bump in the night

Even though I live in the most urban part of Salem, my back yard has proven to be a veritable Walden Pond. In addition to a wide array of birds, my yard has hosted various snakes (including the neighbor's escaped pet boa), raccoons, and opossums. Jiggs has managed to wisely avoid any direct confrontation with the raccoons. Opossums -- they are a different story.

A small opossum lives in the ivy on my garage. Jiggs has now killed it three times. (He does not understand the entire concept of play acting. The opossum, on the other hand, bears many scars from the reality.) In honor of his great battles, Beth of Minto Dog gave Jiggs an official Audubon-sanctioned stuffed opossum for Christmas 2006. Being a spoiled dog, Jiggs has lots of stuffed toys, but the opossum became his pride and joy. During a usual day, he manages to cart an armful of stuffed animals into the yard -- his canine version of a teddy bear picnic. One nightly ritual is the retrieval of the toys. Jiggs picks up one; I usually pick up five to ten. Several weeks ago I was in a rush to pick up "my share" of the toys. The last one was Jiggs's opossum that he had left in a dark corner under a bush. When I grabbed it, it seemed heavy. Then it moved. It was the opossum who lives on the garage. It flew into the air along with the other stuffed toys. I swear Jiggs merely laughed.

But revenge is a dish best served cold -- along with a dollop of pomegranate sauce. Last night I heard Jiggs barking while I was in the hot tub. He had spotted the opossum in the yard far enough from the garage that it could not find an easy escape route. I told him to lie down. He sulked. The opossum slinked away. This morning I was taking Jiggs for a walk, and I saw him go into his stalking mode. He had spotted the opossum by the gate. He crept up on it. Pounced. And I had my revenge. He had just stalked his stuffed toy.

For you sentimental sorts, I was enjoying a sunny day with my dog. For you practical folks, I was shamelessly avoiding getting down to sorting.