HELP! A Dog Tried to Kill One of the Chickens!

Honey Hen here. We have had an almost murder on the farm!  It was terrible I might say.  Just horrible.  It didn’t happen here, which I am ever so very grateful for, but it did happen down at Misty’s house.

Fuzzy had gone down to Misty’s to see how things were going.

(He stopped traveling down there for a long, long time after Checkers passed)

But he told me he missed seeing the little kids and he felt like he better help out Mom-Mom by guarding her place as well. 

When he got down there he found out that a stray dog had been dumped out and was chasing chickens

Just as Fuzzy got into the yard the stray black dog got one of the black chickens in his mouth and took off down the road

Lucky for the black chicken and for Fuzzy the neighbor guy was out in his yard and saw the whole thing.

The neighbor guy took off running and caught the dog, just as he was about to have lunch.

  This whole business just sends shivers up a hen’s spine don’t you know.

 Well, anyway, the hen was saved, and the stray dog is also saved, he is now living with another neighbor way, way down the road, who has a fenced in yard.  (And the fence is one of those things that shock the dog if he tried to leave….YEAH!)

Anyway, Fuzzy told me he was really glad the neighbor saw everything, because otherwise they might have thought he was chasing chickens.

Fuzzy says he is just too old for the utter nonsense!

Honey Hen

Security-My Josephine

I’ve been thinking a long time about what I would like to tell you next. My life here is good. I’m important, I’m in charge of farm protection, killing mice and snakes and making sure the deer, fox and coyotes don’t make it into the farm yard.

 

Now that I’m old one of life’s greatest pleasures is barking at the birds that hang out in the yard on trees, and in the bushes. The birds really don’t take me seriously; we play this really cool game. They swoop down, land in the tree, and I run barking at them: “Bark! Bark! Bark!”- “I see you birds, fly away now, fly away!” So they fly up and around, sometimes they dive on my head…that’s a little much.

(I snap at them if they do that-they need to play by the rules. Fume)

Great fun! Perfect for Elder exercise!

Anyway, I was thinking about what to tell you as I lay sleeping this morning.

I started having a really good dream, the kind where your eye lids twitch and your paws making little running motions, when I started whimpering Mom woke me up.

I don’t think she really meant to wake me up, she was headed out to do the early morning chores and asked me to come with her. It’s sort of hard to wake up fast like that, but I did and hit the kitchen door just as she got down the sidewalk.

But back to my dream, I was dreaming of ♥Security♥.

((That beautiful sexy blonde is Security ♥))  I’ll tell you about Riley some other time. He doesn’t live here.

 ♥ Security Shasha is a tall long legged blonde.

She is the most daring and delightful female, willing to run off chasing squirrels, rabbits, and even skunks. Danger is her middle name. She never stayed in the yard, drove everyone crazy, but me.  Heck, I would go with her.  She was just that kind of girl. There was always something to do, somewhere to go, someplace to see.  I do have to admit, it almost got me locked up.  I think I was going to be put in a pen if I didn’t stop running off with ♥ my girl ♥♥♥.

Then suddenly Security Shasha was gone. Poof! The lady was home from her vacation and the light of my life went back to her city yard.

Before I go much further, I need to explain that for some odd reason, I have to put up with constant visitors on the farm. Misty always seems to be pet-sitting for some friend or other, Shannon pet-sits and then on top of all of that they come to visit Mom and Dad  bringing, not only their own dogs, but the dogs they are pet sitting for. And even sometimes Mom and Dad pet sit. HUMPH! Sure is irritating.

(Shannon’s dogs and visiting dogs)

If I had my way it would just be me and Checkers.

I asked Checkers if she liked sharing everyone with all other dogs, but she informed me that as long as the other dogs didn’t eat Her Food, it was okay by her.

She just doesn’t understand, sometimes other dogs, especially male dogs (Zooker doesn’t count I rather like him, who couldn’t he just seems to like everyone so I couldn’t stay mad at him long) might decided to take over management of the farm.

This is one job I’m not losing—ever!

Security belongs to another lady, but Security Shasha was staying here when I got dumped off. We bonded instantly…I mean I’m a pretty cool looking Dude, Shannon calls me Napoleon so you know that I’m a real leader. And she is …ah ♥ she is every man’s dream.

She was my Josephine, the love of my life! ♥

 Fuzzy ♣

How It All Started

I grew up as a cow dog, just the cowboy and me.  That’s how it was. Just us and the cows. 

 Then one day the cowboy’s family took me for a ride in the car…I love riding in the car(not so much anymore-it makes me really nervous, but Mom still takes me so I can gain confidence)—- getting into the car wasn’t too bad.  Then suddenly they stopped the car and pushed me out and Drove Off real fast.  I tried to follow for a little while, but soon gave up and went back to the spot where they pushed me out of the car.

 I waited at the spot for three weeks, never leaving it for fear they would come back to get me and I would be off somewhere and miss them.  Boy did I get hungry! Whew!

But I stood firm.  I waited.

Mom and Misty kept trying to get me.  Mom said she wanted me to come live with her, but I KNEW cowboy would be back so I ran from Mom and Misty all the time.

Then one day, when my belly met my backbone, Misty came out with a slice of roast beef. I LOVE ROAST BEEF!  Just love it!  And I was hungry.  Well, hungry wasn’t the word for it. So I let them feed me.  And the rest is history.

Love-the-Dude

 I’ve been with Mom and Dad now for four years.  It’s good here.  I like it here.  I’m the head of security for the farm!  It’s my job to watch for people coming down the driveway, check out trespassing dogs and scaring deer.  I’m 10 years old now, but that doesn’t stop me doing my work.  ‘Course when I sleep inside, which I really like to do, I sometimes miss stuff.  Mom says it’s alright because I sleep right by her side of the bed(on the floor) and protect her from things that go bump in the night.

I have lots of work to do, I help haul hay (riding on top of the haystack is my favorite thing to do) Mom doesn’t let me do it very often, and never to a delivery, but I would if I could.

I really like to run by (in-front) of the four-wheeler and check water or head over the pastures and check on the cows…that’s the best. 

  Run-Fuzzy-Run

There is always news out there, that I just can’t get guarding the farm yard.  Boy is there some interesting stuff to learn out there.

News

I’m a very important dog, heck I’m the only dog (besides Checkers, but she is Misty’s dog) so that makes me V.E.R.Y. important. I’m responsible for helping Mom put the chickens up at night, killing snakes and mice.  Why Misty even calls me to come down to her house and kill the mice that slip inside.  I’m a good mouse killer. And no, I don’t eat them.  That’s the cat’s job.

I’m really good at barking at the deer. Dad says I need to chase the deer away.  I don’t understand why he doesn’t see that I do.   There aren’t any deer in the yard, ever!  Now the corn fields and the hay fields are just too big to keep them out of so I settle for the yard.  It more in keeping with my size.

Besides it’s getting a little hard to keep running, my Doctor says I have arthritis so most of the time now I get to RIDE with Mom on the Four-Wheeler.  That is fun!  That is real fun!  It’s as much fun as riding in the back of the pick-up.  Well, maybe it’s funner-I get to see where I’m going on the four-wheeler. 

Fuzzy-Following-Me

Anyway, I thought I would stop by once in awhile and visit with each of you.  I have lots of stories to tell, you know how it is when you get old.  So come on back and visit and I’ll tell you about some of things I’ve learned in my long years of living.  I’ll also let you see the farm from my side of the fence!

Fuzzy

FuzzyDoodle McDoodle Dude Brown

Bladen Fox McCormick

blade-and-soccer

Blade is such a hardy little fellow. And so completely up for any challenge.  He finished the soccer season

soccer-and-blade

And is now trying to learn how to set tubes, he can do the gated pipe as long as we are there if something doesn’t work just right.

blade-sets-water

 His little 7 year-old hand is just not quite large enough to cover the end, but after many tries he got the aluminum tube,

second-tube

And then the really, really hard ‘white’ tube.

watering-beans

Blade’s tube set!

fuzzy-irrigates

Fuzzy thinks he is lots of help, but I wonder.

Going to Grammy and Grandpa’s House

Went I got home yesterday afternoon Fuzzy started barking his “Somebody’s Coming Bark”, which quickly changed into “Oh, good, You are coming I am so glad” bark.

 

down-the-lane

 When I went to look  I saw the little family coming our way, with Linkin on her bike (she absolutely HATES riding her bike, she is just sure she is going to wreck in the gravel).

hoolie-and-blade

Bladen was walking Hoolie, so she could learn to walk on a leash

 

 

walking-hoolie

But Tallen thought her ride was just a-okay.

 

 

bike-ride

And Checkers was really glad to see Fuzzy and us. 

Checkers has a weird way of greeting people, she tries to smile. It can be a bit off-putting until you realize her stub-tail is wagging and she is trying to do the puppy-dance.

 

 

checkie-smile

 

 

A Tale of Two Dogs

Four years ago Misty and Kelly got Checkers. 

kimis-wedding-014 

Checkers with her summer ‘do’

At the time Checkers was five years old and had been abandoned at the home she had always lived in since she was born.  It seems that the people who used to own and love her decided to move to town and didn’t or couldn’t take their dogs, an old, old dog and Checkers (who at five wasn’t really a young dog).

By the time the neighbor lady, a mile or so away, realized that the dogs had been abandoned the really old dog was dying from starvation and Checkers was a bone.  She started taking food to the dogs and put an ad in the paper to find a home for Checkers.  That is when Kelly and Misty stepped in.

Checkers is a lovely friendly dog.  She likes to ‘farm’ with us, run with the four-wheeler as Terry builds fence, and take care of her babies (Bladen, Linkin, and Tallen) and her yard.  She is very protective of the kids!  Very! Checkers is now 9 years old.

The first year Checkers would NOT leave her food bowl ….and she grew FAT!  But who wouldn’t if you had been starved for a long time!?

 

fuzzy-and-the-creek1

Fuzzy Doddle (Dude) Brown was a dumped dog at our place!  Grrrrrr! Fuzzy was probably between 5-7 years of age at the time someone dumped him. We have had him for three years now, so he is somewhere between 8 and 10. 

I think Dude must have been an older ‘farming/ranching man’s dog and the man died.  The man’s kids didn’t want the dog so they just took him to the country and dropped him off.    It took Misty and I three weeks to catch him, he would wait a long the side of the road and look and look.  I think the only reason we finally got him he was staved and thin, thin, thin.  He normally weighs 30 pounds and he weighed 15 pounds.  I hate how some people treat animals!!!!!!

To this day Fuzzy becomes terrified to ride in the back seat of the car, (but he loves the truck) he shakes, trembles and pants so hard I feel very bad for him.  But I take him, so he can have new adventures, smell new smells, and gain confidence in traveling.  He is always much relieved when we get home.

Why I think he was an older person’s dog is how he acts, he loves to ride on the hay stack, he is good with the cows (can herd with the best of them) , loves to round up the chickens when I tell him too, had to learn to tolerate little kids.

Now he likes to walk down to Misty’s and hang out with the little kids, he lets them sit and ride on him and Misty lets him come in the house and play.  Then he walks home, some times Checkers comes with him.

They have a good life with us, but they sure went through some hard times