The Groundhogs Strike Back

I wrote a few weeks ago about the installation of a fence around Denisa’s garden: an effort to fight back the marauding groundhog we have on our property. And for the first while, all seemed to be well. The groundhog stayed on his side of the fence, and the vegetables stayed on their side of the fence, and all was right with the world.

Except the groundhog is a cunning beast, full of wile and trickery. And that groundhog in question wasn’t a “him.” He was a “her.” Something she proved by revealing her master plan: two smaller copies of herself.

Everyone thought the groundhoglets were cute at first. They scampered around the property, staring at us when we came outside, totally unconcerned by the presence of humans. They like to go to the compost pile and eat whatever we’ve tossed out. One human’s cucumber scraps is another groundhog’s dinner.

Today, however, the true machinations at work were fully revealed. A baby groundhog scurried through the too-small–for-an-adult-groundhog-but-big-enough-for-a-baby-groundhog holes in the fence and hit pay dirt. Denisa came upon the scene of the vegetable heist, catching the hoglet in the act. Upon seeing the jig was up, it lost its cool for a bit before remembering that yes, it can fit through the holes in the fence. With that key piece of information back in its memory banks, it fled off into the blackberry bushes.

What will be the next part of this drama? Who knows. We’ve found several other groundhog burrows around the property, and we’re beginning to wonder if we haven’t been hemmed in by groundhogs. Perhaps it’s part of an enormous scheme to take over my house completely. Do we just have three groundhogs, or are there actually more of them? How many groundhogs can one and a half acres of property support? And do they have any further weapons in their arsenal?

Stay tuned, folks. I have a feeling this groundhog hole is only going to get deeper . . .

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