November 10th, 2006
another reason it’s good to be home
Despite the enjoyment of traveling in the west, there are a number of good things about being back home. A couple of weeks ago, I wrote about how nice it is to be cooking in my own kitchen once more. It’s also great to be back wandering around the farm with Sabrina a couple of times a day.
When I first arrived home, she was visibly angry at me. She persistently ignored me for about a day, turning all of her attention to Don. It was like being given the silent treatment as she’d not look at me and entirely ignored my call. However, she was unable to hold a grudge for long. We were soon back to our walks in the fields and woods.
Most of the time, I leave the choice of trails up to Sabrina. She walks ahead of me, pausing to wait when she sees that I’m shooting photos. Sometimes, if I’m taking a little too long, she’ll come back up the path and stand watching me. If she could tap her toes, I think that’s what she’d be doing. If Don is with us, she’ll go to him and then look at me and back at him as she gives him the “Can’t you do something about her?” signal.
That said, Sabrina can’t really mind the photography too much. She frequently finds and points out the kind of thing that I would like to photograph — a butterfly, a snake, or even some millipedes. When she has located something of interest, she stands next to it, glancing from it to me a couple of times to let me know there’s something I need to look at. I suppose there are other possible explanations for this behaviour, but I suspect she’s doing her version of “pointing” like a hunting dog. A couple of years ago, she found a young Common Snipe (see below – click on image for larger view) while we were out for a spring walk. She stood quietly next to it, looking from me to the ground a few times as I walked up the trail to see what she’d found. At first, I couldn’t see what she was looking at — so well camouflaged was the snipe — but then I realized that the bird was crouched just inches away. I shot a quick photo and we departed. Oddly enough, Sabrina checks that exact spot almost every time we pass along that path.
Yesterday, she stopped at the fork in the trail, looked to the west and sniffed a couple of times, then took the “short cut” trail leading to the east and back home. Most days, she’d have chosen the longer route so that she could spend the most time outdoors. I could see a rain cloud approaching, and my guess is that she smelled rain on the wind and decided to head for home before the storm — she’s not much for getting wet if she can help it. We arrived at the door of the house just as the rain began pelting down.
It’s good to be home and back on the trails — with Sabrina.
