Watch the birdie

Balu Birdwatching

Young Balu here was sitting, utterly transfixed on the windowsill, watching a flock of swallows swooping and diving and I had great fun watching his head moving in sync, like one of those nodding dog ornaments you see in the back of cars!

The other day, I couldn't help being distracted by a flock of wild canaries - there must have been about 100 of them - as they all alighted onto the telephone wires.

And while I was keeping an eye on the clouds rolling up the valley the other day - you dare not let one of those into the house - I spotted Khan sitting in the field next door, transfixed on five or six geese, belonging to my neighbour, Juan. I'd forgotten about them actually, because they are normally kept in a pen far enough away that you wouldn't know they were there, unless you go down the other end of my backyard (it has enough vines to make 200 liters of wine, so it is sizable).

Now I remember ... One day that Juan was working in the field and, everywhere he went, they were following him like puppies. I was relieved at the time that I am not the only one around here: it's bad enough having five cats who will follow me everywhere - I am sure I am known as "that mad foreign woman with the cats".

The geese were smaller then. Now they are each bigger than a cat, and Khan was certainly keeping about a 20 foot distance. The cats bring in a steady stream of prey; small rabbits, canaries, mice, rats, lizards by the gross, but I don't think - gee, I hope - none of the cats is going to come in dragging a goose any time soon!

Fair Weather Friends

Everyone knows that cats don't like water, well, with odd exceptions. I happen to have one who will happily stand in a bath of warm water, purring his bloody head off, pushing into my hands as I massage the shampoo into his back. (And yeah, he does come out looking a lot like Bert here.)

His brother, Khan, would stand armpit-deep in a metal dog-bowl of water on hot days when he was little and, one day he created great entertainment by doing a kinda triple-jump self-service sheep-dipping dance the length of a full horse-trough. He was dripping wet at the end of it, yet totally un-bothered by the experience.

But, when it's water falling out of the sky, think again! It's been raining here in Tenerife for about 24 hours now, on and off between drizzle and proper rain. Yes, this is newsworthy: it "should" not rain at all here in August.

During a couple of sunny intervals, I let the cats go outside and both times, within 10 minutes, the sky began to get dark and only "looked like" it was going to rain  and all FIVE cats (not just one or some of them) filed indoors rapidly. I find this especially curious, because I have had to keep them in quite a lot recently for their safety. So you'd imagine, rain or shine, they'd be dying to go out.

Couple of days after the last episode, the local tiger thug picked a fight with poor Mico, who came in with his white shirtfront covered in blood. I don't like to see them hurt and felt especially sorry for Mico, because the blood was coming from a hole that had been ripped open under his chin.

The background to this is that Mico was kicked in the chin several years ago. His lost part of his lip, his jaw was broken and had to be wired and I had to hand-feed him soft food for weeks. He still prefers not to be touched there.

And this time, he felt really sorry for himself too. I've never heard him whine and complain, as he did. After cleaning him up (to a nice rose pink shade), I lay him in my bed and he just stayed as he was put and hardly moved for 24 hours.

His "missus", Betty washed him back to white, then cuddled up with him. A couple of times, I had to shake him to wake him up - just to be sure he was still alive!

The next morning, he was right as rain, of course.

Typical man! They just can't take the pain, can they? :)

After I hadn't seen the pest for a couple of days, I thought we'd try and see if I could let them all out. I mean the poor animals need exercise and fresh air too. But within ONE HOUR, just one solitary hour of letting them out, that bastard was back, picking fights, caterwauling and making the dog bark.

So, they were locked up again, until either this nuisance got fed up and terrorizes someone else, gets chased off during the hunting season that began this month (no, I don't wish him anything worse), or I work out a way to catch him.

The hope being that with no-one to beat up and no way he can sneak in the house to scrounge a meal, he will eventually get the message and bugger off.

Five cats and one dog inside one, relatively small, house?

You'd be amazed at how well behaved they were - I was - among themselves.

No bickering between them - which was the worry and one of the main reasons for removing them from the problem, because they had started to do so (and had never done before) while they were getting picked on by the "tiger". Practicing, I guess? With me, they were like little kids on the long school holiday.

"What can I do now mum?"

"I'm bored."

"I'm hungry." (again)

One after another, 24 hours a day and, if I wasn't paying full attention - like if I had the audacity to try to sleep or something - the "request" came accompanied by a thump on the nose by paw full of sharp talons! Ain't they just so sweet?

Last week - finally - they were able to sneak out for a few hours in the morning without getting ambushed. And you would think, wouldn't you, that after several weeks of being shut up, that they would be off like lightening. Not so.

They go out, do what they have to do and come back, or they sit on windowsills by open windows until I push their bums out! Or, they come out with me and the dog - all in file like ducklings - and come back and indoors again at the end of the walk. It's entertaining and I'm glad to have them all relatively close so I know they are safe, but on the level of "normal cat behavior", I just can't work 'em out. :)

Bad Cattitude

There are very few creatures on this earth that I can't get along with or can say I dislike - except the type that slither and crawl and, then it's generally the ones who do so on two legs that bother me most. 

Cats usually present me no problems whatsoever. Normally, I find it easy to build a rapport with them. (Maybe this is because we share similar tastes for leisure and moral outlooks?) In any case, enough of them have chosen to live with me over the years.

We also get frequent visitors because there are a lot of wild cats around. Even those who could claim to have a semblance of a home are treated like farm cats, not pets. They probably don't get meals (expected to go self-catering) and are certainly never allowed in houses. Most of them will humbly request a meal here and I am happy to oblige, provided that their presence does not cause any anguish for my own cats nor cause any undue noise about which the neighbours could complain. I'm amazed actually that my cats are generally very laid-back about the majority of callers. I even suspect them of encouraging one or two.

But there's always one who has to "prove the rule" though, isn't there?

We have a "stripy tiger" (tabby) hanging around at the moment, causing mayhem, with much wailing and gnashing of teeth. I only have to let my poor cats out for a moment and he's there, ready to ambush them.

Yes, I'm sure my cats could hold their own, but why should they? They are normally very tranquil, but this is keeping them on a state of alert and even causing them to have little arguments amongst themselves.

And, if it's all the same, I'd rather avoid the vet's bills, thank you.

This cat is exceedingly pushy and filled with bad cattitude. I doubt he belongs anywhere. That should make me want to love him, but I just cannot find a way. I can't seem to find the way to get rid of him either!

On Wednesday, he'd got himself between Mico - my eldest and therefore "man of the house" - and the back entrance. Mico is a big cat, but he's always been laid-back and a gentle giant. He's more cut out for minding kittens than taking off his jacket to give someone a thump, but that would never make him hesitate in trying to do his duty ... and he promptly got a bloodied ear for his trouble.

There was noisy caterwauling and that sparked the dog off barking ... The easiest way to put an end to that was to take the dog out with me to sort it out. And, do you know, even with 55 lbs of Rabid-Rottweiller bearing down on him (well she was loud and, he's not to know she's a big *pussy cat* really), not to mention an angry human ... that tabby was still in no particular hurry to depart. The cheek of the boy! Poor old Mico was rooted to the spot, paralysed with fear.

Eventually, I got him to come to me and off we went to the bathroom to dab iodine on his ear. Come to think of it, that probably caused him the most angst. 

"Oh no, not that stinging yellow stuff again!"

Anyway, while I was applying the TLC, we had a little chat, as you do.

(I mean, as you do if you're at least half mad, and I plead guilty.)

Of course I hugged him and told him I was proud of him for being a very brave man, but I also said he didn't have to be a hero nor prove anything to anyone. (I could tell you so many stories that would show he's already done so, over and over.) Then I told him that all he needed to do was to come indoors and let "mummy" deal with it. Yeah, I know what you're thinking, this woman has finally cracked. That is not a point upon which I am willing to argue, because I'd lose.

The point is that in order to get across tone and intent to a cat (which I am certain they do understand), it helps if you use the actual words.

So, what happens Thursday morning?

Balu was sitting on the windowsill behind me and suddenly growled, loudly. I knew that meant our unwelcome visitor was around. A second later, who do you think walked through the door and into my office?

Yup, Mico. You have to smile. Did he learn English?

Blogs make dogs and cats love each other

Kitty snuggled up with the dog

Well, no, I took the quote entirely out of context, but it did make me laugh. On the one hand, I've never been able to understand why people think that blogs are "revolutionary". They're a great concept, but it's people who have the power to "change everything", not the medium. Last time I checked, people had been around for a very long time. And, looking at the way mankind's history keeps on repeating itself, we're gonna have a long wait until they do indeed "change everything". On the other, I just don't know who came up with this myth that cats and dogs don't get along, because I see the daily living proof that they do.

We could learn a lot from animals, if only we'd care to take the time to do so. When my dog found those three kittens four years ago, she sensed that they needed help and attention. She spent days and nights by their side watching them. She took it upon herself to wash bums, made sure they were safe and didn't stray from their box ... and she continues to do so.

Kitty was unwell last week. In fact, she was really poorly, didn't eat and just wanted to curl up for five days. And, like most kids when they don't feel very well, all she wanted to do was cuddle up with mum. (I mean more so than usual.)

At one point, Kitty had snuggled up to Holly's bum on the dog bed. I got up to go somewhere and Holly got up to follow me. I hugged her and just said quietly, "No, you stay there with Kitty: she needs you". Her ass was back on that bed before I even finished the sentence and she stayed. If I'd wanted her to do that for no reason, I'd have had trouble.

I positively encouraged it all week and, I am sure, it is as much to the credit of this love & comfort as it was to the *bad guy* (that'd be me) stuffing her with antibiotics and other medicines that taste horrid that Kitty is again herself, eating fine and coming out on long walks. What makes dogs and cats love each other is intuition, knowledge and understanding. Animals don't come with preconceived ideas about what breed is supposed to get along, and not, nor are they swayed by "propaganda". Different peoples could learn a lot from them.

Maybe blogs will hep? That is, only if they really WANT to.

 

Holly and Kitty out for a walk

Bad Business In Bunny Land

Stock image of a Wascally Wabbit

It's all rabbits round here lately, but then it is Spring, so this is probably not surprising, but alas, this isn't only about cute, fluffy burrowers, because some *bad bunnies* have made people hopping mad. The BBC themselves kindly point us in the direction of a wonderfully witty blog, which is poking fun at the BEEB site's special talent for (mis)use of stock photos after a "headless zombie rabbit" incident - where, apparently, the "same" (stock photo) bunny loses his head one day, then gets a parking ticket slapped on his hutch the next. But that it would scare all the little kiddies (not to mention the big kiddy whose job it was to dispose of the remains), last week I could have provided the perfect graphic illustration for the former of the above stories, courtesy of the cats.

Then this morning, I discovered Balu and Betty growling at each other over another specimen out in the utility room. This discovery was a little accidental, so Balu picked up the rabbit and ran through the house and out the front door. I managed to follow and catch up with him, despite an obstacle course of furniture, rocks and vines. For some reason, I can't run under everything like they can!

But, upon grabbing the offending cat by the neck, he let go of the rabbit - who foolishly, ran straight towards Betty. I couldn't get there in time and, even if I had, you'd have more chance getting a side of beef away from a full-grown lion than of getting near her. My vet calls her "la pantera" (the panther) for a reason!

Whilst I did try, unfortunately, this was the wrong move. She made a quick decision, which resulted in me being inches away and, unfortunately, looking straight at the bloodthirsty scene when she went in for the kill. All I can say is, at least it was swift. So, the current score appears to be: Cats 2 - Human 2

(Not counting the ones I don't know about, of course.)

Cats are killers. I accept that. And I am more than happy that they are able to live "normal cat" lives, but it still takes a bit of getting used to. You get a very strong stomach after a few years of er, "country living with pets".  

On the other hand, I probably should just accept that my cats are providing a useful service, because the rabbit population here has been escalating out of all proportion over the last few years. Indeed, just this morning while I was walking the vine terraces with the dog (accompanied by two cats, naturally), we stopped and chatted with the workers tending the vines. It seems that even the ingenious water trick (containers under the vines) hasn't prevented the numerous rabbits from eating the newly forming fruit this year, destroying both crop and livelihood. Naturally, the man is hopping mad (sorry, irresistible pun), saying *they* should do something to completely wipe out the rabbit populations in cultivated areas. I agree, something needs doing, but I doubt that would be the right solution.

The chance of getting all of the rabbits has to be slim and those remaining would merely reproduce at a faster rate to refill the territory available. The hunting season in August - November will reduce them and, it is probably better to continue with that rhythm. (Much as I personally dislike the idea of hunting, I accept it is a better solution than some alternatives - such as traps or poisons - both of which would also present greater risks for other animals.)

Last year there seemed to be so many rabbits, we were almost tripping over them every time we went out walking. In fact, one morning, Kitty was with us and there she was walking along (possibly daydreaming), when she suddenly came nose to nose with a fully-grown buck rabbit. Both took a moment's pause, taken aback, then went on their respective ways.

This we hadn't seen before and it led me to start wondering why.

Recently, I discovered the answer. Tourists!

If they call it tourist season, why can't we shoot 'em?

As usual, man is the author of his own folly. It also shows you, in one small cycle, how everything in nature is connected and why balances must be maintained. What worries me even more is that man in his infinite wisdom (cough) may well take to more environmentally damaging *remedies* (like poisons) in order to *cure* the environmental damage he has already done.

Anyway, it seems that the growing numbers of tourists visiting areas near where birds of prey nest are disturbing the peace of said birds, so they are not breeding in sufficient numbers to cope with the quantity of rabbits that are their normal prey. Hence, the rabbits are multiplying at the rate rabbits do, unhindered.

We do frequently see two to three pairs of these birds hovering over the valley, but the numbers have reduced. What really needs to be done is to control tourism more closely and create more nature reserves that they are not permitted to disturb, restoring the balance of nature so that the birds can reproduce, catch more rabbits and put money back into farmers' pockets.

These islands rely on tourism for their main economy, but this is not just at the cost of the environment, but creates a "robbing Peter to pay Paul" scenario, where those in tourism prosper at the expense of their kinsmen in agriculture. Both are important. It would never be good business to have all our eggs in one basket and this just isn't a sustainable option. These same tourists are disturbing the peace of the whales and dolphins that they go to view on boat safaris and they create daily traffic jams on our mountain roads through precious pine and "laurasilva" forest. And I just can't help wondering what they will come to look at, once all of this beautiful nature has been totally destroyed for their pleasure.

My Funny Valentine

Balu at the horse trough

Walking home with the dog Wednesday morning, through the vines and past the "secret location" where I return captured rabbits to the wild, I couldn't help thinking back to the events of February 14th ... 

It was a Monday morning and Holly and I had walked up the road, accompanied (as you do) by the two female cats, Kitty and Betty. We arrived at the horse trough, just in time to meet a third cat, Balu, looking down at something in a small patch of grass. Just about to bend to look more closely myself, when a baby bunny took off, with Balu in lazy pursuit. So lazy that the rabbit easily made it to safety into a hole between some nearby rocks and I hoped it would have the sense to stay there, especially with three cats poised above it.

Nah, of course not. Within seconds, I turned to see now FOUR of my cats (where Mico appear from so suddenly?) running in a pack down the road towards the house, Balu in front, carrying the poor little bunny by the neck, kitten style.

So, picture it if you will (although I can hardly blame you if you don't wish to) ... A "grown woman" and a dog haring (pun intended) down the road to catch up with them. Besides, running may not be the appropriate term, because I was on the other end of the dog lead, remember, but can't rightfully say if my feet touched the ground or not. Well, in a performance worthy of an Olympic Gold (for ridiculousness, perhaps), we overtook three of the cats somewhere between the bridge and the house. Balu rushed indoors and under a bed and I was able to persuade him out (with a broom) and relieve him of his catch.

Yes, of course the cats were only doing what cats do naturally, but cannot stand by and knowingly allow them tear living things to sheds for sport. I do the same with mice & lizards they bring in. The poor little bunny did have a nasty graze on it's head, which (I'm not defending them) I think it must have had before the cats found it, but it didn't seem stunned or otherwise hurt. Surprised, maybe!

Wouldn't you be, under the circumstances?

The baby rabbit was small enough to fit in the palm of my hand, but it was a feisty little bugger and tried to bite me. I therefore reckoned it had all the right skills for survival, so it was off to the bathroom to make sure the wound on his head was clean and treat it with iodine. My cats get all edgy every time I go to the bathroom cabinet, because they think I'm going to treat them with the horrid tasting yellow stuff again, but the problem is, it works!

Anyway, the little bunny didn't seem to mind at all and, indeed, after a few minutes of this TLC, he was putty in my hands and snuggling in as though he was getting ready for a nap. There is no way, that I know of - without access to proper rabbit hutches and some high-class security - that one can keep a rabbit safely in a house with a dog and five cats! So, if he was going to have to grow up and cope in the wild, then better he should get on with it and I left with him (alone) to go and find a suitable place that he could call his new home.

Way up amongst the terraces of vines is an unkempt area of long grass, with a bank of earth, some bushes and even a small fig tree that I know already has a population of resident rabbits. It even has a water supply laid on: To stop the rabbits from eating the grapes for their water content, people put down plastic containers with some rocks in to hold them in place and these fill up with rain water for the rabbits to drink. Ingenious, simple solution.

We found a patch of fresh grass there and I put the rabbit down.

Well, he didn't fancy that and immediately came hopping back onto my foot. 

"Oh, no! I can't have you falling in love with me.", I thought.

I picked him up again and we walked a little further. This time, seeing the dense undergrowth to hide in, he was almost off before I put him down and hopped away into its relative security. I silently wished him a long and happy life.

Well, what do you know?

There I was recalling all this and as I got back to the house with the dog, there, laying on the back step like the "king of the jungle", is Balu. Sitting neatly beside him is his sister Kitty and, huddled between them into the corner of the step ...

Is another baby bunny. Completely unhurt (except psychologically maybe). Neither cat stirred nor made any attempt to stop me, so I picked him up and cuddled him. He rewarded me by biting my finger. Then, of course, we went off to the the "secret location" where I return captured rabbits to the wild. I've a feeling there will be quite a family there by the time we get finished!