Raw Prey Model

I had been thinking of you when I posted this as you are pretty much the only one who has mentioned having a dog that free-hunts regularly. It's not like this will happen a lot but I thought it was neat. And he certainly doesn't go after every small animal. The neighbors behind us let their cats outside and one of them will jump the fence and visit with Shadow.
 
But thanks for reminding me of how your sweetie has been doing.

Thanks, Renee. I give him hw preventative. In Texas, you have to do something. His vacc will update in August of this year. Our county just went to 3 year protocol when we got Shadow. When he had killed that squirrel, I called the vet who informed me that our county did not have a rabies problem. And there weren't any punctures marks. He may have killed it and didn't know quite what to do with it, at the time. He pointed it out to me when I got him back from a walk and we were on the back patio for him to eat.

Buck has caught and killed several squirrels, and been bitten a few times--one mama squirrel really nailed him good.  But, I was worried the first time he killed one and I asked my vet and he said he had never heard of a squirrel contacting rabies.  I stopped worrying after that except i do like the little critters and hate to see him kill them.  Honey has also caught and killed one that I know of, but old lazy kayCee couldn't care less if there wre 100 of them critters running around the yard.  Oh, and Buck has never eaten any part of one he killed and Honey didn't either.

So right after all this, yesterday, my new pup Rocky and I were out in the pasture by the barn and a turtledove flew up from under our feet.  Guess what my 11 week old sweet thing did?  Lunge-grab-crunch-crunch-crunch . . .it was like the bird disappeared by magic.  I'm still not sure it didn't . . .

It looked kinda like this, but with a bird instead of a sheep - and subsititute a not-even three month old pup for the grownup dog:
http://www.pbase.com/cdwall/image/50647162

I called the vet yesterday. For one thing, Shadow's vacc will update by August. And to ask the mouse question. They are not aware of or have an recent memory of a dog choking on a squirrel. There are, however, documented cases of dogs with bone impactions and obstructions that I have seen. These cases were of dogs that got loose and ate a small animal and were not specifically cases of purposeful raw feeding. That is, as many people here do, supervising a dog eating on their bone is different than the dog running to a thicket for a bit of hare tar-tar. If he had managed to eat it, I would have simply kept an eye on him and take him in if he developed a problem. Our vet hasn't had a situation where someone brought in a dog with obstruction or impaction from eating a squirrel which is, in and of itself, inconclusive but possibly a good sign.
 

That does bring a neat image to mind.