Teddy, our dog, found a rabbit in the yard tonight. He chased this poor creature through some weeds, across the lawn, past our feet, through a row of English laurel, over a rock wall, around the corner of the garage, and Teddy lost his bunny by the old cedar on what we loosely call the lower lawn. There isn't actually much grass in the lower lawn, but there's lots of brush to hide in.
It was a baby rabbit. I'm so happy that we have a rabbit and though I wish him a peaceful life, I think maybe it was good for him to get used to being chased, even if it is by a benign creature like Teddy. Teddy had a rat in his mouth once by the garage, but he let it go. Teddy has casually strolled up to rabbits, yes, more than one, and if they didn't run, all he did was sniff their butts and look at me like it was my job to force them to run. The fun stuff is running and sniffing, but Teddy isn't a killer even when he could catch them.
A bunny!
Seventeen years ago, we had another rabbit at our house, though I suspect that one was dropped off since it was almost tame and was the color of honey. Wild rabbits around here are never the color of honey. I never did manage to touch it though. Who wouldn't be a little suspicious of people when it was a person who took you from your comfortable hutch and dropped you off along the highway? That bunny disappeared within days, too short a time for me to find bunny feed and set it out for him and gain his trust. Coyotes. Owls. Hawks. And a different, more predatory dog. It's not an easy life out here for an almost tame, insufficiently camouflaged bunny.
Teddy's bunny today was wild and properly mottled. Teddy's bunny knew to run like hell when something the shape and smell of a coyote stalked him and ran him down the hill. Teddy's bunny is smarter than he was just an hour ago. That experience is etched into Teddy's bunny's brain. Run like hell and you just might survive. Dodge back and forth. Run like hell.
Before the bunny, Teddy was bored with this house and the summer heat which means that he gets fewer rides to interesting places than usual. Teddy is very happy to live here now. His very own bunny. When he came in the door finally, after his chase and after spinning around the old cedar four or five times when he lost the game, he still had a grin on his face. Finally, the life of a dog on a highway in the Pacific Northwest has just been elevated to almost perfect. He acted like a boy with his first puppy. He wanted to sleep out in the yard with his bunny tonight, but I told him that he might see his bunny in the morning on the way to school.
I just hope Teddy doesn't go crashing after the bunny some day and come face to face with our bear. That encounter might not be so much fun.
Thank you for listening, jb
It was a baby rabbit. I'm so happy that we have a rabbit and though I wish him a peaceful life, I think maybe it was good for him to get used to being chased, even if it is by a benign creature like Teddy. Teddy had a rat in his mouth once by the garage, but he let it go. Teddy has casually strolled up to rabbits, yes, more than one, and if they didn't run, all he did was sniff their butts and look at me like it was my job to force them to run. The fun stuff is running and sniffing, but Teddy isn't a killer even when he could catch them.
A bunny!
Seventeen years ago, we had another rabbit at our house, though I suspect that one was dropped off since it was almost tame and was the color of honey. Wild rabbits around here are never the color of honey. I never did manage to touch it though. Who wouldn't be a little suspicious of people when it was a person who took you from your comfortable hutch and dropped you off along the highway? That bunny disappeared within days, too short a time for me to find bunny feed and set it out for him and gain his trust. Coyotes. Owls. Hawks. And a different, more predatory dog. It's not an easy life out here for an almost tame, insufficiently camouflaged bunny.
Teddy's bunny today was wild and properly mottled. Teddy's bunny knew to run like hell when something the shape and smell of a coyote stalked him and ran him down the hill. Teddy's bunny is smarter than he was just an hour ago. That experience is etched into Teddy's bunny's brain. Run like hell and you just might survive. Dodge back and forth. Run like hell.
Before the bunny, Teddy was bored with this house and the summer heat which means that he gets fewer rides to interesting places than usual. Teddy is very happy to live here now. His very own bunny. When he came in the door finally, after his chase and after spinning around the old cedar four or five times when he lost the game, he still had a grin on his face. Finally, the life of a dog on a highway in the Pacific Northwest has just been elevated to almost perfect. He acted like a boy with his first puppy. He wanted to sleep out in the yard with his bunny tonight, but I told him that he might see his bunny in the morning on the way to school.
I just hope Teddy doesn't go crashing after the bunny some day and come face to face with our bear. That encounter might not be so much fun.
Thank you for listening, jb
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