Saturday, January 07, 2012

A Squirrel has a lucky Escape.


Another windy and overcast day with a hint of rain in the air. Lilly the Collie looked at me and then padded over to where her lead hung amongst the coats and scarves. She sniffed it pointedly and then glanced round at me. Ten minutes later we were parking the car at Poole's Cavern. It was fairly quiet for a Saturday morning, just a few dog walkers and visitors braving the gloom. Once in the woods, Lilly set off in pursuit of the various scents. One in particular seemed to attract her attention and not even the squeaky ball could tempt her back as she snuffled amongst the rotting leaves and vegetation. And then the object of her interest broke cover. A squirrel had been minding its own business near the edge of the path. Lilly gave chase and gained on the small furry animal as it darted left and right. She closed in on its tail and was within a second of grabbing it when the squirrel changed tactics and forsook the leaf strewn floor of the wood and scrabbled desperately up the trunk of a nearby tree. Its panic diminished as it got higher and it realised that the dog, its equal on the ground could not climb trees. Lilly wandered around the base of the tree wondering where the squirrel had gone. She looked up at the tree and spotted the squirrel on a branch. She leaped up at the squirrel but soon realised that this was pointless, and came running back to be wagging her tail. I threw the ball for her and she set off after it. Much more fun. Balls can't climb trees.  

2 comments:

Kate said...

She's a clever dog to look up, in my experience.

Foilwoman said...

I have a new foster dog, and she's part Finnish Spitz -- she goes crazy for the squirrels. She doesn't clue in, however, to the fact that they aren't going to climb back down once she's treed them. She sits there and waits. Hope springs eternal.