What a wildlife week it has been! Starting with last Sunday evening, right after I had posted the weekly blog...the foreman yelled from the upstairs balcony that he saw a mountain lion! It was a big one, chasing a deer in the empty field by a creek right below us. Definitely too close for comfort, and in the same area where the foreman spotted one about six years ago. I'm not too concerned about the donkeys since they go in the corral at night close to the house - but the sighting has put me "on alert" when I go out to feed the boys in the wee hours in the morning! Also spotted this week was a Mama Turkey with her young babies - rather late in the season (usually we see babies in April). And there was great debate in the household about whether or not some, ahem, SCAT (why can't we just call it poop??) found in various places on the property belonged to a coyote or a raccoon. After some extensive internet research, I found out that raccoons tend to use the same place over and over again to do their "biz" whereas a coyote will pick specific & different spots, such as the middle of a road or a trail. We definitely have both samples of scat on the property - very carefully placed coyote scat in the middle of our driveway, and raccoon scat on our gravel trail. NICE!! And, finally, in other Lazy Vegan news, we were very happy to find Archie napping away on the lounge chair on the front terrace...a sure sign that he feels quite comfortable here. As if animal logistics and chores weren't already complicated enough, we're now quite certain that Toby is going deaf - will have his ears checked out by the vet at his next appointment. He obviously doesn't hear us like he used to. Time to whip out the dog sign language manual!! The week of wildlife was completed by a trip with my volunteer group at the Humane Society to Safari West, where we saw many amazing animals living in fantastic surroundings (NOT a zoo!)!
The donkeys "groom" what is left of a small oak tree in their corral.
This old fallen log makes a great scratching post!
Paco scratches an itch himself.
Beautiful Luigi!
Noble Paco!
The boys have so much fun together!
Archie heads over for dinner.
He's such a funny cat. Lately he meets me at the donkey corral EARLY in the morning - before 5 a.m. Then he practically trips me running in front of my legs all the way to the house, where, of course, I provide him with a nice breakfast!
He purrs a lot lately, too.
Wasabi watches everything from her kitchen perch.
Toby checks in with Solo.
Really ridiculous dog!
Salad time! Fresh from the garden!
Mama turkey with her tiny babies! If you double click on the photos you can see them better...
I stayed far away and used my zoom lens - she was very protective!
The foreman is pleased that his deer fencing is protecting this beautiful trumpet vine!
Bun finishing a run!
A little cat yoga after breakfast.
Special donkey time.
Just hanging with the boys!
Even hanging out in the barn!
Luigi quickly let the foreman know exactly what he thought of being ridden!
Playing with Paco.
Oh, be still my heart...I love this bunny! She's ALWAYS cute!
The pups are pretty adorable, too. Spoiled????
Archie's first nap on the lounge chair. He was content to sleep there for a couple of hours!
The foreman fed Archie for the first time. We're hoping that Archie warms up to him. He still tries to run off when the foreman appears, which is so insulting!
The cows across the way...with babies!
I bought vegan cookies from the Sebastopol Cookie Company for my open house! YUM.
Loved watching this black cat at my open house!
He had his eyes on this bird, above.
Karina came over and checked out the garden!
The zukes are always growing out of control.
Saying hi to Wasabi!
Wasabi loves Bravo!
Seeking some comfort from the heat earlier in the week.
Some of the amazing animals from Safari West!
This bird did a little dance for the tour guide.
LOVE the giraffes!
And the rhinos!
African cows...I forget their name.
Me, pretending to hang out with the flamingos behind me.
Giraffe house!
Back at home, the donkeys looked more wild to me!
Evening time with the boys.
Always time to chase a dog or two out of the pasture!
Carrying up the old pup.
The bun in the kitchen playground!
My favorite snack: soy milk and peanut butter on sprouted whole wheat bread!
Saved the scat for last: pictured here is raccoon scat, full of blackberries! Stay tuned for some photos of coyote scat on next week's blog! You KNOW you'll be back!
