The Orphaned Fawn and the Old Golden

Wow, it has been way too long since I posted here! But I have a heartwarming story for you.

My sister Patty is a devoted animal lover and is often called upon by the Sioux City, Iowa, Animal Control to "foster" animals that require special care. Usually her "foster kids" are dogs or cats. She's had the occasional raccoon, baby skunk and deer.

Her newest charge is a deer, but the youngest she's ever had. This little fellow was a late season birth and either orphaned or abandoned. Estimated date of birth is October 5 and he was spotted near the road by a passerby who called Animal Control. They recovered him and called Patty to see if she could take care of him. The challenge for this little one is that, being born so late in the season, he has not had the opportunity to grow and gain strength for the winter. Under Patty's care he is being bottle fed and kept warm.

Patty's 13-year-old Golden Retriever, Bentley, has grown very feeble and they have nearly lost him a couple of times. But here he is providing warmth and surrogacy for this fawn, and contented to do so. He is accustomed to the "foster kids" and has really taken on a special role in this case.



The baby (he doesn't have a name -- we need to fix that) appears to be doing well. One of his struggles is standing and walking on the hardwood floor. Patty said he is like Bambi on ice, with his legs splaying in all directions. As he grows and winter comes, he will still require care and a warm place. He can't stay in the house forever (potty training is not an option) and Patty's barn isn't heated. But, as is always the case, God protects his creatures great and small. For now the great Bentley is providing warmth and comfort for the tiny fawn.

A Rare Sight .....

..... a live armadillo! This is rare for a couple of reasons. One is that he (or she) was in our large grassy area, about 100 yards from the ravine. I had never seen one back there but always suspected they were in the woods. This one came quite close to our fenced-in area. Just wandering around in the open.

(Apologies for the fuzziness of the photo. I grabbed the camera and started shooting without getting the proper lens and settings. Also it was toward dusk. Also, I was on the cell phone and the Canon 40D is not a one-handed instrument. Please, don't talk and shoot!)

The other reason this is a rare photo is that, as many people will attest to, most of the armadillos we see are, uh, road kill. Sad but true. As I was researching why this little fellow might have approached to near the house (and 4 dogs) I found an interesting tidbit of info that explains the common sightings of victims on the road. Here from http://bss.sfsu.edu/geog/bholzman/courses/fall99projects/armadillo.htm:
"Another behavior that has been a fatal one for the nine-banded armadillo is the ability to jump 3-4 feet vertically into the air when it is startled (Wilson, 1997). In the southeastern portion of the U.S., automobiles are constantly killing nine-banded armadillos. At first it was thought that the tires or the front of the car was impacting these armadillos, which do not look both ways before they cross a road. Later it was observed that when an automobile drove over an armadillo, it would be startled and would end up jumping vertically against the car (Storrs, 1982). "

I just hope I never hit one. It would not be the only one jumping 3-4 feet into the air!

So, this little critter waddled back down into the woods, safe another day from motor vehicles.

Thanks for indulging me this little biology lesson. I still get excited seeing these wild creatures in our back yard.

Barb

In God We Trust

Macro Monday --- Sea Creatures

It has been a while since I posted anything for Macro Monday, but I have some fun close-ups of deep sea creatures. A couple of weeks ago I was in Virginia to spend some time with my son before he shipped out for five months. One of the places we toured was the Virginia Aquarium. I love aquariums --- I don't like being on or in the ocean, but the undersea creatures fascinate me.
Some of these animals are very funny looking, like this guy. He must be very narrow-minded!

Then there are those that love to be pampered. It looks like Scott is scratching a serious itch on this sea turtle.
"Aaaaahh! Thanks, man!"
There are the incredibly gorgeous --- albeit venomous --- lion fish.

I never noticed the beautiful aqua colors on their fins.

From the exotically beautiful to the powerfully dangerous....

.... and the silliness!

The manta ray pool is always full of graceful, playful creatures. Some seemed to be trying to climb out!

This manta was actually as iridescent as the photo shows. So pretty!

Scott seems to make friends everywhere he goes! He was having quite a conversation with this old guy.... glub glub glub.

Do you have some close up views of your world? Join us over at Lisa's Chaos for Macro Monday!

OK, Just One More Animal Picture ....

.... But look carefully! Wordless Wednesday over at Baba's Blog showcased these delightful sheep! Take a good look!

Now you know what to do with those old phones and cords!

Project Black --- Or Would This Be Blue?

This morning I was headed out to the edge of our "woods" to get some pictures of wildflowers and Japanese Beetles. Well, this little guy scurried across the patio, but stopped long enough for a photo. I first noticed the brilliant blue tail. Now that I have the photo on my screen I see the blending of the electric blue to teal then to black. I'm not familiar with this little newt, but he sure is beautiful and very nice to pose for some good shots.


Then he scurried off as quickly as he came, but not before I caught a bright blue tail in the rocks.

P.S. I did some research and found that this pretty little critter is a blue-tailed skink. They like to eat spiders and grasshoppers. I really like him now! I hope he has lots of relatives with him! (7-15-08)

Red Winged Blackbird

After weeks of taking pictures I found that I was merely downloading and not cataloging or processing. So I am now looking at hundreds of shots, many hitting the recycle bin, and prepping others for portraits and publication.

During this process I found some "reach-out-and-touch" shots of a Red Winged Blackbird. This made me think of the Project Black challenge going on over at Anna Carson Photography, which looks like a lot of fun. So, here I come, folks, with my contribution to Project Black!

Determination Comes In All Sizes

I love stories about animals, especially those stories that dispell the notion that animals are "dumb". Here is a true story about a little Italian Greyhound named Minnie whose determination and resourcefulness belie her fragile stature. I don't have an actual picture of Minnie, but for illustration purposes picture this little darling as I relate the tale of Minnie and the bed covers.

The cast of characters: Minnie, of course; Lil, Minnie's owner; Merry Sue, Lil's daughter; Helen, Lil's friend (and my mom).

Earlier this week Helen was in Sioux City and brought a couple of visitors home with her: daughter Patty and good friend Lil. Lil was looking forward to getting away for a few days so made arrangements with her daughter Merry Sue to check on the house and Minnie while she was away. Minnie is used to sleeping under the covers of Lil's bed but when bedtime came and Lil wasn't there to turn down the covers Minnie took it upon herself to get comfortable. The next morning when Merry Sue came to the house she found a very exhausted Minnie under the comforter and blankets that she had pulled off the bed and onto the floor. It must have taken the poor little thing all night to get under the covers. Merry Sue put the bedding back on the bed and, wisely, turned the covers down. The next morning a well-rested Minnie came crawling out from under the covers, still on the bed.

I would love to read more stories about our furry companions. Please share in your comments.