It's grey, very grey
No blue sky to be seen anywhere
Damp misty fog filling the yard while
Chickadees scurry in the garden
First on the ground, then to the bush
Squirrels come down, foraging for leftovers under the feeders
Riley waiting impatiently inside the sliding door
Whining, insisting he must catch those squirrels; he MUST!
Birds hearing the dog's plaintive yelp flit away
Squirrels glancing his way, flaunting their freedom as if to say, "silly dog!"
Riley waiting, knowing, biding his time, trembling
"Shhhhh, please open the door, just a crack........"
Mad dashing and shrill barking; "Dang! Almost had 'em this time!"
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You, too, Riley?
ReplyDeleteI see them everywhere
flipping their tails at me
all the while putting in
their secret hideways
(my owner's flower pots)
the plunder of our yard.
I see them
from behind the glass
at our front door,
on our patio,
high-tailing it along
the fence that is my rightful
perimeter to scan.
She will not, I say again,
she will not let me do
the one thing Westies
know so well.
I bark my head off.
She tells me: Shhhh!
What do you think, Riley,
should we join forces
against them?
Paw-signed "Jack"
P.S. There's another Westie in this house. His name is Seamus. He's the elder. The last time he took to chasing yard-runners he tore a muscle and it took two operations and several months behind bars (his crate) to recover. He's happy now to let me do the chasing. I'm quite a bit younger than he.
hope springs eternal, oh riley! xoxox
ReplyDeleteDear Jack (and Maureen) - I'm so happy to hear that other Westies want to capture squirrels as much as I do! They are such taunting little beasts, smarty-pants and all that stuff strutting around in MY backyard. One of these days........
ReplyDeletexoxoxRiley
Hi Auntie Lu -
You watch - I'll win the squirrel battle, well maybe anyway. I'm not sure what I would do with one if I caught it-yikes!
xoxoxoRiley
Oh, to have the passion, energy and clear purpose in life that Riley has.
ReplyDeleteDoes he ever catch them? My big black mutt finally caught one a few years ago and then swallowed it nearly whole! It was so gruesome that I couldn't look away. : /
Hi R - He gets close occasionally but I've seen him put on his own brakes a time or two when he thought he might be a little too close to catching the squirrel. I hope he continues to use that good judgment. We're pretty sure he's caught a bird or mouse now and then as he muzzle looks a little too red for just yard debris - yuk! Did said black mutt "keep it down"? Double yuk!!!
ReplyDeleteWhat a cutie he is!
ReplyDelete