Laika & Kona snuggling.
I’m too lazy to build a small fire in the woodstove this evening so the dogs have resorted to getting cozy and ignoring me. I’ll make it up to them with a brisk quick walk through the river forest in the morning at Kipling Rock Farm. Kona is on the left, Laika on the right.
Some of you may recall me reporting wild turkeys descended on us in July. There were 3 of them. One afternoon I spotted one on the porch peering in the french door glass at the dogs napping! If the dogs hadn’t been sleeping I fear they would have charged the doors and have broken the panes again. I quietly and quickly ran out a side door and chased the turkey off. It didn’t fly but finally rounded the house and hid. Then I saw nothing of the trio all of August and September. It seemed clear that a coyote likely had an early Thanksgiving dinner. Last Thursday my dogs convinced me to take them for an early evening stroll down the hill to the meadow garden. As we stopped so I could pick us a few of the last raspberries – WHOOOOSH!!! One of the turkeys popped up from the berry bushes and barely missed colliding with us. Just recalling the stricken surprised body language of the dogs and myself leaves me laughing! We were stick figures frozen in time as the big body bird rose to new heights. The last time I saw him, he could barely fly! But on this evening it gained loft and easily cleared the beaver pond and finally settled on a top limb in the ancient tall black cottonwood trees. Finally the dogs and I looked at each other as if to say, “Did you see that?” Kona sprinted around the pond and dared the turkey to come down so she could discuss the heart attack we all almost had. Laika stayed with me in hopes of another berry or two.
