Turkey Trot

My Cora has a thing for fowls. She chases them. All of them. Joyfully. If we go to the local park, she strains at the leash to chase the ducks and geese. You've already heard the story about Cora and the rooster. We don't usually start the day chasing turkeys, however.

For the past year or so, we have had a flock of wild turkeys in our little town. They are very tame, but they usually stay up on the tallest hill where they find good forage, few people and fewer dogs. They seem well adapted; most wild turkeys are dark but ours have lighter feathers, better to hide on our grassy, brushy hillsides.

Each morning after breakfast, Cora and I go for a walk. Cora capers around as soon as she sees the harness - she knows that means the best part of her day is about to start. I open the door and she goes out to the end of the leash, waiting politely for me to lock up, grab some coffee money and a poop bag. But not when she surprises a rafter of about 25 turkeys trotting across the driveway - then, she takes off!

This time, I managed to hang on to the leash, so she didn't catch any of them. She did manage to split the flock into two distressed pieces, the six adults with about 10 fledglings on one side milling about and calling to these seven half-grown babies on the other. We had to walk by them to get out of our little street, but I knew that doing so would scatter them even more. What to do?

My Beloved to the rescue; he suggested we get into his car, which was parked right there, and drive past them so Cora wouldn't get a chance to chase. So, we muscled Cora into the backseat and, as soon as we "disappeared" into the car, the young turkeys on the right trotted over to join their brethren on the left. Happy reunited cluckings all 'round.

We crept by in the car with the windows rolled up and a very disappointed and frustrated Cora moaning and whining inside. At the end of the street, we hopped out and continued on our walk, secure in the knowledge that all chicks were back under the protection of their somewhat silly parents.