Sparrows, she said. Ha! If only…
It’s been peaceful since we moved here. Apart from the cows and the postman… and a few odd visitors like the hedgehog. I was really starting to feel I could relax a bit. She obviously doesn’t need as much protecting here.
For a start, I don’t have all those bedrooms to worry about… in fact, no upstairs at all! It took me a while to work that one out, ’cause there is an upstairs. We live in a house with an upstairs… but that isn’t our house. She calls it a flat, because it is. And no-one walks down our little street… so I don’t need to bark so much.
We did have a problem with sparrows last year, but I sorted them out. They wanted to nest in the roof and one cock-sparrow would sit there and look at me, chirping, all day! I was obliged to have words with him about that…till he got a missus and they had babies. He was too busy then.
“It’s only a sparrow, girlie!” she kept saying. “I like sparrows.” Well, so she might…but she just doesn’t seem to understand. I am just doing my duty, keeping her safe. You never know…especially with sparrows…
It started with just one at the other place too…then there were forty and more, all living in the honeysuckle hedge! It was all I could do to keep up! She said I was a daft dog and that one or forty didn’t matter…they were all nice. She has some weird tastes that two-legs of mine. The racket those birds made, twittering about nests, worms and sunrises every morning! It’s not as if they are capable of holding an interesting conversation. It was a real noise! “…but I like it,” she says. And then, as soon as I barked at them to ask them to keep it down, “Shh,” she says. Inconsistent, that’s what she is…
But this year, we have trouble. I looked up at the window of the upstairs flat….that’s when I saw it. Well, straight away, I went into protecting mode… after all, she was just inside the door! “Shh,” she says, “it’s just a sparrow.” She obviously wasn’t paying attention. She knows my sparrow bark. And that wasn’t it.
I was obliged to resort to The Growl… the low growl that says there is a real threat. “What’s up, whirly girl?” she says…and she finally came out to have a look.
A cat. That’s what’s ‘up’. Up there, in the window above ours, looking down, all supersillyous snarky. It didn’t even move. Just looked at me. When did that arrive? It wasn’t there before… I would definitely have noticed.
Now it looks at me every day. They leave the blind up so it can look out. It sits there, all black and white, looking really pleased with itself. And she says I have to learn to get along with it! It’s bad enough having the little dog next door that won’t speak. To be fair, we can’t see each other over the fence. I’ve tried, but it must be too small to get its paws on the fence…and as we are both well-mannered, we can’t really speak till we’ve been introduced.
Hrmph. She seems to find the idea of me being well-mannered funny for some reason. There’s no call for that amount of laughter…
I tell you, she just doesn’t understand me.
So any way, that’s how things stand. A stand-off. I growl, it smirks. Unless Upstairs Cat gets a cat-flap. Then things might get interesting…
But she says I have to live and let live… and that just because Upstairs Cat is different from me, it doesn’t mean it isn’t doing its job. She says we should make friends! She says that even if it’s different it is still loved by its two-legses and that I have to behave. 
I’ve said it before…she has some weird ideas… Me? Behave?
Ah well, she’s always been an optimist 😉
Much love,
Ani xxx
Sue Vincent's Daily Echo 
Those damn sparrows – they are such trouble-makers! But you are doing your due diligence, Ani, and sooner or later you will probably have to keep that dratted cat in line too. There’s always something! 🙂
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She says the cows will be back soon too…
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Ahh, that face. Very sweet story.
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That face lets her get away with so much 😉
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Oh Ani… You never know, you two might really get on!
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I’m open to interspecies friendships…but very dubious…. 😉 xxx
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😊😊😊
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The world is full of perils, but I’m glad to see you are taking proper care of things in their time and place. The cat and you will make peace. All will be at peace. All will be well.
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As long as it stays away from the window 😉
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Aww, poor Ani.
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🙂
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Ani, have you ever thought that the cat might be a little scared of you? Give it a doggy smile and maybe it will smile back!
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I don’t think it is scared of anything! You should see it…sat there like a goddess… 😉 xxx
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they do, don’t they, arrogant lot, cats. Give me a dog any day… please?
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You might find you actually get along fine once you get to know each other. Maybe you could teach it to play with tennis balls?
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Isn’t that sacrilege or something? xxx
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Well, Ani, we can hope that upstairs cat doesn’t get a cat flap or escape. I thought to say something about well mannered cats, but you might find that a silly idea. Anyway, it will probably stay in its house up there. Do try to relax about the sparrows a bit. I don’t think they present much of a threat to your human. Geese or turkeys would be more of an issue.
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The only turkeys I’ve met soon disappeared…. though she was none to pleased about that. Really, she should close the fridge better 😉 xxx
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LOL – Ani, I meant the ones with the feathers still on. And, she can hardly blame you if she leaves the fridge open – turkey, cheese, and such – what a terrible temptation fo a small dog. But, you know she can forgive you just about anything.
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Ah…this one was all naked and golden …;) But she just laughed…
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Reblogged this on cabbagesandkings524 and commented:
Ani has so many responsibilities
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Such a lovely post. You sure have a lot of sparrows to contend with…😊
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Had, unfortunately… I have not yet made them a garden at the new place.
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Ani that two legs of yours needs retraining … I have two two legs and I have them very well trained …I agree the male is easier to control than the female! ..Get working on the two legs Ani pull your paw out!! Love and Hugs Ruby 💜💝💗💜💝💗💜💝💗
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I do my best, Ruby… she’s faily biddable and obedient…most of the time xx
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I am glad to hear that Ani💜💝💗💜💝💗
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🙂 ❤
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Ani, you would not like my house. Two cats live here. Of course Raven the black male kitty would turn tail and run at the first glimpse of you or your two-legs. He’s a fraidy cat, but Katy the calico girl cat might hiss and spit. She’s very possessive of her “space.” Raven is terrified of her.
I love your posts! You are such a smart girl, and pretty!
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Aww thank you!
Cats can live anywhere they like…’cept here! My boy has a cat… I haven’t met it yet. I wouldn’t mind…when I asked for a kitten, she said ‘no’… xxx
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my smile of the day!!
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😀
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Ani, two-legs just don’t appreciate all we try to do for them. I bark at ANYthing that goes by, esp. trucks (which I have to go shrill on, ‘cuz they are so loud), and all I hear is ‘Enough!’ (sigh) They just don’t get us. In sympathy, your pal, Wren
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Hey Wren,I used to have to do that a lot…two-legses were always walking right past my window! Here…my bark gets a rest 😉 xx
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Sparrows – flying carnivorous dinosaurs!
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Yeah… she has weird tastes 😉
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It certainly took a bit. 🙂
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🙂
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Awww, Ani, just chill. That kitty has it’s own job to do to protect its two-legs. I hope you both learn to get along. It’s our differences that make the world interesting. Love and Hugs and a Belly Rub, my sweet Ani.
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Funny, she says just the same, xxx
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I don’t know about you, but those sparrows are waking me up earlier and earlier every morning, Ani. What a racket they make when they get up. All I want to do when I wake up is stretch, yawn, and go back to bed for an hour!
I hope that cat stays exactly where it is. I’m just very glad there aren’t any here where we now live.
Have a very bark-able weekend.
Much love,
Toby
xx
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Hey Toby. She can’t hear the sparrows any more…so she doesn’t feel what I’m going through here… xxx
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Oh, Ani, I gets the same from my two leggeds. At night I go charging out to protect and keep cats away but oh no, I gets the “Get inside.” or worse. “have you done your pee pee.” Pee pee! I’m a dog, I……well I haves no words. Sparrows they make me chase them then they come back and we do it all over again. I know your pain, Ani. much paw love, Dante Dawg. xxx
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Hey Dante… no understanding them, is there… they all have such weird ideas… xxx
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❤
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Aw, I love your stories Ani. You have a unique way of looking at things. ❤
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Someone with such a sweet face as your’s Ani could only but behave. Those cows must share a few stories with you, they look like dog lovers.
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Well, Ani, I bet that upstairs cat can’t blog half as well as you. Well done. 🙂 — Suzanne
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Oh, Ani, I totally get why you don’t want to be friends with a cat! I chase the ones next door (although the ginger one sometimes scares me a bit) 🐾🐾🐾🐾
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