“I don’t see the desert as barren at all; I see it as ripe and full. It doesn’t need to be flattened with rain. It certainly needs rain, but it does with what it has and creates amazing beauty.” ~Joy Harjo
In the desert you can’t hide from yourself. Everything is opened and exposed, especially your soul; therein lies its beauty.
I took this photo a few years ago before all the land development began in earnest sadly, on another of my very soul revealing early morning walks.
God’s glory can be seen in every cloud, plant, creature!
This is nature in its raw form that is both beautiful to behold and to experience. I am so grateful for the time we’ve spent here before all the noise, building, and construction began happening which also has caused some loss of the natural ecosystem and wildlife. That said, I must also be candid enough to state that my own home was built here (not by us, but by previous owners) so we are part of both the loss but also the benefit of getting to experience this before all of this began in earnest.
I apologize for my tone sounding rather depressing when what I desire is to share the beauty of the desert.
So, I’ll put this in reverse to say that there is always an ebb and flow in everything in this world. The desert is not barren although during drought and winter it can appear as though it is. The desert is elegant, resourceful, and honest – with the circle of life evident all around you if you are looking and really observing.
While I’ve grown up and lived here in this area most of my life (with excursions into other states and countries), it wasn’t until I lived in the area we are now, that I began to fully appreciate all I’ve experienced and learned about the desert and desert living.
I’ve gotten to know the desert flora and fauna well, especially during the years we’ve lived here and primarily because of my dogs. My dogs are why I even ventured into the desert walks in the first place.
It started with Shadrach, our Neapolitan Mastiff just walking up and down our own block – dirt roads were all that were here originally (ours is STILL a dirt road). Then we began branching out a little bit. He was the most amazing dog, who sent me headlong into natural health to ensure he got to live a healthy and good life – the life he deserved!
After Shadrach, along came Meshach, our Great Dane. He is who I began exploring the area all around us. Much as we did with Shadrach, it started out just around our block as Meshach was just a puppy. However, Great Danes grow fast so it wasn’t long before we ventured out into the wild wilderness. We walked through arroyos and hills, at first with a friend and her two dogs. Then it was just me and Meshach. Daily, he would run up and down the hills, not chasing anything just enjoying the freedom to run and play. We saw all kinds of animals and learned the flora and fauna along the way. One time, a female coyote gave us some trouble which I’ll share in a two-part article series I wrote for my former pet academy but haven’t yet shared here. I was so concerned with Meshach as he was still a puppy although looked like a grown dog being so large. He wasn’t behind me though, he was way ahead of me beaconing me to hurry up Mom, RUN! LOL!
After the loss of Meshach (which was devastating to me – losing any of them is for me but he was so hard because he was so young) my husband began walking with me on my and Meshach’s route. Due to rain before he passed away, we saw his pawprints in the sand in the arroyo on our first walk. It was so hard for me to see that, but I took the photo anyway to remember the beauty of my time with him.
Then King, our American Bully was gifted to us by a friend five months after we lost Meshach. The first day we walked the full desert walk with King. He was so excited as only a bully breed can be. He was so strong, yet so short in comparison to Meshach! We got into a routine of walking halfway with him, and then he and I would run back together leaving my husband to walk home on his own. That helped both King and me. I got into such great shape running with him because it was no jog, but a full-on sprint. King needed to trim down a bit even at only 13 months old and that happened rapidly because of our exercise routine.
Within four months of getting King, we also had our beautiful Carolina Dog, Schatzie come into our lives. She adopted us as her humans – and that is not a euphemism or exaggeration. She had owners a block away but decided she’d rather live with us. Her humans released her to us within two weeks or so of us meeting her. So, King had a live-in girlfriend, and we now had two amazing dogs gracing our lives. Schatzie helped me experience the desert in a way no other dog had yet to date. I still ran home with King each day and my husband walked home with Schatzie. Primarily because two weeks after we got her, she caused my fall and subsequent ankle break that kept me homebound for 3 months. To avoid another mishap, she walked home with my husband while I got King and I back into running shape. The story is written in detail in this post, Lost, but Now Found.
Schatzie and I discovered all kinds of flora and fauna with my favorite being the desert guara you see in the photo. One morning we watched ants march in military fashion going back and forth from one place to another – it was fascinating to me. She also found “things” (animals) to eat that were not living any longer – a true scavenger carnivore. She was inherently still wild in her nature as is true of Carolina Dogs. We saw all kinds of things happen around us and once, she even chased off a coyote with me running fast after her! Normally I would leash her if I saw any dog or coyote around us, but this time I got caught off guard. Fortunately, she came trotting back to me as if nothing had happened. We had one very bold coyote follow us off and one for a couple of months. I didn’t want to encourage that, so I tossed a rock at him that clipped him in his behind (I’m not the best at throwing so he wasn’t hurt) and after that we didn’t see him anymore. Maybe he was a coydog, I don’t know. Schatzie and I also cleaned up that entire arroyo of all the human junk that was strewn along it. It took a couple of years to get it all cleaned up but with my faithful companion with me, we accomplished that together. We got to see burrowing owls, hawks, roadrunners, quail, squirrels, rabbits, and the occasional (but thankfully few and far between) encounters with other dogs. One time, she and I were walking along and saw a rabbit that had obviously been left by a coyote which meant it was coming back but we must’ve startled it. I was sad for the rabbit, but I am realistic and knew that is nature in its rawest form – beautiful and brutal all at once. Schatzie didn’t try to take it though. We also had another encounter with a coyote and a rabbit – the rabbit screamed (it is a distinct sound) and the coyote was fast on its trail. It’s like they didn’t even see us in a race between life and death – life for the coyote, death for the rabbit. One time we had a male quail come running right in front of our path with a coyote fast on its trail – he was diverting the coyote away from his mate and their chicks which we did see afterward. I don’t know the outcome of either of these situations, but it was interesting to witness.
After Schatzie passed (she was already 7+ years old when she came to live with us). We continued with King who had himself turned 7 right after Schatzie passed away. Nine months later, another Carolina Dog, Ezra, came to us as a 9-week-old puppy.
Everything changed for us with Ezra and King though. The world changed six months after Ezra came to us in late September 2019. My husband would walk King, but we had to switch gears with Ezra. If you’ve read this blog for any length of time you’ll know why and how that has continued. King passed away on December 26, 2024. So now we just have Ezra – who is still a handful today. Rather than the long arroyo walks we’ve had to adjust to excursions only in our lower native yard (half acre). Ezra still gets to experience all kinds of wildlife and native flora and fauna there but not to the extent the other dogs did.
With all the overdevelopment here since Ezra came there are fences blocking the free flow highway of the coyotes who’ve moved on, so we see less of them now. We do, however, see all the bird life still which Ezra isn’t fond of sharing space with but loves to chase them and the many desert lizards as well. In addition, we have ground squirrels and wild rabbits that share our lower native yard with us. They know how to escape Ezra! We have native type plants in our so-called “landscaped” upper yard as well. We have desert willows, Chiltapas, Apache Plume, cactus and the previous owners planted trumpet vines. That’s a lot of beautiful, fragrance-filled, flowering plants for the bees, butterflies, and hummingbirds.
Now, after all of that, can you tell me if the desert is barren or filled with life? All you need is to be aware and you will see it is anything but barren. And it is beautiful in all its stages in every season. Yes, we get all four seasons here in the high desert! Stay tuned for the Wildlife 2-part series to share with you some of our experiences!
Until next time, remember…
The Wild is Waking!
Kim Bloomer, V.N.D., N.D. is an animal naturopath as well as being certified in small animal nutrition, with years of experience in animal wellness. Dr. Kim is a published author, writer, and blogger. Subscribe to her DOGgone Newsletter for updates or to her blog via email. Copyright ©2005-2025 Aspenbloom Pet Care, Dr. Kim Bloomer, All rights reserved. No part of this article may be reproduced in any form without the written consent of the Author/Publisher. This article is intended to be educational. However, it is not intended to be a substitute for diagnosis or treatment from a qualified animal health professional. Dr. Kim Bloomer and Aspenbloom Pet Care, do not assume any legal responsibility for misuse of the products discussed in this article. The only essential oils referenced on this website are Young Living.
