Murder by the Doghouse That Jack Built – The Tragic Death of a Hedgehog.
This is the doghouse that Jack built.
This the meat,
That lay in the doghouse that Jack built.
This is the hedgehog,
That ate the meat,
That lay in the doghouse that Jack built.
This is the man,
That threw the hedgehog,
That ate the meat,
That lay in the doghouse that Jack built.
This is the dog,
That woke the man,
That threw the hedgehog,
That ate the meat,
That lay in the doghouse that Jack built.
(Adapted from the popular British nursery rhyme ‘‘This Is the House That Jack Built’’)
Do you want to hear what really happened? Read further.
Siili suojautuu kerällä.
This is a true story told to me by one of my readers: A hedgehog had made it a habit of paying nightly visits to her neighbour’s garden. The man’s dog, loyal to its instincts as it was, would then start barking at the unwanted visitor, waking the man from his sleep. As a consequence, the man rushed into the garden, grabbed the hedgehog and threw it as far into the bushes as he could.
The next day, the hedgehog, with its back feet paralyzed, appeared on the lawn of my reader. As she didn’t know what to do with the animal, she went over to the neighbour and demanded that he do something to put an end to the animal’s suffering. Irritated, the man, a hunter as he was, fetched his gun and shot the hedgehog leaving it lying dead on my reader’s lawn.
NaturOlly Yours,
Olli
