Little Miss Toadlegs

Yesterday evening, we took Tahoe and Ashley out for a walk around the lake and through the woods. It was 8:30pm and showers had just passed through the area and cooled things off a bit. It was starting to get dark and I had a difficult time seeing what was ahead of me on the black asphalt trail. Tahoe and Ashley had a bit of an advantage as they're always looking down and sniffing at the ground. As we entered the woods, I began to hear a familiar croak... remember when I wrote about the frog pond?

Well, it appears that all of the toads in my neighborhood get together at night and congregate on the trail in the woods and the nearby park.  It's like they're having a little toad convention. As we walked, all I could see were hundreds of these little "black spots" that would quickly move away as we approached. Tahoe doesn't like the toads. I think he once squished one with his nose and it made his nose itchy - he didn't like the squishy texture or smell. Ashley, on the other hand, likes toads.

Last night though, I learned that Ashley doesn't like toads... she LOVES toads. She loves them so much, she wants to collect them all in her belly! Yep, Miss Ashley ate a toad. In fact, I think she ate two toads. It was dark and hard to see but both times it happened a "black spot" jumped in front of Ashley and then it vanished. I believe that the "black spots" went into Ashley's mouth because soon after she was foamy at the mouth and she would shake her head a few times, as if trying to help herself swallow something that was still moving.

Then, today I came across this old story from NPR. I think I'll be avoiding the woods at dusk for a while... don't want Ashley to turn into a drug addict.

Dog vs. Toad