Modesty Breeds Respect

When Cooper snaps to attention

and hassles us to let him out into the back yard,

we usually check beneath the bird feeder first.

Cooper, part miniature Doberman Pinscher,

part Chihuahua, and part demented politician,

has an enormous estimation of himself.

When the javelinas come grunting,

hoping that the Gambel's quail or Gray squirrel

might have tipped the seed block to the ground,

Cooper meets them headlong at the fenceline,

with the fence between them.

The javelinas are not terrified so much as surprised,

and I worry that one day they may test the fence in their charging.

Coyote is quiet, skittish, and really agile.

If the day comes, Coyote will leap the fence

as if it were not there,

as we saw a Rabbit do one day

when Cooper spied it up at the round house.

And Coyote is not a vegetarian.

We can almost chart Coyotes

as they work through the neighborhood, by

listening to the dogs make foolish threats.

When they come in a pack,

our House Security Council

locks the door; dog inside.

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