Overboard by Chip Dunham for January 24, 2015

Or some Bloody Marys, then they won’t feel the cold!

Covering everyone’s food of choice as it were….

I put food out for everything. I stop feeding the deer in spring so the neighbors can grow their flowers. I’m pretty sure I had a skunk eating the cat food I put out a couple of years ago. But that’s ok as long as I don’t back him into a corner. I figured he was just trying to get home, too.

I do.Seeds, and stale bread, when i have it.And hummingbird food all year. We have permanent residents along the coast here.

On my way out now……peanuts in the squirrel feeder (they lift the lid for them) and sunflower oilers in bird feeders for birds and squirrels. It is a rewarding thing to do for sure. Squirrels are bouncing down the drive so I better get out there. We are slaves.

I am not a fan of feeding the wildlife. They become dependent on what you feed them and stop foraging and when you stop (or move away) they become a neighborhood nuisance/danger. Rabies, sharp teeth, vermin. By the by, I DO love wildlife but believe that they should be interfered with minimally.

We have a big covered doghouse next to the kitchen window with a smaller “Igloo”-style one inside, with soft fleece and a bed warmer. I put cat food out several times a day and we get two beautiful fluffy strays, eating and peeking in the window. Sometimes we get a possum or a raccoon too! Also we have 3 bird feeders and a place for the squirrels. I too see their tracks in the snow.

I usually make my Bloody Caesars without the celery – except when I have some on hand.

Good morning, Crew!

I once put some carrots out for the rabbits, but they didn’t even touch them. They’d rather eat the grass & weeds it seems.

We feed the birds from Oct thru March. After that, they eat bugs. We feed chipmunks and squirrels. We feed the bunnies that come around. The quail eat the bird seed. If it walks, flies or crawls, we are likely to feed it.

A few years ago, I was reading in the den and saw movement on the window behind me. It was 2 baby ’possums! I managed to get a few pics. Anyway, I followed them to the back of the house and watched them. We put cat food out. We told some people in the area about them and we were told to STOP feeding them. They are messy and destructive, which we found out was very true. They come up from the river sometimes. We stopped putting food out and never saw them again.

We have 3 cats and foster cats and kittens. I think half of our food budget is for the animals.

A cute way of making an important point.

A nearby community almost came to blows over folks feeding coyotes. The coyotes were already eating small pets. It’s best not to feed predators or omnivores. The seed eaters are a toss up. How many do you want around, or trying to get inside, your home? Enjoy the Day…

Good, a happy bunny!!!

If it is a harsh winter, help the little critters out a bit. Be sensible and don’t encourage picky eating.Good Evening Crew!

We have a bunny fence around the veg garden, so I throw all the greens trimming out by the fence. It’s gone the next day. We have a “resident” bunny.Deer in the forest behind us,Coyotes walking down the street’’Possums under the houseAn occasional bearAnd we live in an urban area!

Better watch a little more closely there, Cap’n.

Good Evening, Crew.