I was up and at ‘em quite early this morning so I decided to treat Houdini to an early breakfast followed by a long, leisurely walk. After quickly devouring his bowl of “Fit & Trim”, the big lug started galloping around the dining room to let me know that he was ready to go outside. Well, outside we went, and after he took the time to smell a bush or two we headed down the narrow country road that runs past our place.
Since I was having some trouble with my hip, I thought it might help loosen it up a bit if we walked faster than usual. Now Houdini is a wonderful dog, but he doesn’t like to get in a hurry about anything unless there is food involved. Although he wasn’t too keen on the idea of a fast walk, he semi-trotted along beside me nonetheless, panting all the way as if he had just finished an uphill two mile run.
As we approached the small plot of woods that lay across the road from our property, Houdini slowed to a walk and quietly pulled me towards a small opening in the tree line. Sitting there on the bank approximately 10-12 feet in front of us was a young red fox. It appeared to be not more than a few weeks old, and it was shaking like a leaf. Thinking that maybe its mother had abandoned it or somehow met an untimely demise, I briefly entertained thoughts of “catching” it and taking it home with us for a bit of TLC (care and feeding). But then common sense took over and I realized that the cute little critter just might be infected with rabies!
Just as the great white one and I began to turn around to leave, I heard a rustle in the brush behind the fox, followed by the tell-tale bark of its mother. The cute little fellow took one last look at Houdini and me, then turned on its heels and quickly disappeared into the woods. Momma fox had come back for her youngster after all.
On the walk back home I got to thinking about how that mother fox had risked taking on both a human and a 150 pound dog in order to call her child to safety, and it warmed my heart. It’s quite clear to me that God has instilled in mothers of all species an inherent love for their children along with the obligation to do whatever might be necessary to protect them. Momma might not always be right, but she will always be momma – and a good momma never forsakes her children.