Ah, escape-prone animals! I once had goats who believed they belonged in the house with 'the other people', and patrolled the constantly-repaired fence to find its weak points. And Djinn, now two years old, at four months leapt over a three-foot deck gate, landed on the down-facing stairs, ran around the house and opened the front door (lever-action handles).
None of my animals escape to run away -- they escape to join the rest of us. Susan Salt Spring Island with Djinn (Bernese) and Riley (???) and the two cats Are you sitting comfortably, then I'll begin <g>. We've had Bernese for nearly 17 years and I thought we knew everything about their expensive habits that there was to know... Diet - including sofas and dining room suites. Vets fees - from acupuncture and arthritis, through crutiate repairs & entropian, to sebaceous cysts and things far nastier. Now our vets are in our Friends and Family dialling circle and we have full pet insurance. Mode of transport - the more you have, the bigger the vehicle needed. A 7 seater with all but 2 seats removed is just right for 4 dogs. House redecoration -new carpets, no carpets; wall paper, no wall paper; cat flap, no cat flap. Bedding (ours) - A king size bed is an absolute necessity for those early morning snuggles, if *you* want to be included. Chores - a vacuum cleaner on an industrial scale is essential to keep up with those miniature Berners that like to lurk everywhere from under the freezer to the top of the wardrobe. Garden - ahh, the garden. We've given up expecting anything other than a lunar landscape. A lot of money flowed into the garden before we learnt to let the dogs do the gardening and let us get on with more important things, like housework. Yes, I thought we knew it all. Until the advent of 18 month old Roxie into our lives last June. Roxie the Berner with pogo sticks instead of legs. Roxie the dog who likes you to get up with the sun to keep her company. Roxie the Houdini dog... AKA Poxie Roxie. Our garden consists of an acre fully fenced for the dogs and 5 acres of rough for them to run in under supervision. Our 4' fences have always proved more than equal to the task of keeping our dogs in, even Toby, who at 36" at the shoulder could easily jump or even knock the fences over. Until Roxie. She soon jolted us out of our complacency by bouncing over the fence with ease. So we heightened it by running 2 strands of wire along the top of the existing fence and weaving another strand between them and the existing fence, bring the height up another 9" or so. She still escaped. And a wise lady from the list told me that once a Berner has the taste for escapism, we're doomed... How right she was! Last month, I gave in and decided that as my husband was away all month, I'd get a professional fencing contractor to cast his eye over our problem and come up with a once and for-all solution. To save money (a fatal flaw when considering our beautiful and agile breed), I decided that I would only get that part of the fence done that she was getting over. That cost us nearly 400 UK pounds. I was impressed, no way was Roxie going to get over a 7' fence. I wondered in an idle moment if we should have watch towers installed too, with search lights and stuff. Roxie spent her time walking the fence line. I watched and laughed. For a whole week she surveyed the fence, I sniggered and told her she'd never escape now. NEVER give a Bernese a challenge like that. The day after Malcolm came home and agreed it was money well spent, Roxie jumped the fence. No, not the tall one, just the 5' one which had strands of barbed wire along it until we could heighten it. Back to the drawing board and another large sum of money on fencing materials. We are now so well know at the contractors, that Malcolm has been told they'll keep all their odd bits of fence wire for him, it's cheaper to let us have it than to order a rubbish skip to take it all away! Yesterday Malcolm finished erecting another run of 7' fencing and said "I'd like to see her escape now". So she did. This time she slithered through the gap left in the strands of wire holding everything together. She just has to be double jointed, I would have defied a cat to get through that gap. Soooo... Another day is drawing to a close, another day spent making the fence Roxie proof, and Malcolm has just issued her with another challenge... Get over that if you can! I'm not betting either way! Thank doG she doesn't go far, we live up a private road away from town, although we do get stupid drivers who think children and animals shouldn't be on the road; and luckily, all the sheep were moved at the end of last year. By the time I feel fairly confident she won't ever escape again, we will have spent well into 4 figures. Is she worth it? You bet! The sheer zest she has for life is intoxicating. I can't even feel aggrieved when she's been bouncing all over my emergent daffodils. Anyway, life would be so dull (if not so poverty stricken) without a daily challenge! Oh, and through all this, Mags and Toby just stand and watch her escape, with, I think, a little admiration and some jealousy in their eyes! Are there any other expenses lurking round the corner that I'm not prepared for I wonder? Well, as long as we have dogs, I'm willing to bet something somewhen will crop up that I'd never have imagined in a thousand years! Liz Bradbury in Scotland, with Roxie (2) the bouncing Berner; Newfs Toby (6) and Maggie (16 months); & the 6 Feline Fiends.
