It's a wild life out here!

Between wildlife and wild weather, every day out here is an adventure! 

Hail storms are common. This one lasted more than 20 minutes and left the ground looking like we had accumulating snow.

 The pea-size hail didn't damage any of the plants in the garden, luckily.  So far, all of the hail I've seen has been small like this. Anything larger and the garden would have been a total loss!

I'd been seeing this guy and his wife hunting in the yard and garden for a few days. I finally got a fuzzy photo. (I should learn to have the camera with me AT ALL TIMES) He's a Spotted Towhee.

I've looked for a nest, which is supposed to be largish and low to the ground, but haven't found it yet.

About a week ago, I had an amazing wildlife encounter. While working in the garden, I turned around to find a beautiful silver fox just 30 feet away. It was sniffing around in the grass right next to our deck. About the time I realized I didn't have the camera with me (of course!) a red fox came out of the trees. The two fox stared at each other for several seconds, then the silver one chased the red one away. 

Since then, I've seen the silver fox at a distance. Then a few days ago I saw it again and this time, I had the camera. Can you spot him in this photo?

It was hunting the squirrels that live in the old cabin. 

I love seeing the fox around. However, I am pretty sure my attitude towards it is going to change in a month or so. Why? Because I have fourteen baby Golden Laced Cochin chickens in a brooder box in the garage. Once they feather out, they'll be living in the chicken coop. That fox is going to do everything it can to make a meal out of them. 

The chickens? Oh yes, I forgot to tell you about the chickens.  I'll leave that for the next post. Come back tomorrow and I'll introduce you to them.

Barn Cat

As I mentioned in an earlier post, the previous homeowners put out corn and sunflower seeds to attract wildlife.  They also encouraged a family of ground squirrels to build an underground complex right under the dining room window.

In this photo, you can see not only the family of deer hanging out where the feeders used to be, but in the lower right you can see one of the mounds of dirt from a ground squirrel burrow.



I tried to be nice about it and use "humane" methods to encourage the squirrels to move away.  I bought a couple of rubber snakes and also scattered used kitty litter from my indoor cats. 

 

It didn't phase the critters one bit. They just keep on digging and expanding their burrow. Do you think they're smart enough to know that cobras aren't a local species?

 

 

 

I don't want to poison them, since there's the risk of a neighborhood dog eating a poison-laden rodent.

 

Enter Jasper, barn cat extraordinaire (at least I hope he's extraordinary!)



 

I got Jasper from the Humane Society of the Pikes Peak Region. He was in their Barn Cat program. They developed that program as a way to find homes for cats who are, for various reasons, not suitable as pets. Before this program came about, these cats would have been euthanized since they were considered "not adoptable".

Jasper was in the Barn Cat program because his former owner hadn't neutered him. He surrendered Jasper to the Humane Society because the cat was spraying all over the house. Gosh...an intact male cat was spraying...go figure! Jasper was neutered at the Humane Society, but he will always have the habit of spraying.

When I brought Jasper home, he was very shy and immediately found a spot in the barn to hide in. Now that he's been here for two weeks, he's come out of his shell.  Happily, he's very friendly and lovable considering he was a "tom" cat until a month ago.

 

 

I've kept Jasper confined in the barn these past two weeks so that he learns to identify this as his new territory. The squirrels used to run wild through the barn. Not any more! I haven't seen evidence that Jasper has actually killed one, so apparently his presence alone is enough to convince the squirrels to go elsewhere.

 

Jasper's been protected against fleas and ticks as well as worms. No telling what he'll be exposed to in his duties as exterminator.  He can escape any coyotes through a small cat door in the hay room of the barn. And he has food, water and a "den" in the barn, too.

How do you control the rodent population around your place? Do you use cats or dogs? Traps? Poisons? Why did you choose a particular method?

The Locals

Bear with me while I learn the ins and outs of blogging. I haven't figured out how to create multiple dynamic pages. I can do static pages, just not ones that support multiple posts.  In the meantime, I'll label each day's post based on the pages I hope to create one day.

For example, today's label is "wildlife". On the right side of the page, you'll see a list of labels. This will help you find posts on specific topics.

The previous homeowners had bird, squirrel and deer feeders up all over the property. I've taken the feeders down, since I will be putting in a garden. However, it will take some time for the wildlife to learn new habits. Don't get me wrong, I love animals of all kinds. Under different circumstances, I'd be delighted to see all of these creatures in my yard. With self-sufficiency as my ultimate goal, these critters will be competing with me for the food from my garden. And that won't do at all.

Two mule deer doe and their twin fawns come around every day. They aren't afraid of humans.

I can walk within 20 feet of them and they stand there looking at me calmly. Even shouting at them doesn't frighten them. I have to run at them like a crazy woman in order to get them to move. And even then, they go about 50 feet then turn around to watch me. 

A rather large flock of turkey visits every few days. I'd say there are about 50 of them in all. Here are some of them lounging around where one of the feeders used to be.

There are dozens of youngsters in this flock. Unfortunately, they've already learned to come here for food. If I discourage them from coming around, perhaps the next generation won't learn the same habit.

My hubby, G.W. has made the argument that I don't want to chase these animals too far away. In a crisis situation, they're a vaulable source of protein. It's a valid point. But how do I find the balance between protecting my garden and keeping the animals close by as a food source?

Any ideas?