Driving Me Nuts!

Maia and the walnuts, pets in italy I am typing this to the background sound of crunching. It's walnut season and as we have two huge walnut trees in the garden, this means hours of fun for the dogs and loads of mess for me.

They ferret around looking for the black oval fruits hidden in the grass or gravel, then carry them into the house (not while I'm watching you understand!) and then bite off the black husk and bite through the shells to the walnuts inside. You would not believe how much debris one walnut makes! They also stain things black, especially if they are wet, like today.

The walnuts don't seem to do them any harm as very often the shells are empty or the meagre pickings so crushed by their teeth that they are hardly worth eating, but it is a constant battle to keep one step ahead of the relentless and clearly very exciting hunt and its resultant trail of little pieces.

It rained heavily last night and the wind has blown down another load of walnuts, most of which seem to be on the floor. If only I could train them to use a dustpan and brush!