Tuesday, January 23, 2007

No good deed goes unpunished


First, some pictures from yesterday:

back off of my suet!
I never dreamed that a red-bellied woodpecker could be so feisty. This one was not happy that the starlings were trying to eat HIS suet. Look at that posture! I would be scared off, if I was a starling.
Get off my feeder you stupid freeloaders
A fluff photo...goose feet.
goose feet
...and a grinning goat. Sounds like a good name for a English pub, eh? In fact, I think Geoff and I ate at one called that on our honeymoon. :)
grinning goat
I love song sparrows, for their subtle beauty. A lot of color for a "little brown job".
song sparrow
I routinely hang grapes in our cherry tree (the cherries that grow on it disappear about 2 days after they arrive).
female cardinal eating grapes
A robin samples some fallen fruit from the crabapple tree.
eating robin

crooning goldfinch
I think this is one of my absolute favorite bird pictures. The goldfinch on the right looks like he is saying "Ooooooo". Imagine how birds would look if they had lips...just wondering.
carolina wren and little blue stem
Carolina wrens are very good at camoflage. This one blends in so well with our sleeping little blue stem.
junior from afar
I stopped at RAPTOR yesterday with the girls to do some well-needed organizing to my education box. Junior was there, of course. I waved the net at him (he hates it when it is anybody else's hands) but he was neither impressed or frightened. Damn.
indian creek WA
Today's birding excursion was at Indian Creek Wildlife Area. It was disappointing, though. Not because of the site, because it has amazing potential. It was the snow, covered with a thin film of ice. I sounded like I was walking through potato chips. Hard to sneak up on a bird that way.
indian creek path
It's managed for hunting and fishing, but open year-round for wildlife observation. It was quiet (except for my crunching), since it's not hunting season.
creepy targets 1
Someone explain this to me. I know that they are targets...
creepy target 2
...but what does this mean? If you hit the turkey in the ass, you get a prize?
red headed woodpecker
I did see a red-headed woodpecker...not a great shot, and not a life bird, but they are hard to find and beautiful. That, and the only other bird of note was a hermit thrush. No life birds today.
come here puppy
But I did find a dog.
HEY! Hear me out!
When I pulled into the parking lot, this big, friendly black lab bounded up to me. He was hungry, but not starved. I gave him all that I had (a stale cookie from one of the car seats) and went on my walk. The loop doubles back to the other end of the parking lot, and he was waiting.
I drove around to the few houses in the area, but no one recognized him. And every single person said that "people dump their dogs off there all the time".
WTF??? I hate people sometimes.
I called Geoff and he Googled the closest shelter, and I drove the dog there and dropped him off. And my day of birding turned into a drive through western Brown County
with a strange dog.
I was not about to take him home. I have learned that lesson. (Famous last words, huh?)
Speaking of dogs...Boomer is still here. We are running out of options. I refuse to put him back into the shelter system, the few offers I received were very far away, and one even offered to pay to have him flown to Pennsylvania. Nice, but I don't feel comfortable shipping Boomer off to strangers. Soooo...if nothing comes up in the next day or so, I will try a local pet store that sometimes accepts dogs. (They almost took Lulu, until they saw that she was part pit bull.)
The cats are suffering in the basement. You can't keep five cats in a limited space like this and it not affect them. They are fighting and unhappy. The girls don't spend much time down here with me, and they miss their kitties.
So, as the title says, no good deed goes unpunished.

11 comments:

The Swami said...

Susan, Oh Susan. Say it isn't so. Tell The Swami you were only joking. What do you mean birds don't have lips!!

How do they whistle?

Nurse! Nurse Swamette, I think it's time for my meds.

Anonymous said...

OMG! I can't stand people who dump dogs or any animal - any time of year, but especially in the middle of winter. Grrrrrrrr. Thankfull that dog ran into you with a huge heart.
I *love* your goldfinch photo! Bird lips - can you imagine birds with lips?
I love all of your bird photos, goose feet, grinning goat - hey wait, where'd you see the goat?
I'm surprised you didn't rip the targets down so people can't target practice and then do it on real animals/birds! They're pretty scary looking, huh?

Anonymous said...

The pictures of the starlings and red-bellies are too cool! Such attitude! You're right about the goldfinch- his lips are puckered. Do you think the goldfinches are getting yellower all ready? I've noticed them here. Not sure about the target on the turkey butt. It looks like some one likes butt jokes.

Mary said...

Susan, you had a great bird day, even though no lifers! I love the gold finch photo...cool. The Carolina Wren...great! Most of all, I love Junior. You really need to keep us informed about him. I have NEVER seen an owl (being a city-slicker most of my life). I see the weather hasn't warmed to melt. We are cold, too, for the next few weeks.

I pray for Boomer :)

Anonymous said...

Nice pictures of the suet standoff. I agree with you about song sparrows; they come in an array of subtle varieties, each of which looks different from the last. I am partial, though, to fox and field sparrows.

Anonymous said...

Just wanted to let you know how much I enjoy your beautiful pictures and commentary. I enjoy bird watching immensely, but seldom get to enjoy it. .. except through you.

Anonymous said...

If you shoot the turkey in the butt, he stands up, roars, turns and goes back the other way. If you do this 10 times in a row, you win a Kewpie doll.

I'm surprised that Swami didn't know this.

~Kathi

Anonymous said...

Such a wonderful set of pictures you captured! WOW! BTW: How about that with the red-bellied woodpecker! Great action you captured!

Susan Gets Native said...

Swami:
You are so off the wall, it's hard to comment on your comments sometimes.

Pam:
I saw the goat at a neat restaurant across from the dreaded gravel pits. The restaurant used to be a schoolhouse, and there is a petting area with goats and geese.
I was a bit uneasy around the targets...even though it isn't hunting season.

Lynne:
I see a tiny, tiny bit of yellow on the goldfinches. Pretty soon, they will be all gorgeous in their studliness.

Mary:
Thanks for the prayers for Boomer. I hope someone comes along soon. I will try to keep up with Junior, as long as I don't get scalped for it!

John:
We have so many song sparrows here, it's like an anomaly. Now that I have seen a fox sparrow in person, I think they are pretty cool, too.

Ann:
Hi! Welcome to the nuthouse! I'm glad that you commented and you are enjoying my ramblings.

Kathi:
You are such a smart ass. I love it.

Mon@rch:
It was so cool to watch...I only get starlings when the weather is bad, and I was very gratified to watch them get scared off by a single woodpecker. Take that, creepy starlings!

Anonymous said...

I'm so sorry about Boomer and your cats. What a bummer. Wish I had a good solution for you. :(

Anonymous said...

Please don't take Boomer to the pet store!!! You will have no control over where he ends up...and often during pet store adoption sessions they'll stack cages of cats all around. Boomer won't show to his best advantage surrounded by cats, and might attract the attention of a dog fight enthusiast who will think, hmmm, there's a feisty little guy, he'd be a good bait dog. The horror of that happening to Boomer woke me up in the middle of the night. What about asking at your local vets? They might know someone who has recently lost a dog who might find Boomer a blessing...and the vet would know how well a person cared for their animals. I would dearly love to come get him myself but he would not be a good fit here (wrong-thinking neighbors with free-roaming small pets that would stir Boomer up and get him in trouble). Is there a Boston breeder anywhere nearby who could help you place him? Good luck...I hope you can find a good solution.