Isis likes to devour nibble a nice smelly tripe stick on the fast disappearing lawn.

Even Isis can’t swallow such a large treat in one go and is forced to put the stick down in order to eat the bit she’s just broken off. Of course she can’t see the stick.

I believe at first she used to think I was the thief but now understands that I don’t care for dried tripe.

One day, startled by ferocious growling and snapping, I rushed out into the garden.

There was Isis, unaware that her prize was lying safely at her feet, vigorously attacking a clump of grasses.

This particular clump often annoys Isis. On windy days, it smacks her nose or lands on her tail, impersonating a fly. She always retaliates but never as aggressively as when it steals her tripe stick.