Bunny Trouble

Last week I took the dogs to Phoenix's all time favorite spot - Rabbiting at the Yarra. It's around Templestowe, and there's mountain bike tracks and a walking path through to somewhere or other, and along it is all sorts of bushy trees and shrubs, which tend to be full of rabbits. I've never seem him so excited - eyes flashing demonically, tongue lolling and spittle flying, and usually I don't see him for about 40 minutes. Now, I have no fear he will ever actually catch one of the small fluffy little things (which I am told are riddled with disease and destroy natural habitat, but are sweet never the less) because for miles around, all one can hear is the sound of a possessed dog smashing his way through undergrowth. He hasn't in the slightest mastered the art of sneaking. He sees one scuttle off, then launches his attack, with no regard to his personal safety, of any of the bike riders crossing his path at that time. Sahara is just downright worried by it - she likes to know where he is at all times, and yet can't be too far from my side, so she skips off like Peppe le Pew, bouncing around on all four legs with her nose in the air, and just sort of half-arsedly following Phoenix around, then running back to me, wrinkling her forheard and snuffling around for some idea where he might be.

Last week though, we got closer to some bunnies than ever before - off went Phoenix and Sahara in a frenzied pursuit, and as I made the fearful comment to D 'I wonder if they will ever catch one', I whistled to Phoenix. As he plunged from the bushy undergrowth, face dripping with blood, I nearly had hysterics. I frantically grabbed him and looked in his mouth, but couldn't see any damage. I yelled for Sahara, and out she popped, entirely covered in blood - in her eyes, her mouth was dripping disturbingly fast, legs and chest bright red.
This time I did have hysterics. I sat down on the muddy, rabbit crap covered dirt and checked Sahara all over, while yelling to D to go see if they could find the remains of the rabbit, all the time thinking there was no chance they could have gotten one. I am sure if they were intelligent enough to bring one down, they wouldn't have left it so willingly, and I know from experience bunny hair is prone to flying everywhere, and sticking to anything it can latch onto, and neither pup had any traces. So we have come to the conclusion they cut their tongues on some brambles, or else got close enough to the wretched rabbit for it to do some damage, and is still giggling with his family about his close shave with the two lumbering mutts.

Never the less, I will be finding somewhere else to walk the dogs until Phoenix can learn to calm down a little, as he seems rather prone to being victim of a heart attack the way he is with rabbits. Maybe then I wont be in danger of wrecking another pair of jeans with lashings of blood, or, worse than anything... being seen publicly crying, because my little darling hurt herself on a blackberry bush.