Late last night, just before I nodded off, one last email came through from Nicky. After a year of naughty Badger tales (daffodil excavation, impish glory), Nicky reported that Badger finally became a cow dog. After months of chasing moths, butterflies, flies, bits of paper, Rooster’s back legs, and the occasional person he didn’t like all that much, Badger helped, yes helped, Nicky get a whole pile load of cows across a particularly nasty ditch all by himself. It was like finally something clicked in his little Aussie/Border Collie mixed-up brain. Barry and Nicky have two highly accomplished cowdogs in Rooster and the old guy, Spud, but now Nicky finally has one of her own–BADGER, COWDOG EXTRAORDINAIRE!!!

And this isn’t all! Not only does Badger help move “pile loads” of cows (you’ll need to imagine Nicky’s quite proper English accent to hear that properly), he is the guardian and protector of Barry and Nicky’s bucket calves. Badger is up early this morning, guarding Trooper during mealtime. Poor Trooper is a bit smaller than some of the bigger calves (who can be quite bullish, pun intended), so he gets fed separately. Badger, ever thoughtful, stands guard for Trooper until he’s finished breakfast.