Thanks for the link; that's a great photo sequence. Never ever mess with a swan's territory; they are beautiful but oh so formidable. If you've never been up close and personal with one, it's hard to visualize just how big they are; they're perfectly capable of defending themselves and their nests from all comers, including humans. We tend to blithely think of birds (raptors perhaps excluded) as no contest for a species for ours; when you have occasion to work closely around swans in a way they don't appreciate, you quickly realize how wrong you've been.
Heidi Chronicles: Kits On Board
OMG, Ruth,
That happened to me yesterday. I went to the grocery store to pick up a few things. One of the items I particularly went in for was not on the shelf in its 'assigned' area adjacent to other items of the kind. Thinking they were either out of the item or no longer selling it, I gave up on it, finished my shopping, and checked out. Then as I passed through the lobby area on the way out to my car, I saw that the entire window display area of the lobby was stacked with cases of the item I had been unable to find - on sale. Scream! I really wanted that item. After taking my groceries out to the car, I had to go back inside AGAIN to get the item that was in the lobby. You would think they would be smart enough to leave some small number of those end cap and special display items in the normal place on the shelves so we can find them. Argh! Had to leave the rest of the stuff out their roasting in the trunk in the parking lot (in a heat wave) while I went back for the lobby item.
Sounds like we could fill an entire thread just with grocery store pet peeves.
We're having heat wave and excess heat warnings again. Started back yesterday and now again today. That 'cool' spell didn't last very long at all, just Mon and Tues, now back to the heat wave.
Yesterday around 9AM I spent about 30min weeding the flowers. Even at that very early hour sweat rolled off me so heavily that I couldn't see well for the water in my eyes. I tied a cloth around my head to try to blot up the water. After 30min, I gave up and came back inside.
Then I went out to pick up some groceries and run errands in the late morning. I got home around 12:30PM. By the time I carried a few bags of cat food and a few groceries in sweat was rolling off me in rivers. This was during the time of day when we were under the excess heat warning. I was getting shaky and slightly uncoordinated as I brought in the last bag. I hadn't expected that just bringing things in from the car would do me in this way. I drank a quart of fluids but couldn't seem to get back to feeling 'right'. I had a slight headache and just felt foggy. Couldn't shake it for hours. Didn't get much done yesterday after that. It was late afternoon before I felt normal again.
Went back out a little while ago to pick up an item I'd forgotten. Ran into an old friend. Stood in the parking lot in the sun to talk for a few minutes. Came home looking like I'd taken a shower. This time, however, at least it didn't make me ill like it did yesterday. Hoping the heat will end soon, very soon.
I guess we're lucky with the grocery store issues--our Kroger stores are always good about having things in the right places.
I just looked outside a few minutes ago and one of my kitties was lying between the two food dishes while a racoon was eating at one dish. Some of the racoons are like cousins to them, others get chased off. Maybe the others are strangers to them. Interesting!
KyWoods,
The relationship between your kitties and raccoons seems quite unusual and always interesting. My raccoons are extremely intolerant of cats in or near the buffet area.
Our Kroger closed down decades ago. I was both sorry and surprised to see it go. I like it. It was one of those huge stores with a little of everything.
Kitty rarely comes up close to the buffet anymore. On rare occasion I will see her sitting some distance away watching, and one day she tried meowing to me again but from a distance. I said, "Kitty, no" and then ignored her after that.
One of the last time she tried to come up to me at the buffet, was months ago. It was just me and Dennis at the buffet. I think Dennis had kits at the time but they weren't coming to the buffet yet then. Kitty was walking up behind me and a little to the side as she often did back then. Dennis was eating peacefully, apparently unaware of Kitty's presence.
All of a sudden when Kitty reached my right side - and you know Dennis usually eats right there by my right knee - Dennis looked up and saw Kitty for the 1st time. Instantly, Kitty stopped in her tracks as Dennis stood upright as though to get a better look at this intruder. For a moment Dennis looked a little frightened and as though she might back away, then in an instant that surprised both Kitty and me both, Dennis lunged toward Kitty who at the time was only maybe a foot away.
Thankfully, Kitty moves faster and with greater athletic prowess than the raccoons. Kitty spun around and bolted for the house with Dennis fast on her heels. I had never seen this side of Dennis. Dennis had always been the laid back one, the one who didn't fight. Now here she was chasing after Kitty as though with a blood lust. This was not fun and games . This time Dennis was deadly serious.
That was the turning point, the point at which Kitty pretty much stopped showing up near the buffet perhaps because Dennis was there most days and it was very clear that Dennis would not tolerate her presence. I thought at the time that this different side of Dennis was probably due to the presence of the kits. Not sure but I think that might have been back when they came to the patio with Dennis each day and then hid in the pear tree during the actual meal.
Anyhow, after that, Dennis would sometime prowl the yard mid way through her meal as though looking for Kitty. Sometimes in so doing she would scare Kitty out of a hiding place in the shrubs back near the house (when I was unaware Kitty was anywhere around).
Kitty can tell the raccoons apart extremely well. She knows which ones go after her and never comes back to the buffet when they are present. After Heidi chased her that one day, Kitty never came back when Heidi was present. Now she knows to stay away when Dennis is around and there's a yearling whom she must also avoid. The only time in ages that Kitty has come near the buffet was on a rare afternoon when none of these 3 were present at the time, just a single yearling who has never shown any animosity towards her - yet.
That was maybe last week. Kitty came up and sat directly behind me meowing. The yearling ignored her and continued eating. Kitty sat down about 2ft behind me. Wondering if she might be hungry, I turned around and put a small amount of kibble on the grass in front of Kitty. She actually did eat some but cautiously. She could not afford to get to engrossed in her meal that she forgot to keep a watchful eye and ear out for raccoons in all directions lest one slip from the forest and around behind her to give chase. That was the last time i saw her out there. The following day, Dennis was back, and Kitty never shows her face in the yard when Dennis is around as, unlike Heidi who will tolerate Kitty sitting back near the house watching the buffet events, Dennis will chase Kitty if she is found anywhere in the back yard, even back near the door.
Oh yeah, I could definitely do a thread about grocery (and other) store gripes.
Raccoons and cats are traditional rivals for food, and rarely co-exist peacefully - which makes KyWood's scenario really remarkable. And we all know about raccoons and dogs; any conflict between them is usually marked by injury, often on both sides - which makes the story of Dennis chasing and dumping Widget into the pool truly priceless.
Ruth,
I think the raccoons in the core buffet group accept Widget without fear or animosity for much the same reason that KyWoods' group accepts the cats. The core group grew up around Widget, and Heidi 1st met Widget when he was a carefree puppy only 2mo old. Widget was at my side that fateful day when Heidi 1st came down the fence to meet us so long ago. Back then Widget at 2mo old was too young to pay her any attention, think of her as an intruder, or even care. There's a photo from that time in the 1st thread of Heidi eating kibble by the fence while the tiny puppy Widget drinks water just a few feet away completely oblivious to her presence.
Dennis was born the following year when Widget was about 1.5yrs old. Since Heidi wasn't afraid of Widget, it only follows that Dennis wouldn't fear him either. That 1st year as Dennis grew into a playful youngster she would often come to the yard late in the afternoon and walk around with me and Widget as we surveyed the garden flowers. They were never actually friends, but neither are they enemies.
Just as there are always many noteworthy items that don't make the daily news, so are there also many interesting occurrences at the buffet that don't make this thread. As with all things, it's largely feast or famine. When interesting things are happening out there, they generally happen all at once so there are too many to write about on a given day. Then when things slow down, nothing happens at all, like now.
One such item that didn't make the presses, occurred a month or so back one day when Widget managed to escape [again] as I was on my way out to feed the raccoons. Long story. My mistake, of course. Like most days, there was a gathering of raccoons on the patio that day including: Heidi, Dennis, and at least one yearling. At least one of Dennis' kits was out there, and I have found her to be quite unexpectedly protective of those kits these days.
To step out the door while carrying the tote bag of food and supplies requires that I open the door wider than would otherwise be necessary. I stepped out that day and watched in absolute horror as Widget, having slipped out with me, ran around in front of me in the middle of the patio full of raccoons - and I'm sure we all remember his last outing with the raccoons, the one back when Cruella and company were around, the one in which a couple of raccoons carried Widget across the yard and I fought to get him back, the one that ended with a trip to the emergency vet for [superficial] wound clean up, antibiotics, and an extra rabies shot.
Suddenly, there was Widget standing on the patio inches from Dennis and a mere foot or two from Heidi.It was a tense moment as I saw past events run through my mind in a flash. I watched as Widget moved toward and with the raccoons heading away from me and off the patio in the direction of the path which heads toward the buffet. That's the same move he made the night the raccoons pounced on him. It was all too terrifying to see.
Using the only thing available to me, I called out to Widget to come to me. Drawing upon every ounce of my person, I spoke with all the authority I could possibly muster including even some I didn't truly own or feel. I really didn't expect Widget to listen when distracted by all the raccoons around him, but I knew for his own safety, I needed to get hold of him, so I spoke as though his obedience were a given.
Against a million to one odds, Widget stopped in his tracks in front of me. I don't know if it was the authority of my tone or perhaps because once out there he recalled his prior run-in with the other raccoons and was suddenly happy to leave the whole matter for me to handle, but he stood still allowing me to take charge. Quickly, I reached down into a roughly 2ft space between Heidi and Dennis to scoop Widget up into my arms and quickly return him to the house. During all of this, which actually went down in only a minute or two although it seemed much longer, neither Heidi and Dennis who were always close to him made any attempt to harm Widget, nor did any of the others. This actually surprised me considering the presence of the kits in the area and how protective the female raccoons can become when they have young kits around.
Whew! That was definitely a close call, but it speaks to the unusual relationship between Widget and the raccoons. They could easily have jumped on him and beat the tar out of him if they had wanted to do so. I can't imagine any other animal managing to run out there in the midst of a group of wild raccoons with kits without invoking a fight. (And, yes, I'm trying to be more careful about locking Widget up when I go out.)
Just to add to the above...the raccoons react MUCH differently to Widget who was here when they arrived (and isn't a real threat to them) vs the cats who they seem to view as intruders. (Actually, I've only seen them react to Kitty as Cocoa has never ventured to the backyard when they are around.)
Kitty has way too much sense to run out the back door into the midst of the group of raccoons like Widget did. Even if she is wanting to go out, she will back off if she sees the raccoon out there, so I know I don't have to worry about her slipping out like that, but if she were foolish enough to do what Widget did, the raccoons would have been on her faster than I could possibly react. Thank goodness she is smarter.
Whew--I'm so glad poor little Widget didn't get mauled again. Maybe he got a sudden flashback!
Wow, that was one lucky break with Widget - and speaks volumes about the need to teach and reinforce a reliable recall in one's dogs. As for Kitty running out into that crowd, that's an image too awful to contemplate; no way you could intervene successfully, safely, and in time with that scenario, I suspect.
Yesterday due to a series of dangerous storms with torrential rainfall, I wasn't able to feed the raccoons. I was quite disappointed because I had finally gotten one of those, small, personal watermelons on a BOGO sale. It was very red and sweet even if bordering on overripe. I had eaten it down to the last 1/2in to inch, but was eager to share the remains including juice (which she loves) with Heidi. This summer we had had to do without the grapes and watermelon we usually enjoy (but were most thankful for what we did have). I was excited to offer Heidi the melon but had to put it off another day.
Today Dennis was on the patio with her kits who are really getting big now. When I went out, the kits disappeared. Her kits are the ones that come to the buffet most days. They are quite comfortable at the buffet now, and even come up near me now to eat. That they never showed up at the buffet to eat, seems a sure indication that the kits are well fed, eating lots of good food from the forest, and were not hungry. Dennis didn't seem very hungry either. She ate only a small amount of kibble and a few cookies before leaving. While she was there, she sat beside me like a little dog, and I petted her quite a bit stroking her back as she ate. She has been in a very good mood lately.
This year for the very 1st time, Dennis has seemed like a very caring mother. She still misplaces her kits sometimes while she's at the buffet and they are off playing and moving from tree to tree. But whereas in the past her kits just seemed to be hanging around and tagging along often at a distance, this year they are right at her side and she seems very engaged with them. She seems to actually enjoy taking them around the yard and showing them things. She also seems very concerned about their safety. The other day when one was in a tree in the forest 'squawking' about something, fussing with one of the yearlings I think, Dennis took off in the direction of the sound. It actually sounded more like a fairly trivial disagreement rather than a true emergency, but she made a bee line for them just the same. It's actually rather heartening to watch her with them now - and would be even if she weren't special to me.
Dennis didn't stay long today. She grabbed a few cookies and headed off to rejoin her kits. Two of the yearlings were there, including the one that eats like there's going to be a famine. They stayed for a while, especially the latter one. Incidentally, I keep forgetting to mention that one of those yearlings has a very noticeably lighter coat. I mention this because I remember there being some mention of wondering if there would be any ongoing signs of that golden color in subsequent generations. That one yearling, while a tad darker than HRH, is very light in color, a light golden brown, lighter than Blondie, for instance. Her color is so much lighter than the others as to render her easily discernible on that basis alone. So, yes, it seems as though that golden color continues to influence subsequent generations. The interesting thing is that (1) I never saw any sign of adult males hanging around this spring or eating at the buffet and (2) that light colored yearling is Heidi's. I remember that there was a light colored kit last year.
I went out there around 7PM and stayed and stayed and stayed. I was waiting for Heidi. I was determined to give her that melon. I kept it up against my seat to make sure no one else ate it. I stayed until after 8:30, until it was almost dark. It was starting to look like I would have to leave the melon and hope for the best, but then about 8:20 Heidi finally came over the fence. She had barely settled in to eat when a kit came over the fence behind her and marched right over to the buffet to eat, too. It was Heidi's kit. They had finally gotten old enough for her to feel comfortable bringing them out of the forest in the last 10 minutes of daylight. Two more tiny heads appeared side by side at the top of the fence. They watched their mom and courageous sibling for a few minutes before disappearing behind the fence once more having decided not to chance it this time.
It's almost always that way, one bold kit being braver than its siblings, one kit venturing down to the buffet days and perhaps even weeks before the rest get the courage to join him. One of Dennis' kits ate alone (with his mom) at the buffet for maybe 2 wks before the other 2 made it down. Now it's the same with Heidi's group.
Anyhow, Heidi's kits are FINALLY here. I had seen them in the trees a month or more ago, but this is the 1st time they've come to the buffet while I was there. (Heidi probably brought them some after dark to pick over anything left behind.) I'm actually surprised that she is bringing them even now. I was thinking she likely wouldn't bring them out in daylight until they were the raccoon equivalent of 30. That's just Heidi.
It's always fun to see kits come to the buffet the 1st time or 2. They are so grateful even for things the adults don't want. When Dennis' 1st kit came down for the 1st time, he grabbed a 1/2 banana, took it off to the side as if to say, "mine" and started scarfing it down with excitement. It's like, after weeks of climbing all around the forest picking up small bugs, nuts, and berries, the kit was overjoyed to find this huge 1/2 banana. He just looked like he had won the lottery as he sat there munching on that banana which at the time was almost as big as he was. Later, he would learn to hold out for better things, knowing, as do the adults, that the buffet usually serves up better fare than bananas, but there would never be a more adorable sight than that 1st moment when he found that banana and his eyes lit up like a toddler on Christmas morning seeing all those toys under the tree for the 1st time.
Today I had put out a few chicken bones. The adults had largely ignored them this time, although they do like chicken sometimes, but when Heidi's kit came to the buffet, the little fella had grabbed those chicken bones and started eating with that same Christmas morning excitement. There again, I gather fresh bones with cartilage and meat scraps still on them aren't often found lying around in the forest, so today on his 1st real trip to the buffet the kit was thrilled to find such goodies. In time, like the adults, like all of us really, he will learn to take such things for granted and even expect them, but for now the kit arrives at the buffet looking like a kid in a candy factory.
Heidi's kit eventually made his way over beside me to eat the food Dennis had left behind. I was thrilled both that he had come so close so soon and that Heidi had made no effort to stop him. When the kit was full, he walked across my feet to go over to the willow tree. I was elated but was also careful to remain absolutely motionless so as to avoid upsetting either the kit or Heidi who stopped eating and raised her head to watch the kit as he walked so close to me during his exit.
What fun, Cheryl!. Heidi and her first Kit to venture all the way to the buffet. It coming so close and then walking over your boots as if they were just another log to cross must have been very special and a tender moment.
And Dennis sitting next to you with you gently stroking her back fur Just really warmed my heart. When God allows us to interact with wildlife, especially in such a trusting and tender moment like you get to, I believe He is allowing us to really experience A Tad of His love for us.
Needless to say , I am elated as usual to have been given the opportunity, once again to be there ans see it all thru your words,
Hugs and a prayer,
Sheri
Dennis' behavior with her kits this year is definitely encouraging; sounds like she's starting to get the whole maternal experience for the first time. And hurray that Heidi's kits are finally appearing, at the least the brave first one! Your description of the kits' first time at the buffet is priceless and, as always, really comes to life in your words.
Cheryl, I saw this and thought it would be the perfect advertisement for the buffet.
Catbird423- That is very cute. Is that your hand?
No, I've never been that close to a raccoon. It was a picture from www.icanhaschezburger.com, one of my favorite sites, always good for a laugh on a bad day.
OMG, Catbird!
That is absolutely adorable - and hilarious. I LOVE it!
That is a cute site. I've looked around there a time or two and always enjoyed it, but I must say that I've never found anything as cute (or as perfect for this thread) as the one you posted.
This is totally and entirely OT. I apologize. I started another thread in a more appropriate place to ask about this but so far no one has responded, and I'm dying of curiosity, so...
This morning I awoke sometime between 5AM and 7AM or so. Unable to sleep I turned on the TV. I have Dish Satellite TV, no premium channels. I was shocked to find myself watching middle eastern programming. I changed channels. They were all mid eastern channels, for a while at least. There were music video channels, news channels, movies, soaps, even a fashion show on one channel. It was interesting - but strange. These were not mid eastern versions of the specified channels but totally unrelated channels. Boomerang, for instance, was showing news or something totally not related to programming for children. Also the channel labels were totally different. It was very, very strange.
It was an interesting learning experience even though I couldn't understand what was written or spoken for the most part. I watched a little news and a video or two. By the time I got up later most but not all of the channels had been fixed - returned to proper programming. I checked news channels, google, and even called Dish but could find no explanation as to what happened. Dish would only say they were working on it. Elsewhere I found no mention at all. By any chance did any of you notice this and/or do you know anything about what was going on? Just curious. Since it happened so early in the AM, many people probably didn't see it. I haven't bothered to check all channels, but the ones I did check were fixed some time ago. Very strange.
Now that is really weird, Cheryl; never had that experience with satellite TV, though ours is DirecTV for whatever difference that might make.
Catbird, that is just priceless! And yes, that site can be a hoot.
Ruth,
I'm thinking that strange TV thing probably effected other people's programming, as well. It may have been limited to Dish or, depending on the underlying cause, may also have effected DirectTV viewers and those on other systems. I'm thinking most people just don't realize it happened because they aren't watching TV at that hour. Also, it didn't effect all channels. Only about 1/3 to 1/2 of those I checked, so even if someone were watching TV, they wouldn't have noticed it unless they happened to be on an effected channel or, like me, were channel surfing. I only became aware of it that night/morning by accident. It may well have happened on other occasions when I wasn't watching.
I know very little about satellite TV (other than the basic engineering principles of how satellites signals work in general), except that I do know that not all channels come from the same satellite. There are a few of them up there, each broadcasting its own set of channels. If something happens to one satellite, it will only effect the channels associated with that satellite. I could be wrong, again this is not my area of expertise (at all), but I believe all satellite TV networks, Dish and DirectTV included, get their signals from the same satellites - which is not to say that they don't also have their own individual satellites for distributing programming. Anyhow, the number of channels effected seemed to indicate that one satellite had been compromised in some way.
The cause may have been something as 'simple' as a hardware or software glitch specific to Dish Network or it may have been something more interesting, like some individual, group, or even country having hacked the satellite system, substituting their own programming for the intended programming. It's the latter possibility that sparked my interest. I love a good Clancy-esq mystery, after all. This sort of thing, someone hacking the system, has happened before. Many years ago, in the early years of satellite TV there was an incident in which someone managed to broadcast adult programming on kid's channels briefly, a particularly lousy thing to do, but you know how people can be.
Many years ago my own engineering class, led by our professor, made a 'booboo' when as part of a very ambitious class project we set up our own small broadcasting system. The plan was to set up a VCR and broadcasting system in one room of a house and a TV in another, one upstairs, the other downstairs. We would broadcast a movie from the VCR and try to receive it on the TV, with no wires connecting the two. We were learning to do what your local Channel 5 (or whatever) did. We were broadcasting the signal through the air and then picking it up on the TV in another room via the antenna.
Our experiment was cut short when we received a notice from the FCC, Federal Communications Commission, the [US] body that governs the airways. It seems, and with good reason, that it's illegal to broadcast your own signal (w/o FCC approval which is basically only given to TV stations, radio stations, etc). Since people in neighboring houses could also pickup our signal, it wasn't 'ok'. Oops. (That was back in the day when people were still using external antennas to receive TV signals.)
I guess, if something really juicy happened, something like a good old-fashioned hacking, it will eventually make the news. Otherwise, it was probably just a 'boring' glitch of some kind.
I should mention that for the past few days I've just been putting the food out and leaving it, so I haven't seen the raccoons. I was hoping this would prompt them to come earlier to be there when I put it out so others don't eat it all up before they arrive, but it's not working so far. It's starting to get dark a little earlier now - or maybe it just seems that way due to the near constant cloud cover. I would really, really like to encourage the raccoons to come by earlier still, so I don't have to go out there so late. I'm keeping much earlier hours these days, getting up in the very early AM, and falling asleep much earlier in the evening. I would like to get the raccoons fed earlier, too, but so far they aren't cooperating.
I'm starting to suspect that they aren't going to accommodate me now. Their willingness to cooperate is a function of their hunger. In spring and early summer when they are gestating and later nursing, they are hungry enough to meet me on my terms. Now that the kits are old enough to feed themselves, the Moms aren't so famished, and they are also busy teaching the kits, so they are less willing to accommodate my schedule. It seems a little early yet, but I think the raccoons are already starting to need me less as we head towards the end of summer and the start of fall. We will likely still see them but less often now.
I t really is wise of the Moms not to alter their ingrained programing of waiting until dark. They have all learned to trust 1 human, but very few others would enjoy their company. If they brought the kits early, then how would the kits know that this was not to be interpreted as normal, routine feeding behaviour.
I to wish they would dine on your terms, but just happened to think of this as a reason to be grateful.
Hi Sheri,
That's a very good insight. I hadn't thought of that.
Unfortunately, right now their needs are at odds with mine. In addition to the reasons mentioned (for my wanting to feed them earlier), there is the issue of the snake. I just don't feel comfortable out there right now with the snake running around - and I have seen the snake out there with us, or near us, so it's not just 'in my head'.
It also doesn't help at all that some time back my main floodlight back there finally burned out. Normally, that would seem like a small problem. Just replace the bulb, except that the fixture is WAY up there at the top of the 2nd floor level. It's a ridiculous place for a fixture really, as it's all but impossible to change. Even my male friends look way up there at that fixture near the top of the peak of the roof on the 2nd floor and over the concrete patio in case they fall and say, "No way I'm going up there." To date, no one is willing to climb that high to change a bulb - and, no, it's WAY too high to reach via any extension pole device. Most of the light I had at the buffet came from that floodlight. Since it burned out, it's so dark back there (after sundown, of course) that I can't even see the ground well enough to tell if I'm walking on grass or a snake - or a raccoon, for that matter. I know I could take a flashlight, but it's not the same. It's a bit creepy back there - with the snake - in the dark, dark and with no floodlight.
I do have another set of floodlights out there along with the patio light which I finally replaced, but both are too low for their light to reach the buffet area. They help to light my path, and that's it.
Maybe in time I'll get over the snake thing, but I'm still a bit edgy right now.
It's also quite true that these days I'm starting to retire earlier. By 6:30 or 7 my brain is winding down. I find myself wanting to get things finished outside so I can relax and not have any more tasks on my list for the day.
Maybe later I'll get beyond some of these things and meet their terms.
we got a motion detector solar light at sams for 59.00. It is GREAT. Bright light and we don't have to worry about electricity or anything. Attached it to a tree near where I park my car.
I sure understand about getting those roof level outside light bulbs changed. I had one out for over 5 years. Just recently, a friend from church and his son were doing some different home maintenance things for me. Well, they must have put in a new bulb, because I now have light from an end of the house that I had long forgotten even had a fixture.
Boo hiss on that bulb of yours for going out now!
Thank you, renatelynne,
Welcome to the Heidi threads!
That is an interesting suggestion and one I hadn't considered. I won't be able to do it right away, but I will keep it in mind. That you love yours so much is certainly compelling. Can you tell me about how long you've had yours? I ask this because I've acquired a number of solar lights for the front yard, both spot lights and regular landscape lights. The frustrating thing I've learned about them is that often they work great early on but don't last long. The batteries die in a relatively short time and often the rest of the workings start to corrode and break down in a year or two from the effects of rain, sun, and temp extremes. Does yours use one of those large square batteries used for some large flashlights? That type might work better. The landscape lights mostly use AA batteries. They just don't seem to hold up at all well over time.
I really like this idea for the simplicity and relative ease of setup. I don't know if it will work as well in my location though. I have no large trees. The developer removed everything, just destroyed all of the huge, old oaks and magnolias and then put in a few small landscaping trees, crepe myrtles. Back when I was feeding the birds, this was a constant source of frustration as there is no tree from which to hang feeders, suet holders, and the like. There are no substantial trunks or limbs. No limbs high enough or sturdy enough. Also, I'm not sure if it would get enough sunlight back there. Ironically, while I have no trees in my yard, the forest casts a giant shadow over the buffet area and in recent years the limbs from the forest have begun to encroach on my property - but these are limbs that are way too high to access w/o a bucket truck.
Still, I do like this idea. If I can find a place to hang it, maybe even on the fence if all else fails, it's worth a try. At that price, I can afford to experiment. Worst case, if I try it and can't get it to work out (i.e. not enough sunlight to charge), I can always use the light elsewhere in the yard, even the front yard where there is plenty of sun. I definitely won't be able to do it until I find a job though, so it's probably more of a candidate for next spring (i.e. Feb '11).
Thanks for the great idea!
Hi Sheri,
I can only imagine how happy you must have been to suddenly find your light working again! I recently got the teen next door to change one over the garage and it was so nice to have light again.
The floodlight went out a while back, in spring I think. I've been trying to adjust ever since. Since it went out I can't even see enough back there to ID the raccoons after dark. It's just too dark. I can barely see the dark silhouettes of the raccoons. After it went out, I was taking my flashlight out with me. When I needed to see something, even to ID the raccoons and such, I had to use the flashlight.
Even though the timing is bad, I can't complain too much. The bulb hasn't been changed since I moved here in 2001, so I guess I got my money's worth out of that bulb. I started feeding the raccoons in spring of 2006 and have used that floodlight to light the buffet almost every night since then. I'm surprised the bulb lasted this long.
I haven't had mine for long enough to start having problems. I will keep you informed.
I've been around off and on since 2006. took two years off to be really sick *g but back again playing in the garden
I'm not sure what batteries it has. It has a large square 4x4 panel for the sun with a long string so you can put the light in shade and the sun thing in sun. It has the new led lights that are very nice and bright and the motion thing works well so far.
renatelynne,
Have you been with us here on the Heidi threads (of and on) since 2006? Or just at DG that long? I started the Heidi threads in spring of 2006 (by accident). Ironically, that 1st thread was intended to ask why Heidi was coming down the fence right in front of me and in daylight and how to get her to stop. Funny how things turn out sometimes.
Anyhow, glad you're back.
When I bought my house it had wired in lights for landscaping. I found them annoying because I was constantly having to change the timer as days grew shorter and longer. I didn't know anything about landscaping lights at the time. In retrospect, I can see that the smart thing to do would have been to change out the crappy timer for a light sensor that would turn them on at dusk and off at dawn. The crappy timer was one of those types that doesn't have actual time of day on it, just a bunch of numbers. I never could figure that thing out. Sometimes when just trying to adjust it for slightly longer or shorter days, I would temporarily manage to mess it up completely so that I had the lights coming on in the middle of the day and going off at night or something equally strange. It was a real pain.
I was fighting with the timer about the same time that solar powered landscape lights were coming on the market big time. My fiance at the time said, "why don't you get some of those". It seemed like ther perfect answer, so I bought a set and placed them next to the wired in lights. They worked GREAT - at 1st. I loved them! I didn't have to worry about the timer anymore. They just magically came on and went off at the right time and I even thought they were cuter than the wired in lights. Soon after that I decided those wired in lights were in my way. I unplugged the timer and transformer, cut the wires, and removed the lights. Who needed them? I was very happy with my new solar powered lights! At 1st.
It wasn't all that long after I removed all of the 'real' lights that things started to go awry. In 6mo or less some of the lights were no longer coming on at all, most due to dead batteries, but a few had damaged solar panels. Rain had seeped into the solar panel on top of the lights through tiny crevices. The damaged solar panels now looked cloudy and no longer worked. Then when my landscaper accidentally cut one in half with the weed-eater I learned that the stainless steal was paper thin. The old, wired in lights were just black, not as pretty as the stainless steal ones, but while the old ones were tough as nails (I know because I managed to stumble over them a time or two), the shiny, new ones were proving to be anything but.
I bought 2 more complete sets of the solar landscape lights, different brands and styles, a total of 4 complete sets in 5yrs. (By comparison the wired in lights had been in service 9yrs when I removed them.) The solar lights all suffered the same fate. The batteries croaked after a few months and many of the solar panels clouded up due to rain damage and stopped working. On some the moisture that eventually got into the light, also damaged the bulbs and/or batteries. I did try changing the batteries at one point. That got about 1/2 of them working again - for a few more months, but it was quite expensive to buy that many rechargeable AA batteries. Some lights took more than one battery. It was cheaper to replace the lights.
Bottom line, after buying and replacing 4 complete sets in 5yrs, not one single light is burning out there today. I eventually decided the solar ones were every bit as much trouble as the timer on the wired in lights had been since I was constantly having to replace them or their batteries and still every time I turned around another 1 or more was out again. I wish I hadn't removed the wired in lights. If I decide to get any more, I'll get the 'old-fashioned' wired in types again.
I sure hope that you have better luck with your solar light than I did with mine. I look forward to hearing how it works out for you. I would love to think there are some decent solar lights out there, but my results with landscape lights didn't do much to instill confidence.
I've had some bad luck with solar also... not as bad as you though... sorry you had such a bad time.
Yep.. been here off and on since the beginning.
Was gone from Feb 2008 till late last month. LONG story but because I couldn't get out into the garden I didn't want to read about what everyone else was doing.
renatelynne,
So you've been with us since the very beginning. Wow. Very good to have you back, and I'm happy that you are finally able to get out in your garden again. That's a long time to be out of the garden. I can relate. After my 2nd knee surgery, the Dr said I had to spend a month in bed just getting up for 'necessary' things. I was in a lot of pain, too, so I wasn't tempted to disobey his orders.
For the 1st time ever, I hired someone to mow the lawn, trim the shrubs, and weed my garden. I will never forget the feeling of lying there in my bed and watching through the window at that guy 'playing' with my flowers. I SO wanted to go out there amidst the flowers. I was like a kid that didn't want to share her toys. I was so jealous that he was having 'my' fun. So, yes, I can understand.
Welcome back.
thanks. yea mine started as a knee surgery. Got MRSA. 6 months in bed. 18 months in a wheelchair. 7 surgeries. A knee and leg that look like raw hamburger. and I STILL HURT! but I am walking most of the time without a cane.
A lot can change in a day around here, but you probably know that by now. Just after 7PM, I headed out to feed the raccoons. Several times earlier I had checked the patio, but no one was ever there. Today sunset was to be slightly before 8, so time was running out.
At the buffet, I sat for just a few minutes before I looked up to see one of the yearlings a short distance away. She looked as though she was headed for the patio, as though she hadn't noticed me there until this moment. I called her, and she came over to the buffet area to eat.
A few minutes later still, Heidi came over the fence with the one kit. The other 2 may have been with her and just decided to hang back in the forest, but I didn't see them. Most days when I'm not eager to go out there, once I see the raccoons, my mood changes so that I end up enjoying it, but today that was such an understatement.
Heidi came over in front of me. I put some kibble in a dish and gave it to her. She now, once again, has the only dish out there. Her kit - and I've decided to name him Petey - didn't follow Heidie step for step nor did he go to eat close by her. Petey walked around the buffet area and came up near me from the side across from his mom. He stopped roughly 2ft from my right foot and stood looking up at me as though waiting for his food. This, you understand, is only the 2nd time he has come to eat at the buffet with me there, although he and his siblings have watched the goings on at the buffet from high up in the little black cherry tree just over the fence a number of times.
Petey seemed to understand the buffet process very well for such a little fella and so he stopped there to wait for his food. I tossed him a small handful, and Petey sat down in front of his food and began eating like a very polite little boy sitting at the table for dinner. He was closer (in proximity) to me than to Heidi.
I am at a loss to describe it even to myself, but there was just something about little Petey, something that filled me with the kind of simple, innocent joy that makes you have to smile even when there is no one there to see it. He was adorable, of course, but then they all are, but Petey made me smile from the inside out, a smile that just erupted from the internal joy welling up inside of me as I watched him - and I cannot explain it. I wish I could. I so want to give words to what I was feeling so that I can help you feel it, too, but I cannot.
Petey was like a cartoon character come to life, like your favorite childhood teddy bear now animated. Everything he did, every way he moved was just ...I can't articulate it at all. Just watching him brought me in touch with that raw, pure joy that transcends everything else, at least for the moment, a joy that isn't about anything in particular because it's THE joy, the joy for life, the joy for beauty, the joy for light, for color, for splendor. Petey radiated that joy as he sat there simply eating his kibble. I would catch myself smiling even when I had been unaware, and a time or two I actually laughed out loud, just a little chuckle, even though there was no one there to hear it. Like the smile, it was a laugh that bubbled up from inside, a vocalization of the joy of watching the little fella, the kind of laugh that needs no ear to acknowledge its existence.
And Petey, BTW, is very definitely a he. Most kits stand. It kind of goes with the territory as kids usually have more energy than they can use up in a day. For some reason Petey mostly sat down while he was eating today. I don't know why. I didn't see anything wrong with him or any indication of a hurt foot. He was very adorable when he sat, but then Petey was adorable the whole time he was there. I just can't explain it. Anyhow, one time when he was sitting upright a most undeniable little 'who ha' peered out from betwixt his two front legs. Yep, Petey is a boy.
Petey moved around in different positions as he ate, sometimes sitting, sometimes standing. For a while when they 1st arrived, Petey was standing in front of his food facing the forest, facing the same direction I was facing so that his body was aligned with mine - but 2ft away. My desire to reach out and touch his furry, little back was almost more than I could contain. I even told Heidi about it, told her how adorable her son was and how I could barely keep my hand from reaching out to touch him. The intensity of my urge to touch him was almost palpable. Like a daydream, I could almost feel his soft, but upright fur under my hand. I just longed to stroke his back, longed to pick him up. It seemed so natural. I had to keep reminding myself that neither he nor Heidi would receive such a move in the manner it was intended.
continued...
A little while into Heidi and Petey's visit, the bush shook once more and Dennis appeared at the top of the fence, and I swear I would never have expected this, but it actually seemed as though each and every one of them was thrilled to see me sitting there again. For several days I had just gone out, left the food, and come back inside. I would have expected the raccoons to find that preferable. In fact, I was a bit afraid they would grow to like it better, but I could almost see the happiness on their faces as each one adults and kits alike appeared atop the fence, saw me sitting there, and came hurrying over to me, like children rushing to see what kind of goodies grandma has brought them.
Dennis came toward me. She was going to come right through the middle of the buffet area, across everyone's food, straight to me, but the yearling objected forcing Dennis to take a detour around one side, but she ran up beside me just the same coming to stop directly between me and Petey.
Dennis stood upright at my side placing her hands gently on my leg just above the knee. She was asking for a cookie. She was asking very politely. I reached in my bag and gave her the only remaining cookie that I had with me. (I had split a cookie between the yearling and Petey earlier, although Petey had not eaten his piece.) Then I put a large handful of kibble down on the ground at my side for her and topped it off with the 2 or 3 tablespoons of cookie crumbs from the bottom of the bag. The kibble formed a sort of barrier that helped to contain even the smallest crumbs so that she could eat them before they fell through the grass below.
After that Dennis ate her kibble without bothering me about more cookies. She has been behaving amazingly well lately. She, too, stood at my side facing into the buffet 'circle', the same direction I was facing, so that she was aligned with me standing there like a small dog on a leash. I reached down and petted her a good bit while she ate. I know that Dennis' excitement at seeing me there today was about cookies. I don't leave cookies when I leave the kibble for them. It still made me happy that everyone seemed so happy to see me, even for cookies.
Until now Dennis' kits had never paid me much attention or showed much interest in me. I had tossed the food and a few broken pieces of cookie, and they had eaten. They hadn't been particularly afraid of me, but neither did they pay me much attention or show any interest in me, until today that is. Seems absence really does make the heart grow fonder sometimes.
Today for the 1st time ever Dennis' kits were all trying to come over to me. I didn't understand why at 1st. They had pretty much always just stayed over there on the other side of the buffet area eating the kibble I tossed to them. The braver one had come around a bit closer a time or two, but had still stayed in place making no attempt to interact with me. Today all 3 of the kits were trying to make there way over to me. One came through the middle of the buffet area (like walking across a large table during a family dinner) but Heidi cut him off mid way and let him know that this was not desirable behavior. Another tried to approach me by walking up beside their mom, but she made the kit get back.
The kits as they approached me were looking up at me intently. It took me a minute or so to realize that they were looking for a cookie. Dennis' kits had never done this. I had given them a few pieces of cookie a few times, but they had never even acknowledged that they understood those cookies came from me, and they had certainly never come over to me to 'ask' for one. Apparently, in my absence, even though I had taken care to leave food for them each day, they had missed those cookies. Now that I was back, they were all coming over looking for their cookies. It was nice to be missed and to be wanted. Sadly, I didn't have any more cookies with me. I had only gone out with 2 cookies. 1 I had split between Petey and the yearling earlier. The other I had given to Dennis. I had no cookies left for the kits, not to mention that Dennis was telling the one kit to stay back because if there were anymore cookies she didn't want to share them, not even with her kits. I promised the kits I would bring them a cookie tomorrow if they would come back to see me then.
It was nice being the center of so much attention ...
Simply awesome!!
Please do write more.
Hugs & a prayer,
~Sheri & Dogwod deKat
As I mentioned earlier, Petey never touched the 1/4 cookie I had given him. It sat there beside his kibble as he ate. And everybody else, except Heidi was dying for a cookie! Kits that age are so darned cute defending their stuff. They don't back down either. Even tiny kits will bow up and act like ferocious lions whenever anybody tries to take their stuff. The irony of such a tiny and seemingly delicate baby presenting himself as so ferocious is just so cute to watch. Luckily, most adult raccoons don't mess with kits - especially if the mom is near by - so the kits get away with acting ferocious, and no one calls them on it.
One of Dennis' kits discovered Petey's cookie and tried to walk up and get it. The kit wasn't trying to be difficult. His attitude was like, "look you don't seem to want the cookie, so can I please have it?" Dennis' kits are considerably larger than Petey, but that didn't phase him at all. Every time the other kit tried to approach his dinner, Petey would drop his belly to the ground and stick his open mouth up into the air as if to say, "you gotta' go through me 1st, Buddy!" He was too adorable acting 'bad'. Nonetheless, the other kit would always back away like, "hey, man, chill. I didn't mean to upset you." A few minutes later the kit would try again to sneak that cookie, always with the same results. Petey never ate the cookie, but as long as he was there (eating at that spot), he didn't let anyone else eat it either. Later, when Petey walked away, Dennis would seize the opportunity to grab the cookie.
continued...
After a while Petey came over to me. He didn't just walk right up to me in one swift move. He approached me, came part way, stopped for a moment, pretended to look for kibble on the ground - even though he had left perfectly good kibble behind - and then came a little closer, and a little closer, until finally he was right there at my feet. I tried not to act like I noticed, didn't want to risk staring to intently and possibly scaring him away. I was so excited and yet so scared the moment would end with him suddenly realizing he was up against the giant human and then running away.
This was only the 2nd time I'd seen him, up close that is. The 1st time, he had walked across my feet as part of his grand exit, but, to be honest, I figured that for an accident, figured he just didn't see me there and didn't know my feet were in those boots. Now here he was again at the end of his meal coming over to me. He was a most unusual youngster this Petey. Most kits didn't trust me so quickly, didn't dare come up to me so readily. Suddenly, I was reminded of baby Dennis so long ago, the only kit who had ever trusted me that way. It had been 3yrs now since Dennis was that wide eyed kit standing up at my knee. I really missed those days. Now I wondered if maybe little Petey would be like baby Dennis.
I had my tote bag sitting between my feet. Petey came up to my right foot and sniffed it a bit. Then he walked along the bag in front of me sniffing, investigating. I watched him in little glances trying not to stare. He showed no sign of fear as he there at my feet eating bits of kibble I had dropped. This was so wonderful, and I hoped it wouldn't end, hoped he really was as calm there at my feet as he appeared.
I was all the more amazed by Heidi's behavior as she made no attempt to signal the kit that he should stay back a little from me just to keep a safe buffer between us. The kit was now at my feet and standing directly between me and Heidi but still closer to me than to her. His head was buried in the grass as he searched for the occasional bit of kibble he might find there. What he did next was to hilarious and outlandish for words.
continued...
Standing with his head toward me and his body oriented in a straight line between me and Heidi, his nose down sifting through the grass, Petey continued his search for dropped kibble all the while backing up ever so slowly. Heidi fussed at him very briefly, and I wondered what he could possibly be doing wrong and why she would do this. I also wondered what the heck he was doing. He appeared to be looking for kibble, but there really wasn't any down there, not more than maybe a single piece. Anyhow, he had walked away from a nice handful of kibble where he was eating earlier, and for what? To come over here and search for mostly non-existent, additional kibble?
And then just as his rear was within a few inches of Heidi's dish, Petey sat down, and suddenly I understood. OMG! The tiny kit was actually executing the steal to take his mother food! He was small, but he was one gutsy fella, a regular Napoleon Bonaparte, small but determined to take over the world just the same. He inched back. He really was doing a good job of it, too, esp for such a little guy. I couldn't help myself. I had to laugh. It was too funny to see.
Then, just as his backside bumped into the side of her bowl, Heidi snatched the bowl up in her mouth and took it with her as she walked away! Just to show her son that Momma still had a few tricks up her sleeve. Momma was the Queen of Cheryl's Backyard Buffet for a reason, after all. Her son was showing himself to be a smart and courageous youngster, but he still had a few things to learn before he could take on Momma Heidi.
After that the kit gave up and ate kibble from a nearby pile left by the yearling. I found myself wondering if Heidi had perhaps just taught the kits The Steal, maybe the night before or even earlier that same afternoon, and now he had thought this a good opportunity to try it out. Maybe in doing so he had hoped to impress her with his superb execution.
Petey didn't try the steal again, nor did he come back over to me. Very shortly after that Heidi left. As she walked away she called her kits, "whoop! whoop!" She sounded just like a kit herself as she walked toward the fence calling them. I had to look several times to convince myself that it really was Heidi making that sound even though it was the only thing that made sense under the circumstances.
Taking this opportunity to finally get his paws on her dish, Petey ignored Heidi completely as she walked away calling him. Dennis' kits, on the other hand, went right up to Heidi as soon as they heard her calling. For some reason this seemed to anger Heidi considerably. Reacting perhaps to her frustration that Dennis hadn't taught them any better, Heidi snapped at the 1st kit to reach her, driving the kit away from her. Kits, after all, were supposed to know to come when they heard their mom call, not when just anyone called them.
Petey stayed for a while eating the rest of her food after his mom left. This, too, seemed eerily familiar reminding me once again of one baby Dennis ignoring her mom so long ago.
Dennis had left well before Heidi. When Petey finally headed over the fence trailing far behind his mom, only Dennis' kits remained. They would leave soon, too, but before they did so, one of them went over to the now dried out watermelon rind left from the night before and sat down in front of it as though to eat even though there was clearly nothing left to eat. Seeing him there sitting and staring into the watermelon rind, it was clear that he had eaten some of the melon I had left with them on previous nights and now had come back hoping for more - or was he perhaps trying to tell me something? He sat there for a minute or so looking into the empty melon shell before finally getting up to leave with his siblings.
I hadn't been to excited about going out, but it had turned into a most enjoyable evening at the buffet.