Just recently, our standard poodle puppy (now 10 months old but still acting MUCH younger) discovered squirrels. Once one caught her eye darting in and out of trees, she was transfixed. She now sits at our full length windows and stares out, monitoring the countryside for any appearance of a squirrel.
When I put peanuts on the deck for them, they came to carry them back home. Crystal, our poodle, was wild! She was nose to nose with them between the glass. She barked and growled (a very funny sound) and stood stoically on her hind legs trying to stare down those squirrels. It was frustrating. They ignored her, grabbed the peanuts and were gone.
Then I put out one of the squirrels' favorites, overripe grapes. However, they don't carry those back home. They sit right on our deck on their haunches, hold the fruit in their front paws, and bite into the grape as we would bite into an apple.
It was a humbling experience for Crystal to discover that they did not run as she ranted and raved just a few feet away. They merely sat on the deck and bit and chewed and ate. But now she's found a new hobby and it keeps her busy most of the day, even when I don't put out snacks.
Crystal reminds me of our golden retriever Gracie (now 12) who was an expert at chasing (but not catching) squirrels. Gracie will still glance at them when their movement catches her eye, but she no longer has the drive or ability to make them nervous by her speed and experience. Ah, how the days change all of us. How the life cycle renews itself. But for those squirrels who are now safe from Gracie, Crystal has appeared to take over our protection from those wily, furry beasts just outside the door.
Comments (2):