Cranky Old Man, At It Again...

The cranky old man, we affectionately call Maverick the Destroyer, is at it again. We brought him over from the old house (a nice big plush back yard for him to roam freely, hiding himself in places we couldn't possibly pull him out of) to the new house. For the night, until we had properly secured the outdoor pen, he slept in his 6'X4' indoor pen which was given a fresh coat of contact paper (made to look like wood - love the irony). As a welcome home present, we rolled out the red carpet with a nice pile of fresh greens, strawberries and blueberries. When we left him, he was quietly sniffing out his yummy goods and looking peaceful.

Destroyed. Upon entering the garage, there was a faint whiff of nasty and before I even approached the pen I was prepared for the sight. In typical Maverick fashion, he had painted the floors and walls with his own brand of poopy paint (ewww...yuck), and had strewn his dinner all over the place in a declaration of independence. Perhaps he was redecorating again? The stinky mess shall remain until I have the nerve to clean up every ounce of his rebellion.

This morning we reinforced his new outdoor pen with Toby's help and introduced him to it. He immediately tested the barriers, forcing his weight and the push of his muscles against every weak spot he could possibly detect. It was all very expected. I watched him for the first half hour and did some additional work based on the results of his meticulous QA Testing (quality assurance). It's impressive how he analyzes and targets the fencing and barriers to project the best possible results. He's our little Sherman tank.

As I write this, I can see his head forcing it's way over the cement barrier. He's peeking around. No doubt he's planning another escape route. Anticipating his next moves and staying ahead of his assault on the barrier means we have to stay engaged for a while. At least until the Fall: another season of change.