My neighbourhood has become the new home of three chipmunks and one marmot. I find them incredibly adorable and I love having them around, but I have learned that others don’t agree with me.
Recently, I traveled up to Vernon for a visit with my nana and her husband, Tom. We got to talking about my new furry friends and I discovered that Tom is not a fan of one critter in particular – the marmot.
It began when Tom spotted a little marmot crawling up into his neighbour’s car.
He went over, shooed the marmot away, without knowing that this was the beginning of the saga: Tom vs. The Marmot.
A week after the first encounter, Nana and Tom were walking up their driveway when they saw the marmot come barreling across the street and up into the bottom of Tom’s truck.
Tom flung open the hood and there was his new friend sitting by the air filter, looking right up at him, laughing. Again, Tom shooed the marmot away.
Tom must have given the marmot a good scare, because he didn’t come around for a week.
Then Tom left his house one day and saw that there was fluid running from the engine of his truck. Upon further inspection, he noticed that there was insulation floating in it!
Once again, Tom popped the hood. Inside was our dearly beloved marmot. The marmot had now made Tom’s truck his home, using the engine as a toilet and the insulation as a bed.
Tom had enough; he hopped in his truck and drove the marmot out of their gated community.
Once he was far from home, Tom got out of the truck to make sure the marmot was gone. He checked every nook and cranny, even crawled under the truck to ensure there was no sign of his nemesis.
Once Tom had determined that he had finally solved his problem, he headed home. He pulled into the driveway and my nana greeted him with “Is he gone?” and Tom replied “I think so but I will double check.”
Tom got down, looked at his undercarriage and came face to face with the marmot!
Furious, Tom went to his local library and began researching about marmots. He discovered that they have an aversion to dryer sheets. He came home and attached some under the hood of his truck.
After not seeing the marmot for quite some time, Tom declared, “Finally! It’s over!”
Sometime later, Nana and Tom took the truck and trailer for an excursion. As they climbed up a hill, Tom noticed that his truck was acting funny so he pulled over and popped the hood.
The marmot was gone, but he had the last laugh! The dryer sheets were on fire!
For those wanting to learn more about wildlife, there are plenty of books available for you at the library.
In addition, there are books on how to keep furry friends from bothering you, such as “All-Natural Secrets to a Pest-Free Property” by Myles Bader.
We also have a very fitting theme for our Summer Reading Club — “Walk on the Wild Side.” This program is available to five- to 12-year-olds, includes awesome programs and incentives to read.
Kayley Robb is an Assistant Community Librarian at the Summerland Branch of the Okanagan Regional Library.