I got this pic from my friend Clare Carver of Big Table Farm a few days ago and thought that I needed to make a post about my dog, Buster.
A Darn Good Dog
Buster is a Jack Russell Terrier that Amy’s cousin gave to us. He is the first dog I have ever owned and after about 6 weeks I was wondering if I was a “dog person” after all. All the b.s. was worth it. He is a terrific personality, smart as can be, great at killing mice, rats, and squirrels, and a terrific lap warmer on cold winter evenings. He does bark though. A lot. When the wind blows.
This morning, a Sunday, he started barking at about 6:30. It wasn’t his usual “there is a bicyclist on the road a mile away” bark but a very urgent “serious injustice is being perpetrated” bark. And he wouldn’t quit. I climbed on the couch, his crow’s nest from which he surveys the farm, to try to calm him down. Finally I saw them too. Five young dairy cows from our neighbors place grazing the grass in our orchard. Not a big deal unless they broke through the hot wire fence, shin high on a cow, that was holding captive 15 really big hogs. And not a big deal as long as they didn’t end up in the veggie patch next to the hogs’ pasture and start browsing on the delicious young vegetables within.
I pulled on some clothes and got between the cows and the veggies and it turns out that cows are very good at noticing hot wire fences, even low ones. The hogs were amazed never having seen a cow or any animal that big. They were clearly intimidated by the size of the cows but gathered at the wire for a staring contest anyway. Luckily I had my neighbor’s cell phone number and a few minutes after calling she and her kids piled out of a minivan. The boys moved the cows back to their pasture and Amy and I had a nice chat with our neighbor. Poor Buster got left in the house for the whole adventure.
