Madra Ionsaí

Back in the late Nineties in the warm weather of the spring was greeted by many lambs out in the countryside, with them being checked on by the farmers of the land.

Many hills and valleys as far as the eyes could see, yet these farmers walked them with ease every day to collect their sheep. A house a mile outside of a town had the prized sheepdogs of the land, three to be exact two male one of them older than the other and one female the same age as the youngest.

These dogs fast as fast could be, Yet the old farmer who owned these dogs ties them with strong rope and caller outside, feeding them once a day. The dogs when loose, obeys the old farmers commands to the letter, with he and they knowing the way around the land.

These dogs plump yet not fat, skinny yet not thin, these collie dogs were noisy barking yelping and whining, because of the old farmers negligence. They all worked as a pack helping him collect his sheep, the old farmer a stickler on what he thought, but the oldest dog had a habit that would be easily puck up.

Yet one day the farmer went away, leaving the dogs alone outside and tied, with that strong rope the only thing left to hold them there, not feeding them enough as you all know make things skinny and malnourished.

A few days pass of them eating practically nothing other than small blades of grass, eventually the dogs got so skinny that the callers loosened around their necks.

One dog walked till there was tension on the rope and slipped out of its caller, the other dogs noticed this and copied the first tightening the rope and slipping the caller also.

With that done they all looked at each other and decided to go roam the hills that they know so well, they first go uphill to the highest point, to look across the land. They all noticed an old rusty barn in the distance on the other side of the hill.

They all followed the first dog as he was the sort of leader, eventually they got to the barn and at the barn entrance blocked by a fence unable to pass Yet still able to see into it. Finding it was full of old vegetable matter, rubbish and what they could hear rats, the second dog walks around the outside of the barn and finds a rusty hole that they all can fit in.

He runs back to the other two jumping with excitement, the other two followed the second dog too the hole. They all one by one walk in, first off walked in was the oldest one (leader) He crawled his way in next the female dog, going in with ease.

Last of the second male, he crawls in hearing sounds walking by of what seemed to be sheep guided by people, he hears the people just leave, leaving behind the sheep to graze on the grass around the barn. As he just got in, they scrounge around the place eating what edible which wasn’t much. Yet it still wasn’t enough, the vegetables were mostly rotten. The garbage was just metal and even the rats ran off.

The older dog got fed up with looking for food and decided as he heard the sheep outside, that’s what he's go for, crawling out of the rusty hole he scratches his back injuring it slightly not enough to keep him from running after sheep, he catches up to them quite easily so he bites the leg from one of the sheep immobilizing it.

While the leader was at that, the commotion caught the attention of the other two, they walked to the door watching as the leader took the sheep down, they both ran out to the leader and started to eat the sheep as they were starving.

They ate their fill and left the corpse behind them, what they couldn’t eat, believing this to be fun they all decided to do this from now on.

Days became weeks then became months with more and more sheep going missing. The farmers of the land got more curious and angry, so one young farmer got his quad and drove up to where his sheep were.

Once up there he seen three dogs running around after his sheep, revving his quad he drove up to the sheep trying to catch them, up and down the hills they went, them the dogs being too fast for the quad, yet still the farmer following up the hill, reaching a point where the quad couldn’t reach, tipping him over as he tried driving a near vertical slope. The dogs ran off behind the hill with the farmer giving up going back to the town.

That same night the farmer that chased the dogs was at the pub hearing others talk about their sheep going missing, with him and many others agreeing that same young farmer says to everyone “how about we find and hunt these animals, hey!” He was greeted with a thunderous applause by people who wanted to do the same.

The next morning many farmers gathered their guns and quads at a point where the young farmer had seen them last. Pushing the quads past the slope getting back on them after they reached the top, they drove in separate directions to cover more ground Yet close enough to hear if they found them.

The dogs awoke hearing faint revving of vehicles getting closer, and closer it came. The three dogs got up and out of the barn seeing all the humans laughing as they got close to the barn, the dogs stood at the edge looking at them, as they the farmers got closer, so the dogs all decided to start running while the quads drove as fast as they could up to the barn.

They reached the barn finding nothing. Some got off the quads, looking around complaining about the stench. The young farmer spots them running up the hill further so they all got on their vehicles and went after.

As quick as they where they were no match for the dogs they weaved up and down the hills, down crevasses that no man dared to go down in. All the farmers stopped soon realizing that they couldn’t catch them like this.

They tried again the next day but instead of quads they snook up on them but still the dogs escaped, frustrated this went on like this for months trying everything from half on quads and the others on foot, and still that didn’t even work, the dogs where to fast and they knew the land like it was the back of their hand, well paws.

The more time free those dogs had, the more sheep went missing or found dead on the field.

The young farmer decided to call up the owner of the dogs.

He said “here you owl fart, the dogs you own, they got up and left home. Come home wherever you gone, you know what you must do.”

-

The old farmer said not a word, getting up he went home. He went to his house with it pouring rain, seeing no dogs around, furious he went to the pub opening the door drenched putting his hat on the hat rack asking, “where are they!”

The people in the pub shouted, “up the hills!” Scratching his head, he decided to go alone, walking to the young farmer asking for one of his guns.

The young farmer asked, “I’ll go with.”

With the old farmer hole heartedly refusing he walks to the door grabbing his hat leaving the pub, he started tracking up the hill one he knew so well, being drenched by the rain, hiding the gun under his coat.

He whistles for them “dogs, here now!”

Getting to the top of the hill he whistles once more, and as he does, he sees the dogs emerging from the other side of the hill, the oldest dog ran as did the others, he walked slowly down the hill. They all met at the rotten barn the old dog ran first excited to see his owner once more.

Meanwhile the young farmer got on his quad and drove up the hill the way the dogs went, it was difficult for the quad for it was muddy, yet he pressed onward up the hill.

The other two dogs stood back waiting their turn to be petted, the farmer let out a tear as he knew what to do, yet you couldn't see it through the rain pouring down on him, he pets the leader dog with his left hand he stayed like this for a long while, once he calms himself he reaches for the gun in his coat the two dogs in the back got up and stepped back.

The man's tearful smile turns to sadness, pulling the gun to the forehead then (BANG) the leader dead, the other two ran away as two shots went after them missing them twice.

The old farmer in pursuit nearly as quick as the dogs, up and down the hills they all went, Through the crevasses that no man dared to go through he still shooting and still missing every shot.

Eventually he made it to a point where he had to stop, breathing heavily holding his chest, trying to catch his breath, he looks up with blurry vision seeing the dogs run free.

He shouts, “you better not ever come near me!”

Somehow the dogs new that they could never go back to that town again, they turned around at the top of the hill looking back at him, the old man took a few more steps then collapsed in the bog.

The dogs leave while the young farmer calls out for the old farmer, he gets of the quad walking around, moments of his head on a swivel pass, he spots the brightly colored coat in the mud running over to him, kneeling then turning him over to find him still breathing thankfully.

He somehow picks the old farmer up onto his shoulder and puts him up onto his quad. He sits onto the quad reassuring that the old farmer is going to be ok, looking off to the hills around trying to find the dog’s trace, he couldn’t find a thing, knowing that everything would be gone by morning.

But he ignored that and drove back to the town where it all began.