This morning, Sparky came into the bedroom to hide in the closet.   He was concerned about something.

Sparky isn’t the type of dog that smells cancer or sees dead people, so if he is disturbed, it’s usually for a mundane reason.  From bed, I could see that the weather looked sunny and clear.  That left the possibility that Sparky had taken a shit in the house.

Dogs have limited ways to communicate.  Taking a shit in the house is a way to register a complaint.  Sparky has been having a good time, so I didn’t think he was holding a grudge about anything.  Sparky’s innards are battle-hardened, so he rarely would have an urgent restroom situation.

When I got out of bed, everything seemed regular.  Sparky was sniffing around, but that’s his typical way to show that I’m starving him to death.  When it was time for breakfast, Sparky didn’t eat.

Our morning routine doesn’t involve much activity, so eventually it was quiet enough that a chipmunk ran across the living room floor.

Chipmunks and mice are in different branches of the rodent tree.  Chipmunks are in with squirrels and groundhogs, while mice are vermin.  Chipmunks aren’t as cautious, so if it’s quiet for a bit, a chipmunk will run for it.

Sparky’s behavior was underwhelming.  I thought he might hector the chipmunk, and drive it toward the patio door.  Instead, Sparky thought he should take Mr. Moose outside.  After I brought Sparky back in, I’d lost the chipmunk.

I left the patio door open, then Sparky and I waited quietly for the chipmunk to make it’s move.  When it did, Sparky thought he should race it to his food bowl.  Since his bowl is next to the open door, that was as unhelpful as possible.

I knew where the chipmunk was hiding in the solarium, so I sent Sparky to his crate in the bedroom.  Sparky thought we were playing, “run to one of your beds and wait for a treat”, so he ran to his crate, the snack pit, his spot under the dining room table, and his bed near the computer. 

I had to lead Sparky to the bedroom and lock him up, which caused me to lose eyes on the chipmunk.

Chipmunks aren’t so eager to escape outside if there is a bowl of dogfood.   The chipmunk was standing at the threshold to outside, while chomping on a chunk of kibble.    I barked and clapped, and thought the little fella had gone outside, but he hadn’t.  It took a little more dicking around, but he eventually left.

I don’t think chipmunks will sneak in like a mouse, but if the door is open, they don’t mind coming in.  I’m going to move Sparky’s bowl so it isn’t right next to the door and be more careful about leaving the door open when we relax on the deck.