You know how you can be working at something when a faint sound gradually penetrates your consciousness? You’ve been hearing it for some time but only after many repetitions does your brain go, “Hey, that’s not a normal noise.” So it was, both last night and this morning, when a faint, thin, mouse-squeak of a whine floated into my head.
Miró was stuck again. He can whine like a car’s brakes squeaking. He pushes open the door into the guest bathroom, where it’s quiet and dark, and curls up for a nap on the thick Gabbeh rug that’s the size of a dog bed. The door swings shut. Although Miró uses his paws to push and grab more than any of my other dogs, he prefers to wait and whine until his service provider (me) comes to open the door, rather than to experiment with manipulating the door and possibly pulling it open. This is a good thing. Once he figures out how to hook his paw around a door and pull it open, the kitchen cupboards will never be safe again. It’s a nightmare I shudder to contemplate.
The question is, why does he keep going in there when he knows what will happen? Apparently the pleasure of a nap in a private room outweighs the inconvenience of waking up to find himself unable to get out.
Showing posts with label door. Show all posts
Showing posts with label door. Show all posts
Wednesday, April 14, 2010
Monday, March 3, 2008
musical roosts
the complexities of roosting door, rooster, wings
the complexities of roosting
When it's time to shut the coop door, does one just say, "Night, night, birds" and shut the door as usual? Noooo, one must first pluck a Modern off the top of the hutch and put her inside. Then one must fetch two Americaunas from inside the hutch. It is not easy to reach both arms through a small door, grab a large hen, pry her feet from the perch, and haul her out the door, preferably without breaking a wing or cutting one's hand on the wire of the door opening. And then do it again.
When grabbing a hen, it's best to hold her wings against her body; otherwise she'll flap madly and you'll have a hard time restraining her. But when trying to do that while reaching arm's length into the hutch, the simple grab isn't always effective.
Here's a tip: when you put the hen on the ground, which you need to do to get a better grip on her, run your hand with a little bit of pressure down her back. She'll flatten her back and stand still, not because she loves your gentle touch but because you have just imitated a rooster about to mount her. Works way better than hypnotism.
the complexities of roosting
When it's time to shut the coop door, does one just say, "Night, night, birds" and shut the door as usual? Noooo, one must first pluck a Modern off the top of the hutch and put her inside. Then one must fetch two Americaunas from inside the hutch. It is not easy to reach both arms through a small door, grab a large hen, pry her feet from the perch, and haul her out the door, preferably without breaking a wing or cutting one's hand on the wire of the door opening. And then do it again.
When grabbing a hen, it's best to hold her wings against her body; otherwise she'll flap madly and you'll have a hard time restraining her. But when trying to do that while reaching arm's length into the hutch, the simple grab isn't always effective.
Here's a tip: when you put the hen on the ground, which you need to do to get a better grip on her, run your hand with a little bit of pressure down her back. She'll flatten her back and stand still, not because she loves your gentle touch but because you have just imitated a rooster about to mount her. Works way better than hypnotism.
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