Happy 6th birthday Annabelle

According to our records it is Annie's birthday Dec. 15th. Someone, who shall be nameless, bought her a card from all of us.

She is a rescue cat, found in a Lanark County barn. The vet assigned her a birthday based on her teeth and physical size. We have had her since she was about 2 years old.
Annabelle just had her annual visit to the vet. She passed, except she has some gum disease on a canine tooth. We'll watch that. It may have to be pulled to prevent more issues. She had her rabies shot, too, which she did protest, growling.

Annie reads her card

"Thank you, Daddy!"

We booked Facetime with the girls. We all sang happy birthday, although Annabelle didn't seem to thrilled.

The tuna was appreciated!


Annie watched curling with Daddy later that afternoon.

walkies, cats,

I belong to an owling group on Facebook. They are most supportive, to me. Someone posted a photo of an owl, a little fuzzy, and obviously a quick shoot. Apparently, she was dissed most miserably by a few arses. The group moderator posted a lovely note telling the group this was not acceptable, and asking group members to post awful owl photos to show that even the most adept can have a bad photo.

This is my example of an unsuccessful owl video! (May 2016)

So, says Bob, go out at dusk and listen for the Barred owl chicks. I heard one chick screaming for food. I heard something else in the forest. Quietly, I prayed it was a deer. I watched, with baited breath. When Junior Bear began to smell me, and look for me (in the trees, you'll note), then cross the wetland, I backed up and startled him. 

In the meantime, I thought I'd best post these before we lose ALL our snow. I love the trails through the trees. The critters have habits. The fox and the coyote have been trailing the turkeys across the meadow, and across the frozen frog pond.
I've moved the trailcam. It's on a tree, in the second photo, below.





3 turkeys from Jennifer Jilks on Vimeo.

We continue to wrestle with Daisy. Popping her into the crate seems to alleviate night time stress.

Since I've been dosing her with meds (Nov.), she's not sat with me in my chair. Finally, yesterday, Friday, Dec. 14th, she deigned to sit with me, again. JB brought me a piece of toast, in my chair, in order not to disturb her. She's been switched from amitriptyline to fluoxetine (Prozac for cats). 

Daisy likes to help JB either shave, or clean the bathroom. This morning he was cleaning it, and she was supervising. He is so patient.


Today, is Annabelle's 6th birthday. Beyond the fact that she is a rescue cat, found in a Lanark County barn, homeless, the vet assigned her a birthday. More on that tomorrow, as there are surprises planned!

For more critters:

Saturday, December 15, 2018

Saturday's Critters #261

Trip to town!

Somebody in my house needed to pick up some immunity boosters, and calcium supplements. "How about a trip to Carleton Place, lunch included?"
As we were about to leave, I noticed 4 red squirrels under the feeder. All were getting along, which might be a miracle of the cold temperatures!


First step, grab the mail. JB's worn his hat for all of December. Remember this hat.


Remember the hat? JB was wearing it in the car. As we sat at the red light, people waved as they turned the corner! You might not be able to see it. You can hear our laughter, as people laughed and waved.


This looks like an interesting infill, there must be four apartments, and it's coming along. We need housing like this in town.


Lots of new housing, big homes!


What do you think of these tail lights?!


I wonder how she managed to get the dog to tolerate the boots?!


The senior's facility is coming along. It's been a bit chilly. Along the way, I noticed a lot of people atop cranes!


Another crane! They are building an extension to the health facility.


And, of course, Hydro lineworkers are always working!


Mission accomplished, we went to lunch. More compliments and smiles! The pub was packed.


Have you heard of manspreading? I had to ask the dude to move. There was a large Christmas party in the other side of the room. They had Christmas crackers, and presents for all. It was fun to listen to.


In the meantime, we'll see what today brings: rain, snow, sleet or hail?!

Wetland walkies, and other things

It's been stressful lately, for me. I've been avoiding triggers, as it's the little things driving up my anxiety levels. I just have to turn off the news. It's a factor of depression, too, when I view others on fabulous vacations in warm places, it gets to me.

It helps to laugh with someone. Anvilcloud posted his "i am not making this up" venting merrily with self-deprecating humour, and so I persist.

• The bird bath is leaking, again.
• I can't get the trailcam in the right spot, with the right settings. (I think the traffic was triggering it.)
• My new glasses, which might help me with photography, are delayed, and after ordering them with a promise of a 6-hour turn around, they phoned and said they are going to be a week and an additional $100 due to my horrid myopic prescription level. Not only that, but their big December sale, where you pick a box for a discount, I only managed 5% off my purchase. Sigh. I know I'm at the edge when I nearly wept, again.
• Then, there is Daisy. JB has been really good with her, I'm losing patience. She is draining both of us, her personality has changed, we shall persevere. I can't make any decisions right now. 
• Every other email or social media post is a request for money.
• Angry Birds, which has been fun, is raising my blood pressure!
• I'm estranged from my youngest. 

What helps? Taking my meds. Reading. Sappy Christmas movies. "Don't judge me," as I wrote online. There was some debate on Facebook, with many dissing the genre. I know they are sappy, but they are getting better. This one features a young lawyer, and an ending I can trust. No one gets killed. There is a diverse cast. The Hallmark videos are filmed in Canada. I like looking for clues as to the location. It's a hobby. I've seen 35 movies on TV!

Christmas Everlasting (2018)

The trailcam...
The coyote was a bit shy, in the first few seconds. Bambi has been busy.

JB is doing well. He's been really supportive. In a moment of weakness, he went out without a coat. This is highly unusual. It was worth a photo-op.

I hauled some more wood. It's getting low. This is good exercise for me. I shall likely have to order more in the new year, if things keep up as they are. (The temperatures, I mean.)

I went for a woodland wetland walk in the sunshine. It felt really good. 

I found a deer bed. Trees. Crunchy snow.

The frozen wetland is a transportation route for all of us. Deer, coyote, turkey, and the fox.

This is my men's size 7 boot. This is a fair-sized coyote track.


The fox marked a stump! The coyote sniffed it! I love the stories in the snow. The fox has avoided the trailcam, I ran out of battery.


The edge of the wetland is wet! It thaws first. It is solid walking on it in the middle, though. No soakers! You can see how the coyote used it.


My client cancelled today, it sort of leaves me hanging. On Tuesday, I finished a sketch at her house. It's a moment of distraction, and a conversation piece for the two of us. I'm there 3 hours, twice a week. Sometimes we run out of new things to talk about and rehash the old. I have to fight to keep her positive.


On my walk, I heard these deep clicking noises. I was walking in circles, until I figured it out! The sound bounced off the trees, in a weird sort of way.