Snap Out Of It!

Little Monkey

Little Monkey

Little Monkey is a hunter supreme; speciality cats – or any other small moving creature. Most dogs respond to movement and will not notice a cat when it is lying absolutely still, curled up and ready to spring. Not so LM. She sees all!

Walking round the block I know when she’s spotted something by watching her body language change. The “I’ve seen a cat!” posture has a certain stillness to it, as well as the obvious alertness. So ears up, intent fixed staring, and freeze.

I follow her gaze and sure enough I’ll eventually see a cat, silently hunched and still as a mouse, watching us; debating whether it has to actually get  up and walk/run away, or if the silly ‘wolf on a lead’ is no threat.

One time Mr Spaghetti Legs, LM and I were on the last leg of the walk, approaching the ‘gauntlet’, when LM went through the whole process detailed above. I looked in the direction she was fixated on, but could see nothing. Looked at LM again. Definitely something there. Looked again, and finally I saw a black cat, hunched up, feet tucked in, sitting way up high on the top of a white pillar at the entrance to someone’s property a few metres away.

Now, you’ve probably all watched some Cesar Millan, the Dog Whisperer, and know that you can snap a dog out of this unwanted behaviour. A quick tug on the lead, or a tap with your fingers to the dog’s shoulder will normally do the trick. This works perfectly with SL; a well-balanced dog.

Again, not so LM! I tapped her neck. No change. I tapped harder. Her eyes remained glued on the black cat. She wasn’t going to snap out of this that easily! So I pushed her harder with my fingers, on her hip. Her whole body skewed round like a banana, her back legs skidding across the road.

Still her head did not move, her eyes did not shift from the cat, and her attention did not waver for one moment.

By this time I am laughing out loud! (If I ever get locked up, it will be from laughing like this when walking my dogs!) I took her face in my hands and moved it away, while her eyes slewed to the side still trying to see the cat. I stood in front of her, blocking her view.

At last the line of sight was broken, and we went on our way; me blocking, LM desperately trying to see the cat.

LM is not the brightest of dogs; it takes her a long time and many, many, many repetitions to learn new things, and then you must always maintain the routine with no variation, or it’s back to repeating another thousand times!

Now here is the amazing thing. A few days later we walked that way again. As we neared the white pillar, I noticed LM behaving oddly. She was moving her head from side to side, her eyes fixed on the top of the pillar. She was looking for the cat!

She truly is a supreme hunter!

Advertisement

21 thoughts on “Snap Out Of It!”

  2. Bad touch Bear

    I wouldn’t be able to tolerate LM in hunting mode unless I know the target is untouchable/will survive.
    Ive seen enough dead cats/dead animals due to abuse, traffic and medical reasons die. Mangled kitty carcass is not pretty.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. scifihammy Post author

      I agree, mangled kitty is horrible. However, it is natural for wolves to hunt, but don’t worry, LM never catches a cat. Even tho she is severely provoked by the cats round here, who lie in wait inside her own property, and stick their tongue out at her when I try to chase them away so we can enter!!

      Liked by 1 person

  3. Rachel M

    Ah, dogs and cats: age old enemies. My dogs used to go nuts around cats. One time a cat stood up to them and hissed and they both turned and ran away with their tails between their legs. They were just a couple of bullies.

    Liked by 1 person

  4. Mike Fuller Author

    She is just performing her civic duty. Imagine the chaos to follow if dog humans let the dogs run “free” as cat humans seem to think is their right? Why is it okay for tabby to roam, hunting song birds, spreading fleas and dumping in flower beds but should LM or SL sneak out the back they would end up impounded or bring the local constabulary pounding at your door.

    Cats are wonderful, to some people. They should be kept safe in their homes, fed and pampered and not perched to pounce atop a pillar aggravating poor LM.

    Liked by 3 people

  7. ladysighs

    You tell the story of your dog fixated on the cat and it is most amusing and very funny. 🙂
    Now I am waiting for your neighbors (watching from their windows) to post the story of this silly lady tugging and tapping on her dog that is not paying her one bit of attention but is fixated on a cat.
    I wonder which story would be funnier. 😉

    Liked by 2 people

      2. colinandray

        I can imagine that most neighbours of dog owners could tell some amusing tales! I am sure that our neighbour is convinced that she saw Ray teaching me how to play Fetch. I was certainly better at it than him!

        Liked by 1 person

  8. colinandray

    Our Ray does much the same. He knows where the “cat places” are and he is on the alert when we get there! On one driveway, the cat is typically under a car and, as we get close, his head drops and he goes into stalking mode. Most times the cat is not there! I am always amazed that a cat will stand its ground regardless of what is approaching. If I had Ray approaching me in “stalking mode”, I most certainly would not just sit there and stare!

    Liked by 2 people

  9. pensitivity101

    Oh yes, know this stance as Maggie does it to perfection. She has seen wild game that we have not, and if released, lifted partridge, pheasant and rabbits we never knew were even there. She even tiptoes stealthily towards her quarry, then gives chase for a few seconds then stops as if to say, been there, done that, bored now, but you know I coulda! 🙂

    Liked by 1 person

Comments are closed.