Wee Beastie

Since coming back to America, nothing has impressed me as much as the sight I saw this evening.

As we rolled up into the driveway, a furry brown sausage plodded his way up the steps, nipped through a hole in the fence and disappeared down his burrow.

A Groundhog. The first one I'd ever seen for real.

Groundhogs are the coolest animal. They're like big, slow, chubby beavers. Apparently we have a whole family of them living in a stump in our yard. I was a bit worried Ava would munch one up - but even a small groundhog must weigh twice what our slim little Bengal does and if the way they move reflects their personality, they're robust little characters. Ava shouldn't mess with them...

Groundhogs are native to the North Eastern parts of North America. They're also known as Woodchucks and Whistlepigs... What a great name. They're basically gigantic squirrels - which makes sense since our back yard is full of them as well (although they're a little more edgy. A squirrel would be no match for Ava.)

The largest Groundhogs can apparently grow to about thirty pounds. They're famous for being grumpy - although apparently they can be trained to be cute and cuddly. There are even 'Groundhog Trainers' at famous places like the Staten Island Zoo.

As for our new neighbour... I'm not going to try and train him. But I will keep an eye out for the little critter.