Mounds..

Mounds- Not the candy bar my husband likes! Hills of sand and dirt left behind by nocturnal demons, marked by ankle turning entrances and tunnels that criss cross our property making planting anything in the ground fair game for their munching ways. "Who are these spawn?" you ask.. I am so glad you are interested! We have not one, but two underhanded, underground dwellers.

First we have Pocket Gophers- ugly, rat like with long yellow incisors, they are vegetarians with a taste for everything. Second we have Moles- uglier, rattier, with creepy little hands and blind faces, these omnivores leave behind destruction in any flowerbed I plant. Yet we have a secret weapon! Her name is Ashley. Ashley came to us as a tiny seven week old kitten. She is now the queen of all the farmstead. A huntress extraordinaire! We have personally witnessed her approach a gopher mound on silent cat feet, put her outstretched paws down into the tunnel and wait. Wait for an hour if need be until that magic moment and "Wham", she has a claw in and dragging them from their lair with a triumphant "Meow" of pride, she is victorious. Now that sounds wonderful until she wishes to share the bounty with her human family. Going down the hall last month, I caught the whiff of decay. Finding a dead rat lovingly placed under my youngest son's bed. (At least it was on the floor!) My oldest has woken to the sound of crunching bones as she prepared a feast to share on his desk. She truly doesn't get why we praise her for her varminting skills, yet don't want a taste and throw it away with much "EWWW" and "GROSS" exclamations.

Never the less..Go get 'em Ashley!