The area in which we live is a pleasant tranquil rural setting. Most people have a horse or two. Some run a few cows. Across the road a neighbor grazes a few sheep, another has a couple of goats for milk. The lad next door is currently raising two “poddy” calves on the bottle while his sister has a pair of discarded black lambs about a year old from her grandfather’s farm. Little or no traffic uses our road. As a community we may not actively socialize with each other however we invariably wave or stop for a natter when we can. Assistance is always given willingly. It is a peaceful and unhurried existence. All very calming.
This is the lifestyle that Liquorice knows and enjoys.
At least until yesterday!
Some relations paid us a visit bringing their two young crossbred dogs, a neutered male and a female. Both quite sizeable and, in controlled conditions, obedient. Liquorice was outside when they arrived and trotted around the front of the house to greet the visitors. I could hear some “unpleasantness” and raced around the front too, only to meet Liquorice running back to me with the male growling and being “all dominant” racing after her. Liquorice was terrified! I grabbed the travelling harness he was still wearing and did some effective “growling” of my own while Liquorice settled beside me. By then the female was asserting herself but a relation took hold of that one. They, the dogs, soon realized such behavior was unacceptable, or so I mistakenly thought. So they were released. Liquorice did not have their interest now, they had seen one of our cows grazing by the electric fence and the pair of them were off! They chased that poor cow for a couple of hundred yards at a full gallop biting at the unfortunate creature’s side before they were once more brought under human control. But not for long as they sighted a neighbor’s dogs, attracted by the commotion, in another corner of our property and raced into the attack but these smaller dogs made it through the barbed wire fence to safety. Again these two visiting dogs were recalled. It was not long before they were chasing another cow. These events were punctuated with the male piddling everywhere, marking the new territory, until his piddler stopped working!
All this tension and stress was brand new to my little darling and she was happy to come inside and leave the delinquents to their mischief.
We soon found out the reason for the visit. Our relations wanted us to mind their dogs for three weeks while they went on holidays!
Guess what the answer was.
Arthur Witten
Liquorice – NO BLOODY WAY!!!!!!!!