Stories from Rattlesnakes to Elephants

[Sybil]

Mishka, I have a good one for you this morning.  

Several nights ago, Rogue (grandson's dog) ran with a fury to the creek chasing a rather large animal. A dog or a cat can run through brush with very little noise, but this animal caused a sound akin to thrashing, so we knew it was large.

Then yesterday my neighbor set out on his daily walk only to bump into an ostrich on the loose. What on earth would an ostrich be doing in the high elevations of the Rocky Mountains? Someone dumped it is our only conclusion. We are hoping Game and Fish can locate the poor thing to save it from mountain lions and other predators. There is no food available at this time of year except frozen roots and a few rats so it is my prayer we can help get this animal to safety.

Country living brings unending surprises!

[Vicki]

  Amazing. Hope they can save the creature. Our neighbor used to have pet Emu. One was in the habit of searching his pockets for treats. They escaped several times. I found out he had them when one escaped and was attempting to kick our barking dog. They are silent pets - not like the braying mule that used to wake us up at 4am every morning. (It always made me smile.) Have you asked around to see if a recluse neighbor is missing a pet ostrich?

[Sybil]

It is on my list to investigate.

[Sybil]

Update on Emu:  An attorney neighbor (visualize this) corralled the emu into a large fenced-in area. Didn't know attorneys could do such a thing! It's so physical!    Then another neighbor remembered there is a home by the post office with emus. So we have connected the two parties to see if this poor thing can be taken in. We are thrilled to know it is no longer on the loose, safe within the confines of shelter.

[Sister Dee]

Oh, good!   

We used to pass a place that had a couple of ostriches.  At least that's what we thought they were; could have been emus.  Then one day they weren't there anymore.  I remember thinking about the booth that sold ostrich-burgers at the state fair and hoping that hadn't happened to them!   

[Vicki]

  Yippee! For the captured bird & aggressive attorney! Glad to know the emu will be safe. 

Sorry to say, Diane, but that is why most people have them...eggs & meat. 

[Sybil]

What is the difference between an emu and an ostrich?

    * Emus are endemic to Australia (meaning they are found exclusively in Australia), whilst ostriches are found in Africa.
    * Emus have darker colouring, with dark brown, gray and black fine feathers. Ostriches have thicker and lighter plumage.
    * An ostrich is bigger than an emu. An emu weighs between 66 and 99 pounds (30-45kg). An ostrich weighs about 300 pounds.
    * The ostrich is faster and is, in fact, the world's fastest two-legged animal. An ostrich can sprint at 65 Kilometres per hour (40 miles per hour) and an emu can sprint at 50 kph, or 30 mph.
    * Ostriches are unusual among the ratites (flightless birds) as they have only two toes on each foot. Emus and other ratites have three toes.

This big bird is an emu, so I stand corrected.

[Vicki]

Did you count it's toes? 

[Sybil]

  I was not an eye-witness to the poor thing!

[Tim2]

We live on ten acres, about 1.3 miles down a gravel road.  The other day we were coming out of our driveway and we happened on two or three cars stopped in the middle of the road.  Several people were out of their cars looking up into a tree.  My wife and I dutifully stopped and got out also.  Since everyone was looking up, we thought it best to copy and there at the top of a 75 foot tall pine tree, was a bear cub.  I don't know how long folks had been watching or who scared it up the tree, but right away I thought of mama bear.  We watched for a few minutes, then we felt that if everyone would leave, it would come down sooner and find it's mother.  We thought, "better that than mama finding us!"

[Vicki]

That would be a sight to see, but if given a choice I'd rather meet up with another emu. According to the neighbor, emu's are easily traumatized and it would be the one dying of fright. (The one we captured did... )

[Sybil]

Tim ... you guys were wise to leave the tree. I live in the midst of bears: mamas and babies. Any time you see a baby bear, be assured the mama is close by watching. Some years back - close to ten, actually, we were inundated with bears along the creek. They swung in the old tires hanging there for children to play on - but there were baby bears climbing through them, over them and not too far away was a blond mama bear. I grabbed grandson (a year old at the time) and ran up stairs and we walked out onto the portal roof and watched them play. It was a spring and summer when we had to be on high alert. The animals were hungry because of no rain, so we gave them a very wide berth realizing we were living in their very habitat. 

[Sybil]

We are nearing having a one-eyed cat. Liam's kitty has a Squamous cell carcinoma on his right eye. At first we thought it was conjunctivitis and isolated him from the other animals and ourselves until he finished his round of treatment, but the eye continued to be enveloped with a thick red and white coarse coating. The vet confirmed SCC. Whiskers will have his eye removed on Thursday.   Poor thing. The interesting thing is, he plays as usual, eats and hunts as usual and still wants to kill the female cats who watch him from the safety of the indoors. He is a large cat and is beloved among us even though he is such a fighting machine.



We want the best for him and pray this is isolated only to the eye.

[JimB]

I'm assuming that like humans who only have one eye that he will loose depth perception. He may not be as an efficient fighter when all is done. All creation groans.

[Immanuel]

My grandparents had a big cat that was a fighter/mouser that came home one day with an eye missing - not sure what happened. It didn't seem to slow him down at all. Hopefully Whiskers will have the same experience.

[Sybil]

That is amazing!

[Sybil]

Little boy Whiskers is resting over night at the vets after a successful surgery.    Doc said 3/4 of the eyeball was affected and that we made the right decision to remove it. I hope to go get him tomorrow.

[Sister Dee]

Glad to hear Whiskers came through the surgery!  I'm sure one young man is relieved tonight as well.   

[Tim2]

I must admit that I am a cat person and the news of Whiskers pulls at the old heart strings.  Some cats are "standoffish" and distant when they spend all their time outside, but I prefer an indoors cat who loves to be held.  There is something very therapeutic about it. (those close to me know how much I need therapy)

[Sybil]

  You are so funny, Tim!

There is great therapeutic value in these blessed animals God gave us and all of us who need it benefit. I have not shared much about Whiskers. When daughter and grandson came to live with me in August, two great pets came with them: Rouge, a young female dog and Little boy, Whiskers - both indoor/outdoor animals. They are famous friends. We truly thought there would be a harmonious blending of all the animals but that was not the case. Whiskers' male dominance immediately kicked in even though he was an invited guest. We tried to teach him some manners but it would not take, so my two cats have had to stay indoors while he and Rouge have the run of the property. Being the male that he is, Whiskers enjoys being king of the hill, slaying most living things crossing his path. He is as content to do that as he is to sit in your lap, purring with a very loud "motor." He's very vocal! Now that he only has one eye maybe some humility will help him in character development but I have my doubts!  

When he comes home today, he and my kitties will change places until he is well. They will have the opportunity to recapture their land while he is laid up inside the house!  

One more quick thing: The day before his surgery, he hopped up on a porch bench watching a new bird nest being built in some greenery on the side of the house. He leaped into the middle of it and tore that nest apart with surgical precision. If his cancerous eye was painful, there has been no evidence of it. His sheer will to carry on as usual has been inspirational.