It didn't take long for Pumkin to realize that our neighbors have a dog, Daisy. Likewise, Daisy seemed quite eager and excited to have a new playmate next door. After a day or two of barking and snarling at each other through the fence, the two appeared to reach mutual understanding and decided that no fence would come between their friendship.
It didn't take long for Pumkin to realize that our neighbors have a dog, Daisy. Likewise, Daisy seemed quite eager and excited to have a new playmate next door. After a day or two of barking and snarling at each other through the fence, the two appeared to reach mutual understanding and decided that no fence would come between their friendship.
They began digging what we called their "love tunnels." Like good nieghbors, though, we sought to discourage the digging by blocking the holes with landscaping stones. Despite our efforts, Alex and Chris had long wanted the two dogs to succeed in their quest. How cool it would be for the dogs to have a tunnel through which they could visit each other, play tug-of-war, take their afternoon water together and share a cow's hoof.
One day, while the grown-ups had their backs turned, the dogs nearly succeeded. Daisy, the smaller of the two, had an opening large enough for her to crawl through past her shoulders. Finally! With communion a paws breadth away, Pumpkin, Alex and Chris crouched to greet the emerging dog with the full anticipation of a new father witnessing the miracle of birth.
We learned two things that day: first, Daisy's blue doggy-bone I.D. tag reads "Bailey," and second, Pumpkin was not as interested in acquiring a new playmate as she was in acquiring a new chew-toy. Once the boys realized that Bailey was in grave danger of having his ears gnawed-off, they quickly coaxed him back into the safety of his own yard and blocked the hole with bricks.
I'd like to report that the digging ended there; that once Bailey discovered the truth about what kind of girl Pumpkin is, he'd find a new fence to dig. But boys will be boys (as they say) and Bailey seems to be drawn to the kind of woman who is unwilling to commit to anything more than a quick chomp.
Here is one of the holes Pumpkin and Bailey were working on. They laboured furiously, but it seems each with a different motive. By the time Bailey had enough room to crawl under the fence, Pumpkin began chomping on his neck and head. Poor thing only made it to his shoulders before he realized the object of his affection was stricktly in it for sport. I guess it's better this way, what kind of life could a Beagle and a German Shepherd/Huskey/yet-to-be-determined mutt make together? She's a heartbreaker, our Pumpkin. A real bone-digger.
This is a picture of our side of the fence. The neighbor's side looks much the same, except they've used Austin Limestone - very attractive. When budget permits, I'm going to pave this whole section of our backyard in flagstone. Then, we'll invite the neighbors over properly, through the front door.