Showing posts with label mouse. Show all posts
Showing posts with label mouse. Show all posts

Thursday, August 18, 2011

Decisions decisions!


This is Roxy. (Ok, so I've Photoshopped it a bit for fun)



I'm the proud owner of two pure bred Fox Terriers, one lazy older bitch, Narla, and a much younger miniature female who has the killer instinct. I point out that I never encouraged her to hunt, in a country like Australia where even tiny spiders can kill you dead it’s not something you encourage your animals to do.
Roxy, the younger dog finds and kills more mice than most cats could manage, in fact the only thing she likes more than hunting is eating; this dog is very food oriented.
Yesterday while I was busy in the kitchen and the dogs were lying on their bed watching* me.
*code for hoping I’d drop something edible so they could be onto it like a lion on a staggering Wildebeest.

I saw nothing, I heard nothing, but when the small dog flew out of her bed and launched herself at the open Lounge room door I knew there had to be a mouse in the house. By the time I got there all I saw was her back legs hanging out from under my Jason Recliner, a scramble of claws and she was gone… under the chair.
I got to the chair and lifted the back to let her out but I knew from the sudden quiet that her job was already done.
She bounced out with her tail beating wildly, a dog biscuit in her mouth.
The mouse must have taken it from the dog bowl and scampered into the lounge to eat it… but was seen!
She’d chased the mouse and recovered her treat, but clearly the biscuit was much more important to her…and wasn’t she proud of her achievement, parading around for a few minutes before eating her catch.


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These are not my two but show perfectly what Foxies are about.





PS: don't let your kids name your animals...


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Friday, November 27, 2009

The Big Hunt

ROXY


Some of you will know that I own two fox terriers, one large kinda fat one and a younger miniature, both female and both feisty.
Tonight they were laying comatose on their bed in the laundry as usual when all of a sudden all hell broke loose. I was alerted by buckets and laundry bin flying around the room and all the din that created. Nala has always been lazy and the idea of actually attacking anything was left to the contents of the dinner bowl, but Roxy has always had a killer instinct. (yeah I know… don’t let your daughters name your dogs!)
I rushed as best I can and closed the door behind me, the object of their interest was hiding behind the mop bucket. I caught a glimpse of the mighty beast…a grey house mouse.
I gee’d them up with tender words of encouragement like ‘GET THE FU**ING THING’… I don’t know quite how, but it’s clear that Fox Terriers understand swear words… and clearly understood my intent.
Suitably stirred up I moved the mop bucket and they raced in after their quarry which ran straight over Roxy’s head, down her back and seemingly away scot free.
I held no great hopes for Narla, she grabbed a mouse once and couldn’t spit it out quickly enough… the fur was like…Oooo yuk! (it got away) But this time she was up to the task and grabbed the suicidal beast.
I say suicidal because… really, here’s a small room with two bored hunting dogs in it…and nowhere to hide. This mouse either was sick of life or had delusions of grandeur. Either way the end was swift, followed by her usual Oooo yuk! dummy spit, where upon Roxy did her usual thing by grabbing it and running off into the house to prevent me giving it a decent burial.
I'm thinking it would be easier to get on my hands and knees and catch it myself than getting it off Roxy, one day she might actually bite me I think. Feisty little bugger! I hate playing tug of war with mice...you’re never quite sure how it might end.
But today was actually a milestone, they’ve learned to hunt as a pack and made a combined kill. Pity any fool mouse that comes their way in the future.