Living on a farm is a game of chess sometimes and a test of stamina and wit. Fences break, holes are dug, barns rot, roofs leak, and rats and pigeons harass them. Bud is a chess match. He’s a Jekyll and Hyde dog, sweet and loving inside of the house, a terror outside. And now, an escape artist as well.
For his first years here, Bud never escaped from the dog-fenced-in backyard area. In the past month, he has squeezed out of a hole we were slow to discover and block. Yesterday, Maria looked out the window to see that Bud had escaped again, this time, we think, trying to drive the Imperious Hens away from the front of the house. I thought my rock and firewood blockade would work. It didn’t.
Bud believes that nothing on the planet, living or machine, should be allowed to come near our house – Amish horses, chickens, dogs, sheep, trucks, or people walking down the road. He sometimes gets crazy and tries to get through the fence and drive the intruders away. Like many Boston Terriers, Bud thinks he’s a dinosaur.
He doesn’t run off; he puts his head down and hunts for unsuspecting rodents and moles (rats, too, maybe.)
We tried to block the hole significantly, but it didn’t work. It’s like a chess game sometimes – the farm makes a move, you make a move and hope it’s in time.
I can’t imagine how he squeezed through an opening that narrow. But we can’t have him getting loose; even though he doesn’t go near the road, he could quickly get himself killed, taking on something more significant and meaner than he is. We were unsure how to respond, and I got a brain flash – call Dan Rogers, our local carpenter, friend, and fixer of everything. We needed some help.
Bud can be a pain, but we love him and don’t want to lose him. If he runs far enough into the woods, something will eat him.
Dan, one of our favorite Big Man In A Truck, came right over and came up with a two-board solution that he is sure will thwart Bud and block him. He’ll be back in a few days to plug the hole. The problem, he said, is that the fence is not attached to the ground, which is not a problem for sheep and donkeys, only for small and troublesome monsters like Bud. He’s going to dig a trench, to love for Bud to explore.
It is interesting that Boston Terriers weren’t bred for a specific job.
I believe they were Donald, they were bred in Boston to hunt rats and rodents in stalls and sewers
“While originally bred for fighting as well as hunting rats in garment factories, they were later bred for companionship. They are not considered terriers by the American Kennel Club, however, but are part of the non-sporting group.”
They remain hunters and pursuers of rodents and rats.. They are also loving companion animals.
Boston needs to hire a few dozen or so to rid the city of the rat explosion!