Wanderlost
Texas Hill Country
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Joined: 10/29/2004
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Spot got into a bit of trouble yesterday and today. He bit me twice, drawing blood once. He's slowly learning that biting is not acceptable, but sometimes he just gets soooo excited, even though I play gently with him.
The large black cat from across the fence came by last evening. Spot laid near him, watching while being oh-so-casual. It was terribly polite...when the black cat decided to leave, Spot escorted him off the property. No fuss, no bother, no noise. ![[emoticon]](http://www.coastresorts.com/sharedcontent/cfb/images/cool.gif "cool")
Mama Doe has decided we are part of her herd. Yesterday and today, she brought the new fawn right up to the house; us moving about outside didn't bother her in the slightest. Last year's twins are also in the meadow, and have taken to sleeping in the grass behind the garage, near the swimming pool. Still a bit cautious, but learning from Mom that we're not going to bother them.
We're in an extreme drought, so we're now watering our lawn, which we don't normally do, just so they'll have something to eat. Not much edible down in the meadow.
The south porch barn swallow babies are flying, as of Monday, and it looks like the north porch mom is already laying the second batch.
I can't describe how nice it is to sit outside and know there's no chance of getting bit by a flying insect. ![[emoticon]](http://www.coastresorts.com/sharedcontent/cfb/images/smile.gif "smile")
Another hot day done, time for a swim and a glass of wine.
"The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated." -- Mahatma Gandhi
Czarny, black cat
Rainbow Bridge: Spotacus, Alexander the Grrreat, and so very many more
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Wanderlost
Texas Hill Country
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Joined: 10/29/2004
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The cats decided to stay inside most of today, while we were organizing the garage a bit. Had to pull one panel of OSB off the wall, because we saw termites in a box next to that panel. They had once been there, but were no longer in the wall. Took the box outside in the sunlight and let the bugs get fried. Will clean out the box tomorrow.
Found a few other critters behind that panel, mostly spiders and one scorpion, which stung WLToo on the finger before dying a horrible death. They were evicted. Permanently. WLToo's finger is fine.
Pest control arrives next week.
We still are totally stumped as to why they paneled the garage walls with OSB, which around here is much more expensive than dry wall. There's absolutely no insulation behind that OSB, either. Sigh. Looks like we'll be insulating when we finally decide to pull the OSB to get the wiring upgraded in there.
Nothing like a "unique fixer upper" to keep things lively in retirement. ![[emoticon]](http://www.coastresorts.com/sharedcontent/cfb/images/rolleyes.gif "rolleyes")
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phxmtngirl
arizona
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Joined: 10/26/2010
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Hi - Tell Spot & Bobbi hi from my gang, and keep on playing. lol
My babies are now in the Texas habit of playing at night too, with temps being record highs, and humity high, the babies sleep all day, and PLAY all night.
You have the right idea wine & pool
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Wanderlost
Texas Hill Country
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The pool is far more important than the wine, but the wine's very nice.
Another scorcher, so everyone's sleeping in the coolest spot they can find. Unfortunately, Alex' spot is my lap, and he's like a small blast furnace.
Scorpions must be hatching; we found several drowned in the pool. Good. Hope they all need a drink...
Seems another doe is hiding her fawn on the hill just on the other side of the fence. Last night, we heard snorting and stomping. When we looked out the windows, a doe was glaring at Spot, who was napping on the mat by the sliding glass door, inside the house. She'd jumped the fence specifically to come over and warn the little predator not to touch her fawn. I stood beside Spot and stomped and snorted back. She got the message and departed; Spot slept through the whole thing.
Meanwhile, Bobbi had been out all day and we were concerned that she'd been treed by a protective doe. Well, after this doe jumped the fence, Bobbi came streaking home from that direction. Yep, she was treed. Maybe she won't be so ready to dash over there anymore.
Alex learned his lesson from being treed. The moment he hears a doe snort, he's looking for a hiding place. Would that Bobbi be so prudent...
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Wanderlost
Texas Hill Country
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Puff, pant, wheeze... We broke some temperature records yesterday, and are looking to do it again today. Not one drop of rain anywhere.
Heard a sad sound at the sliding glass door. Spot really wanted to play outside, but it is just too hot for him, so he announced his reluctant need to be inside. He has a very quiet meow, which we rarely hear, so when I heard it, I was a bit concerned. But he was just saying, "Darn it, it's too hooooottt! I need back in, please."
He was followed very shortly thereafter by Bobbi, then Alex.
The two people are shortly going to a writers' group meeting at the library. Hope the a/c is working well there.
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Wanderlost
Texas Hill Country
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Eeewwwww! Cough! Cough! Cough!
I knew the minute I stepped outside what had probably happened. The smell of fresh skunk spray was wafting on the breeze, and Alex was outside.
I saw him running oddly toward me, then he avoided me and ran into the grass, where he gagged but didn't throw up. Great. He's been sprayed. We finally got him into the house and locked into our shower, and turned on the bathroom vent full blast.
While WLToo put on his swimtrunks, a t-shirt and latex gloves for a bit of protection, I mixed up the never fails skunk oil removal formula. He then rubbed it thoroughly into Alex' fur, then rinsed him completely. Naturally, Alex thought being wet down was some sort of punishment, and howled in desperation.
Meanwhile, as if this wasn't humiliating enough, Spot and Bobbi insisted on sitting outside the shower, with their noses practically against the glass, to watch the show.
We both sniffed Alex to be sure he was clean, then used several towels to dry him, and let him out. He's now licking himself dry and seems to understand that we got the nasty off of him.
For those who don't know the formula, this is for a dog or human victim:
1 quart 3 percent hydrogen peroxide
1/4 cup baking soda (sodium bicarbonate)
1 teaspoon liquid soap or dish detergent
Mix together and bathe ("shampoo" in or rub down) the spray victim thoroughly.
Be sure to use this mixture immediately after it is created, as it is unstable. It's not storable.
Rinse with tap water afterward, and repeat if necessary.
For spray in the eyes, flush with water as soon as possible.
For an average sized cat:
16 oz hydrogen peroxide
2 Tbsp baking soda
1/4 tsp liquid soap or dish detergent
We only used half of it, then rinsed, then sniffed. If necessary, we'd have used the rest for a second wash.
It will be a while before we go to bed, since we have to keep the vent fans running to get the residual stench out of the air, and do some mopping wherever he ran when he came inside.
The olfactory memory will take longer to go away.
Ah, life in the country.
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Wanderlost
Texas Hill Country
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Alex had to have another hydrogen peroxide, baking soda and soap bath today, and we're using the same solution to clean everywhere he laid down.
Three baths in his fifteen years, and two were within 18 hours of each other. Poor guy. And to make it even more humiliating, he had a feline audience both times. ![[emoticon]](http://www.coastresorts.com/sharedcontent/cfb/images/embarrassed.gif "embarrassed")
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Wanderlost
Texas Hill Country
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For some reason, Alex stinks more today. Must be the humidity. The kitty wipes will only do so much, and too many will strip all the oil from his skin, which would be bad in this drought-stricken area. The morning humidity is very, very unusual.
Meanwhile, Spot ran off another cat and is resting in his favorite place, under the garden sofa on the north porch. Bobbi's afraid of the water hose in the grass by the south porch, so she won't go outside.
Just a weird kitty day.
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Wanderlost
Texas Hill Country
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Another scorcher, so the cats prefer to stay inside until after 5:00 pm, when we go swimming. Spot took up his overwatch position on the outer pool edge deck. Alex decided he'd very leisurely bat around a cricket on the porch. Bobbi thought she'd play with the fawn, but Mama Doe didn't think so -- she didn't mind Bobbi playing with last year's twins, but they were much, much bigger by the time Bobbi arrived.
Earlier, Mama Doe marched right up onto the south porch and stared into the door and windows, as we prepared supper. WLToo had just shucked a couple ears of corn, so I took the husks and end pieces out to the far end of the porch. Dropped them in the grass, where she could eat them without getting spooked by our inside movements. Her staring into the windows and doors reminds me of the time we were eating breakfast in a small cafe in Banff. The elk herd there has right of way, and seemed to really like staring into the windows at the humans. Was a bit disconcerting, all those big heads watching us eat.
Bobbi woke us all up with a gigantic shriek at 0300 Sunday morning. We sat right up, and saw her glaring out the door, but we couldn't see what she saw. We did not know she has a voice that loud, since she has always preferred to trill, rather than meow. She's been sticking close to the house since, and when inside goes from window to door to window on patrol.
I guess one of the neighbors' cats was passing by, and Bobbi does not appreciate that one little bit.
Think we'll go stare at the moon and stars for a while.
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