You can't always get what you want

Do you ever want something that is just not yours to have? Clover and Bing battle this green-eyed monster on a daily basis and Clover would like to take a small break from her exploits to explain.

By Clover Fender

Bing and I are on a quest that runs us in circles; it seemingly has no end, but we forge ahead relentlessly.

Chipmunks. They have to be the most frustrating and intriguing varmints ever placed in my field of vision. Mom’s bedroom windows run to the floor and give Bing and me perfect view of their home among the rocks against the house. The chippies, as Mom calls them, scurry around like they own the place and drive us canine protectors of the manor nuts.

You see, I am a Wheaten Terrier, so I am bred to pull vermin from their habitats. That is in my nature, but barriers and obstacles like a glass window and the electric shock collar around my neck when I am outside do not help my instinctive nature.

As the leader of my household’s two pack – it is my duty to train and facilitate Bing in the process of our daunting task to eradicate chipmunks. Bing is a poodle, bless her heart. She knows what poodles know and that is to point out birds, squirrels, deer, and yes, chipmunks. I had to teach her that a true protector goes beyond standing like a statue and going on point while the cute varmints take over the place. We are the only hunters in this house and I need help.

Actually, with a little training, we make the perfect combination. She follows her instincts and alerts me to the whereabouts of the dastardly rodents in cute suits, so I can come up with a plan to snuff them out.
After a few sessions of pretty intense lessons, I am happy to say that I have Bing on board with the chippie quest. She finds them, whether we are indoors or out; when inside, pounds her front paws against the bedroom window barking ferociously. Together, we run from living room to front door, to bedroom barking as loudly as possible.

So far, the indoor tactic is not working out for us. We strive to instill fear tremors in the chipmunks, but they continue to lurk about with great hubris and mild curiosity about our noise. I work on deepening my bark, and quickening my lunge from window to window, but so far, the little rodents with fuzzy tails are winning.

Mom’s attitude about the invaders does not help our situation. She seems to be amused by their playfulness, and does not even mind when they consume huge quantities of bird food. At least eating bird food aggravates Dad. When Bing and I hit the door at full throttle just when we know we can corner them, she never lets us out to follow my instincts and Bings training. She just shoos us away from the door and admonishes us to be quiet.

When we do go outside, the quick little buggers follow instincts of their own and stay in their homes deep in the rock crevasses. Frustrating.
Someone throw me a bone; what is a dog to do?

Sometimes we know exactly what we want. We know what we feel we should have, but what we want remains just beyond our reach. When everything within us says that we should go full throttle, but a larger force holds us back, then it is time to re-evaluate.

There are times when we must connect with the reality that some things remain out of our grasp for a reason bigger than we can see – even when we follow our instincts. Living in the present means to accept the value of what is available and listen to the big forces of what needs to stay – for the time being - outside our reach.

That being said, and truly believed, we continue our hunt for chipmunks.