Why you don't want to take dogs when you're out naturalizing


So there I was, walking along a rather picturesque, snowcovered trail. Ahead of me, I spotted a Red Squirrel, which, befrighted by this large beast approaching it, retreated. In point of fact, it retreated through a hole in the snow, which looked like it had been used frequently....tracks, fallen bark, sunflower seed shells, bits of pinecone. I thought to myelf "how interesting", and pulled my camera out to take a picture. By the time my camera was on, toby the dog had pounced on the hole, and destroyed the entire affair. I think it was a midden, such as is maintained by squirrels. However, since the dog pounced it, I didn't get the chance to study it further, in person or through photos.

Lesson learned: If you study rodents as a hobby, don't expect to get anything interesting done when you're walking your dog. This is also true of small plants, and mustelids.