Wednesday, April 20, 2016

Ok, THIS TIME I got it.

The other day, I went out to Lowes, whose parking lot could easily be mistaken for an ICE holding facility based on the number of (presumed) illegal aliens hanging out there in the hope that some contractor will come by and hire them to do one of those jobs that an American would love to do.

While at Lowes, I bought a bunch of lattice to block off the raised area under my house that has proven to be a covered doggie expressway to freedom, at least as far as Belle is concerned.

I dug a trench the length of the house, screwed the lattice to the wall, then filled the trench in around the bottom and put gravel down atop that, thus making a nice, neat Belle-proof barrier that should easily keep her in the back yard.


Took me an hour or so after I got home, and looked damned goods, even if I do say so myself. And now I could but the dogs out and relax, safe in the knowledge that they'd stay in the freaking back yard.

It wasn't half an hour later that I heard something on the FRONT porch. It was Belle. She wanted to come in.

Looking at the gravel, it became clear that as soon as I left her to her own devices, she began methodically probing the new latticework, pushing on it and trying to dig under it every few feet along the length of it until she finally hit a weak spot where two of the sections came together. This she pushed in, and...

Dammit, dammit, dammit...

Now there's a new board screwed to the inside of the lattice where she did that, and it seems secure this time, but knowing Belle, she's got a phillips' head screwdriver stashed out there somepace and is just waiting for me to get complacent again.

20 comments:

  1. LOL! That dog is something else!

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    1. Yeah, the way she busts my border fences, I'm thinking that maybe she's part chihuahua.

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    2. You should nickname her "Hilts".

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    3. @ CM...and get her a baseball mitt too, right?

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  2. When you hear the humming of the theme song from The Great Escape in the backyard, you'll knowntobstat liking for her tunneling out.

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  3. " thus making a nice, neat Belle-proof barrier"
    You jinxed it right there.

    Love that dog!

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  4. Obviously she looks at this as a challenge that you are presenting her with. She aims to please.

    Keeps you from getting complacent, too.

    Looks like a win-win to me. (giggle, snort, bwahahahha!!!)

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  5. Snicker... You 'know' you're never going to win that battle...

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  6. Ha...she has your number!

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  7. The moment I saw the phrase "two of the sections" I knew you were toast

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  8. If you need more gravel I recommend Wood Material on river road in harahan. They sell bulk everything. Just need a truck or trailer to have them dump it on.

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  9. She just loves you and wants to be at your side always. Why are you so mean and keep fencing her off like that?!?

    *bwahahaha!!!*

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  10. "Velociraptors, probing the fences..."
    HEY! She returns!
    She's a good dog!

    gfa

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  11. I used to have a collie that loved to get out of the pen. When we moved to a new house I had the same problem as you,(a pier and beam house that the dog could run under). I installed lattice, same as you but behind it I put the short cinder blocks so the dog couldn't push the lattice with his nose. If I recall correctly he did just as belle did and found where the panels met and he would get out. I ended up wiring the panels together then painting it all the same color. Good luck Belle proofing the backyard!

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  12. Anonymous6:42 PM

    Where there is a will Belle finds a way

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  13. Replies
    1. WHen Pepper first moved to NOLA (Before Younger Daughter graduated from high school), he had the SPCA on speed dial -- Wendy, the beagle, was a champion escape artist.

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