Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Location: Montreal -> CT -> MA -> Montreal -> Ottawa
17,330 posts, read 33,013,815 times
Reputation: 28903
Advertisements
In the immortal words of Gilda Radner in her SNL days: If it's not one thing, it's another.
Soooo, yesterday I took Artie to the vet to have his anal sacs expressed and his nails trimmed. I'm not sure which one of those things he hated more. The good news, though, is my monster wasn't a monster: Instead of barking and lunging at every man and beast in the waiting room, he was sniffing every person and sniffing every dog. He was a joy... and potentially not my dog.
So, yeah, yesterday he was terrific.
This morning, though...
He was out in the backyard and he let out a few barks that sounded "different" than his usual barks. When I went out on the deck to see what was going on, I saw Artie on the lawn looking down on what appeared to be a bird or a chipmunk (we have a lot of chipmunks around that live/hide in the drainage pipes).
Thankfully my husband was still home. I got Artie in and my husband out. It was a chipmunk, lying on its side, but his heart was still beating. (I could see his chest rise and fall, rise and fall, albeit very shallowly.)
We (OK, not "we" -- my husband) needed to put it out of its misery. And out of MY misery because I was sobbing. He did that and I sprayed the area with Nature's Miracle so that Artie wouldn't start digging there.
ANYway! I don't know what happened. I can only GUESS that this chipmunk was the slowest in his family and that Artie caught him. (UGH! I feel sick just writing that.)
Artie didn't (oh God, I can't write this...) eat any part of him, although IF he did "capture" him, then I have to GUESS that Artie had him in his mouth at some point.
I googled and googled and discovered very few instances like this. However, chipmunks are said to rarely if ever have rabies and are, by nature, very clean animals. (And cute! I'm so sad...)
I called the vet and they said not to worry, that nothing will happen to Artie. Yeah, yeah, easier said than done.
Have any of you had any dog vs. chipmunk incidents? Any outcomes to share?
I've had near misses in my parents yard. The closest Edison has gotten to a small furry friend is a squirrel climbing up to a tree to escape him and the squirrel losing some of its tail hair. I'm just waiting for the day when he does end up catching one, eek!
Gilda Radner is a smart woman!
My neighbors pug Taz caught a bird....I think. I came out to walk Buster and noticed Taz on the porch and a lump of black next to him. It was the bird. As I got a bit closer to inspect I saw Taz had blood all over his face and paws and was going back towards the bird. Now I'm not sure if Taz actually caught the bird or if it was already dead and fell off the roof or out of the tree, but either way, it was not good. I banged on the door and rang the doorbell and Charlie finally came outside to get him. It was gross all around, but I'm pretty sure Taz ended up being ok, just needed a bath.
I had a similar encounter a few weeks ago with my little monster. He usually barks to be let in after he does his business, but he was just standing at the door whining. So I let him in and he stays put and looks at me with his big puppy dog eyes. So I'm like, Ziggy, what's up? Speak!
And he spit out a baby mouse.
No teethmarks, nothing. It looks like he was trying to save the poor thing by holding it in his mouth. He's so maternal LOL. I'm not going to lie that it freaked me the hell out though.
No chipmunk but we did have a rabbit issue with the dog we had prior to Macie. Same thing, we (DH) had to put it out of it's misery. No health issues as a result of that though....
I would imagine that dogs meet their fair share of birds and chipmunks in the wild, so I can't imagine any harm will come of him because of this encounter. If the vet says he'll be fine, then I don't think you have anything to worry about--especially if you live in an area that has a ton of chipmunks, Artie can't be the only dog who has ever met one before
i have had SEVERAL cat vs chipmunks incidents, cat vs. mouse incidents and a few cat vs bird incidents.... and bailey USUALLY ends up stealing the prize from poor little max .....
he brought a chipmunk in the house one time and i ended up closing him in the bathroom with it so that it would not escape and be loose in the house.... not a TRACE was left when i opened the door a couple of hours later......
bailey found a nest of baby rabbits in the park where we walk just before easter..... THAT was upsetting..... she got one on saturday and 2 more on monday..... she knows how to dance away JUST out of my reach.... and honestly, i figured they would be gone by the time we got back in that area 2 days later........
my main concern is parasites that the prey animals may be carrying.... the heartguard i have bailey and dave on is supposed to protect against intestinal parasites as well, and seems to.....
they are dogs (and cats, in my case) .... and their instinct is to hunt .... that is just the way the good lord made them......
No teethmarks, nothing. It looks like he was trying to save the poor thing by holding it in his mouth. He's so maternal LOL. I'm not going to lie that it freaked me the hell out though.
I'm freaked out reading it too! I will most likely be freaked out when my dog does it too.
Quote:
Originally Posted by latetotheparty
they are dogs (and cats, in my case) .... and their instinct is to hunt .... that is just the way the good lord made them......
No teethmarks, nothing. It looks like he was trying to save the poor thing by holding it in his mouth. He's so maternal LOL. I'm not going to lie that it freaked me the hell out though.
I'm freaked out reading it too! I will most likely be freaked out when my dog does it too. It's not a matter of if, it's a matter of when!
Quote:
Originally Posted by latetotheparty
they are dogs (and cats, in my case) .... and their instinct is to hunt .... that is just the way the good lord made them......
He'll be fine, dogs are instinctual hunters. Maybe he's hinting that it's time for a raw diet and until you switch, he'll forage for his own food! Don't you have deer in your area? That should be interesting!
On a side note, I have to admit that I would be wildly excited if PC caught and ate a chipmunk. That's one protein source we have yet to try!
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
