Grampa Don
Yep, that's me
- Location
- Orange county, Calif.
Thanks for the suggestion, but the nearest shelter is farther than I like to drive. I stay on local streets. And, you're right, I would want to bring one home.
Notes from my patio
- Thread starter Grampa Don
- Start date
Grampa Don
Yep, that's me
- Location
- Orange county, Calif.
We're having a bit of a heat wave. It was 96 yesterday and will probably be that again today. It's a Santa Ana condition with wind coming over the mountains from the desert. Halloween is supposed to be back to normal.
Here's a little more about wildlife in my neighborhood. We don’t have bears or mountain lions here like in some parts of the county. We do see coyotes though. They’ve been sighted on our block and they will prey on small dogs and cats. One morning I found a small collar with no tags and the buckle still fastened on our front lawn. I’m guessing it was from a cat.
It’s a worry for owners of small pets. I read that coyotes can climb over a six foot fence and that’s as high as our code allows. I saw an ad once for rollers to put on top of a fence to make it un-climbable.
Skunks we have. I can sometimes get a whiff of one. One of our dogs got sprayed and after that my wife kept a bottle of skunk wash in the cupboard just in case. There was a baby skunk behind the garage one morning. I just left it alone hoping its mom would come for it. Apparently she did because it was gone later.
And, usually in the spring I’ll see a possum or two or one of their babies. The only problem they cause is that the dogs seem to like their poop and it makes them sick. It smells awful. One came in the house through the doggy door one evening. My wife spotted it sitting in the corner of the kitchen. My older son just picked it up and carried it outside.
Rats were once more common. I’d see them walking along the telephone wires. One had babies in our garage. My son wanted to keep them but our Vet advised against it. So, it was my job to dispose of them. That was tough. I haven’t seen a rat since the squirrels arrived. Maybe they drove them away.
And that’s about it for warm blooded four legged critters. The gophers have deserted us for some reason. I tossed my gopher traps long ago.
Here's a little more about wildlife in my neighborhood. We don’t have bears or mountain lions here like in some parts of the county. We do see coyotes though. They’ve been sighted on our block and they will prey on small dogs and cats. One morning I found a small collar with no tags and the buckle still fastened on our front lawn. I’m guessing it was from a cat.
It’s a worry for owners of small pets. I read that coyotes can climb over a six foot fence and that’s as high as our code allows. I saw an ad once for rollers to put on top of a fence to make it un-climbable.
Skunks we have. I can sometimes get a whiff of one. One of our dogs got sprayed and after that my wife kept a bottle of skunk wash in the cupboard just in case. There was a baby skunk behind the garage one morning. I just left it alone hoping its mom would come for it. Apparently she did because it was gone later.
And, usually in the spring I’ll see a possum or two or one of their babies. The only problem they cause is that the dogs seem to like their poop and it makes them sick. It smells awful. One came in the house through the doggy door one evening. My wife spotted it sitting in the corner of the kitchen. My older son just picked it up and carried it outside.
Rats were once more common. I’d see them walking along the telephone wires. One had babies in our garage. My son wanted to keep them but our Vet advised against it. So, it was my job to dispose of them. That was tough. I haven’t seen a rat since the squirrels arrived. Maybe they drove them away.
And that’s about it for warm blooded four legged critters. The gophers have deserted us for some reason. I tossed my gopher traps long ago.