Killers

Because I want to live to the age of sixty seven, I have had to stop walking both of my dogs at the same time. A squirrel runs across the sidewalk in front of me, both dogs go nuts and try to catch it. A kid on a skateboard is sure insanity as Chandler hates skateboards and Scout believes anything Chandler says. So she's in on the chase also. Like I said, they are being walked completely separate now. In doing that I have been able to observe their very different hunting styles. Scout is a pounce and chase hunter. If she starts digging you have to get ready for the pounce. Last night she caught a rat. She dug a little by a gutter downspout and then pounced. Before I knew it she was running around with a screaming, squealing rat in her mouth. After a slapstick chase I was able to pull her to me and get the rat out of her mouth. Chandler, on the other hand, came across a bunny rabbit on his walk last night. There was no chase, only a very stealthy, stalking style of hunting. He slowly put one foot in front of the other until we were within eight feet of the rabbit, at which time he slowed to an imperceptible speed. It took him all of five minutes to creep right on up to the bunny rabbit, close enough for him to grab it. Then I told the bunny to please leave. Chandler was not happy that I did that.

I can appreciate my dogs love of hunting because I used to hunt when I was younger. I was forced to quit when I met Mark, but I was a very good hunter back in the day. I almost always got my quarry. I would move in for the kill, and with a clever and proven method, I would sidle up close and lean in as I said, "Hi there, can I buy you a drink?"