Tomorrow is the day

Tomorrow is my opening day for rabbit season. It really opened up September 15, but I like to wait until it is good and cold and have some snow on the ground. Also I like to wait until after deer season so I don't mess things up for that.

This year will be very different. I won't have my dream dog at my side. I had to put Penny, the rabbit hunter of the family, down the day before Thanksgiving. Old age finally caught up with her. She was 13 1/2 years old.

She was the best beagle I have ever had and ever will have...she is irriplaceable. She was born to hunt rabbits. She could get into places no other dog would dream of getting. She would hunt all day, bloody paws and all. Thorns seemed like they were attracted to her, but they didn't slow her down one bit. There was no quit in her body. Rabbits feared her. They tried to elude her, but with a sniffer like hers and a drive like hers they didn't stand a chance.

So tomorrow is my first opening day of rabbit season since 1993 without my trusty beagle Penny at my side. I will miss her. I will probably shed a few tears as I walk around the farm tomorrow and the memories of the past hunts with her fill my mind.

Tomorrow its showtime for Abby. Abby is my other beagle. She is Penny's niece. She has always relied on Penny to do all the work. While hunting, when someone pulls up into the drive, when someone comes into the house, if there was an odd noise. So tomorrow is the day. Tomorrow we see what Abby can do...without Penny. Tomorrow is the day, its showtime...time to hunt the wabbits.