a bit of a mooch

[toolebox 1,513]

1. Yesterday I took the dogs to another local farm, the same one I had mentioned in the last report. On that visit across the road to another farm, I'd noticed that there was some rabbit sign, most was older sign, and then today I spotted one fresh scratching. I had to check all the heaps to make sure the bunny wasn't living in one,  the dogs showed no interest, yet the hounds were picking up scent that took them out into the paddock, then down the hill to an area where the farmer had dug a pit and heaped up the valuable yellow gravel. There were several large holes where the digger had extraction the gravel. Just to the right of that was a big wind row of branches, unwanted stumps and any some trunks from tree felling during last summer. I didn't think the dogs were onto something, so I stayed where I was and started loading the dogs up to drive to another that can hold rabbits. When several of the dogs didn't reappear, I thought,  perhaps they had jumped a hare. I had most of the dogs loaded up in the dog crate, when several dogs reappeared, so I loaded them up as well. Furthermore, I happened to look up, and I could see my beautiful fox hound Amber returning to me while carrying a buck rabbit. The very same rabbit that had made the fresh scratch.  I was pleased and could tick another reported rabbit off my list. Amber is rising two and has always had plenty of work, and I've noticed over the last 3 months, her search has more detail to it when there is some sign, she's just getting better and better at working out where bunny is hiding. Finding the rabbits is key to all that follows, the dogs can't catch what they can't find. Those rabbits spend 90 % of their time hiding above ground and will only seek their burrows if pushed hard, these burrows are not normally found out in the open and on some  farms they don't have burrows at all preferring to hide under buildings, logs, boulders, shipping containers and anywhere else they know they are safe under. It isn't sport as you know it, but it's the name of the game here. For me, it has its rewards of spending days mooching along on a different farm nearly every day, with full permission to wander where I like, following along behind the dogs, is for me priceless.

Edited July 12 by toolebox