When we were on vacation, we left Ruby with my mother-in-law. They adore each other. My MIL keeps a beautiful pottery bowl just for Ruby — it has her name on it. She saves tidbits all week so that when we come over for dinner on the weekend, she has all sorts of treats for Ruby. So, it’s a bit of a spa vacation for Ruby.
Still, when she’s on vacation, our yard is unprotected, unguarded, and unsafe. Squirrels can raid the feeders. Skunks can clean up the leftover seed under the feeders. And, raccoons can use the yard as a toilet.
Seriously.
There is a raccoon that likes to poop in my yard. Well, hey, everyone poops so that’s fine. But, there is a level of disrepect with this particular raccoon that I find unacceptable. This raccoon likes to poop on the stump of one of the redwood trees in my yard. This is a spectacular grove of redwood trees and simply don’t deserve to be used as a toilet.
I knew that Ruby and the raccoon would meet. We thought it would be sooner but it was this last Wednesday night. We are used to the sound of Ruby scenting a skunk. She has a certain bark.
That was not the bark we heard the other night. The bark we heard was frantic, angry, and a bit overwhelmed. She chased it off, however. I went out and by the time I got there, she was coming back to the house and was ready for praise. She was a bit shaky. We gave her loads of praise and cookies. I think a raccoon was a bit more than she was expecting. Still, my little girl didn’t back down. She’s such a tough cookie.
mother. wife. friend. teacher. writer. reader. photographer. birder. quilter. blogger.
Liza Lee Miller 