b'Mam Boop and PeteFamily Tradition.When You Come To A Fork In The Road, Take It.*Words by Steve Cooke & Anna Cooke. Photography by Anna Cooke.TheOcalaNationalForestcovers607 shelter or animal services.square miles of Central Florida. Over the Some of the ones who have made ityears,quiteafewstraydogsandcats out of The Forest alive and found theirhave made their way up the long, gravel way to the 80-acre farm may have a sixthdriveway, drawn to a tranquil setting that senseabouttheplaceandthekindishometoPalmRidgeDistillery, the humanswhoresidethere.Or,maybeaward-winningboutiquedistillerof itsthearomaofthefermentingmash,craft bourbon-style whiskey and rye. The waftingthroughthebarnsopenwin-Distillery, directly across from the Ocala dows, that draws them towards the prop-National Forest, is home to several dis- erty. Either way, it is surely a better life fortillery dogs, adopted because they made the lost dogs and cats who are fortunatethat trek up the driveway.enough to make their way to Palm RidgeThe Forest is just one of the many Distillery, located just outside Umatilla.dumping grounds for dogs in Florida, like Dick and Marti Waters purchased thethe Everglades, Miami Redlands and the working cattle farm 20 years ago, movingMiami Rock Pit. In The Forest, its easier therefromCasselberry.Theybuiltafor dogs to simply disappear, often dying homeanda10-stallhorsebarn,anda horrible death. Some are hunting dogs, raised their daughters there. Dick was indeemed to no longer be of any value by construction and doing well. Marti assist-theirmasters.Othersarefamilydogs, ed with running the business, taking calls,sometimesold,sometimespregnant, scheduling Dicks projects. They raised awhose humans believe they would fare small herd of cattle, which they sold tobetterintheforestthaninthelocal supplement their income. Marti and Dick Waters.www.TheNewBarker.com Spring 2016 THE NEW BARKER 45'