checking herself.

188
00:10:33,640 --> 00:10:35,160
She was going too fast.

189
00:10:35,160 --> 00:10:37,160
She was too excited.

190
00:10:37,160 --> 00:10:42,840
But in that moment, I was I didn't know, you know, I didn't know what it was.

191
00:10:42,840 --> 00:10:44,320
So I just kept turning her loose.

192
00:10:44,320 --> 00:10:50,440
But I had a lot of guys that was like, you don't know what you're doing.

193
00:10:50,440 --> 00:10:52,000
That dog doesn't know what it's doing.

194
00:10:52,000 --> 00:10:53,000
Like you might as well quit.

195
00:10:53,000 --> 00:10:54,000
Let me let me stop real quick.

196
00:10:54,000 --> 00:10:55,000
Let me stop real quick.

197
00:10:55,000 --> 00:10:56,000
Let's what breed of dog was Rosie?

198
00:10:56,000 --> 00:10:57,000
She was an English coon hound.

199
00:10:57,000 --> 00:10:58,000
An English coon hound.

200
00:10:58,000 --> 00:11:03,000
OK, I just want to paint a picture for the for the listeners.

201
00:11:03,000 --> 00:11:08,920
So yeah, she was she was a little petite, mostly white English coon hound.

202
00:11:08,920 --> 00:11:15,680
And literally our first night hunt ever, an older gentleman said, what's that bird dog

203
00:11:15,680 --> 00:11:16,680
doing here?

204
00:11:16,680 --> 00:11:20,480
I mean, and all this stuff just fueled me to keep going.

205
00:11:20,480 --> 00:11:24,440
So I'm like, these people are counting us out, but I know my dog can do it.

206
00:11:24,440 --> 00:11:27,400
I always knew Rosie could do it.

207
00:11:27,400 --> 00:11:29,240
We just had to keep trying.

208
00:11:29,240 --> 00:11:31,520
And it was the last night of season.

209
00:11:31,520 --> 00:11:34,680
It was literally 30 minutes before season went out.

210
00:11:34,680 --> 00:11:37,200
And she had just like treated us like DJ.

211
00:11:37,200 --> 00:11:40,640
I cannot go like I need to do one more turn out.

212
00:11:40,640 --> 00:11:41,640
He's like, what is the point?

213
00:11:41,640 --> 00:11:43,160
I said, please, just one more.

214
00:11:43,160 --> 00:11:44,820
And he was like, OK.

215
00:11:44,820 --> 00:11:50,280
So I dropped her under this one fence, passed a cow pasture because Rosie used to run cattle.

216
00:11:50,280 --> 00:11:51,320
I'm not going to lie.

217
00:11:51,320 --> 00:11:55,720
The dog loved cows and it ticked me off to high heaven.

218
00:11:55,720 --> 00:11:57,800
So I walked her past the cattle.

219
00:11:57,800 --> 00:12:01,640
I pushed her under this fence and she took off.

220
00:12:01,640 --> 00:12:04,760
And it was like nothing I had heard before.

221
00:12:04,760 --> 00:12:07,200
It was this huge locate.

222
00:12:07,200 --> 00:12:11,560
And then she just stuck in just one one bark after the other.

223
00:12:11,560 --> 00:12:13,240
And I was like, this is it.

224
00:12:13,240 --> 00:12:14,800
I just know it.

225
00:12:14,800 --> 00:12:15,800
So we run through.

226
00:12:15,800 --> 00:12:18,640
At this point, Rosie never didn't have a tracking collar.

227
00:12:18,640 --> 00:12:19,640
I didn't have a light.

228
00:12:19,640 --> 00:12:23,160
I had a flashlight from under my kitchen sink that my dad let me borrow.

229
00:12:23,160 --> 00:12:30,280
I mean, we were literally just it was it was a situation for a coon hunter, but it was

230
00:12:30,280 --> 00:12:31,440
what I had at the time.

231
00:12:31,440 --> 00:12:33,400
So that's all we went with.

232
00:12:33,400 --> 00:12:36,560
But when I got to this tree, I shined my flashlight.

233
00:12:36,560 --> 00:12:39,160
I saw nothing and I was like, that's it.

234
00:12:39,160 --> 00:12:40,640
That's the season.

235
00:12:40,640 --> 00:12:43,160
And my buddy DJ comes up behind me and shines his actual headlight.

236
00:12:43,160 --> 00:12:47,400
He's like, Lauren, be quiet and look up in that tree.

237
00:12:47,400 --> 00:12:52,080
And there were two coons, one on two different branches.

238
00:12:52,080 --> 00:12:53,760
And I lost it.

239
00:12:53,760 --> 00:13:00,520
I mean, it was literally the best day of my life was when Rosie treat these coons so well.

240
00:13:00,520 --> 00:13:02,520
And I was like, I want to shoot them both.

241
00:13:02,520 --> 00:13:03,520
I was like, I want to shoot them both.

242
00:13:03,520 --> 00:13:05,760
And he was like, OK, like you go for it.

243
00:13:05,760 --> 00:13:08,240
And so we shot them both down.

244
00:13:08,240 --> 00:13:13,960
It was my biggest Eastern coon I've ever killed was Rosie's first one I shot over her.

245
00:13:13,960 --> 00:13:15,800
It was like 22 pounds.

246
00:13:15,800 --> 00:13:17,920
It's actually hanging on my wall downstairs.

247
00:13:17,920 --> 00:13:20,440
I got it for North Carolina.

248
00:13:20,440 --> 00:13:21,440
That's huge.

249
00:13:21,440 --> 00:13:22,440
It's giant for North Carolina.

250
00:13:22,440 --> 00:13:23,440
It's huge.

251
00:13:23,440 --> 00:13:29,000
I'll definitely have to show you all a picture or send you a picture of it sometime.

252
00:13:29,000 --> 00:13:30,360
But it's on my wall.

253
00:13:30,360 --> 00:13:37,760
And that night I posted these pictures and the guy that had been talking so much crud

254
00:13:37,760 --> 00:13:42,680
about my dog and I, his dog didn't tree a single thing last night.

255
00:13:42,680 --> 00:13:48,720
And he was very ill seeing that my dog finally did it there because he you know, those boys

256
00:13:48,720 --> 00:13:50,720
always ran with multiple dogs.

257
00:13:50,720 --> 00:13:53,760
So for all you know, like you don't know who's treating it truly.

258
00:13:53,760 --> 00:13:54,760
Right.

259
00:13:54,760 --> 00:13:59,600
But I always ran Rosie solo because I didn't want her to rely on other dogs.

260
00:13:59,600 --> 00:14:04,120
But I was like until your treeing so I'm not running you with a bunch of other dogs.

261
00:14:04,120 --> 00:14:05,920
So she finally did it.

262
00:14:05,920 --> 00:14:07,600
My dad was the first one I called.

263
00:14:07,600 --> 00:14:11,200
It was literally one 30 in the morning by the time we got back to the truck and I was

264
00:14:11,200 --> 00:14:12,540
like she did it.

265
00:14:12,540 --> 00:14:13,540
I can't believe it.

266
00:14:13,540 --> 00:14:15,400
Like I'm finally a coon hunter.

267
00:14:15,400 --> 00:14:17,100
My dog's a coon dog.

268
00:14:17,100 --> 00:14:18,100
It was the best.

269
00:14:18,100 --> 00:14:22,280
And then I actually called my neighbor out of his sound sleep.

270
00:14:22,280 --> 00:14:26,360
I was really good friends with his daughters and I said, can I use your freezer?

271
00:14:26,360 --> 00:14:27,360
And he said, excuse me.

272
00:14:27,360 --> 00:14:29,800
I said, I got a coon I need to put in your freezer.

273
00:14:29,800 --> 00:14:33,320
And he said, don't tell my wife.

274
00:14:33,320 --> 00:14:38,880
So that could have stood in their freezer for almost two months without my neighbor

275
00:14:38,880 --> 00:14:40,360
knowing like his wife knowing.

276
00:14:40,360 --> 00:14:44,880
And then when I finally took it out, she was like, I cannot believe you had a raccoon in

277
00:14:44,880 --> 00:14:46,800
my freezer.

278
00:14:46,800 --> 00:14:51,880
But this it will always be one of my fondest memories is that first night.

279
00:14:51,880 --> 00:14:55,960
Yeah, you know, and something that you said right there that kind of stuck with me and

280
00:14:55,960 --> 00:14:58,000
I don't know you really well at all.

281
00:14:58,000 --> 00:15:01,760
I mean, honestly, this is what the second time we've talked in person.

282
00:15:01,760 --> 00:15:05,600
But you know, I said, I followed you along on your social media for several years.

283
00:15:05,600 --> 00:15:09,320
And you said that you always took Rosie by herself because you didn't want her dependent

284
00:15:09,320 --> 00:15:11,240
on anybody else.

285
00:15:11,240 --> 00:15:16,160
And from what I can tell, that almost seems a little bit like who you are.

286
00:15:16,160 --> 00:15:18,320
It is.

287
00:15:18,320 --> 00:15:22,240
I mean, it seems like you when you put your mind to something, that's what you're going

288
00:15:22,240 --> 00:15:23,240
to do.

289
00:15:23,240 --> 00:15:26,320
And that's it's true.

290
00:15:26,320 --> 00:15:30,640
You know, when I was in college, I did a lot of coon hunting, you know, a lot of I went

291
00:15:30,640 --> 00:15:35,040
to NC State, you know, it's a deal on school, people will party, people do all these different

292
00:15:35,040 --> 00:15:36,040
things.

293
00:15:36,040 --> 00:15:38,380
But I did night hunts, I couldn't hunt it.

294
00:15:38,380 --> 00:15:40,040
That was my thing I did in school.

295
00:15:40,040 --> 00:15:46,200
And I at the time, just had a big tattoo of my dog Rosie treat on my arm.

296
00:15:46,200 --> 00:15:50,560
And my feeds and nutrition, my livestock feeds and nutrition professor used to call me coon

297
00:15:50,560 --> 00:15:51,560
dog.

298
00:15:51,560 --> 00:15:53,320
That's what a lot of people called me.

299
00:15:53,320 --> 00:15:56,280
That's how they knew me was my big coon dog tattoo.

300
00:15:56,280 --> 00:15:57,280
Yeah.

301
00:15:57,280 --> 00:15:59,080
And it's it's who I was.

302
00:15:59,080 --> 00:16:00,080
And it's who I am.

303
00:16:00,080 --> 00:16:06,640
And you know, sometimes I kind of forget that since Rosie's been gone.

304
00:16:06,640 --> 00:16:10,640
And I'm thankful that I have faith to remind me most of the time.

305
00:16:10,640 --> 00:16:18,120
But it's just this sport has shaped me in every way, shape and form.

306
00:16:18,120 --> 00:16:19,120
Really.

307
00:16:19,120 --> 00:16:21,520
Yeah, absolutely.

308
00:16:21,520 --> 00:16:23,240
So let's go back to Rosie.

309
00:16:23,240 --> 00:16:28,840
Like when after she treated that first coon, you guys had a lot of fun numbers.

310
00:16:28,840 --> 00:16:31,040
You guys took a lot of trips together.

311
00:16:31,040 --> 00:16:34,680
Walkers through walkers through the life of Lauren and Rosie.

312
00:16:34,680 --> 00:16:39,280
So Rosie and I gosh, we did everything.

313
00:16:39,280 --> 00:16:43,000
I mean, every time I went to a different state, Rosie was there.

314
00:16:43,000 --> 00:16:46,120
You know, I didn't get my license till I was 18.

315
00:16:46,120 --> 00:16:47,800
I was scared to drive.

316
00:16:47,800 --> 00:16:50,240
I lost a lot of friends in high school to car accidents.

317
00:16:50,240 --> 00:16:52,080
I was terrified to drive.

318
00:16:52,080 --> 00:16:56,880
I got my license when I was a freshman in college and my mom was like, she's not going

319
00:16:56,880 --> 00:16:58,080
to go anywhere.

320
00:16:58,080 --> 00:17:00,760
And I literally went cross country.

321
00:17:00,760 --> 00:17:01,760
And I loved it.

322
00:17:01,760 --> 00:17:02,760
We drove out to Wyoming.

323
00:17:02,760 --> 00:17:03,960
We lived out in Wyoming together.

324
00:17:03,960 --> 00:17:05,840
We lived in Virginia.

325
00:17:05,840 --> 00:17:07,960
We went to Wisconsin.

326
00:17:07,960 --> 00:17:10,240
I mean, I took that dog everywhere.

327
00:17:10,240 --> 00:17:12,600
If I went to the doctor, she was in the front seat.

328
00:17:12,600 --> 00:17:14,000
I went to the grocery store.

329
00:17:14,000 --> 00:17:15,440
She was in the front seat.

330
00:17:15,440 --> 00:17:20,560
I mean, there wasn't Lauren without Rosie and there wasn't Rosie without Lauren.

331
00:17:20,560 --> 00:17:26,520
And that one of my favorite trips is when we actually were in Wyoming together.

332
00:17:26,520 --> 00:17:30,360
I had already lived out there for a summer.

333
00:17:30,360 --> 00:17:33,480
It was one of like a summer job right out of college.

334
00:17:33,480 --> 00:17:36,280
You know, I had just looked up a random dude ranch and I was like, that's where I'm going

335
00:17:36,280 --> 00:17:37,720
to go after I graduate.

336
00:17:37,720 --> 00:17:38,720
And I did.

337
00:17:38,720 --> 00:17:40,880
But I was very homesick.

338
00:17:40,880 --> 00:17:41,880
So I left early.

339
00:17:41,880 --> 00:17:46,600
I didn't like that I couldn't have Rosie because I didn't have a vehicle out there.

340
00:17:46,600 --> 00:17:52,200
So I came back early and then they wanted me to come back out for the second summer.

341
00:17:52,200 --> 00:17:53,200
They're like, bring your dog.

342
00:17:53,200 --> 00:17:54,200
I don't care.

343
00:17:54,200 --> 00:17:55,200
Come back out.

344
00:17:55,200 --> 00:17:56,200
Work for us.

345
00:17:56,200 --> 00:17:57,200
And I said, OK.

346
00:17:57,200 --> 00:18:00,320
So Rosie and I took the truck out there.

347
00:18:00,320 --> 00:18:01,680
My mom went with us.

348
00:18:01,680 --> 00:18:06,000
So I wasn't driving by myself cross country the first time.

349
00:18:06,000 --> 00:18:09,240
And we lived on a dude ranch for several months.

350
00:18:09,240 --> 00:18:10,240
It was the best.

351
00:18:10,240 --> 00:18:15,400
Rosie would go on all my rides with me until she got trampled by a horse.

352
00:18:15,400 --> 00:18:17,520
And then we got the rule of no horses.

353
00:18:17,520 --> 00:18:21,880
I mean, no dogs on horse rides because of my dog.

354
00:18:21,880 --> 00:18:25,840
And then Rosie would just kind of roam the ranch while I was working until Rosie started

355
00:18:25,840 --> 00:18:32,720
getting in trash cans because she was so Rosie had to be up in the house for a while.

356
00:18:32,720 --> 00:18:36,600
But you know, all the Wranglers like to do bonfires at night.

357
00:18:36,600 --> 00:18:40,200
So every bonfire at night, she would come up there with us.

358
00:18:40,200 --> 00:18:45,080
I remember one time I went to go have a fire by myself because no one else wanted to.

359
00:18:45,080 --> 00:18:50,640
And I let Rosie just kind of walk up there with me and Rosie took off after a mule deer.

360
00:18:50,640 --> 00:18:51,640
Yes, literally.

361
00:18:51,640 --> 00:18:56,000
I mean, the dog was so broke yet she took off after a mule deer.

362
00:18:56,000 --> 00:18:57,840
I was just getting ready to ask that.

363
00:18:57,840 --> 00:19:01,200
I was getting ready to, you know, ask you going out to Wyoming where there's different

364
00:19:01,200 --> 00:19:02,680
types of animals, different terrain.

365
00:19:02,680 --> 00:19:07,760
I was wondering how a dog with a nose and who knows how to use their nose reacted to

366
00:19:07,760 --> 00:19:10,280
that.

367
00:19:10,280 --> 00:19:16,520
She literally would taste anything from a tiny mole and within the brush to a mule

368
00:19:16,520 --> 00:19:17,520
deer.

369
00:19:17,520 --> 00:19:19,960
It was so embarrassing.

370
00:19:19,960 --> 00:19:26,640
But I couldn't be mad at her because you can't legally run dogs where I was living in Wyoming.

371
00:19:26,640 --> 00:19:28,720
You know, there was no raccoons where I was.

372
00:19:28,720 --> 00:19:29,880
There's nothing like that.

373
00:19:29,880 --> 00:19:32,600
So the dog was so stir crazy.

374
00:19:32,600 --> 00:19:34,560
I only got one day off a week.

375
00:19:34,560 --> 00:19:35,560
That was it.

376
00:19:35,560 --> 00:19:38,200
And then for that, you know, most of the time I was exhausted.

377
00:19:38,200 --> 00:19:42,320
I didn't want to do a bunch, but sometimes Rosie and I would go venture off, go do something.

378
00:19:42,320 --> 00:19:43,960
But the dog just wanted to run.

379
00:19:43,960 --> 00:19:45,000
She wanted to hunt.

380
00:19:45,000 --> 00:19:48,000
She was like, I don't understand why we're not doing this.

381
00:19:48,000 --> 00:19:49,000
It wasn't us.

382
00:19:49,000 --> 00:19:52,200
So you ever get on any mountain lions?

383
00:19:52,200 --> 00:19:53,200
No.

384
00:19:53,200 --> 00:19:55,960
So there were there were none where I was.

385
00:19:55,960 --> 00:19:58,480
We had a lot of wolves and grizzlies.

386
00:19:58,480 --> 00:20:03,040
OK, so explain to me because and I'm sure some of the listeners are asking the same

387
00:20:03,040 --> 00:20:04,440
thing if I am.

388
00:20:04,440 --> 00:20:06,560
What is a dude ranch?

389
00:20:06,560 --> 00:20:14,040
A dude ranch is a working ranch where guests can come and stay, stay in cabins, chuck wagons,

390
00:20:14,040 --> 00:20:15,440
teepees, anything like that.

391
00:20:15,440 --> 00:20:20,000
And you take them out for like guided rides or you know, some people do rafting trips

392
00:20:20,000 --> 00:20:25,760
like we did rafting trips, horse rides and fly fishing trips.

393
00:20:25,760 --> 00:20:30,600
And I was one of the wranglers that worked with the horses and helped, you know, green

394
00:20:30,600 --> 00:20:33,200
horses, breaking horses.

395
00:20:33,200 --> 00:20:37,000
I mean, the whole thing and would take people out through the Teton National Forest.

396
00:20:37,000 --> 00:20:38,000
Got you.

397
00:20:38,000 --> 00:20:39,000
So you're in the Teton.

398
00:20:39,000 --> 00:20:43,600
It's like so Wyoming and Montana are two states that are on my list because I really want

399
00:20:43,600 --> 00:20:44,840
to go see Glacier.

400
00:20:44,840 --> 00:20:48,200
That is like my number one place I want to go see.

401
00:20:48,200 --> 00:20:50,880
Oh, yeah.

402
00:20:50,880 --> 00:20:53,240
My thing is go to Yellowstone.

403
00:20:53,240 --> 00:20:57,800
I mean, Yellowstone is the most amazing place in the world.

404
00:20:57,800 --> 00:21:02,200
The Teton Mountains are literally a gift from God.

405
00:21:02,200 --> 00:21:07,240
I have never loved any type of mountain more than I love those.

406
00:21:07,240 --> 00:21:09,480
They're just unreal to look at.

407
00:21:09,480 --> 00:21:11,040
And you know, I've got that on my list as well.

408
00:21:11,040 --> 00:21:14,960
I'd love to go out there and make a trip where you kind of just start and start at Glacier

409
00:21:14,960 --> 00:21:20,240
and work your way to Yellowstone and do all of that stuff because well, I've wanted to

410
00:21:20,240 --> 00:21:25,120
do that for years, but I've recently been listening to a podcast, the Bear Grylls podcast

411
00:21:25,120 --> 00:21:29,640
with Clay Newcomb, and he was talking about, you know, wilderness with the capital W and

412
00:21:29,640 --> 00:21:35,360
how Yellowstone was the first quote unquote wilderness bought by the U.S. to preserve

413
00:21:35,360 --> 00:21:36,640
what was left.

414
00:21:36,640 --> 00:21:41,680
You know, that started the movement of saving what wilderness was left, because if they

415
00:21:41,680 --> 00:21:46,000
wouldn't have done that, America would have just went on and wiped everything out and

416
00:21:46,000 --> 00:21:51,480
took full advantage of the land that was there to further the technological advances.

417
00:21:51,480 --> 00:21:53,080
And I hope I'm getting that right.

418
00:21:53,080 --> 00:21:54,080
But that's what I got out of it.

419
00:21:54,080 --> 00:21:55,720
You know, Yellowstone was like the start of that.

420
00:21:55,720 --> 00:21:57,960
I think they purchased it for forty thousand dollars.

421
00:21:57,960 --> 00:21:58,960
The U.S. government.

422
00:21:58,960 --> 00:21:59,960
Like, what?

423
00:21:59,960 --> 00:22:00,960
Yeah.

424
00:22:00,960 --> 00:22:03,800
Like back in the day, they purchased all that land for forty thousand dollars, I think is

425
00:22:03,800 --> 00:22:05,160
what it said on that podcast.

426
00:22:05,160 --> 00:22:10,440
My gosh, that's wild to think about, especially nowadays.

427
00:22:10,440 --> 00:22:11,440
Yeah.

428
00:22:11,440 --> 00:22:15,120
So what was it like living in a place where you weren't legally allowed to run hounds?

429
00:22:15,120 --> 00:22:17,760
Like is that because it's not statewide, is it?

430
00:22:17,760 --> 00:22:18,760
Is that broke up county?

431
00:22:18,760 --> 00:22:20,280
Like how does that work?

432
00:22:20,280 --> 00:22:26,240
So I'm honestly I don't think there's many places you can run dogs in Wyoming.

433
00:22:26,240 --> 00:22:30,160
As far as I know, I'm sure there I think there are a few places, but I didn't look too much

434
00:22:30,160 --> 00:22:31,280
into it.

435
00:22:31,280 --> 00:22:36,800
You know, a lot of people would be like, I know you're miserable, but this is my thing.

436
00:22:36,800 --> 00:22:43,720
It didn't bother me only because coon hunting was so much more to me than the actual hunt.

437
00:22:43,720 --> 00:22:45,680
I just loved being with Rosie.

438
00:22:45,680 --> 00:22:48,080
I mean, the dog is what matters to me the most.

439
00:22:48,080 --> 00:22:51,680
So I wasn't as miserable as people would think I would be.

440
00:22:51,680 --> 00:22:54,920
You know, you know, I was a little bummed, but it wasn't even coon.

441
00:22:54,920 --> 00:22:57,080
I honestly could care less.

442
00:22:57,080 --> 00:22:59,320
I just wanted my dog with me.

443
00:22:59,320 --> 00:23:02,480
And I think it's what we what we really stand for, Bryce.

444
00:23:02,480 --> 00:23:08,080
And that is, you know, from it sounds funny that I said it, but it's kind of become a

445
00:23:08,080 --> 00:23:11,040
meme of ours is from the chairs to the bears.

446
00:23:11,040 --> 00:23:14,760
I mean, it's not just about hunting and coon hunting.

447
00:23:14,760 --> 00:23:18,720
It's also, you know, about those dogs in the rocking chair.

448
00:23:18,720 --> 00:23:20,120
They curl up next to you.

449
00:23:20,120 --> 00:23:22,880
It's about your companion, your best friend.

450
00:23:22,880 --> 00:23:25,480
I mean, that's what that's what this whole thing is about.

451
00:23:25,480 --> 00:23:26,480
Absolutely.

452
00:23:26,480 --> 00:23:29,080
And the people you do it with, you know, I know the listeners can't see what's behind

453
00:23:29,080 --> 00:23:32,280
me, but, you know, I got these pictures up here behind me and these are two of my favorite

454
00:23:32,280 --> 00:23:33,280
pictures.

455
00:23:33,280 --> 00:23:35,400
That's a picture of me and my boy Colton and then me and my boy Owen.

456
00:23:35,400 --> 00:23:38,720
And you know, those were pictures that were taken when I really didn't know anybody was

457
00:23:38,720 --> 00:23:42,080
looking or taking a picture and then they were, you know, hand drawn for me.

458
00:23:42,080 --> 00:23:45,880
So I keep those right here in the office right to these podcasts because that really is what

459
00:23:45,880 --> 00:23:46,880
it is all about.

460
00:23:46,880 --> 00:23:50,720
It's, you know, the people that you're with, the hounds that you're with enjoying a sport

461
00:23:50,720 --> 00:23:56,480
that you love, whether that be coon hunting, bear hunting, squirrel dog agility, fly ball,

462
00:23:56,480 --> 00:23:58,920
whatever it is, you're doing it with your dogs.

463
00:23:58,920 --> 00:24:09,560
It's all about dogs and the passion that you share with them.

464
00:24:09,560 --> 00:24:14,840
The Semper Doggin podcast is proudly presented to you by Froggy Bottom Outdoors.

465
00:24:14,840 --> 00:24:19,780
Froggy Bottom Outdoors is the newest outdoor and hunting supply habitat management and

466
00:24:19,780 --> 00:24:24,800
livestock feed provider in the Midwest with a wide variety of products, a unique business

467
00:24:24,800 --> 00:24:29,080
model and a dedicated team of individuals who are eager to provide their customers with

468
00:24:29,080 --> 00:24:31,440
an unparalleled shopping experience.

469
00:24:31,440 --> 00:24:36,040
You will not have to search any further than Froggy Bottom Outdoors with brands such as

470
00:24:36,040 --> 00:24:42,720
Garmin, Yoder Nylon, Banks Hunting Blinds, Razor Hunting Gear, Purina Mills, ComBok Feeds,

471
00:24:42,720 --> 00:24:46,480
Inuksha, Real World Products and many more.

472
00:24:46,480 --> 00:24:50,320
Froggy Bottom Outdoors has you covered from the farm to the woods.

473
00:24:50,320 --> 00:24:56,000
Visit froggybottomoutdoors.com today and follow them on Facebook to see how they can help

474
00:24:56,000 --> 00:24:57,160
you.

475
00:24:57,160 --> 00:24:59,180
Not finding what you're looking for online?

476
00:24:59,180 --> 00:25:00,180
No problem.

477
00:25:00,180 --> 00:25:05,880
Feel free to give the store a call at 765-330-2098.

478
00:25:05,880 --> 00:25:10,360
The team at Froggy Bottom Outdoors is excited to get to know you and will be glad to answer

479
00:25:10,360 --> 00:25:18,600
any questions you may have.

480
00:25:18,600 --> 00:25:21,640
You and Rosie were out there in Montana for a while and you come on back.

481
00:25:21,640 --> 00:25:26,080
I know that you had hunted with several ladies around your area.

482
00:25:26,080 --> 00:25:28,280
Did you ever get to hunt Rosie with those ladies?

483
00:25:28,280 --> 00:25:29,520
Oh yeah.

484
00:25:29,520 --> 00:25:37,240
So one of the first girls I actually couldn't hunt with another woman was my friend Chelsea

485
00:25:37,240 --> 00:25:38,960
Capps.

486
00:25:38,960 --> 00:25:42,360
I met her in college when I was in college.

487
00:25:42,360 --> 00:25:44,520
She was in college.

488
00:25:44,520 --> 00:25:49,720
She had briefly owned three of Rosie's litter mates.

489
00:25:49,720 --> 00:25:54,400
Unfortunately they did pass away before, I think before they turned one or like right

490
00:25:54,400 --> 00:25:55,400
as they were one.

491
00:25:55,400 --> 00:25:59,920
It was kind of a tragic thing but it's how I knew her.

492
00:25:59,920 --> 00:26:03,760
And so once I got to NC State she lived pretty close and I had asked her one night, you know,

493
00:26:03,760 --> 00:26:04,760
do you want to go coon hunt?

494
00:26:04,760 --> 00:26:06,680
She was like, oh my gosh, I would love to.

495
00:26:06,680 --> 00:26:11,320
I want to meet Rosie because kind of like you, she had followed me for a while and I had

496
00:26:11,320 --> 00:26:14,640
followed her because of that mutual ground.

497
00:26:14,640 --> 00:26:18,520
And so that was like the first time I really got to hunt with another girl.

498
00:26:18,520 --> 00:26:19,840
And it was so fun.

499
00:26:19,840 --> 00:26:22,840
I mean we completely just hit it off then.

500
00:26:22,840 --> 00:26:27,880
We became best friends and that's mostly the person I couldn't hunt with a lot when I was

501
00:26:27,880 --> 00:26:31,200
in college was Chelsea.

502
00:26:31,200 --> 00:26:34,820
And then from there I had met a girl named Corabell.

503
00:26:34,820 --> 00:26:39,800
She is literally one of the sweetest people I had ever met in the hound industry.

504
00:26:39,800 --> 00:26:43,360
I mean she's just very down to earth.

505
00:26:43,360 --> 00:26:46,720
She had followed me and Rosie for a while too.

506
00:26:46,720 --> 00:26:52,680
It's kind of Rosie introduced me to a lot of the really wonderful people in my life.

507
00:26:52,680 --> 00:26:53,680
So those are two.

508
00:26:53,680 --> 00:27:00,480
And then, you know, another one which is actually the girl I got faith from is Cody Hossman

509
00:27:00,480 --> 00:27:02,360
but now Cody Yandel.

510
00:27:02,360 --> 00:27:06,880
She is a girl from close to where I'm from that I can hunt with a lot.

511
00:27:06,880 --> 00:27:09,240
She actually gave me faith.

512
00:27:09,240 --> 00:27:12,480
She had reached out to me asking if I wanted a puppy off of her dog.

513
00:27:12,480 --> 00:27:14,920
It was an accidental litter.

514
00:27:14,920 --> 00:27:20,320
Her dog, Rabbi, had accidentally bred a dog she had found on the side of the road.

515
00:27:20,320 --> 00:27:22,160
She's a full blue tick.

516
00:27:22,160 --> 00:27:25,000
And when she brought her home she didn't know how old she was.

517
00:27:25,000 --> 00:27:26,640
You know, no one claimed her.

518
00:27:26,640 --> 00:27:28,880
She put her out in the woods and the dog started trinkets.

519
00:27:28,880 --> 00:27:29,880
That's awesome.

520
00:27:29,880 --> 00:27:34,800
But they had a litter of puppies and I just fell in love with faith.

521
00:27:34,800 --> 00:27:38,560
I actually wasn't supposed to get faith because I was still living with my parents at the

522
00:27:38,560 --> 00:27:40,840
time and they're like, no more dogs.

523
00:27:40,840 --> 00:27:43,760
But I got her anyway and I brought it home.

524
00:27:43,760 --> 00:27:47,000
And my parents were furious.

525
00:27:47,000 --> 00:27:51,480
But Cody is also another awesome girl to hunt with.

526
00:27:51,480 --> 00:27:56,800
Her and her husband are just amazing houndsmen themselves.

527
00:27:56,800 --> 00:27:58,760
I can learn a lot from them still.

528
00:27:58,760 --> 00:28:02,440
And her husband, Casey, he's awesome.

529
00:28:02,440 --> 00:28:04,240
They run English dogs.

530
00:28:04,240 --> 00:28:06,120
They've had black and tans plots.

531
00:28:06,120 --> 00:28:09,720
I mean, pretty much everything.

532
00:28:09,720 --> 00:28:12,520
But those are the three girls that I've really hunted with.

533
00:28:12,520 --> 00:28:14,920
And I feel like I'm missing one.

534
00:28:14,920 --> 00:28:15,920
But then again, I don't.

535
00:28:15,920 --> 00:28:17,760
No, I think that's really it.

536
00:28:17,760 --> 00:28:18,760
Yeah.

537
00:28:18,760 --> 00:28:22,680
So what's it like, you know, being a woman in coon hunting?

538
00:28:22,680 --> 00:28:24,720
Like I know you said that you're in college.

539
00:28:24,720 --> 00:28:26,960
Everybody called you coon dog and stuff like that.

540
00:28:26,960 --> 00:28:28,400
Like have you ever gotten any flack for it?

541
00:28:28,400 --> 00:28:31,520
Do people like, are they just shocked whenever they find out you're a coon hunter?

542
00:28:31,520 --> 00:28:34,760
Like you've got this huge tattoo and we're going to get into that too because I'm intrigued

543
00:28:34,760 --> 00:28:35,760
by that.

544
00:28:35,760 --> 00:28:36,760
But what is people's reaction?

545
00:28:36,760 --> 00:28:37,760
Very intrigued.

546
00:28:37,760 --> 00:28:45,960
I got a lot of, I got a lot of hate for it for a while from, you know, gentlemen that

547
00:28:45,960 --> 00:28:46,960
I met at coon clubs.

548
00:28:46,960 --> 00:28:49,240
You know, I was made out to be a joke.

549
00:28:49,240 --> 00:28:52,160
My dogs were made out to be a joke and that was fine to me.

550
00:28:52,160 --> 00:28:53,160
It didn't bother me.

551
00:28:53,160 --> 00:28:59,800
But what closed their mouth was my dogs and what they did and how they, you know, how

552
00:28:59,800 --> 00:29:02,480
they hunted, you know, how they are in field trials.

553
00:29:02,480 --> 00:29:09,120
I mean, it's what made people respect me and my dogs was when I didn't clap back at them,

554
00:29:09,120 --> 00:29:10,600
I just let my dogs talk.

555
00:29:10,600 --> 00:29:15,520
You know, that's a big thing is, you know, people can ramble about their dogs all day

556
00:29:15,520 --> 00:29:19,120
long, but dogs are, they can mess up too.

557
00:29:19,120 --> 00:29:20,120
It's okay.

558
00:29:20,120 --> 00:29:25,200
And I feel like a lot of people let their dogs kind of carry their egos on their back.

559
00:29:25,200 --> 00:29:27,480
But and, you know, I did that with Rosie some too.

560
00:29:27,480 --> 00:29:28,480
I won't lie.

561
00:29:28,480 --> 00:29:34,400
Rosie kind of built me up a little bit, but, you know, that was a big thing is, you know,

562
00:29:34,400 --> 00:29:37,920
a lot of people would just talk down and that was it angered me.

563
00:29:37,920 --> 00:29:42,400
I had to call my dad a few times, you know, try to talk me down, especially like before

564
00:29:42,400 --> 00:29:43,400
a night hunt.

565
00:29:43,400 --> 00:29:46,680
You know, like that first night hunt, I told you I was in and, you know, someone called

566
00:29:46,680 --> 00:29:47,960
Rosie a bird dog.

567
00:29:47,960 --> 00:29:53,340
I actually got casted out with him and my dog scored higher than his dog.

568
00:29:53,340 --> 00:29:58,080
So I didn't win my cast, but I was second in my cast and he was last.

569
00:29:58,080 --> 00:30:03,240
And so at the end of this hunt, he shook my hand and he's like, you got a good dog.

570
00:30:03,240 --> 00:30:04,240
I said, thank you.

571
00:30:04,240 --> 00:30:05,920
And that's all there was.

572
00:30:05,920 --> 00:30:06,920
Yeah.

573
00:30:06,920 --> 00:30:07,920
That's all it took.

574
00:30:07,920 --> 00:30:08,920
You know, run your dog, not your mouth.

575
00:30:08,920 --> 00:30:10,240
It's one of my favorite things.

576
00:30:10,240 --> 00:30:12,920
I wish a lot of people would listen to that.

577
00:30:12,920 --> 00:30:13,920
Yeah.

578
00:30:13,920 --> 00:30:19,600
So let's slide in here to this tattoo you've got, cause I also have a half sleeve of a Coon

579
00:30:19,600 --> 00:30:20,600
portrait.

580
00:30:20,600 --> 00:30:25,400
It's more like in the woods, more of a portrait setting, but yours tells a story.

581
00:30:25,400 --> 00:30:29,200
Walk us through that and tell us the story behind that.

582
00:30:29,200 --> 00:30:31,720
So my sleeve is kind of a timeline.

583
00:30:31,720 --> 00:30:36,280
You know, my first tattoo when I was 18 was a picture of Rosie Tweed.

584
00:30:36,280 --> 00:30:40,080
And it was actually, they're all from real photographs.

585
00:30:40,080 --> 00:30:43,560
You know, none of them are made up, you know, so no one can have the same thing because

586
00:30:43,560 --> 00:30:46,080
they're all truly Rosie and me.

587
00:30:46,080 --> 00:30:50,840
So the first one is Rosie Tweed on a tree behind the house where I grew up.

588
00:30:50,840 --> 00:30:56,760
I have a raccoon on the inside of my arm and it's not a real raccoon at all, but the other

589
00:30:56,760 --> 00:31:02,240
one is a picture of her bait up, not on anything.

590
00:31:02,240 --> 00:31:04,320
She's on the edge of a mountain cliff.

591
00:31:04,320 --> 00:31:06,160
And it was actually when I found out Rosie was sick.

592
00:31:06,160 --> 00:31:09,520
It was when I first truly found out she was sick.

593
00:31:09,520 --> 00:31:14,640
And it was on a mountain cliff in Virginia where we used to live.

594
00:31:14,640 --> 00:31:16,840
Another one is her last birthday here on earth.

595
00:31:16,840 --> 00:31:20,800
And it was her walking across the beach and it's her silhouette.

596
00:31:20,800 --> 00:31:25,000
And then the other one is Rosie and I in Wyoming.

597
00:31:25,000 --> 00:31:27,680
And it was our final goodbye.

598
00:31:27,680 --> 00:31:32,880
I drove Rosie out to Wyoming to say goodbye to our last place that we knew as home because

599
00:31:32,880 --> 00:31:36,280
Wyoming is where her and I were truly free.

600
00:31:36,280 --> 00:31:38,360
So I got that tattooed on me.

601
00:31:38,360 --> 00:31:43,960
And then my final thing is a yellow butterfly on a rose.

602
00:31:43,960 --> 00:31:48,880
So after Rosie passed away, I started seeing these big, beautiful yellow butterflies.

603
00:31:48,880 --> 00:31:52,760
I mean, the first time I got on a horse after she died, a big yellow butterfly swooped in

604
00:31:52,760 --> 00:31:53,760
front of me.

605
00:31:53,760 --> 00:31:58,280
The first time I climbed a mountain again, when I got to the top, a big yellow butterfly

606
00:31:58,280 --> 00:31:59,280
right in front of me.

607
00:31:59,280 --> 00:32:04,080
I mean, it seemed like whenever I was truly missing her, truly needing her, a big yellow

608
00:32:04,080 --> 00:32:06,080
butterfly would show up.

609
00:32:06,080 --> 00:32:09,320
So I got that landed on a rose for her.

610
00:32:09,320 --> 00:32:16,120
So it's all of the stages of her life, from hunting to her journey being sick to our final

611
00:32:16,120 --> 00:32:18,080
goodbye, her final birthday.

612
00:32:18,080 --> 00:32:24,320
And then I have the Tetons on my arm because that was where our souls were free.

613
00:32:24,320 --> 00:32:28,760
And then wild flowers because Rosie and I, whenever we would travel, I would see wild

614
00:32:28,760 --> 00:32:30,000
flowers on the side of the road.

615
00:32:30,000 --> 00:32:33,240
We'd pull over and she would take pictures with them.

616
00:32:33,240 --> 00:32:35,320
So that was kind of our thing together.

617
00:32:35,320 --> 00:32:36,320
That's awesome.

618
00:32:36,320 --> 00:32:37,320
That's awesome.

619
00:32:37,320 --> 00:32:42,400
So walk us through your emotions and what happened and played out in your head whenever

620
00:32:42,400 --> 00:32:43,920
you found out that Rosie was sick.

621
00:32:43,920 --> 00:32:47,320
And I know it's a hard subject, but I really think it's going to pull this whole thing

622
00:32:47,320 --> 00:32:50,600
together because that was a big part of her journey.

623
00:32:50,600 --> 00:32:56,720
Was you knowing your dog and not giving up on her even when everybody else was not giving

624
00:32:56,720 --> 00:33:00,120
you the answers that you thought were correct?

625
00:33:00,120 --> 00:33:02,600
So I will admit.

626
00:33:02,600 --> 00:33:08,560
So when Rosie first showed signs of something being off, I just thought it was her being

627
00:33:08,560 --> 00:33:09,560
stubborn.

628
00:33:09,560 --> 00:33:11,920
I mean, I would get mad at this dog.

629
00:33:11,920 --> 00:33:14,280
I would hammer on this dog.

630
00:33:14,280 --> 00:33:18,160
When she would walk 10 foot in the woods and sit down, I lost my mind.

631
00:33:18,160 --> 00:33:20,320
I was like, I don't understand what you're doing.

632
00:33:20,320 --> 00:33:21,520
This is not what you were trained to do.

633
00:33:21,520 --> 00:33:22,520
This is not what you do.

634
00:33:22,520 --> 00:33:29,240
And I got mad for honestly several months of trying and she'd pull up slick.

635
00:33:29,240 --> 00:33:31,840
And I was like, I don't understand what's going on.

636
00:33:31,840 --> 00:33:32,840
You're a finished dog.

637
00:33:32,840 --> 00:33:34,560
Like you are a good dog.

638
00:33:34,560 --> 00:33:36,440
What are you doing?

639
00:33:36,440 --> 00:33:40,280
And then I started seeing these blisters pop up on her body.

640
00:33:40,280 --> 00:33:43,600
After she would run and I was like, what the heck is this?

641
00:33:43,600 --> 00:33:46,000
And I was like, well, maybe it's just like an allergic reaction.

642
00:33:46,000 --> 00:33:47,720
So I started giving her Benadryl.

643
00:33:47,720 --> 00:33:49,600
These things didn't go away.

644
00:33:49,600 --> 00:33:52,720
You know, I would soak her and you know, that seemed to kind of help.

645
00:33:52,720 --> 00:33:56,280
And you know, it's like when one would heal, another one would pop up.

646
00:33:56,280 --> 00:33:58,400
And so I was like, something's got to give.

647
00:33:58,400 --> 00:34:00,120
So we brought her into the doctor.

648
00:34:00,120 --> 00:34:02,440
Like, oh, it's probably just a little skin infection.

649
00:34:02,440 --> 00:34:08,320
You know, here's some medicated shampoo, wash her in this, you know, twice a day for a week.

650
00:34:08,320 --> 00:34:09,800
And then it should be good.

651
00:34:09,800 --> 00:34:12,360
I was like, OK, it was a fungal medication.

652
00:34:12,360 --> 00:34:14,720
So I did that.

653
00:34:14,720 --> 00:34:16,120
Her skin kind of seemed to clear up.

654
00:34:16,120 --> 00:34:18,160
So I was like, OK, like we're done.

655
00:34:18,160 --> 00:34:20,640
And then I would run her again and these things would pop back up.

656
00:34:20,640 --> 00:34:23,440
And I was like, this doesn't seem right.

657
00:34:23,440 --> 00:34:28,640
So I thought she was having allergic reaction to briars because the dog would pull out through

658
00:34:28,640 --> 00:34:29,640
anything.

659
00:34:29,640 --> 00:34:30,960
It was like a deer in the woods.

660
00:34:30,960 --> 00:34:31,960
Nothing stopped her.

661
00:34:31,960 --> 00:34:32,960
She was so quick.

662
00:34:32,960 --> 00:34:38,400
So I was like, let me just not hunt her for a little while and let her skin kind of clear

663
00:34:38,400 --> 00:34:40,720
up and take some time.

664
00:34:40,720 --> 00:34:41,720
So that's what I did.

665
00:34:41,720 --> 00:34:44,080
And you know, she seemed OK.

666
00:34:44,080 --> 00:34:50,080
But you know, she wasn't all there, I guess.

667
00:34:50,080 --> 00:34:53,440
After that, I started noticing hair loss on the back of her neck.

668
00:34:53,440 --> 00:34:58,080
This had been over a year now of, you know, kind of struggling with skin issues and, you

669
00:34:58,080 --> 00:35:01,040
know, people telling me, oh, it's just, you know, a little skin infection.

670
00:35:01,040 --> 00:35:02,040
She's fine.

671
00:35:02,040 --> 00:35:05,920
So when I started seeing hair loss on her neck, I panicked.

672
00:35:05,920 --> 00:35:07,920
I was like, what is this?

673
00:35:07,920 --> 00:35:12,280
So I took her back to the doctor and I'm like, something's really wrong.

674
00:35:12,280 --> 00:35:16,160
And he's like, well, let's put her on flea medication because you don't have her on any.

675
00:35:16,160 --> 00:35:17,760
And I was like, this is not flea.

676
00:35:17,760 --> 00:35:18,760
She's a white dog.

677
00:35:18,760 --> 00:35:23,080
You know, this is before I was a vet tech, you know, before I knew a lot more than I

678
00:35:23,080 --> 00:35:26,160
know now.

679
00:35:26,160 --> 00:35:30,040
And he just kept saying, well, you know, we got to go down a checklist, you know, so I

680
00:35:30,040 --> 00:35:31,040
can't just jump to conclusion.

681
00:35:31,040 --> 00:35:35,640
I said, well, you know, a lot of her symptoms kind of sound like Cushing's and he's like,

682
00:35:35,640 --> 00:35:36,640
she's only five years old.

683
00:35:36,640 --> 00:35:38,600
He's like, she doesn't fit the bill.

684
00:35:38,600 --> 00:35:40,960
I was like, OK, you know.

685
00:35:40,960 --> 00:35:43,720
And so he was like, I'm going to send you to a specialist.

686
00:35:43,720 --> 00:35:45,640
And I was like, OK.

687
00:35:45,640 --> 00:35:50,520
So he sent me to a specialist who was like, well, I can't really do much for you.

688
00:35:50,520 --> 00:35:53,520
You know, I can run blood work, but they've already ran it and a lot of it looks normal.

689
00:35:53,520 --> 00:35:54,880
I was like, OK.

690
00:35:54,880 --> 00:35:57,680
So she sent me to an endocrinologist.

691
00:35:57,680 --> 00:36:00,000
And as soon as he walked in, he said, I don't need to test her.

692
00:36:00,000 --> 00:36:01,520
This is Cushing's.

693
00:36:01,520 --> 00:36:02,760
And I was like, I know that.

694
00:36:02,760 --> 00:36:05,720
But it took me going through all of you to tell me this.

695
00:36:05,720 --> 00:36:08,600
So my vet would take me seriously.

696
00:36:08,600 --> 00:36:12,800
So when I had called my vet and said the man just walked in and told me it was Cushing's,

697
00:36:12,800 --> 00:36:13,800
he didn't even need to test her.

698
00:36:13,800 --> 00:36:15,600
I was like, so I need you to test her.

699
00:36:15,600 --> 00:36:17,160
And he's like, I'll do it for free.

700
00:36:17,160 --> 00:36:18,240
Like, I'm really sorry.

701
00:36:18,240 --> 00:36:22,440
Like, I just didn't think this could be that, you know, at that point, she had started to

702
00:36:22,440 --> 00:36:26,160
kind of get a potbelly, her fur was really brittle.

703
00:36:26,160 --> 00:36:30,880
It was like when you kind of ran your hand across her, some of it would just fall out.

704
00:36:30,880 --> 00:36:34,320
I mean, it wasn't her shiny, beautiful coat like it used to be.

705
00:36:34,320 --> 00:36:38,760
It was I was literally seeing my whole world with her way in front of me.

706
00:36:38,760 --> 00:36:41,960
You know, to me, Rosie was everything.

707
00:36:41,960 --> 00:36:43,200
Rosie was my life.

708
00:36:43,200 --> 00:36:44,920
She was the air I breathe.

709
00:36:44,920 --> 00:36:46,160
I mean, everything.

710
00:36:46,160 --> 00:36:48,320
She was what made my heart beat.

711
00:36:48,320 --> 00:36:52,800
You know, I relied on this dog for everything.

712
00:36:52,800 --> 00:36:58,300
I went through, you know, a lot of stuff, you know, in high school and then in college.

713
00:36:58,300 --> 00:37:00,480
So she was just kind of like my lifeline.

714
00:37:00,480 --> 00:37:02,640
So I was panicked.

715
00:37:02,640 --> 00:37:08,120
I was panicked that, you know, what am I going to do without Rosie?

716
00:37:08,120 --> 00:37:12,520
So he was like, let's start her on some medication, you know, pushing disease.

717
00:37:12,520 --> 00:37:15,160
Unfortunately, you know, it's kind of a trial and error with medication.

718
00:37:15,160 --> 00:37:16,680
You got to keep adjusting it.

719
00:37:16,680 --> 00:37:20,000
Yeah, so can you explain to listeners real quick just what Cushing's is?

720
00:37:20,000 --> 00:37:21,000
Yeah.

721
00:37:21,000 --> 00:37:24,800
So Cushing's is an autoimmune disease and there's two different types.

722
00:37:24,800 --> 00:37:25,800
There's a tumor.

723
00:37:25,800 --> 00:37:32,000
It can either be on their pituitary gland or I believe there's one on their thyroid,

724
00:37:32,000 --> 00:37:34,000
from what I remember.

725
00:37:34,000 --> 00:37:35,000
Don't quote me on that.

726
00:37:35,000 --> 00:37:40,920
It's been a while since I've really kind of been through it and on it.

727
00:37:40,920 --> 00:37:46,200
But a lot of dogs, you don't find it till they're much older, like 10 plus years older.

728
00:37:46,200 --> 00:37:48,920
So it's very uncommon in young dogs.

729
00:37:48,920 --> 00:37:54,840
You know, symptoms can be hair loss, pot belly, excessive eating, excessive drinking, excessive

730
00:37:54,840 --> 00:38:01,320
urination because basically attacking that pituitary gland, they think they're always

731
00:38:01,320 --> 00:38:02,320
hungry.

732
00:38:02,320 --> 00:38:03,320
They think they're always thirsty.

733
00:38:03,320 --> 00:38:05,880
So they're overeating, over drinking.

734
00:38:05,880 --> 00:38:11,200
You know, the pot belly is, you know, a lot of inflammation in the body.

735
00:38:11,200 --> 00:38:15,960
And then the hair loss is from calcium buildup under their skin, which pushes all their hair

736
00:38:15,960 --> 00:38:17,480
out.

737
00:38:17,480 --> 00:38:24,720
So it was several months of different medications, different levels of medications.

738
00:38:24,720 --> 00:38:29,560
And I just looked at her and I was like, okay, we're done.

739
00:38:29,560 --> 00:38:31,120
This isn't working.

740
00:38:31,120 --> 00:38:37,080
I know what's what should have been helping her just seem to be doing nothing to help

741
00:38:37,080 --> 00:38:38,080
her.

742
00:38:38,080 --> 00:38:40,520
I mean, she just kept getting worse by the day.

743
00:38:40,520 --> 00:38:43,440
And I was like, I'm not going to do this to you anymore.

744
00:38:43,440 --> 00:38:45,520
So I took her off the medication.

745
00:38:45,520 --> 00:38:51,600
I was giving her CBD to keep her comfortable just because she her skin had gotten so thin

746
00:38:51,600 --> 00:38:55,560
that when she would sleep in the middle of night, her skin would break, literally just

747
00:38:55,560 --> 00:38:58,520
break wide open and she'd bleed.

748
00:38:58,520 --> 00:39:06,160
So you know, a lot of people and especially being a vet tech for a few years, you know,

749
00:39:06,160 --> 00:39:09,120
a lot of people have a hard time with saying goodbye.

750
00:39:09,120 --> 00:39:14,400
A lot of people drag their dog or their cats or horses or whatever, drag their lives out

751
00:39:14,400 --> 00:39:17,440
because they don't know how to let go.

752
00:39:17,440 --> 00:39:23,680
And I can't fault people for that because, you know, everyone grieves different.

753
00:39:23,680 --> 00:39:28,240
But to me, Rosie had given me every ounce of her.

754
00:39:28,240 --> 00:39:36,960
So who was I to let her suffer to help me like to, to like still be there for me?

755
00:39:36,960 --> 00:39:40,280
It just it wasn't an option to me anymore.

756
00:39:40,280 --> 00:39:45,000
So I told my mom I was going to bring Rosie out to Wyoming and I was going to make the

757
00:39:45,000 --> 00:39:47,400
appointment to have her euthanized.

758
00:39:47,400 --> 00:39:54,400
And just saying that word, it's just it sends chills down me because I mean, thinking about

759
00:39:54,400 --> 00:39:57,840
that, you know, everyone when they get a dog, they're like, you know, they're going to grow

760
00:39:57,840 --> 00:40:02,760
old, they're going to pass away in their sleep, you know, they're not going to know anything.

761
00:40:02,760 --> 00:40:07,680
It's going to be peaceful and though it'll hurt, I mean, they'll live a very long life.

762
00:40:07,680 --> 00:40:13,880
That's that's what the dream is to anyone who owns a dog, to any houndsman is their

763
00:40:13,880 --> 00:40:18,160
dog will, you know, go for one last hunt and then go to sleep and that'll be it.

764
00:40:18,160 --> 00:40:20,200
Like that's the dream.

765
00:40:20,200 --> 00:40:21,200
That truly is.

766
00:40:21,200 --> 00:40:29,040
But to me, I was looking at my dog who had just turned six years old and I had run out

767
00:40:29,040 --> 00:40:31,520
of time.

768
00:40:31,520 --> 00:40:38,360
So you know, where my family was looking at this beautiful dog that they had all fallen

769
00:40:38,360 --> 00:40:39,640
in love with.

770
00:40:39,640 --> 00:40:47,920
I was looking at a, you know, one of those, what are they called?

771
00:40:47,920 --> 00:40:50,240
Those like timers with the sand in them.

772
00:40:50,240 --> 00:40:51,240
Oh yeah.

773
00:40:51,240 --> 00:40:52,240
Gosh darn it.

774
00:40:52,240 --> 00:40:53,240
I know what you're talking about.

775
00:40:53,240 --> 00:40:57,040
You flip it over the sand comes through hourglass.

776
00:40:57,040 --> 00:40:58,040
Yeah.

777
00:40:58,040 --> 00:40:59,040
An hourglass.

778
00:40:59,040 --> 00:41:00,040
I was looking at an empty hourglass.

779
00:41:00,040 --> 00:41:01,040
That's what I saw.

780
00:41:01,040 --> 00:41:02,040
So I made the appointment.

781
00:41:02,040 --> 00:41:03,040
We took the drive.

782
00:41:03,040 --> 00:41:11,040
We went out to, you know, our favorite place in Wyoming.

783
00:41:11,040 --> 00:41:12,480
Rosie used to love to swim.

784
00:41:12,480 --> 00:41:13,800
I mean, the dog was a fish.

785
00:41:13,800 --> 00:41:17,080
It was the funniest thing to me.

786
00:41:17,080 --> 00:41:19,280
And Rosie wouldn't get in the water.

787
00:41:19,280 --> 00:41:23,240
And that's how I knew I was doing the right thing.

788
00:41:23,240 --> 00:41:26,460
That was my sign from her that I'm doing the right thing.

789
00:41:26,460 --> 00:41:32,400
So the drive home, you know, a 30 hour drive, you know, everyone's like, oh my gosh, that's

790
00:41:32,400 --> 00:41:33,400
a long drive.

791
00:41:33,400 --> 00:41:35,720
But to me it flew.

792
00:41:35,720 --> 00:41:36,720
It flew by.

793
00:41:36,720 --> 00:41:42,600
And I wish it was so much longer because I knew when we got home, I would only have another

794
00:41:42,600 --> 00:41:45,280
week or so left.

795
00:41:45,280 --> 00:41:52,000
So after that, I was actually euthanizing her at a place I was supposed to start work

796
00:41:52,000 --> 00:41:53,000
at.

797
00:41:53,000 --> 00:41:55,400
We walked in.

798
00:41:55,400 --> 00:41:57,800
I got guided to that room.

799
00:41:57,800 --> 00:42:01,800
My mom and brother and dad were there.

800
00:42:01,800 --> 00:42:03,760
Actually no, my dad didn't get to be there.

801
00:42:03,760 --> 00:42:08,840
Unfortunately, it was just my mom, brother and the one I was with, the man I was dating

802
00:42:08,840 --> 00:42:12,200
at the time.

803
00:42:12,200 --> 00:42:19,920
And the thing with Cushing's is you're told you're going to have to let go on a good day.

804
00:42:19,920 --> 00:42:23,040
Dogs with Cushing's will have good days and they'll have bad days, kind of like a cancer

805
00:42:23,040 --> 00:42:24,040
patient.

806
00:42:24,040 --> 00:42:26,440
You know, you're going to have good days and you're going to have bad days.

807
00:42:26,440 --> 00:42:30,160
So I had to say goodbye to Rosie on a good day.

808
00:42:30,160 --> 00:42:33,560
You know, she perked up when she saw she was at the vet.

809
00:42:33,560 --> 00:42:36,440
But to me, I'm like, you know, she's doing that because she's on alert.

810
00:42:36,440 --> 00:42:40,840
You know, she knows something's going on, which crushed me even harder.

811
00:42:40,840 --> 00:42:46,160
You know, Rosie was so smart and intuitive that I was like, she knows she's going to

812
00:42:46,160 --> 00:42:47,160
hate me.

813
00:42:47,160 --> 00:42:48,800
You know, I don't know what to do.

814
00:42:48,800 --> 00:42:55,720
And you know, I unclip her her lead for the last time in that hospital.

815
00:42:55,720 --> 00:42:59,400
And the last time was when that syringe was emptied.

816
00:42:59,400 --> 00:43:05,240
So it's like for the last six years, I was uncliping leads in the woods.

817
00:43:05,240 --> 00:43:08,840
But the last unclip was letting her go to heaven.

818
00:43:08,840 --> 00:43:16,040
It was like our final goodbye, our final release of each other.

819
00:43:16,040 --> 00:43:18,920
And when she stopped breathing, so did I.

820
00:43:18,920 --> 00:43:25,080
You know, my my heart stopped for a minute and my whole world had ended.

821
00:43:25,080 --> 00:43:28,960
And I had to learn how to be Lauren without Rosie.

822
00:43:28,960 --> 00:43:30,680
And it took a very long time.

823
00:43:30,680 --> 00:43:35,560
And some days I still don't know how to be Lauren without Rosie.

824
00:43:35,560 --> 00:43:42,920
I have to remind myself on the anniversary of her death that I can get out of bed, that

825
00:43:42,920 --> 00:43:45,680
I can, you know, I can breathe in and out.

826
00:43:45,680 --> 00:43:48,160
It's OK.

827
00:43:48,160 --> 00:43:52,520
So Rosie will always be, you know, my heart in the sky.

828
00:43:52,520 --> 00:43:56,120
You know, when I coon hunt, I still listen for her.

829
00:43:56,120 --> 00:44:01,120
I still listen for that dog that can literally drown out the world around me.

830
00:44:01,120 --> 00:44:06,480
So, yeah, I think that's what we're all looking for.

831
00:44:06,480 --> 00:44:11,560
We're all looking for that that one piece that just makes sense.

832
00:44:11,560 --> 00:44:16,400
And I kind of resonate quite a bit more than what you would think.

833
00:44:16,400 --> 00:44:20,600
I'm actually wasn't a hunting dog for everybody that knows me.

834
00:44:20,600 --> 00:44:23,120
All I all I've ever been is a coon hunter.

835
00:44:23,120 --> 00:44:30,880
Mine was I had this lab overseas that we turned into a bomb dog and her name was Bonnie.

836
00:44:30,880 --> 00:44:39,580
And we me and her found or confirmed one hundred and nineteen IEDs in our deployments.

837
00:44:39,580 --> 00:44:49,640
So just how many how many lives she saved, you know, and then just every time I'd come

838
00:44:49,640 --> 00:44:56,480
back, you know, if I had a rough, you know, a rough patrol or whatever, one thing was

839
00:44:56,480 --> 00:44:57,760
constant.

840
00:44:57,760 --> 00:45:03,520
She knew when something was up and she'd always sleep at the end of my bed.

841
00:45:03,520 --> 00:45:08,520
But when something was up and she knew something was wrong, she'd be right there to be my pillow.

842
00:45:08,520 --> 00:45:15,840
And so just hearing you tell that story really hits home with me.

843
00:45:15,840 --> 00:45:18,560
Yeah, I, you know, I agree.

844
00:45:18,560 --> 00:45:22,240
And I'm kind of in a different situation than both of you guys, because, you know, I'm actually

845
00:45:22,240 --> 00:45:26,920
sitting here looking at my dog right now that I feel that way with, you know, I got I got

846
00:45:26,920 --> 00:45:28,440
Nova laying right here.

847
00:45:28,440 --> 00:45:30,680
She lays right next to me every time we do a podcast.

848
00:45:30,680 --> 00:45:33,720
And, you know, I was there the day that she was bred.

849
00:45:33,720 --> 00:45:38,200
You know, I've literally been with this dog before she even knew she was a dog.

850
00:45:38,200 --> 00:45:42,120
And it has been a wild six years.

851
00:45:42,120 --> 00:45:46,800
This dog has been with me through a bunch of crap and through a bunch of really good

852
00:45:46,800 --> 00:45:47,800
times.

853
00:45:47,800 --> 00:45:51,000
And, you know, Nikki, my fiance, she she jokes with me now.

854
00:45:51,000 --> 00:45:53,000
She's like, hey, you've kind of lost your dog.

855
00:45:53,000 --> 00:45:58,060
She's like, that's Colton's dog now, you know, because she likes to have her own kid.

856
00:45:58,060 --> 00:46:00,800
She used to have you and now she's got her own kid.

857
00:46:00,800 --> 00:46:04,400
And you know, anywhere Colton goes, that's where she that's where she goes 90% of the

858
00:46:04,400 --> 00:46:05,400
time.

859
00:46:05,400 --> 00:46:09,200
So, you know, she's six now and she's starting to show a little gray in the face.

860
00:46:09,200 --> 00:46:10,880
She still gets gets around pretty good.

861
00:46:10,880 --> 00:46:14,760
But I know one day that, you know, that's going to come and, you know, just hearing

862
00:46:14,760 --> 00:46:18,320
that you lost your dog at six years old, it makes me very grateful for the time that I've

863
00:46:18,320 --> 00:46:19,320
had with this one.

864
00:46:19,320 --> 00:46:24,520
You know, obviously, I'm a coon hunter and I like every dog that I have to have a job.

865
00:46:24,520 --> 00:46:27,720
I really enjoy a working dog.

866
00:46:27,720 --> 00:46:31,340
And this is probably gonna be the last dog that I have that doesn't have a job.

867
00:46:31,340 --> 00:46:34,440
But I feel like, you know, I she's been with me through everything and I owe it to her

868
00:46:34,440 --> 00:46:38,440
just to see it out for her to have a have a good rest of her life because she doesn't

869
00:46:38,440 --> 00:46:39,440
have a job.

870
00:46:39,440 --> 00:46:43,840
You know, she's my buddy, but she's been there with me through it all.

871
00:46:43,840 --> 00:46:49,120
So I understand it's the my thing.

872
00:46:49,120 --> 00:46:54,760
My thing on that is I think there was two dogs that kind of rented for me and having

873
00:46:54,760 --> 00:46:56,160
a dog that doesn't work.

874
00:46:56,160 --> 00:47:01,720
And that was well, I say that because Bonnie worked definitely.

875
00:47:01,720 --> 00:47:07,920
But that attachment, Bryce knows that if I train a dog, it's only in my kennel for so

876
00:47:07,920 --> 00:47:10,000
long and it's gone.

877
00:47:10,000 --> 00:47:15,480
And I think that's because I refuse to get attached anymore because it because of the

878
00:47:15,480 --> 00:47:17,120
pain of losing.

879
00:47:17,120 --> 00:47:21,280
You know, I had this other one whenever I was in the Marine Corps and I was stationed

880
00:47:21,280 --> 00:47:23,480
at Camp Lejeune, I had this pit bull.

881
00:47:23,480 --> 00:47:24,480
Beautiful.

882
00:47:24,480 --> 00:47:25,920
His name was Tank.

883
00:47:25,920 --> 00:47:30,640
He was a white red nose, white face pit bull.

884
00:47:30,640 --> 00:47:35,480
And I mean, just he hung on the balance of my breathing.

885
00:47:35,480 --> 00:47:38,600
I mean, if I wasn't home, he wouldn't eat.

886
00:47:38,600 --> 00:47:43,500
He would sit at the door and wine until I came home.

887
00:47:43,500 --> 00:47:49,200
So it's just because of that attachment and then ended up losing them.

888
00:47:49,200 --> 00:47:54,960
It's just it's it's a feeling like you can never describe.

889
00:47:54,960 --> 00:48:02,160
And so I think the worst feeling for me was is with Bonnie is when we came off that tarmac,

890
00:48:02,160 --> 00:48:09,080
you know, when we came off that that airplane and because she was owned by the Marine Corps

891
00:48:09,080 --> 00:48:14,080
and I had to turn her back in because she was a piece of gear, that was probably the

892
00:48:14,080 --> 00:48:22,200
hardest thing I've ever done in my life.

893
00:48:22,200 --> 00:48:26,880
Semperdorgan and Hometown Hero Outdoors are proud to partner together to bring you the

894
00:48:26,880 --> 00:48:30,360
Hometown Hero Outdoors Hero of the Week.

895
00:48:30,360 --> 00:48:32,800
This week's hero is Kane Brown.

896
00:48:32,800 --> 00:48:37,600
Kane is the MK3 in the United States Coast Guard approaching his fourth year.

897
00:48:37,600 --> 00:48:42,560
Kane is currently working on the steelhead off the coast of Fort Macon in North Carolina.

898
00:48:42,560 --> 00:48:48,160
The 86 is a patrol boat helping keep safe our coastal lines of illegal exports, reckless

899
00:48:48,160 --> 00:48:51,840
boaters as well as assisting in rescues and recoveries.

900
00:48:51,840 --> 00:48:56,280
Brown's job aboard the steelhead is machinery technician, making sure the engines and machinery

901
00:48:56,280 --> 00:49:00,080
are always running smoothly for every trip, no matter the distance.

902
00:49:00,080 --> 00:49:04,920
Though not his first boat, Kane started on the Ski-O-Do outside of Keokuk, Iowa, which

903
00:49:04,920 --> 00:49:07,720
was a river tender along the Mississippi.

904
00:49:07,720 --> 00:49:11,040
His late uncle Vince was his biggest inspiration into entering the Coast Guard.

905
00:49:11,040 --> 00:49:13,960
He was a strong Marine, father and husband.

906
00:49:13,960 --> 00:49:18,220
Kane, from Semperdorgan and Hometown Hero Outdoors, we would like to say thank you for

907
00:49:18,220 --> 00:49:20,320
serving and protecting your community.

908
00:49:20,320 --> 00:49:24,360
Listeners, remember, if you have a hero of your own that you would like to recognize,

909
00:49:24,360 --> 00:49:28,960
please send their name in a brief description to semperdorgan at gmail.com and we will be

910
00:49:28,960 --> 00:49:30,680
glad to recognize them.

911
00:49:30,680 --> 00:49:36,760
If you would like more information on Hometown Hero Outdoors, be sure to visit them at hometownherooutdoors.org

912
00:49:36,760 --> 00:49:39,640
or follow them on Facebook.

913
00:49:39,640 --> 00:49:51,200
So were you not able to try to get her back or have her retire with you?

914
00:49:51,200 --> 00:49:54,000
No, Bonnie went on.

915
00:49:54,000 --> 00:50:01,160
Bonnie got moved over to another handler and did two or three more deployments and then

916
00:50:01,160 --> 00:50:08,440
we won't go into all the details because this is more your podcast, but Bonnie ended up

917
00:50:08,440 --> 00:50:15,120
actually perishing in Afghanistan.

918
00:50:15,120 --> 00:50:24,260
I try to remember the fond memories and the things that made her, my heart, my soul, my

919
00:50:24,260 --> 00:50:26,280
calm during deployments.

920
00:50:26,280 --> 00:50:27,280
Yeah.

921
00:50:27,280 --> 00:50:28,640
Well, all right.

922
00:50:28,640 --> 00:50:31,000
Well this is getting a little sad.

923
00:50:31,000 --> 00:50:33,360
It's pulling on my heartstrings.

924
00:50:33,360 --> 00:50:36,120
It's really touching the one feeling I've got left.

925
00:50:36,120 --> 00:50:42,960
You know, Lauren, during all this time, but during all this time with Rosie, you know,

926
00:50:42,960 --> 00:50:45,200
you had, you had other dogs as well.

927
00:50:45,200 --> 00:50:47,800
And one of those dogs you've still got right now and that's Faith.

928
00:50:47,800 --> 00:50:48,800
So walk, walkers.

929
00:50:48,800 --> 00:50:49,800
Oh, look at her.

930
00:50:49,800 --> 00:50:51,560
See, she's laying right next to you.

931
00:50:51,560 --> 00:50:56,720
Like, she's like, no, walk us through your journey with faith because it didn't start

932
00:50:56,720 --> 00:50:58,040
after Rosie passed.

933
00:50:58,040 --> 00:51:01,180
You know, you, you've had Rosie or had faith, you know, while you had Rosie.

934
00:51:01,180 --> 00:51:05,280
So walk us through that and just give us a little bit of where she's at now, what she's

935
00:51:05,280 --> 00:51:09,200
doing for you and where you see her going here in the next few years.

936
00:51:09,200 --> 00:51:10,200
Yeah.

937
00:51:10,200 --> 00:51:18,800
So I got faith, I believe it was two years before Rosie passed away.

938
00:51:18,800 --> 00:51:23,200
Yeah, two years before Rosie passed away.

939
00:51:23,200 --> 00:51:26,880
But I had a dog named Maggie to my plot hound.

940
00:51:26,880 --> 00:51:33,120
So I was out of college once I got faith.

941
00:51:33,120 --> 00:51:37,280
And I didn't it's like it was more of me just like wanting another dog, you know, wanting

942
00:51:37,280 --> 00:51:40,480
to train another coon dog.

943
00:51:40,480 --> 00:51:43,920
You know, I knew I wanted Rosie to train another dog for me.

944
00:51:43,920 --> 00:51:45,400
That was kind of my thing.

945
00:51:45,400 --> 00:51:49,240
I didn't have any like, you know, big plans for faith.

946
00:51:49,240 --> 00:51:53,840
You know, it's just kind of I just rolled with it.

947
00:51:53,840 --> 00:51:58,720
But then once Rosie got sick, you know, I kind of pushed my other two dogs off to the

948
00:51:58,720 --> 00:51:59,720
side.

949
00:51:59,720 --> 00:52:01,960
You know, my focus was on Rosie.

950
00:52:01,960 --> 00:52:03,360
Because that was it.

951
00:52:03,360 --> 00:52:06,560
And my other two dogs honestly didn't care.

952
00:52:06,560 --> 00:52:09,360
Like it didn't seem to face them.

953
00:52:09,360 --> 00:52:11,560
When faith was a puppy.

954
00:52:11,560 --> 00:52:13,520
That's when Rosie and I went out to Wyoming together.

955
00:52:13,520 --> 00:52:20,960
I believe faith was four months when I like gave her to Cody to watch while I was in Wyoming,

956
00:52:20,960 --> 00:52:22,960
which was the girl who gave her to me.

957
00:52:22,960 --> 00:52:28,400
And then when I got back several months later, because I got to a bad horse accident and

958
00:52:28,400 --> 00:52:34,480
I had to my dad had actually come get me and bring me home with my truck.

959
00:52:34,480 --> 00:52:40,040
When I walked in to go get faith, it was like faith's whole world lit back up.

960
00:52:40,040 --> 00:52:45,380
I mean, I couldn't believe that this dog missed me the way she did when I didn't really feel

961
00:52:45,380 --> 00:52:47,480
bonded to this dog at all.

962
00:52:47,480 --> 00:52:52,200
And that was the first sign of like, I think this is going to be a really big thing, her

963
00:52:52,200 --> 00:52:53,200
and I.

964
00:52:53,200 --> 00:53:00,200
And then as you know, Rosie got sick and then once Rosie passed away, faith did not leave

965
00:53:00,200 --> 00:53:01,200
my side.

966
00:53:01,200 --> 00:53:02,200
Not once.

967
00:53:02,200 --> 00:53:06,600
I mean, it was just she turned into a piece of Velcro.

968
00:53:06,600 --> 00:53:10,720
And you know, I didn't like really notice it or really pay attention to it for a while.

969
00:53:10,720 --> 00:53:15,280
It's just my mind is still fixated on Rosie and losing Rosie.

970
00:53:15,280 --> 00:53:17,480
And at one point, I wanted to get rid of my dogs.

971
00:53:17,480 --> 00:53:18,480
I want to get rid of faith.

972
00:53:18,480 --> 00:53:19,600
I wanted to get rid of Maggie.

973
00:53:19,600 --> 00:53:21,120
I didn't want another dog.

974
00:53:21,120 --> 00:53:22,120
I said, I am done.

975
00:53:22,120 --> 00:53:23,760
I'm done coon hunting.

976
00:53:23,760 --> 00:53:25,240
This is not a life I want anymore.

977
00:53:25,240 --> 00:53:27,440
I don't want it if I can't have Rosie.

978
00:53:27,440 --> 00:53:29,200
Like this is it.

979
00:53:29,200 --> 00:53:32,900
And my mom was actually the one that was like, this is who you are, though.

980
00:53:32,900 --> 00:53:38,200
You can't give up on who you are because you're sad right now.

981
00:53:38,200 --> 00:53:41,320
And I'm so thankful.

982
00:53:41,320 --> 00:53:47,320
I mean, my mom has saved me in that way a million times over.

983
00:53:47,320 --> 00:53:52,440
But my mom's the one that kind of helped pick me up and say, this is who you are.

984
00:53:52,440 --> 00:53:54,640
These dogs are who you are.

985
00:53:54,640 --> 00:54:00,000
And so a month and a half after that, Faith and I hit the woods for the first time since

986
00:54:00,000 --> 00:54:02,440
I lost Rosie.

987
00:54:02,440 --> 00:54:05,680
And it didn't it didn't feel right to me.

988
00:54:05,680 --> 00:54:07,040
But I kept walking.

989
00:54:07,040 --> 00:54:09,040
I kept chasing faith.

990
00:54:09,040 --> 00:54:13,080
And I know I'm saying your name.

991
00:54:13,080 --> 00:54:17,120
And so that's literally you were chasing faith.

992
00:54:17,120 --> 00:54:18,120
And I was.

993
00:54:18,120 --> 00:54:23,920
And so and it's funny that her name is Faith, you know, for the reason being a lot of her

994
00:54:23,920 --> 00:54:25,600
all of her family, pretty much.

995
00:54:25,600 --> 00:54:28,200
They're all named from pieces of the church.

996
00:54:28,200 --> 00:54:32,840
And so when I gave Faith her name at the time, I didn't realize how much she would live up

997
00:54:32,840 --> 00:54:33,840
to her name.

998
00:54:33,840 --> 00:54:38,360
I mean, this dog pulled me out of the ashes completely.

999
00:54:38,360 --> 00:54:44,040
She brought me back to a world I had once known as the light of my life.

1000
00:54:44,040 --> 00:54:50,920
And she just has guided me ever since, you know, and then when I found out I was pregnant

1001
00:54:50,920 --> 00:54:55,120
with my daughter, I ended up having to move back home.

1002
00:54:55,120 --> 00:55:00,000
You know, I was a single mom and Faith was the first to greet me at that door.

1003
00:55:00,000 --> 00:55:01,720
I mean, she was so excited.

1004
00:55:01,720 --> 00:55:06,280
You know, we hadn't been apart longer than a day, you know, ever since that one time

1005
00:55:06,280 --> 00:55:08,280
when she was a puppy in Wyoming.

1006
00:55:08,280 --> 00:55:14,000
So when I was gone for almost three days, I mean, the dog bout had a heart attack.

1007
00:55:14,000 --> 00:55:17,840
So we walked in, that baby became Faith's.

1008
00:55:17,840 --> 00:55:19,180
We were her responsibility.

1009
00:55:19,180 --> 00:55:21,620
She didn't let any of the other dogs come in the room.

1010
00:55:21,620 --> 00:55:23,560
She went after every dog in the house.

1011
00:55:23,560 --> 00:55:28,800
We had six dogs in the house at that point, and she would go after everyone.

1012
00:55:28,800 --> 00:55:32,020
I mean, we were her responsibility.

1013
00:55:32,020 --> 00:55:35,000
She didn't want anything to happen to us.

1014
00:55:35,000 --> 00:55:36,560
And the same goes for my son.

1015
00:55:36,560 --> 00:55:40,800
You know, when I got back, you know, I had surgery with both my kids to have them and

1016
00:55:40,800 --> 00:55:43,140
Faith felt bad.

1017
00:55:43,140 --> 00:55:47,720
You know, she felt every bit of my hurt and took it onto hers.

1018
00:55:47,720 --> 00:55:49,640
You know, she guided, guarded my bed.

1019
00:55:49,640 --> 00:55:51,800
She guarded my kids, their cribs.

1020
00:55:51,800 --> 00:55:57,840
I mean, and still she does not leave me alone.

1021
00:55:57,840 --> 00:56:03,020
She's just, she's completely taken on the role that Rosie once carried.

1022
00:56:03,020 --> 00:56:06,320
You know, she's not Rosie, but she's Faith.

1023
00:56:06,320 --> 00:56:09,040
And she's the Faith I need every day.

1024
00:56:09,040 --> 00:56:13,720
She's my constant reminder of, you know, it's okay to have a bad day, but you just, you

1025
00:56:13,720 --> 00:56:14,720
got to have Faith.

1026
00:56:14,720 --> 00:56:16,480
You got to have Faith that's going to be okay.

1027
00:56:16,480 --> 00:56:19,840
You got to have Faith that tomorrow's going to be better.

1028
00:56:19,840 --> 00:56:23,160
You know, you know, when you have a bad hunt, you just got to have Faith that the next time

1029
00:56:23,160 --> 00:56:25,760
you turn loose, it's going to be a great one.

1030
00:56:25,760 --> 00:56:35,600
So Faith is just everything I needed in my next dog, a dog that I didn't want after Rosie,

1031
00:56:35,600 --> 00:56:39,760
but I'm so glad, you know, I kept.

1032
00:56:39,760 --> 00:56:41,120
Yeah, absolutely.

1033
00:56:41,120 --> 00:56:44,440
You know, and one thing that really stuck out to me in the last, I don't know, few months

1034
00:56:44,440 --> 00:56:48,880
or so was the pictures that you've posted, like the newborn pictures, and they all included

1035
00:56:48,880 --> 00:56:52,360
Faith in your baby, you know, curled up together.

1036
00:56:52,360 --> 00:56:53,360
Yep.

1037
00:56:53,360 --> 00:56:57,320
Faith will let you literally do, my kids do anything to her.

1038
00:56:57,320 --> 00:57:02,880
And you know, I put my newborn son on her, literally only seven days old, and we had

1039
00:57:02,880 --> 00:57:08,040
him wrapped up and put on Faith on the couch and she stood very still because she was like,

1040
00:57:08,040 --> 00:57:10,520
if I move, I'm going to be in trouble.

1041
00:57:10,520 --> 00:57:12,200
This baby's going to be hurt.

1042
00:57:12,200 --> 00:57:14,000
I mean, she's so smart.

1043
00:57:14,000 --> 00:57:18,000
She's so good and she loves my kids, loves my kids.

1044
00:57:18,000 --> 00:57:19,000
Yeah.

1045
00:57:19,000 --> 00:57:20,000
How old is Faith now?

1046
00:57:20,000 --> 00:57:22,160
Faith will be six this year.

1047
00:57:22,160 --> 00:57:23,160
She'll be six.

1048
00:57:23,160 --> 00:57:25,400
And are you still actively hunting her?

1049
00:57:25,400 --> 00:57:26,400
I am.

1050
00:57:26,400 --> 00:57:27,400
Unfortunately.

1051
00:57:27,400 --> 00:57:32,280
So where I'm at, I am in the Cotone National Forest on the east.

1052
00:57:32,280 --> 00:57:35,960
I'm in where a lot of the big bear are, all that stuff.

1053
00:57:35,960 --> 00:57:42,200
But where I'm at, I mean, literally I'm in the middle of this forest.

1054
00:57:42,200 --> 00:57:46,320
But because there's so many freaking walking trails, you're not allowed to hunt within

1055
00:57:46,320 --> 00:57:48,600
200 yards of a trail.

1056
00:57:48,600 --> 00:57:50,080
That's the law.

1057
00:57:50,080 --> 00:57:56,480
So if my dog were to come tree close to a trail, whatever, I can't do anything about

1058
00:57:56,480 --> 00:57:57,480
it.

1059
00:57:57,480 --> 00:58:01,600
I'm not technically supposed to have a gun near it, nothing.

1060
00:58:01,600 --> 00:58:05,640
And that's what a forest ranger had told me.

1061
00:58:05,640 --> 00:58:09,440
And I'm going to tell you what, my face I was giving him was probably not the nicest.

1062
00:58:09,440 --> 00:58:13,760
But when I told him, I'm like, OK, but I'm hunting at night.

1063
00:58:13,760 --> 00:58:16,400
And he's like, yeah, but there could be people nearby.

1064
00:58:16,400 --> 00:58:18,520
I said, in the middle of the night?

1065
00:58:18,520 --> 00:58:19,520
I was like, what are they doing there?

1066
00:58:19,520 --> 00:58:20,520
I said, I'm just there to hunt.

1067
00:58:20,520 --> 00:58:25,040
I said, if they're there, that's probably not for a good reason.

1068
00:58:25,040 --> 00:58:27,480
And he's like, well, you just can't do it.

1069
00:58:27,480 --> 00:58:29,880
And I was like, OK.

1070
00:58:29,880 --> 00:58:35,520
And also, where I'm at, there's a lot of private land and a lot of big hunting leases.

1071
00:58:35,520 --> 00:58:43,080
I mean, where I am living is in the middle of like deer doggers universe.

1072
00:58:43,080 --> 00:58:48,160
Literally every like, literally every few cars, there's a dog box.

1073
00:58:48,160 --> 00:58:49,560
There's a high rise dog box.

1074
00:58:49,560 --> 00:58:51,360
There's a deer doggers.

1075
00:58:51,360 --> 00:58:54,680
During deer season, my road was loaded with them.

1076
00:58:54,680 --> 00:58:55,680
Yeah.

1077
00:58:55,680 --> 00:58:56,680
Loaded with them.

1078
00:58:56,680 --> 00:58:57,680
I love to see that.

1079
00:58:57,680 --> 00:59:04,000
I said I grew up doing I love to hear that it is still strong in North Carolina.

1080
00:59:04,000 --> 00:59:05,000
It's huge.

1081
00:59:05,000 --> 00:59:08,320
I could I can't believe how big it is here.

1082
00:59:08,320 --> 00:59:12,160
But it makes me like so happy to see all these dog boxes, because I don't know if you all

1083
00:59:12,160 --> 00:59:13,160
do it.

1084
00:59:13,160 --> 00:59:16,160
But like when I go out of state and I see a dog box, I'm like, oh, those are my people.

1085
00:59:16,160 --> 00:59:17,160
I'm like dog box.

1086
00:59:17,160 --> 00:59:18,160
Those are my people.

1087
00:59:18,160 --> 00:59:20,520
And then I wonder if they see that I have a dog box.

1088
00:59:20,520 --> 00:59:22,200
I wonder if they're like, oh, look at that one.

1089
00:59:22,200 --> 00:59:25,080
It's like you pull up next to him on the highway and you kind of just like look at each other.

1090
00:59:25,080 --> 00:59:26,720
You're like, it's almost like the Jeep wave.

1091
00:59:26,720 --> 00:59:29,920
You know, it's like, hey, it is the best thing.

1092
00:59:29,920 --> 00:59:31,600
You're like, OK, there's a little piece of home.

1093
00:59:31,600 --> 00:59:32,600
There's a dog box.

1094
00:59:32,600 --> 00:59:33,600
Yeah.

1095
00:59:33,600 --> 00:59:34,600
So yeah.

1096
00:59:34,600 --> 00:59:36,640
Now, just just a little thing on that.

1097
00:59:36,640 --> 00:59:41,280
So obviously, I was in the Marine Corps, so I was out in eastern North Carolina.

1098
00:59:41,280 --> 00:59:47,280
And a good thing about a lot of those hunting leases, if you'll go to their actual monthly

1099
00:59:47,280 --> 00:59:54,360
meetings that they have or find out who host it, a lot of times those guys will grant open

1100
00:59:54,360 --> 01:00:00,000
arms for you to go in there and kill some of the Coons because they have bait piles

1101
01:00:00,000 --> 01:00:03,120
and them Coons tear it up.

1102
01:00:03,120 --> 01:00:10,400
I got quite a few buddies that live in eastern North Carolina, and they've they've got major

1103
01:00:10,400 --> 01:00:14,720
hunting lease opportunities because of that.

1104
01:00:14,720 --> 01:00:15,960
Oh, my gosh.

1105
01:00:15,960 --> 01:00:17,360
See, I didn't know that.

1106
01:00:17,360 --> 01:00:20,960
I just thought, you know, if I if I go and ask these people, they're going to be like,

1107
01:00:20,960 --> 01:00:23,480
well, here's our, you know, yearly fee.

1108
01:00:23,480 --> 01:00:27,960
And the yearly fees for these hunting clubs are just.

1109
01:00:27,960 --> 01:00:29,960
I'm like, there's no way.

1110
01:00:29,960 --> 01:00:35,800
You know, you just go to them and basically just tell them, hey, I'm only here to come

1111
01:00:35,800 --> 01:00:36,800
hunt.

1112
01:00:36,800 --> 01:00:37,800
I don't want to deer hunt.

1113
01:00:37,800 --> 01:00:41,680
Yeah, I'll abide by your hunting laws or whatever.

1114
01:00:41,680 --> 01:00:46,480
I just want to during your off season, I just want to be able to come in here and run dogs.

1115
01:00:46,480 --> 01:00:51,880
And I've got plenty of friends in North Carolina, North Carolina that's got keys to all the

1116
01:00:51,880 --> 01:00:59,520
gates and I mean, they have massive amounts of hunting because they go to these deer leases

1117
01:00:59,520 --> 01:01:01,760
and they get permission to come hunt.

1118
01:01:01,760 --> 01:01:04,240
I should start leaving those on gates.

1119
01:01:04,240 --> 01:01:05,800
Yeah, absolutely.

1120
01:01:05,800 --> 01:01:11,280
Well, you know, welcome to Semper Doggin where we give free advice and talk about our dogs.

1121
01:01:11,280 --> 01:01:15,360
No, we don't give our hunting locations.

1122
01:01:15,360 --> 01:01:16,360
Correct.

1123
01:01:16,360 --> 01:01:19,320
Now, Lauren, this has been absolutely great.

1124
01:01:19,320 --> 01:01:20,840
This has been this has been fantastic.

1125
01:01:20,840 --> 01:01:25,760
You know, I really I really wanted to bring you on here just just to touch that part of

1126
01:01:25,760 --> 01:01:30,880
the houndsman that I am not as good as at articulating as what you have been over the

1127
01:01:30,880 --> 01:01:31,880
years.

1128
01:01:31,880 --> 01:01:35,760
Just, you know, reading your stuff on Facebook and and hearing the emotion that you've got,

1129
01:01:35,760 --> 01:01:39,080
it is so clear how much these dogs mean to you.

1130
01:01:39,080 --> 01:01:44,280
And that really embodies everything that we are at Semper Doggin.

1131
01:01:44,280 --> 01:01:46,760
Do you have anything that you would like to leave us with?

1132
01:01:46,760 --> 01:01:49,960
You got any you have a short story about faith?

1133
01:01:49,960 --> 01:01:50,960
I do.

1134
01:01:50,960 --> 01:01:53,280
I have one more little story to give you.

1135
01:01:53,280 --> 01:01:56,400
All right, guys, we're going to let Lauren give the story about faith and we're going

1136
01:01:56,400 --> 01:01:59,240
to we're going to wrap it up because I don't think Basham and I are going to be able to

1137
01:01:59,240 --> 01:02:00,240
top this.

1138
01:02:00,240 --> 01:02:01,240
I haven't heard it.

1139
01:02:01,240 --> 01:02:02,560
But after the first story, I don't think we're going to be able to top it.

1140
01:02:02,560 --> 01:02:05,120
So Lauren, take us out of here, guys.

1141
01:02:05,120 --> 01:02:07,760
I definitely don't think you'll top my first story.

1142
01:02:07,760 --> 01:02:12,200
But if you ever want to hear more stories, I'm actually writing a book full of them.

1143
01:02:12,200 --> 01:02:13,200
So perfect.

1144
01:02:13,200 --> 01:02:17,400
We're going to feature that on the Semper Doggin podcast.

1145
01:02:17,400 --> 01:02:24,560
We will definitely have a separate podcast just to advertise that book.

1146
01:02:24,560 --> 01:02:26,680
Oh, that'd be great.

1147
01:02:26,680 --> 01:02:32,500
OK, so my last one is growing up, you learn millions of things from speaking to reading

1148
01:02:32,500 --> 01:02:33,500
and writing.

1149
01:02:33,500 --> 01:02:37,160
Then there are other things like how to swing on a swing set or how to climb a ladder to

1150
01:02:37,160 --> 01:02:39,120
get to the top of a slide.

1151
01:02:39,120 --> 01:02:43,280
One thing you probably don't think of is when you learned what a shadow was for a while.

1152
01:02:43,280 --> 01:02:46,960
You probably didn't even notice the silent black figure that followed every time light

1153
01:02:46,960 --> 01:02:49,120
touched the earth below you.

1154
01:02:49,120 --> 01:02:52,480
Once you knew it wouldn't hurt you, it seemed to be forgotten about.

1155
01:02:52,480 --> 01:02:54,960
Then you grew up and your shadow no longer was quiet.

1156
01:02:54,960 --> 01:02:58,160
It had four beats, one after the other.

1157
01:02:58,160 --> 01:03:00,280
It followed even when there was no light.

1158
01:03:00,280 --> 01:03:03,480
It came inside and was there to catch your tears.

1159
01:03:03,480 --> 01:03:06,560
Your now once lifeless shadow was now made of flesh and blood.

1160
01:03:06,560 --> 01:03:11,000
A heart beat all its own and unfortunately a life clock ticking just like yours.

1161
01:03:11,000 --> 01:03:13,120
Only theirs is much shorter.

1162
01:03:13,120 --> 01:03:16,640
So one day you will have to say goodbye to your beloved shadow.

1163
01:03:16,640 --> 01:03:19,880
For now mine goes by Faith, though not my first.

1164
01:03:19,880 --> 01:03:24,240
She is one as beautiful as you could ever imagine.

1165
01:03:24,240 --> 01:03:28,960
She's quiet in hard times and guiding when the moon is up and the stars are out.

1166
01:03:28,960 --> 01:03:32,720
The thing about a hound is they were bred for the definition of hunting.

1167
01:03:32,720 --> 01:03:37,760
But what most read over is how the hunt may run through their veins, but it's the desire

1168
01:03:37,760 --> 01:03:40,600
to please their person that fuels so many.

1169
01:03:40,600 --> 01:03:44,800
It's the bond between man and dog that makes the hunt so amazing.

1170
01:03:44,800 --> 01:03:47,600
Faith has many traits that make her irreplaceable.

1171
01:03:47,600 --> 01:03:51,000
She has love so deep that it covers even my children.

1172
01:03:51,000 --> 01:03:54,920
The moment each of them were carried through the front door for the first time, she was

1173
01:03:54,920 --> 01:03:55,920
theirs.

1174
01:03:55,920 --> 01:04:00,360
When I had a hard day and felt so alone, she was my first reminder that such a word didn't

1175
01:04:00,360 --> 01:04:02,800
exist as long as I had her.

1176
01:04:02,800 --> 01:04:06,840
And on my best days, she was and always will be my biggest fan.

1177
01:04:06,840 --> 01:04:11,840
Both in and out of the woods, this shadow is a guiding light and one I wish selfishly

1178
01:04:11,840 --> 01:04:13,360
I could keep forever.

1179
01:04:13,360 --> 01:04:20,160
For now, I'll take every minute I have and thank God for another amazing shadow.

1180
01:04:20,160 --> 01:04:22,280
That is awesome.

1181
01:04:22,280 --> 01:04:26,920
Guys, I hope I hope that you guys have enjoyed this as much as I have.

1182
01:04:26,920 --> 01:04:31,280
This has been the most heartfelt episode that we have recorded here at Semper Doggen.

1183
01:04:31,280 --> 01:04:34,560
And it's really been one that's touched me and I know it's touched Basham and I hope

1184
01:04:34,560 --> 01:04:37,920
it's touched you guys too, because this embodies everything that we're about here at Semper

1185
01:04:37,920 --> 01:04:38,920
Doggen.

1186
01:04:38,920 --> 01:04:43,280
You know, we're always dog and so, Lauren, thank you so much for joining us.

1187
01:04:43,280 --> 01:04:46,680
Thank you for taking time out of your busy schedule to sit down, share a piece of your

1188
01:04:46,680 --> 01:04:50,560
story with us and to share a little bit of faith and a little bit of Rosie with the rest

1189
01:04:50,560 --> 01:04:51,560
of the world.

1190
01:04:51,560 --> 01:04:52,560
So thank you so much.

1191
01:04:52,560 --> 01:04:53,560
Yeah, thank you for having me.

1192
01:04:53,560 --> 01:04:54,560
I've really enjoyed it.

1193
01:04:54,560 --> 01:04:55,560
Yeah, absolutely.

1194
01:04:55,560 --> 01:05:00,120
So guys, whenever that book comes out, we're going to do another podcast on that book,

1195
01:05:00,120 --> 01:05:01,120
you can hold us to it.

1196
01:05:01,120 --> 01:05:03,800
You're going to hear it first here on Semper Doggen.

1197
01:05:03,800 --> 01:05:07,240
You know, we say it every episode, but we really appreciate each and every one of you

1198
01:05:07,240 --> 01:05:11,480
listeners who take the time out of your days to listen to our podcast because this is our

1199
01:05:11,480 --> 01:05:13,000
way of expressing stuff.

1200
01:05:13,000 --> 01:05:16,280
I'm not very good at putting words on the paper, but I can sit in front of a mic and

1201
01:05:16,280 --> 01:05:17,680
I can talk to people all day long.

1202
01:05:17,680 --> 01:05:21,200
So you know, I really appreciate you guys taking the time to listen to us.

1203
01:05:21,200 --> 01:05:23,360
Thank you for following us on this journey.

1204
01:05:23,360 --> 01:05:25,640
That's been Semper Doggen so far.

1205
01:05:25,640 --> 01:05:27,600
It's going to go great places and bash man.

1206
01:05:27,600 --> 01:05:28,960
I we've got a lot of things in the works.

1207
01:05:28,960 --> 01:05:35,280
We've got more guests lined up just like Lauren, who really embodies Semper Doggen and their

1208
01:05:35,280 --> 01:05:36,280
own way.

1209
01:05:36,280 --> 01:05:40,080
You know, maybe it's not just like Lauren, maybe it's not just like Basham or I, but

1210
01:05:40,080 --> 01:05:41,080
it's in their own way.

1211
01:05:41,080 --> 01:05:44,640
And we're here to bring those people to you guys and connect everybody together.

1212
01:05:44,640 --> 01:05:47,480
So I'm going to leave it with that.

1213
01:05:47,480 --> 01:05:48,480
You guys good?

1214
01:05:48,480 --> 01:05:49,480
I'm good.

1215
01:05:49,480 --> 01:05:50,480
Good.

1216
01:05:50,480 --> 01:05:53,760
Thank you very much for sharing.

1217
01:05:53,760 --> 01:05:55,800
It was definitely a delight.

1218
01:05:55,800 --> 01:05:56,800
Thank you.

1219
01:05:56,800 --> 01:05:57,800
All right, guys.

1220
01:05:57,800 --> 01:05:58,800
Well, we're out of here.

1221
01:05:58,800 --> 01:05:59,840
We'll catch you on the next episode.

1222
01:05:59,840 --> 01:06:09,020
So until then, guys, keep dogging.

1223
01:06:09,020 --> 01:06:13,800
We all know that canines can take us to some wild places, and some of those are only accessible

1224
01:06:13,800 --> 01:06:15,660
by an off-road vehicle.

1225
01:06:15,660 --> 01:06:19,800
No matter how hard you try to maintain your ride, something is bound to break on one of

1226
01:06:19,800 --> 01:06:20,800
your adventures.

1227
01:06:20,800 --> 01:06:25,040
When you find yourself looking for replacement parts or maybe even a few upgraded parts to

1228
01:06:25,040 --> 01:06:30,320
further try and prevent a breakdown, look no further than Never Satisfied Off-Road.

1229
01:06:30,320 --> 01:06:36,480
Joey Goforth is the proud new owner of Never Satisfied Off-Road and is ready to serve you.

1230
01:06:36,480 --> 01:06:41,280
Performance accessories such as lift kits, portals, tires, and more can all be found

1231
01:06:41,280 --> 01:06:43,760
at Never Satisfied Off-Road.

1232
01:06:43,760 --> 01:06:48,080
Located in Covington, Tennessee, the team at Never Satisfied Off-Road is ready to ship

1233
01:06:48,080 --> 01:06:52,520
parts and accessories for your ride anywhere in the country.

1234
01:06:52,520 --> 01:06:56,880
As their new website is currently being built, be sure to follow them on Facebook at Never

1235
01:06:56,880 --> 01:07:03,200
Satisfied Off-Road 23 to keep up to date on the hottest items and sales.

1236
01:07:03,200 --> 01:07:10,560
Give them a call at 731-693-9921 to place your order and get your ride ready to follow

1237
01:07:10,560 --> 01:07:12,800
your K9 wherever they may take you.

1238
01:07:12,800 --> 01:07:15,040
Are you ready for the best part though?

1239
01:07:15,040 --> 01:07:19,380
Mention that you heard this ad on the Simper Doggen Podcast and you will receive a Simper

1240
01:07:19,380 --> 01:07:33,920
Doggen approved listener discount.

