A mystery...

I had the dogs out for a little walk up the drive first thing, and Breagha got very excited about something she had found on the edge of the drainage ditch, just before where I had been cutting rhododendrons yesterday.

I couldn't see precisely what it was, but when  Rula joined in the enthusiastic exploration I suspected it might be something dead, so got them  away from it and went back later once they were back in  the house.

This was what they were interested in, and I presume it is some sort of training lure for a gun dog.   However I have never seen it before and don't know how it would come to be where it was.   

Perhaps someone else's dog was here (that happens of course when people visit) and dropped it.   Certainly there  are organised  shoots form time to time  if not right beside us, then over the hill towards Loch Striven, and there certainly pheasants in the garden quite often. 

Anyway, a bit of a mystery for a Sunday morning but having photographed it , I put it  into the compost bin, which should keep it away from our two, who would  in the end just chew it to bits.