Thursday, August 28, 2008

Birds and Deer

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I didn't blog yesterday. The rain made me sleepy, although I went through my usual motions...feeding critters, ie; 5 cats, 2 dogs, 5 horses and endless refills of sunflower seeds and hummingbird nectar for our multiple feeding stations. I did read several chapters of a Sharyn McCrumb novel, 'She Walks These Hills", that a friend Becky recomended, and made a baked chicken dinner for my guy... I also snoozed on the couch with the dogs beside me. That's unusual for me. Today I feel the itching in my inner ear, and I realize (duh) that I am fighting a sinus/ear infection. Hindsight is 20/20 vision. All the signs have been plaguing me for a week or so now. Dizzyness, tiredness, scratchy throat, persistant cough etc., etc. I'm good at ignoring the obvious, until it slaps me in the head.

I'm curious if anyone else has a life as weird as mine.
In the morning while heading to the boys barn to feed, I almost stepped on a tiny bird crouched in the grass, shivering. I reached down and picked it up, with no resistance. Not knowing if it was hurt, I brought it to the house, put it in a shoe box with an old nest I had, and some seed and water. I put the box on my kitchen desk, and checked it periodically throughout the day.

The evening before, I had found this tiny bird in the feeder, looking sad and wet and lethargic. I got my camera, and walked right up to it, and touched it while snapping a picture with the other hand. The bird on the ground looked the same.


Shortly before my husband got home, I was on the couch in my tv room, and heard some commotion in the kitchen. I got up in time to see Mac, my largest cat, with bird in mouth heading for my bathroom, aka the 'killing bird room' to the cats. ( I have no idea why they bring them in that particular room.) With dogs at my heels I followed him in yelling 'bad cat', to no avail, however the presence of the dogs caused Mac to let the bird go, and back into a corner. The bird flew up to the skylight searching for a way out. I got the dogs to chase the cat out, which they gladly did, and I shut the door, trapping myself and bird inside. It dropped to the sink area, and I got my hands around it. It was the bird in the box, now dry and warm and terrified! I carried it to the front porch and set it on the rail and it flew right off! Whew!
Mac must have been thrilled to find I had left a boxed lunch just for him, and he was a little bit perturbed at me for indian giving...he laid with his ears flat, twitching his tail. Any idiot knew what he meant...


This morning, while sipping coffee, I looked out my back window to see twin fawns and Mommy eating the freshly greened up grass..(thanks rain!) I got my camera and snapped this, but it was far down field, the windows are dirty and it was raining. I watched the babies looking toward the porch area, probably watching a cat, and I was amused to see them acting so grown up, stomping their feet, one then another to draw out their predators, or what they perceive to be a predator. On closer inspection, I saw it was a large rock in the field, waiting with others to be made into a fire pit, and no doubt the rock looked suspicious in the rain. One fawn was quite brave, stamping and flicking its tail, until he realized that Mom and its sibling had gone into the trees...he turned tail and scampered behind them, braveness dissolved.
Now that seems to be a common thing for me, rescuing birds. We tryed to save a hummingbird that flew into our porch fan, brought it to a rescue. The little guy sadly, didn't make it, but we tried. I have saved another hummer that flew into my screen house and got himself stuck with his beak through the screen. The cats were trying to "save" him too, and thats how I found him.
Does anyone else have these experiences? I seem to have these on a regular basis!!



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2 comments:

Greener Pastures--A City Girl Goes Country said...

Maybe the animals know you are a safe haven and they're attracted to you.

I'm sorry the little hummingbird didn't make it.

www.GreenerPastures--ACityGirlGoesCountry.blogspot.com

Clementine said...

I agree with Debbie. I think they know they are safe with you! Claudia the animal rescuer!

About Me

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union hall, S.W.Virginia, United States
Newly retired from Franklin County Public Schools.Prior to that I was a cosmetologist for several years.