[fjm]

Mum has been busy gardening for hours and hours and it was very boring till Tilly came along making her Come-and-see-what-I've-got noise very loudly and proudly and she had got a duck! Only a very baby one, and she brought it back all unharmed to teach us to hunt, but Mum made her drop it and it ran very fast and I chased it and Tilly chased me and Mum chased all of us and the duckling ran under David's gate so we all ran round to see if it came out under the other gate but it didn't so Mum banged on his door while we all tried to get into the garden to look for it and David and Linda looked everywhere but couldn't see it till it came round a corner right behind them and David caught it. It was all very exciting, and we thought he should let us have it, but he said he would go and see if he could find its mother and take it home. But we are miles from the river, so no one knows where it came from, unless Tilly carried it all the way back across the fields. I hope she finds some more - they are nearly as good as chickens!

Poppy xx

[I don't - they are too young to survive, and too cute to perish... fjm]

 

[Liz]

FJM: if you ever write a children's book of your Lancashire adventures -- I can already envision the lush watercolors -- please sign me up for advanced copy. Love xx

 

[fjm]

My sister said it sounded just like Mr McGregor's garden!

 

[Asta's Mom]

What fun! Asta has chased ducks, but then he just looks at them. Weird,aliens, science fiction stuff to him.

 

[Raindrops]

Haha! That sounds like great fun. People around here sometimes buy Easter ducklings or chicks for children. Perhaps it's an escapee from such a purchase.

 

[fjm]

It was definitely a newly hatched mallard duckling - they are very prettily striped in gold and brown.

 

[Liz]

FJM - that's exactly the scene I had pictured. You and Poppy and Tilly are in good company with Beatrix Potter and A.A. Milne.

During our adventure today, Mia stepped on a snake -- either a nonvenomous water snake or a venomous copperhead, I didn't stop to look. Luckily it was docile (probably just ate) and wasn't looking for a fight.

 

[fjm]

That sounds a lot more dangerous than ducklings!

 

[Liz]

FJM - I'm irrationally terrified of snakes. A few years ago, I shrieked in terror at a (harmless) black snake on the trail, while Mia went up to it and sniffed its head, looked at me like I was batty, then came trotting back to me with her tail wagging. The snake never moved.

 

[daabor]

We have had ducks for years. Great pets and Sammy loves to chase them around the pool. Unfortunately, our ducks were killed by a predator. We had an enclosed pen, sunken hardclothe around the pen and something still got them.

It is heartbreaking. I may get some more juvies. Sammy never hurt them at all and they were much bigger than him, just great playmates. My son loves to eat fresh duck eggs and I find them very good for baking.

 

[cowpony]

We have had ducks for years. Great pets and Sammy loves to chase them around the pool. Unfortunately, our ducks were killed by a predator. We had an enclosed pen, sunken hardclothe around the pen and something still got them.

It is heartbreaking. I may get some more juvies. Sammy never hurt them at all and they were much bigger than him, just great playmates. My son loves to eat fresh duck eggs and I find them very good for baking.

I'd love a pair of Cayuga ducks. So pretty! And some geese, just because I find the personalities hilarious. Alas, spouse is totally not into the idea. Probably for the best.

 

[Johanna]

One of my favorite memories of a Poodle Club of America national specialty is of a white standard poodle in full show coat racing toward a pond that had some ducks in it. Blessedly he was very obedient and responded to his owner's frantic recall before he hit the water. This was many years ago when PCA was held in Pennsylvania at a hunt club.

 

[Poodlemana]

Many years ago, one of my girls came in through the doggy door and just sat staring at me. It looked like she had a piece of grass hanging from her mouth so I reached down and pulled it out. Got the surprise of my life when she opened her mouth as I pulled. It was not grass. No, it was a mouse tail...attached to a very wet, yet unharmed, mouse. She had been holding it gently in her mouth...no damage of any kind. I quickly took it out and released it outside the fence. Still can't believe I didn't drop it in the house.

 

[fjm]

Hey everybody! Mum's sister, the one who lives up a mountain in Wales, wants to get some chickens! I heard her telling Mum about it when they were doing that funny talking to a screen thing. Just think, chickens to chase for hours whenever we visit! I can't wait...

Poppy xxx

[I can. I have warned my sister if she goes ahead she had better build a very strong coop, what with Poppy and the local foxes and buzzards! fjm]

 

[PeggyTheParti]

Dear Poppy,

I flushed two quail from a bush today! To be honest, I didn't mean to. And to be really honest, it was a bit scary. That's why I didn't chase them. I wasn't being a good girl. I was just in shock! But the human seemed impressed, so I decided to roll with it. I got some pretty good treats for it, too.

Are chickens as scary as quail? Sure hope not!

Your American Friend,
Peggy Sue

 

[fjm]

Are those the sort of birds that make a really big clapping noise when they fly up, so that Mum jumps out of her skin and we do too, Peggy? If so I think we would have been scared, too. Chickens are the squawky flappy running kind, and I like them much more!

Poppy xx

 

[For Want of Poodle]

Poppy - have you talked to your mom about a bird feeder? My human's dad has one in his yard and it's great fun! You have to be careful, and stand and watch, and a bird will fly up and try and steal the seed ! Then if you run run bark, you can protect the seed, and the birds go away! It's really important work, a great job for poodles. I want my human to get one, I promised I would protect it for her, but so far she says no .

Xoxo Annie

 

[fjm]

Mum's sister has those, and we protect them from the squirrels! And sometimes she puts really scrummy stuff out and the birds knock it down on the ground and we eat it and then my Mum gets cross because she doesn't like having to get up to let us out in the middle of the night. Mum says we can't have one because Tilly cat might do rather too good a job of discoraging the birds...

Poppy xx

 

[Johanna]

Hey everybody! Mum's sister, the one who lives up a mountain in Wales, wants to get some chickens! I heard her telling Mum about it when they were doing that funny talking to a screen thing. Just think, chickens to chase for hours whenever we visit! I can't wait...

Poppy xxx

[I can. I have warned my sister if she goes ahead she had better build a very strong coop, what with Poppy and the local foxes and buzzards! fjm]

Poppy, you are supposed to protect the chickens, not chase them (even though chasing those squawking, flapping birds is loads of fun!).