A canine mouse hunter

This is farm dog. At least that's what we
call him when he's on patrol at
Four Cedars Farm. When he's roaming the
hallways of our place in the city, he's less instinctual predator, more couch potato. In the city, farm dog answers to Simon.

But farm dog prefers the
farm and we prefer to have him patroling our
acreage because he's got a
helluva nose for rodents. Just a few weekends
ago, he sniffed out a nest of
field mice and even helped us kill one of
them. (We used the shotgun against
the others.)

He found a similar nest last fall.

Earlier this summer, he cornered a rather hideous possum, and he's constantly on the prowl against rabbits, starlings and the occassional errant cow wandering over from the neighbor's place. I've watched farm
dog chase down but just miss a few pheasants and cast a longing eye toward the ducks out on the water.

They're safe though. Farm dog doesn't
like to swim. I guess that, and his
mousing ability, makes him a bit
like a farm cat. Don't tell him, though.