I’m realizing that Mom and Dad’s obedience trainer hangs out with a bad crowd. You won’t believe who he invited to join us in class today. Two Squirrels who he kept insisting were some make believe creature called Ferrets. HA! Like he could fool me: brown, fuzzy, long tail, runs fast, unpredictable movements, you can’t tell me those weren’t Squirrels! They must be ne’er-do-wells hiding from the authorities, and forced to assume a new identity. Anyways, despite wishing I checked out Mom and Dad’s trainer’s references more closely before signing them up for classes, I decided to make the best of this week’s lesson and go along with this Ferret hoax.
I told Asa to sit on one of the low pedestals, while I sat on the other, so we could size up these new “friends” from a safe distance. These Ferrets certainly surprised me by being friendlier than the Squirrels in our yard. Would you believe rather than run away, they each ran up to us to say hello? Sensing this was some sort of trap, I remained on my pedestal. Asa also surprisingly stayed seated, but wagged his tail in delight. I have to admit it was fun watching them bounce around in front of us. Probably sensing we wanted a better look, Mom told us we could do a down/stay.
Asa’s Ferret friend took that as an opportunity to climb up on the pedestal with him! They each gave the other a good sniff. That’s when my Ferret got distracted and ran off, typical Squirrel. However, Asa’s friend sensing I was lonely came over to say hi. There we were, nose to nose, then finally I couldn’t resist. I gave that Ferret a lick on her nose. What was I thinking? Luckily, she didn’t mind, and soon was off chasing her brother around the room. Perhaps I’ve misjudged these playful creatures that were incognito? Maybe they weren’t hiding from the law, but instead working with the law in the witness protection program?
The trainer wanted us to get to know his friends better, so told us we could each get off our pedestals and do a down/stay on the floor. That’s when the real fun began! The Ferrets ran across the room at full sprint and climbed over us! But if they misjudged, one swipe from Asa’s wagging tail, like a lever in a pinball machine, would send them flying in a different direction. It was great fun for everyone, especially the Ferrets! The whole time the humans in the room couldn’t get over how good we were being just laying there in a down/stay. I have to admit I was surprised too. It was only a couple years ago while on a hike that Asa almost dragged Dad and I to our death trying to chase a Chipmunk over a cliff. Yet here he sat just watching this energetic duo dart here, there, and everywhere.
Deciding to recreate that hiking misadventure, I leashed up Mom and took her for a walk around the room. Asa and Dad soon followed. The Ferrets really wanted to entice Asa to play. One even appeared from behind a crate pushing a tennis ball with his tiny head. Surely Asa would forget his avoiding temptations training, and join in on the fun? But he didn’t! He just stood there with his head tilted, the goofiest grin on his face, and his tail wagging faster than I ever seen it go before! Way to go Asa! After a leisurely stroll around the room, Mom and I made our way over to the other mischievous Ferret. She was splashing around in a water bowl. Ok, I admit I did consider breaking from my heel to play too. But I knew I had to set a good example for Asa.
Eventually though the Ferrets got tired from all their playing. One flopped down right in front of Asa for a nap, while the other curled up out of sight in an agility tunnel. Realizing that Mom and Dad were probably also feeling tired too from all that excitement, we decided it was time to take them home for a nap. I’m still not sure why these two Squirrels were in the witness protection program disguised as some made up creature called a Ferret. However, whatever they were hiding from, it sure wasn’t us. Perhaps not all Squirrels are bad after all, and I should stop barking and chasing them?
