Snake Encounters, A Narrow Escape

Nobody got hurt and Tilde is fine.

Our latest encounter with a viper, the only venomous snake in Denmark, almost went terribly wrong. I hadn't noticed the snake until it already was too late. It was warming itself in the morning sun, still sluggish, and didn't move out of our way in time, what it normally would have done.

A Hovawart Was Born After All

The three of us reached a clearing in the forest we were hiking. Tilde, Dok-dek, and me. Dok-dek was our guest on the West-coast for the week, to escape the noise of the New Year's celebratory fireworks of the city. It was freezing cold, -5 C with a sturdy breeze. The clearing we entered offered no refuge for the sudden drop in temperature caused by the wind chill. I put my hat back on, looked down in an attempt to keep the wind out of my face and stepped up the pace to reach the other side of the clearing.

The Mighty Hunter

While we walked past some bushes along the trail it was as if a fish hook had caught Tilde's nose. In a split-second she made a sharp, almost cat-like turn. Her head positioned perfectly aligned with her body. Her intense facial expression and the focus in her eyes left no doubt. She was on a hunt, but what? and where? I looked around me but couldn't see anything, until a dark shadow jumped out of the small bush right in front of me and made me look down.

The Head Of The Snake

Leave it !!!

My heart skipped a beat when I realized what Tilde was sniffing. We just got out the door for a walk and hadn't even reached the end of the driveway when she noticed something and rushed over for a sniff. It was a viper - the common European viper, or adder - the only venomous snake living in Denmark.

The Wolf and The Hovawart, Old Foes Or a New Beginning?

Wolf in Ovstrup Hede, Denmark. Photo: Carl Skovbjerg Johnsen

The wolf has returned to Denmark. I am delighted, thrilled and excited all at once. Not only for the wolf, but also for what could follow in its path. What may lie ahead is a new understanding. A new definition of the Danish relationship not only with nature and wolfs, but also between the Danes and dogs in general.

Let me explain. Due warning though, this will be a long essay.