Yesterday was a busy day here, I had plenty of errands to run and finally got home about 4:00 pm expecting to take some aspirin and lie down to get rid of the headache I'd developed.
I had let Tinker out as soon as I returned and when I went to let her back in she didn't come to my call. I whistled and called and she still didn't come. I heard a sharp barking noise, the high rasping hysterical kind, so I changed clothes, put on comfortable shoes with a tread and went down the hill.
There she was digging a huge hole near the drainage ditch. She was crouched down frantically digging under the fence. We've had bobcats in the neighborhood and I was afraid that she was just trying to get out under the fence after it. That wasn't the case. An armadillo was plastered flat against a rock with it's stomach facing the rock and clinging for dear life. It had seen Tinker and run and burrowed under a rock only to find another rock on the other side; deadend for sure.
She suddenly came trotting out into the yard with the armadillo in her mouth, shaking it and crunching at the same time. Horrible sound that. She has huge back teeth and if she can get something that far back in her mouth it's a goner. Possums are dispatched with one crunch around the shoulders so they can't run. This armadillo had been crushed pretty flat but was still moving. Tinker would let it drop and if it tried to run she grabbed it and shook it some more and crunched some more.
I was in a panic trying to get it away from her but she was determined to keep it. Everytime I came near should would pick it up and take off. Finally my thinking cleared a little and I got the hose and sprayed her with it and she dropped the armadillo and ran up the hill.
With it firmly nestled in my shovel I hurled it over the back fence and then went to catch Tinker. I had called a friend who came over to help me get the dirt, blood and gore off of her with dog shampoo and she finally settled down.
Normally she is the sweetest dog, very affectionate and very smart but let a critter into the yard and she becomes a hunting dog - a killer! I'm hoping this little foray satisfied her bloodlust for a least a week. She knew this armadillo was out there, she could smell it through the walls of the house and looked for it every night. Luckily it was stupid enough to come out in the daytime or else I'd be shoveling at 2:00 in the morning like last time.
1 comment:
What a cute pooch! The expression on her face seems to be saying, "Oh, come on! I don't know why you have to make such a big deal out of this; I was just having a little fun." LOL!!
Doesn't sound like YOUR end of it was fun at all.
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