Silly Goose Dog!

Well, here’s something a little different from the files of the Reverent Eater…

In honor of spring and Earth Day and the great outdoors, today we move from food preparation and food consumption back to where it all begins…food production. We return to the source…we return to the farm.

The town where we live now was once upon a time what one might reasonably call a “farm town.” But we’re talking a century ago. Today, there are no longer any working farms here. The playing field near our house was once a farm and is still named after that farm, but it’s only grass and dandelions, children and their dreams that grow there now.

However, there are still a couple of small farms in some of the towns nearby. One such farm has been in the same family for almost 100 years and is located just over our town line. It’s only probably a mile or two from our front porch to the front door of their farm stand, as the geese fly. And, in this time when farmland is so speedily giving way to development, it is a treasure. And we here at The Reverent Eater would very much like to support them in any way we can.

Speaking of geese, the farm owners and manager have been a little worried about the damage that the increasingly large flocks of Canadian Geese could do to their newly planted crops, like their lettuce seedlings, for instance. And so this past week they put out a call for goose patrols – that is, dogs and their owners who would be willing to walk through the fields occasionally and humanely chase away any geese they find snacking there.

This morning the younger of my two dogs and I answered that call. What follows is really a mama’s brag…

Of our two dogs, one is much more of an “eater,” and the other is more of a “chaser.” The chaser has always had a natural aptitude for chasing. In fact, a very important part of her morning routine has been to begin her day in “ready…set” mode at the back deck door and wait not-so-patiently for it to slide open so she can “GO!”

Her goal…her vocation…what she absolutely LIVES for…is to try to catch the squirrels that by that time of morning are already well ensconced in the birdfeeders in our back yard. And to that end, she TEARS out the back door and down the deck steps like a FLASH and ZOOMS across the yard to tree the thus far lucky little rodents. Though truthfully, between you and me, she’s never gonna get ‘em. But oh! How she dreams!

This morning at the farm, mama’s little “chaser” was spectacular! At first there were no geese. But she stayed near by as the farm manager gave us a tour, showing us what had been planted so far in the early days of the season. The peas are just beginning to come up. And when two geese did come honking by and flying in for a landing, it didn’t take much encouragement on mama’s part to get our little Goose Chaser on the job. She joyfully tore after them – they flew on a bit further – she kept after them – and they took off. And with a whistle, she was back at my side with absolute glee and delight reflecting in her eyes for some well-deserved praise and a taste of kibble. What a good dog! And what a wonderful way to start the day!