There is a joy living in a special place. The swans have no idea how much joy and happiness they bring to the humans that pass their way. At least they do to me. If they did, they’d waddle closer, flap their wings, honk, dance, and put on a show.
Watching vegetables sprout is always soothing. I need soothing. Things are not always idyllic around here. Sunday night the dogs caught and killed a raccoon. Quiet, gentle Takuma and Enna turn into ferocious, wild beasts when they are on the hunt. They can be as ferocious as hyenas. I feel sorry for the raccoon, but were it not for the dogs, I’d be feeling very sorry for the ducks and chickens the raccoon may have made off with.
Enna escaped unscathed. Takuma has battle scars on his head and neck. They have mostly healed, but I’m sure I’ll feel them for a long time each time I pet him.
It’s only the second time in fifteen years here that we’ve encountered a raccoon. The other time was long ago, when we had BB & Echo. They woke me up early one summer morning, barking at the chicken coop. I ran out and a raccoon went flying across the roof of the chicken coop, the dogs chasing after it. They chased it up a tree and kept it there all morning and into the afternoon, when we brought the dogs in. The raccoon ran off and never came back.
I’m sorry to hear about the raccoon. The whole thing sounds pretty traumatising. I hope you are okay.
We are fine. It was unsettling for a few days. Takuma is well healed and back to normal. What was hard was that it was dark and I couldn’t tell what was going on. There was a lot of howling and growling, and rather dreadful sounds coming from the raccoon and the dogs. Living in the country, you do come across evidence of intense animal interactions. But that is nature. Animals who hunt do not go around with weapons that quickly dispatch their prey. When I dispatch a rooster, I do it as quickly as possible. A hawk, eagle, coyote, opossum, or bob cat just wants to eat. The pain and feelings of the prey are never considered.