Ugh, is it number 1, 2 or 3? Not for the faint of heart.

[F, Calla & Luca]

I just let the dogs out and I went out the gate to see how the front little gardens were doing. Clue 1, no doodles pacing around looking for me to return. Clue 2,  two doodles huddled over something on the lawn. 

When I went to see what the attraction was it was a baby woodchuck who was quite dead. I was a little anxious that he (I am using the masculine tense but truly I didn't check the telling parts) might pop up but when I saw the string of small intestine trailing from him, smelled him and got a clearer look at the body it was clear the TOD, time of death, was earlier but I did not take a liver temp for a more exact guesstimate.

I let out a string of "leave its" and "eh,ehs". I know commands should be given once clearly but that would have been more self restraint than I could muster just then. Surprisingly, aside from approaching once or twice the dogs did leave it. I got my trusty shovel and dispatched the body to a woody area outside the fence.

I sat down to contemplate the case. I knew I have had generations of woodchucks under my shed. I did try to catch them long ago but to no avail. I haven't quite geared myself up to attempt, ahem, stronger methods. When I got home from my trip I noticed that a doodle free yard had resulted in a lot of tops nibbled off plants and I started to think about what I could do to get the woodchucks to move on once and for all, one way or another. I don't think the adults can get through the fence since the latest gnaw proofing but they may be able to tunnel under still.

Possibilities: 1)Could a cat have gotten in through the small gaps near the gates and done the deed? Chipmunks and squirrels are vegetarians right? 2)A hawk might have descended. 3)As you can tell I am really hoping it wasn't my sweet doodles double teaming a mere baby--he did have evil looking claws and teeth, though. And they do have priors; the sad case of the squirrel came immediately to mind.

While I was musing I noticed doodle interest in another area nearby and a suspicious number of flies--sorry, no genus and species noted. Sure enough more woodchuck entrails. Trusty shovel again to the rescue. I am ashamed to say that it never entered my mind to take crime scene photographs til now.

It occurred to me that this sort of thing might cut down on dog food bills--ugh. Furthermore, no DKs for my dogs for a while---ugh.

[Camilla and Darwin]

Sometimes I'm glad to live in an apartment in the city. I'd love to have a yard as beautiful as yours, but I'm  not ready for bloody animals just yet. EEEEK

[F, Calla & Luca]

So you're not interested in a trade : )

[Camilla and Darwin]

It is tempting. :-)

[Deanna & Desi & Cori]

At the crime scene, was there any blood spatter or was the victim killed elsewhere and dumped?  Did you dust for finger, I mean, paw prints?  Was there any DNA evidence left behind?  Have you run a computerized crime simulation?  Until you have done a thorough investigation, it would be premature to speculate as to the identity of the "un-sub(s)".

[F, Calla & Luca]

I believe the body was dumped. No paw prints were found but grass is not a good surface to dust. Once again I chickened out and I did not scrape under the WC claws to look for the perps DNA. There was no blood on the doodles interestingly enough. My crime simulator is on the fritz.

[Sherri, Sophie, Winston, & Kitty]

LOL! You guys watch way too much CSI !!

[F, Calla & Luca]

Hey, I only watch NY and Las Vegas. But I have a secret past in pathology, not forensics though.

[Dori & Rua]

Woodchucks, huh?  So, how much wood could a woodchuck chuck...oh, nevermind.!  LOL 

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

I love the name woodchuck rather than groundhog but I would rather have them elsewhere and not dead in my yard.  Hopefully, the doods have 'cleared' the area and there will be no more bodies discovered.

[Tina, Clover, Plus 5 More]

Crime stories are my favorite.  Domestic cats are no match for a woodchuck so NO to #1.  Have you seen a hawk or owl frequently in your area?  If so they do prey on woodchucks, so maybe to #2.  But I'm leaning towards #3, two doods and a woodchuck.  We have our fair share of woodchucks, hawks and owls but I've only seen our labs do the deed. 

Hunting increases the appetite so kiss the savings goodbye, LOL. 

 

F you are too funny.  I agree it is very hard to give kisses out but in a few days this shall pass too.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

But this was a baby woodchuck, so a cat could have been the culprit.

[Tina, Clover, Plus 5 More]

Yes, it could have.  Woodchucks breed in spring, give birth 1 month later, then the mother nurses them for 6 weeks.  Once they can eat on their own the mother moves each of them to different dens and checks on them daily.  At this age most weigh 2-2.5 pounds.  If something happened to the mother before they could eat on their own maybe nature took it's course.  Since F found 2 different ones in different locations this is probably a more accurate cause of death.