Goat TV is Back!

With all the cold snowy and icy weather our neighbors the goats have not been out of their barn at all. Too cold and the snow froze into inches deep ice blocks so they could get hurt coming out.

We missed them. This week the weather warmed up enough to let them out. We were so excited and ran from window to window telling Mom!

We love to watch them play across the street in the pasture.

Hey Mom...the goats are back!

We also had another visitor - an opossum. Mom came out to feed us the other night and the little guy was sitting next to the door feeding on seeds from the bird feeder. He looked as startled as Mom. She didn't have her camera or we would have picts of him. We may have to keep him away as she also found a small hole in the corner of the gravel floor in the screen room. Norm was over there messing with it and Mom checked it out. One of us could have gotten out but none of us did. Mom filled the hole in with rocks inside and out. Maybe the possum was trying to come in where it was warm and there was food.

Photo from nationalgeographic.com.

One more wildlife adventure this week.... Pop heard a loud drumming noise and saw pieces of wood chips raining down from the old maple tree in front. He looked up and there was the Woody Woodpecker of woodpeckers - the pileated! They are big and so funny looking with a red crest on their head. He was busy looking for food in the dead branches of the tree. He kept us occupied (and the beans too) for quite a while. They were almost extinct but are making a comeback in some areas.

Photo from nationalgeographic.com.

Ivy watched from the bathroom window for a long while drooling over this BIGGGGG bird she couldn't have!

And that's our wildlife show for today! Happy Caturday! For more animal posts from all over check out Camera Critters. And be sure to visit Pet Pride too.

Thankful Thursday

Hey everyone...Only here. Remember about a month ago I had to go to the VET cuz I was having to pee a lot and was running around like it hurt? Well I am feeling much better but Mom had to take some pee to the VET to see if I was getting rid of those bad crystals in my pee.

She was driving me nuts...hanging around whenever I was even looking at the litter box. She got some the first try by sliding a saucer under me when I was peeing ( how embarrassing) but got it all mixed up in the litter. She tried everyday for a week. Some days I just would not cooperate and wouldn't even go near the litterbox!

Well yesterday she finally got some pee for the VET - much better than having to take me there again. Turns out I am doing better overall but still have a little bit of infection and some crystals. I hate the food they make me eat but I guess I am going to have to chow it down whether I like it or not.

Dr. Andrea said it was an ingredient called D L methionine (an amino acid) that dissolves crystals and to mix the food in with other food and maybe I would eat it. She is a cool VET - she does people acupuncture and pets, Chinese herbs and is an animal behaviorist too. Lots of degrees and stuff. Maybe she can help Al be a nicer playmate to us all. He can be such a bully! Might just see what she can do.

Anyway I am very thankful I am getting better and hope we can solve this with the new food. Happy Thursday!

Tosies, Tummy Tuesday with Darby

Oh Mom, what do you want now? I was sleeping a nice nap!

It's tummy tosies Tuesday is it? I will be happy to show off my fluffy white tummy and cute toes!

How was that? Can I go back to napping now? Happy TT Tuesday everybody!

For more Cats on Tuesday visit Gattina!

Manly Monday with Al

All our ladycats have been swooning over Dante lately but we think our Al can give Dante a run for his money. Are you up for a little competition Dante?

Formerly Feral Friday --Tabitha's Tale

I am a very pretty (if I may say so myself) tabby cat who lives with all my brothers and two sisters - Smidge and Georgie.

My mom Lily had me outdoors in her second litter during the spring of 2005. My bean Mom had tried to catch Lily before she got pregnant again with another litter but it didn't happen. She caught all the cats in the litter before me and brought them inside before we were all born. She was afraid the first litter would disperse throughout the neighborhood and she wouldn't be able to catch them to spay and neuter them.

Me with Only and Two Spot - see the spots? That's how they got their names only the spots faded!

We (Only, Two Spot, Smidge and me) were born under the house in the crawlspace. I was very feisty. Mom bean picked me up when we came up to eat on the deck and I just hissed and spit at her even tho I was just a tiny ball of fur at 6-8 weeks old! She wasn't sure we were all done nursing and didn't want Lily to go into heat again so she left us outside with her for a little longer hoping to catch us all together.

We spent the next few months lounging on the back deck, playing with toys Mom bean left out and living a very nice life. Mom bean was going to be moving to another town and wanted to take us all with her. Mom bean had TNR'd the other feral cats and let them live out their lives in the yard but this time was different. She asked everybody but none of the neighbors would take on the responsibility of feeding and caring for us if she left us behind to live outdoors. She couldn't do that.

We had gotten very used to her by now but still wouldn't let her pet us. She would prop open the porch door and stand inside and we would come in to explore. Only and Two Spot either were dumber or smarter than us (not sure which) but she caught them first by closing the door while they were busy exploring and they were caught on the porch. We got all upset at first but then went back to life as usual.

One day Mom bean put Only in a carrier in the porch and opened the door for us to see. Even Lily went inside to see what was going on. Smidge and I followed Mom Lily and Mom bean closed the porch door! We were inside but not very happy. It took Pop and Mom beans hours to catch us all and put us safely in one small room so we could get used to them and being inside.

Pop bean had a friend who said he would adopt me. He had another little all black kitty and wanted me for a friend for his kitty. Pop bean spent a lot of time with me handling me and petting me - getting me ready for moving in with Robert but that never happened. I am not sure why but in a way I am glad to still be with my family.

We all got moved to the new place and all my litter mates and Lily live with me in a cool shelter the beans made for us. Their house is smaller here than the old one so they converted the workshop and carport into a indoor playroom and screen porch for us to live in. We have all sorts of shelves and chairs to sit on and they spend lots of time out here with us. Pop bean uses the workshop - we gave him a small corner of it to putter around in.

Our neat new porch - that's me with my brothers watching birdies.

I like to be petted, play with my brothers, and eat. I am very loving thanks to all the time Pop bean spent with me. Boxes and a cool red cube are my favorite spots. We watch the goats and birds outside from our enclosed porch and in warm weather get to feel the nice breezes blow through the screen porch. It sure is a better life than we would have had living outside at the old house with no one to care for us.

Me today with Only and Two Spot.

Thanks for listening to my story. Hope you enjoyed it. Click here for more Camera Critters.