Black as pitch, no moon. The fireflies have gone to bed, the frogs are croaking periodically. The birds are silent. The only thing flying are the mosquitoes. The only light to see by is the light from the family room windows.
Rox is a lady of the night. The sun goes down and she heads for the door. Sitting absolutely still at the edge of the patio, she scans the yard, back and forth, back and forth...
Every half hour she leaves her post and circles the perimeter. Ambling silently to avoid detection, stopping to listen, look or sniff the air. We use our gigantic, super-size flashlight to find her at the back fence. Our light doesn't faze her, she continues her surveillance.
I wonder what she sees and why she feels the need to hunt at night... perhaps a deeply buried instinct? Her nightwork has rid our yard of possums and rabbits. We used to have them and now we don't. Could they really know to avoid our yard? Is it animal instinct, has she spread her scent that says "keep out of this yard?"
How does a one-eyed dog hunt at night? What does she see? What does she smell? What does she hear?
1 comment:
She's just a throwback to those nasty BADGER dogs of yore. Nite was the best "catch em'" time. She's got extra sensitive ears and a nose...who needs two eyes!? I must admit however that BJ (Big Black Poodle) is very adept at catching squirrels AND bluejays. That is when she isn't bothered by her arthritis which is becoming more and more frequent.
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