Time to be friends...

I have watched Mama Otter since the day she brought her pups out to play for the first time.  She was leery of my presence at first and she would bark at me.  She would act a mite threatening but I suppose she thought that I might harm her little ones.  Nothing could be further from the truth!  I have no desire to hurt any of my Bayou friends and especially not anything as cute as an otter pup!  These little rascals are downright adorable! Yeah, they raid the bait from my crab traps, they devour all the minnows that I use as fish bait and they can literally tear anything to shreds but they are cute as buttons.  Their antics are amusing and I do believe at this point they know that I find them so.

Yesterday, Mark and I were on the pier when I spied Mama Otter near my brother's pier.  She was diving under the water to catch her supper.  Each dive produced a small mullet that she would toss into the air before eating.  It had become a game that she was thoroughly enjoying!  We could hear her crunching her catch as she floated on the water.  After a bit, she had her fill of fish and started foraging around the pier posts.  My brother has a piece of a pier that is actually not attached to the posts other than being tied in place.  This section floats up and down with the tide.  Mama Otter found that she had easy access to this section and would slip up on it in search of fiddler crabs.  She was smart enough to know that the crabs would scurry under some marsh debris that had washed up on the pier.  She pulled at the marsh clumps to uncover a crab.  It would then be grasped and crunched in a single movement!  She is definitely quick!

While we watched Mama Otter, I wondered where she left her pups.  This time, they were nowhere to be seen.  I have a feeling that Mama Otter noticed Ms. Ez on the pier with us and gave her pups strict orders to stay put in the safety of the marsh.   Even though, the dog would never hurt the otters, a mother's instinct is strong.  She knows that most dogs would chase the little ones. Perhaps soon, she will learn that Ms. Ez would be friends with her family just as I hope to be.  Friendship is one of those things that takes time to develop...especially when it involves those who are normally enemies.  Dogs, otters and people...unlikely friendships can develop!