When last we left our heroic canine she was teaching her brother (Max) the proper techniques in home-land security. This involves perimeter checks, squirrel chasing, and the ever popular mole hunting. This Saturday Max was able to get a first hand lesson in how to handle a perimeter breach. The details follow:
This past Saturday while I slept very late (a nice change!) Molly had an adventure we'll not soon forget. Molly was out barking at something in the yard. Since that is her almost constant state of life when she is outside, we let it go for a little while sometimes (it helps wear her out). This time the bark was a little more intense, meaning: something is there and threatening (or so she believes). So, Chip went out to investigate.
Seems in the swampier part of our yard she ran across a turtle. (This is a serious perimeter breech!) We get these little turtles all the time, no big surprise. So, Chip is trying to convince her that it's not an enemy and won't hurt us and is allowed to travel unmolested in our yard. He pats Molly and then pats the turtle on its back to show it's harmless. Then he and Molly (and Max, only at a safer distance, being the young padawan) went off to another part of the yard.
Molly doubled back to check on the turtle again and make sure it didn't move. (I guess that to her it could exist in our yard, but not move). Now she's seen Dad pet the back of the turtle, so it's safe for her to bark obnoxiously in the turtle's face. Not one of Molly's nicer traits, to be sure. So, Chip went back to talk to her again. Suddenly, the turtle jumped up 2 feet and everything became a blur. When the dust settled the turtle was back on the ground, Max was all the way back to the deck screaming and Molly had run back about 10 feet and was screaming. Chip is in a state of shock and confusion at the "Bruce Lee" type of maneuvers a TURTLE actually performed.
Chip checks on the screaming Molly (who we're sure was screaming "I TOLD YOU SO, DAD! I TOLD YOU SO") and this turtle has put an impressive gash on the top of her nose! It was a snapping turtle! Which then freaked Chip out further, considering he had actually touched it at one point! So now Molly is screaming "I TOLD YOU SO" and Chip is screaming "damn thing could'a taken my finger off!". And I don't hear anything until I get up (well past 1pm, by the way!).
Molly's nose is going to be fine. She will have a Harry Potter type scar on top, but she'll be fine. The turtle eventually wandered off our property without further incident. I did get to see him before he left and Chip wasn't exaggerating, it could have taken a finger off. I told him that I had never seen a snapping turtle jump as described (and I grew up in an area of snapping turtles), but that I did believe they are born pissed-off at the world.
So, that was our weekend entertainment. :)