Sammy and Gopher Town

Sammy on a typical afternoon (or morning, evening, lunchtime, suppertime....)

This is Samantha Josephine, our full-bred mutt.   Or, as some refer to her, a Labradoodle, designer-dog.  With that type of heritage she is a born hunter.  And our back pasture is rife with prey.  Prey of the gopher variety.  

Left to their own devices, gophers would turn our back pasture into a full-fledged subdivision of Meridian; complete with traffic circles and a community pool.  That's where Sammy the Wonder Dog stepped in.  She has perfected the art of hunting the pesky gophers on their own turf.  Literally.  She's a digging fool.

Sammy jumps in nose first

Sammy is far from decimating the gopher population but not for lack of trying.  On any given day we can find her out in the back pasture, doing her part to keep the family ranch in good working order.  

While gophers are her main target, she also brings back the occasional mouse; proof she's hard at work.  (I would have taken pictures of the dead gophers but they are kind of disgusting.)

Of course, all that digging has an inevitable result.  Sam in need of a bath.  Upon occasion I have given Sammy as many as three (THREE) baths in one day.

The good thing is, for Sam, baths are a treat.  Sort of like my sister Cammi - who considers herself a "tubber" at heart.  You say 'bath!' to her and she runs into the bathroom, jumps into the tub, and starts biting the water.  Sammy, that is, not Cammi.  (well, not to my knowledge.)


But in recent weeks, we've noticed that Sam has co-opted the services of our senior dog-about-house, Marley.  Also a mu.....er, LABRADOODLE, Marley has a keen nose and a lively sense of the chase.
In fact, Marley is now even more committed than Sammy to keeping the gopher population in check.  From nearly sunup to sundown he is out in Gopher Town, doing his best to change the name to Marley's Hill of Holes.

Unfortunately, Marley does not share Sam's love of the tub.  Once in the bathroom,  he hides in the corner, face determinedly pointing at the wall.

You can almost hear him chanting, "I can't see her, so she can't see me - she can't see me, she can't see me, she can't see me."



But there is only one way for this scene to end - in the tub, not a moment too soon.

And at the end of a long hard day both pups have earned a good meal and a relaxing snooze.  Just another day on The Elkhorn Ranch.