Among Friends

[Bird mama]

Yep @Epicurean  that sums it up exactly.  

[Bird mama]

I have such a sensitive stomach about certain things @Leeny   I can eat peppers, hot sauce - no issue.  Mention something that my mind thinks is digusting and it's over.  I have to write this quick or I will upset myself again.  I'm thinking about kittens and puppies as I write about a new partnership between oscar meyer and some other place to make popsicles or ice cream that tastes like hot dog.  Think puppies Bernie, think hard.

When I read it late last week, my stomach flipped and I had to eat two handfuls of oysta crackers to settle it.

[Bird mama]

Back to happier subjects.  I lost power last night at around 6:30 pm.  We had storms that were less downpour and more 60-70 Mph winds.  My power came back on at around 1 pm this afternoon.  Thank goodness I didn't go shopping yesterday, as it was I emptied out the fridge of what I did have that got too warm.  Older fridge can't take 18 hours of not working especially when air inside house is not on and house is warm.  Blessing there was not alot tossed and today was garbage day.

Anyways, I was in the backyard picking up twigs and the walnuts that got blown off the tree when I hear a high pitched cry.  I'm getting better at speaking squirrel and I've never heard this sound coming out of a squirrel.  Squirrel was in front of house in next door neighbors tree.  She was so loud I heard her all the way in my backyard.  I walked along my garage until I hit the gate and recognized the black mama squirrel who still was nursing - I gave her unsalted peanuts earlier in the day.

I said, lil mama whatsa matter, why you crying and I walked back to the bucket in the yard to continue gathering walnuts.  Mama squirrel kept crying and I couldn't take it.  I walked through the garage addition and main garage, opened the garage door (lost power a couple of minutes later) and said Mama tell me, what is it.  I noticed that my neighbors tree lost clumps of leaves, some blew across the street.  I picked up long branches that were near my property line and saw a black baby squirrel after I lifted a large branch.  The leaves were covering baby.  Then I looked and saw another baby.  Jesus Mary Joseph, what am I gonna do is exactly what I said out loud to the universe.

I ran inside, grabbed a small basket, lined it with a clean towel and put on a pair of new nitrile gloves.  Both babies were furry and their eyes were open - thank you God.  The bigger one wanted to hang on to my hands and I said, no baby, your mother can give you what I can't.  The runt was quiet.  Anyway,  I carefully picked both up, but them in a basket, put the basket in the saddle of the tree and about 10 minutes later Ma took them up the tree.  I got two pics I will share in a minute.

I was brisk and didn't interact with the babies.  Oh yea, I left Ma some peanuts on my driveway - she looked exhausted from worry.

[mousiegirl]

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@Bird mama wrote:

Oooh the bobcat looks like a baby @mousiegirl   Nature is so stressed right now 

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@Bird mama   Yes, otherwise, I don't think the critters would be coming so close to homes.  The rabbits in my garden are not suffering, saw two, one was fat, maybe a male or a pregnant one, probably the later, heeeelp!

[Bird mama]

The baby squirrels

The bolder one is facing towards you.  The runt is facing away from you.  Time was of the essence as it was overcast and getting darker outside. 

Basket wedged into the saddle of the tree.  I think it's a called a saddle, I don't know. 

[Bird mama]

If they had a choice @mousiegirl  they would avoid humans like the plague.

[mousiegirl]

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@Bird mama wrote:

If they had a choice @mousiegirl  they would avoid humans like the plague.

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@Bird mama   They are becoming so brazen, not so terrified of people any longer, especially coyotes, attacking in broad daylight dogs being walked by people, guess all they think of is FOOD, so not afraid of the people

Over the weekend, there was a Mt. Lion shot, succumbed and died, not in my area, but somewhere else in the state, and I am just waiting for one to kill a person, then the laws will change, out of necessity.  If they decimate the deer in the area, and they are doing a good job, what else is left, not much.

[mousiegirl]

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@Bird mama wrote:

Back to happier subjects.  I lost power last night at around 6:30 pm.  We had storms that were less downpour and more 60-70 Mph winds.  My power came back on at around 1 pm this afternoon.  Thank goodness I didn't go shopping yesterday, as it was I emptied out the fridge of what I did have that got too warm.  Older fridge can't take 18 hours of not working especially when air inside house is not on and house is warm.  Blessing there was not alot tossed and today was garbage day.

Anyways, I was in the backyard picking up twigs and the walnuts that got blown off the tree when I hear a high pitched cry.  I'm getting better at speaking squirrel and I've never heard this sound coming out of a squirrel.  Squirrel was in front of house in next door neighbors tree.  She was so loud I heard her all the way in my backyard.  I walked along my garage until I hit the gate and recognized the black mama squirrel who still was nursing - I gave her unsalted peanuts earlier in the day.

I said, lil mama whatsa matter, why you crying and I walked back to the bucket in the yard to continue gathering walnuts.  Mama squirrel kept crying and I couldn't take it.  I walked through the garage addition and main garage, opened the garage door (lost power a couple of minutes later) and said Mama tell me, what is it.  I noticed that my neighbors tree lost clumps of leaves, some blew across the street.  I picked up long branches that were near my property line and saw a black baby squirrel after I lifted a large branch.  The leaves were covering baby.  Then I looked and saw another baby.  Jesus Mary Joseph, what am I gonna do is exactly what I said out loud to the universe.

I ran inside, grabbed a small basket, lined it with a clean towel and put on a pair of new nitrile gloves.  Both babies were furry and their eyes were open - thank you God.  The bigger one wanted to hang on to my hands and I said, no baby, your mother can give you what I can't.  The runt was quiet.  Anyway,  I carefully picked both up, but them in a basket, put the basket in the saddle of the tree and about 10 minutes later Ma took them up the tree.  I got two pics I will share in a minute.

I was brisk and didn't interact with the babies.  Oh yea, I left Ma some peanuts on my driveway - she looked exhausted from worry.

@Bird mama   Wonderful!  I have heard squirrels wailing when one another squirrel lay dead, right outside my bedroom slider at my previous house, such a sad sound.  I heard something similar recently, but not a bad,  usually don't hear much except chattering so something must have happened.

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[mousiegirl]

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@Bird mama wrote:

The baby squirrels

The bolder one is facing towards you.  The runt is facing away from you.  Time was of the essence as it was overcast and getting darker outside. 

Basket wedged into the saddle of the tree.  I think it's a called a saddle, I don't know. 

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@Bird mama   So Mom took them out of the basket and further up into the tree?

[Bird mama]

@mousiegirl  I think she is a first time mother and was so beside herself that the wind carried her babies away.  Granted, the runt was covered by leaves but the other one could have been seen if Ma had stopped screaming.  And that's what it was - a high pitched scream.  I needed to make sure the runt in particular was breathing.  Because I've learned how to handle newborn sparrows I never just grab a baby.  I slide my hand under the baby so their feet and body are supported at the same time.  They were wet and probably shook from the experience.  I'm sure they were scared when they heard Ma screaming.

I figured the basket in the tree was the best approach.  This was it allowed Ma to climb up the tree and look down into the basket.  She would not interpret it as a trap and would be able to see her kids and then climb down and get them.  I only saw her get the second one, I missed the first - my nerves were a little rattled, lol.

I was on the second floor of my house when I saw her get the second one.  Mothers know how to pick up their babies but I couldn't help but wonder if it hurt when she snatched the baby out of the basket by the scruff of it's neck.  The kids were big enough to make it a heavy lift for Ma but not big enough to know how to climb up by themselves.