Den (dewhitton) wrote,
Den
dewhitton
  • Mood: accomplished

Termite Training

I took the dogs, a crowbar and a bucket with a lid out to Beni Forest to dig up a termite nest. Polly loved it, racing around like a maniac and sniffing everything. Scruffy sniffed everything, too but after half an hour finally admitted he couldn't wizz on every tree, so he followed me around instead. I found a termite mound, cracked it open with the crowbar and put some big lumps of galleries into the pucket. Termites came spilling out all over the place and crawling around the bucket. I rubbed a layer of vaseline around the top and sealed the lid.

Back home, I dumped the termites into the $10 kid's sandpit we bought as a Polly Pool when it's hot, and placed Rexie on top of the lumps. At first she was nervous and tried to dig through the bottom, but after 15 minutes I could hear her snuffling. She was sticking her nose into the gallery holes and sniffling like mad. I wondered if she was actually eating or only smelling the termites. Occasionally she'd reach up an tear a lump apart with her claws. She pushed her nose into a hole near the top, and I could see through the few layers of holes a long, pink tongue flicking around inside. She was eating! After half an hour she'd finished and curled up. I put her back in the cage.

So I suppose we can call that a success. I'll get more termites tomorrow, and some time in the near future I'll actually drop her on a nest in the bush to see if the dig instinct kicks in.
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