Heidi Chronicles: Raising the Kids

Unfortunately, I have to go put out the trash, recycling, etc before bed so I won't have time to fill you in on events tonight, but i did want to take a moment to say that things have been going incredibly well the past few days. The kits are so precious at this age. Every night they come over to me for their treats. Sometimes they eat with Mom first, other time they run right over to me as soon as they arrive. Tonight it was all I could do to keep them from climbing my pants leg while I was trying to open the package. Even after they got their treats, one little guy/girl was momentarily quite interested in and fascinated by the fabric of my pants leg. They are just naturally curious animals, and I guess they don't see a lot of fabric in their environment, especially not on 'animals'.

I took out 2 small 100 calorie packs of Reese's pb snack mix which has a mix of pb chips, Reese's pieces, and pb cereal puffs and squares - mostly the latter. I also took 2 small packets of Temptations cat treats. One fella, probably Dennis, was quite fond of the pb snack mix. Since each pack only held a scant handful that ran out all too fast. Even though they still had the cat treats, he kept reaching up to me apparently in search of more pb snacks.

(I know, I know. I really, really need to get my shots. On my Dr visit a little over a week ago, there was so much to go over that I forgot to ask about this. However, I have another visit scheduled very soon. Just have to deal with one life threatening situation at a time.)

Hi, summerkid,

"uberHeidi", I like that! Yes, I definitely think that rearranging things so that Diva is out of the kids' area and restricting her treats is the reason for the (current) change in her behavior; but I also notice that it seems to have worked (for now) far better than I could have imagined in terms of calming her down. I do sense that the changes I've effected go beyond just keeping her away from the kids - an unexpected result which seems to yield even more information about the raccoons.

Tonight, BTW, Heidi ate over on the path and the kids stayed with me. The pool and Heidi's dish by the pool were both completely free, yet Diva did not even try to go over there until after Heidi and the kids left. Then when she did go over there she was clearly very cautious as though she 'understood' that I had banned her from the pool area. I said, "it's ok" and she went over to Heidi's unused dish very cautiously. A few minutes later when I blew my nose (allergies), she ran away, over the fence, and was gone.

The pictures and stories just get better and better! When I think of this thread I often think of Diva doing the drunken marshmallow dance. What a visual! LOL

On the gator story...what a horrible thing to happen to him and to his family. A perfect example of how life can change in an instant.

On the other hand (coming from a gator country resident) I cannot
understand why someone would swim in a lake that is clearly marked Beware of Alligators. That's just dangling appetizers in front of swimming teeth.

I once swam in the Gulf, in water over 600 feet deep. It was crystal clear and calm and oh so cool in the heat of summer. THEN...Remember that scene from jaws filmed from underwater? All the people in the water, legs kicking (appetizers)? That's the scene that came to mind and I had to get out of the water. Big things, with big teeth, live in deep water. But it's a great memory! LOL

Hi Floridian,

Thanks, I wish that you could see Diva after she eats her 1st (or 10th) marshmallow. She gets this demented look on her face. It's as though she cannot control herself. She is driven to get another and disrupts everything and everyone until she does. When she eats one she stands up holding the thing with both front paws, cocks her head to one side as she bites into it, and gets that totally obsessed, slightly insane look about her. The whole thing is surreal no matter how many times you see it. If she weren't so disruptive and dangerous to the kids, it would otherwise be an amusing show.

excellent description! swimming teeth. I like that one - and how true.

I was surprised to see the sign right there where the incident happened. I guess nothing like that had happened there before so people had gotten complacent. (As I mentioned before, people a few streets over from me were feeding an 8 foot alligator in their back yard! They live by one of the ponds. The gator soon started hanging out and sunning itself on their patio. Suddenly, they were afraid to go into the backyard. Go figure. The gator had to be relocated.)

Actually, I have often read and even seen on nature shows that alligators aren't a threat to adult humans - crocs are but not alligators. So much for that information. Very sad about the guy being attacked. The last update I heard, the doctors said they would not be able to reattach the arm.

Warning -- don't read the next paragraph if you are squeamish.
OMG, I was just checking the website of a local newspaper for news as to how he's doing. There were photos from the scene. One very surreal photo showed an idyllic view of calm water, just a few ripples, dotted with a few lily pads like something out of a Monet painting - and there in the middle an alligator with an arm hanging out of its mouth.

On a lighter note...
LOL at your very short swim in the Gulf. Why join the others on the appetizer tray, huh? Years ago when I was at a beach on one of our barrier islands, my friends and I were out about chest deep - cooling off. Suddenly, I saw 3 fins moving through the water a short distance away and on the ocean side of us. Instantly, my higher and more rational brain function shut down. I started "running" as fast as was possible in all that water and yelling "sharks!" at the top of my lungs. They were dolphins. Needless to say, I am very popular at the beach!

Quick aside, just to set the record straight lest I should scare away all potential tourism to my area, our beaches are safe. The incident occurred at an inland lake. There are no alligators in the ocean waters along the coast as alligators don't inhabit salt water. So you can come to Kiawah and Hilton Head, Isle of Palms, Sulivan's Island, Folly Beach, etc and you'll never see a gator. promise.

ROFL But, better safe than sorry--I'm sure others would've done the same thing!

All this talk about marshmallows is making me crave them. Think they have the same effect on humans??

I am a little concerned for the raccoons though, especially if they get sufficiently desperate for water or food to go down to the ponds. Recently, I was enjoying cute raccoon videos on YouTube, and then I stumbled onto one of an alligator eating a raccoon. The editorial comments said the raccoon was just walking down near the water, and the gator jumped out and grabbed it. The video started after the gator had the raccoon. I had always secretly hoped that alligators didn't eat raccoons. So much for that.

Hope Heidi somehow knows about gators and teaches the kids well.

Hi Renee',

Apparently, those who frequent the ocean know as I do now how to tell the difference between sharks and dolphins - otherwise there would be hourly "shark" sitings. Dolphins sort of jump up in an arc repeatedly as they swim. Everyone else saw the fins going along in these arc formations in the background and ignored them. I saw ocean and fins. That was all I needed to know to declare an emergency. LOL

Oh, man, I have several bags of mm. If only I could get one through the net to you. Look in the mirror. Are your eyes glazed over like something out of the Exorcist? If not, you don't have the full effect yet.

The last few nights have gone well. Diva has behaved so amazingly well that it's hard to believe she's the same raccoon. Moving her away from the pool and the kids and letting her know that she can't take over seem to have worked incredibly well - so far.

Since they arrived in early spring, Juliet and Heidi have been eating in the same places, one on either side of the pool (they were there even before the pool). When I rearranged things, I 1st eliminated and later moved Juliet's dish to prevent any of them from eating so close to the area where the kids like to play. That was a learning experience. I had no idea but apparently the raccoons have some sense of "your space" and "my space", having mini-domains within my backyard. For days Juliet kept walking up to her dish or the area where her dish used to be and looking around for her food. Her kids still keep hanging around over there in the weeds beside the pool.

The 2nd day (after I had redecorated the area), I cleaned the pool and then before refilling it, I dragged it over to and up against the weeds on what used to be Juliet's side. That, I figured, would give me a wider (about 1.5ft) space to walk through (after all, that whole area was designed to permit access to the berm beyond). Without Juliet or another raccoon eating on that side, I figured I could use that space for the pool, give myself a little walking room to get by, and the pool would still be beside Heidi's dish and well away from all the others.

I filled the pool with cool, clean water and waited for Heidi and the kids to arrive. Much to my surprise, even though they had no food by the pool, Juliet and her kids hopped in the pool as soon as they arrived. Juliet eventually got out and went over to one of the new positions to eat but her kids stayed in the pool all night. Heidi's kids didn't get to step foot in it at all. The latter tried repeatedly which resulted in frequent bickering over the edge of the pool. Neither Heidi nor Juliet seemed very concerned by the kiddie spats. They weren't fighting all out, weren't injuring each other, so I decided it was probably a good chance for them to learn "negotiating" skills.

Eventually, though as I sat there watching it all, I came to realize that by moving the pool over to [what used to be] Juliet's space, I had essentially given them the pool. The very next day, I dragged the pool over to Heidi's side - leaving the walking gap on Juliet's side. That worked. Heidi and her kids have owned the pool ever since.

Not understanding the myriad subtleties of raccoon "law", I had made a mistake. My behavior had directly resulted in behavior I didn't want. Luckily, this time I recognized my error, but I have likely made many other such mistakes before and probably will make even more in the future. That's part of the problem with trying to figure out the rules as you go along, but I am learning a lot more about raccoons than I had ever dreamed I might.

Last night, thinking I should balance the sweets with some healthy treats, I took out peanuts. Dennis was not at all amused. He stood up at my feet, paws in the air, reaching. I tossed him a peanut. He picked it up then quickly dropped it again and reached up again as if to say, "Come on, I know you must have something yummy in there somewhere." I kept giving him peanuts, and he kept rejecting them, each time reaching up in search of something better. He had done the same thing the night before when I had cat treats and peanut butter snacks. When the pb snacks ran out and I tried to give him cat treats, he kept searching for more pb snacks; so last night when he started this again, I knew he was looking for sweets.

Diva didn't show up last night. Juliet was there but did not bring her kids and she left early. As a result, it was a quiet night, just Heidi and the kids, plenty of pool time, no fights. Heidi was having some allergy/asthma type symptoms again. (The rag weed is currently at a level of 8.7 out of 10) The kids were having such a great time playing in the pool and fishing for peanuts.

When Heidi started wheezing, she climbed back up into the Heidi tree but I noticed that she did not call the kids to follow her as she normally does. The kids continued playing. After a little while, Heidi returned and ate a bit more. By that time she didn't look hungry. She looked more like she was staying for the sake of the kids who were enjoying the freedom to play in the pool in peace and were also still eating. She was just nibbling a bit. Then she went over to the sandbox and sat down to wait while the kids played and ate. The least assertive of the kits was playing on the straw "fort" beside the sandbox. It was a unique and enjoyable experience to watch this peaceful display, Mom resting, kids playing.

Dennis had been very clear about what he wanted, so tonight I took out marshmallows. (Hey, we'll do healthy tomorrow.) Everyone had a great time. Diva and Rupert were there as was Juliet, but again without the kids who have been to dinner only once in the past 4-5 days or more. Fraidy came out shortly before I left. The one downside of the new layout is that it puts Juliet too close to Rupert. She gives him some trouble, but one of them could easily go over to the path on the other side of me; for some reason no one seems to notice that dish anymore - except HRH and Fraidy.

The kids enjoyed the marshmallows. Dennis is now noticeably faster and more alert than the others. I dropped a marshmallow for one of the others while Dennis was finishing the one he had. The other kid bumbled about on top of the mm looking for it. Dennis spun around, dove under the sibling, grabbed the mm, and ate it while the other was still trying to figure out what happened.

Ever since the time he reached over the side of the chair and grabbed the bag of grapes, Dennis has been eager to get into my things. It's not enough just to eat the treats, he wants to search and plunder. It's just his natural curiosity coming out. A few nights ago I put the nearly empty dog food container down on the ground for him. I added a peanut to the remaining handful of dog food and stood the container upright near him so that he could explore. He stood upright with his hands on the rim, checked inside, then turned the container over and stuck his nose inside to get some food.

Tonight, again, I put the almost empty container down for him, this time with a marshmallow in it. Just as he started to explore it, the other rather assertive kit tried to get it. In an instant (because you wouldn't believe how fast they can move), Dennis picked the whole [10"x4"x6") container up and ran away with it, the other kit right beside him. For a while it looked like he might destroy it (and I really like that container for the dog food) but soon after the food was gone he lost interest in it, thankfully. After they left I was able to retrieve it. I think I'll find him another box, one that I don't like. (Hmm. maybe they would enjoy a smallish cardboard box just to play in. I'll have to try that.)

BTW, while the kids (Heidi's kids) have very similar faces, one's coat is now much lighter, being noticeably blonde. I think that settles the question of who "sired" heidi's kids (a word from horse culture as I don't know the raccoon analog). That one seems - so far - to have HRH's coat with Heidi's face, an interesting twist.

After the kids got tired of me, they went over to the pool area to play-eat. That's my new word for what they do. They play and eat at the same time. One lay on the ground and fought with the garden hose in a very cat-like manner. Another reached over the edge of the pool and with great effort eventually dragged the stuffed dog into the water to play with it. One played with a stick. Another chased imaginary prey around the bottom of the pool, feeling across every inch of the bottom, endlessly searching. At some point the less rambunctious kit sat down by the dish to eat in a Fraidy-esque position - or much like HRH.

I, too, have sympathy for the alligator victim and his family; but come on, how do you become complacent about alligators? As to the idea that alligators don't attack adult humans, yes, I've read that, too; but a large predator will go for any prey available if they're hungry enough. And if you're snorkeling in their waters, you must look a whole lot like dinner.

Interesting, and makes sense, that there's a sense of territory involved in the pool's location. I'm so happy to hear that all is still peaceful on the Diva front: congratulations! Just keep her away from those marshmallows; she's like an alcoholic who can't have just one drink...

The kits would probably love a cardboard box. Any puzzles you can give them that involve food are great learning tools for them. Speaking of which, Heidi's kits are probably old enough for a fishing lesson if you want to try stocking the pool with feeder goldfish one of these nights. And BTW, I'm quite sure Heidi is aware of the alligators and teaches the kids how to avoid them: mostly the lesson would involve not hanging around the water's edge where the gators live.

The kit with HRH's coloring and Heidi's face must be gorgeous: that sounds like a really attractive combination.

I can't think of an alligator "attack" that didn't involve an adult, not here, not recently.

Just for fun... http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/fp.php?pid=2062779

Looks like he posed for his picture! So there was a sign warning people to stay out because of the gators, and that man went in anyway? Call me mean, but I don't feel sorry for stooooopid people. When I was stationed in Hawaii, there were signs on the North Shore in winter, telling people to stay out of the water due to aggressive waves--did they listen?

Hi all, I just wanted to say how much I have enjoyed reading the ongoing saga of Heidi and the rest of the extended family. When I first found this I went back to the previous threads trying to catch up. It took me many nights and I think I may have missed one somewhere along the line. I guess my interest is great because of having Ricky the Raccoon in the woods behind my fence. Well I thought it was a Ricky until I read your story. He has on occasion came to my deck in the daytime. One night my dog informed me he was outside(she chases the night critters to the fence) and when I looked out there were 5.....oops. I had stopped putting Angels dogfood out on the deck after he/she started comming around. Like many of you I was/am fearful of them due to what I've always been told. Since reading this I have started putting food over the fence and it is always gone .The pieplate still neatly in its place but food gone........they don't seem to care for potato or carrot peelings though as those were placed neatly outside the plate. I have also caught Ricky on the deck emptying the hummingbird food into his mouth in the middle of the night. I do know there are a number of young ones out there as the lady two houses down chased a mother who had her kits in the soffit of her roof away. The babies were screaming bloody murder and the lady next to me watched as mom carried at least 3 under her deck. That was in May I think...........
Anyway,I anxiously await your next posts.

What a great photo, Floridian! Looks like he found himself a gator hammock. And KyWoods, I must admit I share your sentiments; the world is full of people vying for Darwin Awards, and the gator victim certainly deserves an honorable mention (you only get the full award if your escapade kills you).

Hi Ruth,

The discovery of my mistake in moving the pool into what had been Juliet's territory was an eye opener. Lacking an understanding of their societal rules, I think we humans probably make such bumbling errors all too frequently - and then wonder why the animals are behaving so "badly". It is exciting though each time I stumble upon another tiny piece of the puzzle that leads to understanding them.

I came SO close to getting those fish. The very day two weeks ago when I had planned to run that errand turned out to be the day after my meds were increased plunging me into extreme GI distress with which I am still battling - although today was a good day on that front. (The situation has been serious enough as to prompt me to take a makeshift emergency barf bag with me on my trip to the grocery store - something I would never have expected to do.Edited to add that the emergency bag was for "just in case". Thank goodness I didn't actually need it.)

Thanks for reminding me about the fish. I'm trying to find a good day ASAP. Have to work around frequent inclement weather as well as my own infirmities.

This message was edited Sep 21, 2007 11:33 AM

Floridian, as always, great photo! I agree with KyWoods on this one, he seems to be posing for that shot. Great catch!

KyWoods,

The decision to swim beside the "Beware of Alligators" sign does seem highly questionable. Long before my concerns were actually confirmed, I wouldn't even let my dog go near the pond even in the absence of such a sign. Then again, I've done a stupid thing or two myself and probably will again.

Hi schweizer!

So nice to have you with us. Thanks for letting me know how much you've been enjoying the saga. Ricky sure sounds like a "she" to me. If you went back to the very 1st thread, you may have noticed that I started out calling Heidi a "he" but was corrected by the wildlife rehabber who suggested that "her" behavior indicated that she likely was a lactating mom with kids nearby. I must confess that having the raccoons assault my house in some manner is one of my big fears but so far they have not bothered anything except the bird feeder, and, oh yes, they will tip the hummer feeding sideways to drink the nectar. Knowing that, a few times I have served a side of nectar with their dinner. They loved it so much that for days they were still going back each day to sniff the empty nectar dish checking for more. (Hmm. maybe I should treat the kids to a little nectar.)

Thanks again and very glad to have you with us.

Diva is still behaving nicely, eating over to one side and leaving everyone alone. Tonight after the kids left I gave her some grapes. I had bought some absolutely huge red globe grapes for them. She loved them and did all of her silly antics. A little while after Heidi left, seeing that the pool area was open, Diva moved over there to eat the rest of Heidi's food. When Fraidy came up to one side of the pool, Diva turned and started growling at her. For Diva that meant an attack was eminent. I said, "Diva, NO!" firmly and with authority but not shouting. Diva looked over at me. Again, I said "NO!". With that she turned away from Fraidy and started back to her food. Immediately, I threw her a large grape, landing it right at her front feet (positive reinforcement).

One of Heidi's kids was limping, favoring one hind leg. Any ideas what kinds of things might have injured him/her? It didn't keep him from eating or even from following his siblings into the pool. I'll give it some time and hope it gets better.

More on tonight's adventures later as it is way past my bed time...

I wouldn't worry too much about the Heidi kit who's limping, Cheryl. They're at the age when they're probably trying lots of new skills in a less than skillful way. I think you'd see signs in Heidi's behavior if she were concerned. Glad to hear that Diva is still under control: hurray!

Sure, we've all done lots of monumentally stupid things at one time or another; I have assorted scars and limps to prove that fact. But snorkeling in a lake known to house alligators, when no one's life was at stake if one failed to do so: no, I can't quite go there.

Sorry to hear about your continuing health issues; hopefully the medical community will help you get them under better control soon. Hang in there!

Ruth -- I am quite honestly amazed at the change in Diva's behavior - at least for now. Right now it is difficult to believe that she ever was a problem. It makes me wonder how big a part I [unwittingly] play in this drama, like with dogs where we often effect the behavior of the group without realizing it. Had I somehow unknowingly invited her to take over or otherwise given her the impression that she could do so? Not so much worrying or beating up on myself as simply curious, enjoying the opportunity to unravel as many pieces of this puzzle as I can.

Ok, I was trying not to be too hard on the guy considering (1) his injuries and (2) the fact that he lives so close to my community.

Thanks, Ruth, actually I am doing so very, very much better that people are actually starting to say things like "Wow, you must really be feeling a lot better" and "You sure look upbeat today", etc. The only lingering problem at this time is due to side effects of the medication. With any luck at all that should subside soon. I only mentioned it to say that I came 'this' close to getting those fish and then had to put the whole thing on hold again due to the side effects. I would consider doing it tonight, but I think it's probably going to rain. Since the fish won't keep for very long and I can't control the raccoons, I need to coordinate things for a relatively clear evening when I have time to clean and refill the pool and preferably when I'm not barfing. Heidi won't come out at all much less bring the kids if there is a thunderstorm anywhere nearby. If it's raining hard I won't be able to sit out there much less take pictures. If it rains too much, the fish may end up in a shallow stream heading across the yard on their way to the drainage ponds to become gator bait. We've had almost daily downpours lately due the front that is hanging just off the atlantic coast. I am really, really looking forward to doing the whole "fish" thing, so these are not excuses just the minor logistics hurdles I'm facing.

So sorry to hear you're not feeling well, Cheryl! Meds can be a blessing and a curse at the same time. And I hope the rains don't amount to anything destructive. I know I complain about the winters, here, but I do feel lucky to have moved away from New Orleans as a child. I sometimes get zone envy for their tropical gardening, but it goes away when I see the film clips of the flooding on the news.

Thanks, KyWoods,

To be honest, even WITH the side effects, the meds have done me a world of good already. I really do feel so much better and as i mentioned other people are starting to notice and comment on how much "better" I look. I know you must be awfully happy to have left N.O. before Katrina. That would have been a horrible experience. I am a Hugo survivor and while we didn't have the devastating floods that N.O. experienced, it was still a terrifying night followed by many difficult weeks. I can't begin to imagine what N.O. was like.

As far as rain and flooding go, we have been very lucky. We've received untold quantities of rain but only minimal, shallow flooding. The downtown area floods easily and routinely, so we are all accustomed to driving over sidewalks, through the edges of yards, and doing whatever else it takes to circumvent flooded streets.

The forecast for tonight calls for thunderstorms but I am still considering getting some fish on my way home. Depends on how the sky looks when I get out there.

Admittedly, just a shameless teaser:

As I was driving home, the sky was a mix of puffy white clouds and narrow, dark lavender grey strips all with patches of bright azure sky peaking through here and there. despite the forecast of evening thunderstorms, I decided to chance it. I bought 2 dozen common goldfish and 4 ghost shrimp. When I stated my desire to have the shrimp in addition to the goldfish, the salesperson said the 2 types of fish would not go together to which I replied, "No problem. I don't plan to put them in the same aquarium." And that was certainly true. By the time I got my 2 bags of fish, held them while waiting in line, transported them on the car seat beside me, and watched them swim about all nervous like I had begun to identify with their plight. But, alas, they were doomed no matter what. Even if I took pity on them and decided to pardon them, I have no aquarium...

I picked up some other toys and treats for another day.

By the time I got home, unpacked, rested a few minutes, then cleaned and filled the pool, packed everything up including the camera and got outside again the sky was blanketed in a heavy layer of clouds. I put the fish in the clean, clear, cool water, set up the food, and moved my chair a little closer to the pool.

Soon it was dark and there I sat alone with my grapes and treats and a pool of fish. It started to rain lightly. Desperate to keep the camera dry, I stuffed it under my shirt. And there I sat, alone and waiting, not a raccoon in sight...

Don't keep us hanging.........my poor tessa cannot handle being squeezed like that when her mom is stressed out............. :^)

ROTF, tetleytuna!

Sorry, I was in the darkroom developing the prints. About the time I had begun to think for sure that I would have to abort the operation and leave the fish to save the camera from death by drowning, the rain slacked off and 1st Juliet and her kids, then Diva, and finally Heidi and her bunch showed up. I feared that one of the 1st 2 groups would discover the fish and eat them before the kids arrived. I think we were saved by the fact that Diva and Juliet have learned to eat elsewhere so neither walked by the pool, nor did their kids.

Oblivious to the fish, Heidi and 2 of her kids walked past the pool and started eating their food. Dennis hopped in the pool right away as soon as he arrived. As soon as his feet hit the water he realized he'd struck gold. He started rushing around and around the pool chasing fish, hemming them up against the side of the pool. Those fish swim FAST. The sales girl had great difficulty catching them with that scoop. Dennis was scrambling about like crazy, looking a lot like a cat during frenzied play, the water churning around him.

All the while, as Dennis fished with singular focus, his Mom and siblings remained completely completely in the dark as to what they were missing. I guess they are just so accustomed to Dennis' ADHD behavior that they didn't think anything of it. By the time the others went over to the pool for a drink and discovered the fish, little Dennis had already eaten most of them all by himself. Not exactly how I'd planned it, but what can I say? Those who snooze...

I took as many pics of Dennis fishing as I could. I did stop a few times to toss grapes to Juliet's kids. Then the most unexpected thing happened. HRH, who always eats whatever he gets and then leaves without 'asking' for anything, and who has never, ever come up to me directly, finished his food over on the path and then just sauntered on over to me in search of treats. He tried to "look" in my plastic container, but I told him "no", gently, and he let go of it. I tossed some grapes beyond him - intending to "push" him back a bit so I could concentrate on taking pics, but he stayed. He kept trying to grab this and that off my chair "table". Finally, I used the plastic container to push him back gently. I had given him a few marshmallows the other day. In my container I had a bunch of leftover treats, this and that, including 2 marshmallows. I think he must have smelled them and that's probably what motivated his new behavior.

At some point Juliet and Diva hooked up, and even though they were on the other side of the dining area, Heidi decided not to take any risks with the kids. They all packed up and left promptly. I took a picture of the pool after they left. There were about 6 fish left, all but one of which were "swimming" on their sides at the top of the water.

I stayed quite a while after that during which everybody showed up at one point or another including Fraidy, Sugar, and even Snowball. Juliet and the kids left and returned later. On there 2nd visit Juliet's kids discovered the remaining fish and began fishing and eating with enthusiasm. Apparently even when dead small, slippery, wet, fish are difficult to catch.

No sooner had Juliet's kids eaten a fish or 2 but Dennis returned alone to drive them out of the pool and reclaim his fishing hole. He ate dog food and fish for a while during which Heidi could be heard far in the distance calling to him - and him ignoring her. Eventually, Heidi and the other 2 kids showed up.

They stayed for quite a while. Dennis came over to see if I had any treats - for the 1st time of the evening as he had been way to busy earlier to think of me or treats - but he was too late. Thinking they would not be back, I'd given the treats to Juliet's kids and to HRH and Fraidy. As a consolation, I did allow him and his sibling to plunder through my large plastic container into which I had stuffed all of the used wrappings and containers. The container was much bigger than they were and when they 1st turned it over and started climbing in to rifle through the contents, Heidi expressed some trepidation. I told her it would be "ok" and she let it go.

Photos to come soon - more like tomorrow as I'm pretty tired now.

ROFL--can't wait to see the pics of the fishing expedition!

Good for you, Cheryl: sounds like a typically chaotic and wonderful first experience with fishing. Yes, they are REALLY hard to catch. Hopefully Heidi will get into the action at some point to show them how it's done: in the wild, the stealth approach is mandatory. Thrashing about in the water sends the fish into hiding, and the raccoon leaves hungry.

Young Dennis is quite reminiscent of Trouble, isn't he? But I don't think Trouble ever outright blew off mama when she called him... Fascinating that HRH finally approached you for treats; he must have seen the others doing it, and you know the king hates to miss out on anything.

So glad to hear you're doing better, in spite of side effects. Medication can be brutal; there've been a few meds in my life that I thought might be worse than the disease. Glad that's not the case for you!

Get that storm moving on up our way! So far we've gotten maybe 1/10" from it; whoopee.

Ruth -- On Saturday, while zooming and cropping pics from the Friday night fishing adventures, I wrote you a lengthy response in which I expounded on the differences between the kids and my new theory on why Heidi didn't teach the kids to fish. Then after I spell checked it and all was fine, I hit send and the browser seized up, froze, and ultimately died. Arrrgh! Just this weekend I saw a thread in the DG Forum about this. Others are having similiar troubles. I don't thing it is a DG problem though. I think the particular problem I had that night was due to a glitch with the Google toolbar. Anyhow, I just didn't have the time or energy to retype it. Sorry. Another day.

Saturday night I didn't feed the raccoons. I had run across my backyard copper head again that morning. It was a wet, nasty evening in which I didn't look forward to seeing anymore snakes. I wasn't feeling all that swell, and I decided I was long overdue for a night off. Long ago we all agreed it was best to leave them to their own skills from time to time, both to insure they retain the ability to feed themselves and to keep them from possibly going beserk and trying to break in to the house if I could not feed them due to illness, a trip out of town, etc.

On Sunday I found that the kids had apparently played in the pool the night before even though there was no food. I say this because the empty yogurt container that they like to play had been moved into the pool. Sunday evening when I went out, I took an ample supply of cat food and a large bag of frosted animal crackers. I expected them to be late. Since I hadn't been there the night before, I figured they wouldn't waste their time waiting around for me again.

It was semi-dark when I walked out. I didn't see anyone. I put my things down on the chair and stopped by the path to put some food in that dish. As I turned to walk over to the dishes by the veggie patch, 2 big masked 'kitten' walked past my feet. By the time I realized what was happening, Heidi and all 3 of her kits were eating feverishly from the dish on the path. With all 4 of them surrounding that one dish there wasn't room for another face anywhere. I filled Heidi's dish by the pool and tried to call them over but no one paid me any attention. They were totally and completely fixated on the food and eating with the zeal of the truly famished.

For the 1st time ever I saw the kits snapping at each other, bickering over the food as though it might well be the last morsel they would ever see again. Since I could not get them to come over to their real dish and as I knew that dish only had food for one maybe two, I took their real dish over to them and put it beside them. They were all so focused on the food that they didn't blink an eye when I walked right up to them nor did any of them turn to eat from the other dish. I had never, ever seen them so very hungry. It looked as though they had found little if any food the night before which surprised me. Maybe this is a lean time in the forest for food? Or maybe the constant heavy rain and soggy ground had hurt the production of natural foods in the forest? Or maybe the storms made hunting difficult. Whatever the cause, they were starved to the point of being almost unable to notice anything but the food before them which they ate way too fast. Even the movement of their bodies as they ate belied their starvation.

That night, everyone but Diva and Rupert showed up. I waited a while but they never showed. Between the cat food and cookies I had enough food so that those who did show up were able to gorge themselves and eat their fill.

This morning as I left for work, I saw a dead baby raccoon on the Hwy outside my community. It was roughly the size of "our" babies but surely there are lots of other babies in the forest this time of year. I do so hope it wasn't one of ours...

Oh, I hate that when I see a poor little body on the road, and I wonder too if it's one of ours. How sad--can't people slow down and keep an eye out for wildlife? I do! I keep an eye on the side of the road at night looking for the reflective glow of little eyes. Does anyone else?

I do...I often leave before dawn from fall thru spring and I always watch for eyes. I hate the thought that I might hit an animal. I hit a squirrel a few months back after doing all I could to avoid it...on a 30 mph road. I feel the squirrel must have been suicidal. I called my husband crying my eyes out...I felt so terrible.

Ahem, Cheryl? Got pictures of the goldfish frenzy?? LOL That must have been so funny

Oh, Floridian, I know the feeling. I did that once, too. He was heading off the road, and turned around and came back! I felt that horrible sinking feeling in the bottom of my heart, too. Every time I see a poor little critter body, I say a little prayer for it. It's not their fault we invaded their territory.

KyWoods -- If I run over anything or even if a bird hits my windshield it will trouble me for a while. I take it very personally. The highway out there is a narrow 2 lane road that can never be widened due to a land trust protecting the trees that drape over the road - on GPS map you can't see the road because of the trees arching over it. The road is quite heavily traveled and while the speed limit in this area is 45mph, the traffic is probably doing more like 70 and barrelling around a curve to boot. I'm afraid I'm going to get run over just trying to get my car in the road out there.

I'm really afraid that might have been Rupert. : (

Floridian -- Ahem, LOL!
I'm afraid the pics may be a bit anti-climactic. I'm not sure the action translated well in the dark, but I have a bunch of pics. I took pics almost non-stop - except for breaks to hand out treats - in hopes of getting some good ones. In fact, I took so many of them that it took me a while Saturday to zoom and crop them all. (I have to do that because in the dark I can't see what I'm aiming at so I've found it works best to just point the camera that way and shoot the whole area then crop - less chance of getting an out of focus pic.)

These aren't necessarily in order, but this 1st one is one of the 1st 2 or 3. I had the camera on the wrong settings - can't see that either in the dark. Luckily, after a few pics I realized something was wrong and changed it. Here is Dennis chasing fish while Heidi and the other 2 kids eat, clueless to what's going on.

Here he has one in his paw.

Here's one after the other kids figured it out.

This is Juliet drinking from the little birdbath. I hate to sandwich this in the middle of the fishing picks but if I don't post it now I'll likely forget to do so.

Heidi and the kids drinking from the pool. One little 'fella' left out. This was after they had eaten all of the fish.

Fraidy from the same night. I know Fraidy has a few 'fans' out there, and I haven't been able to get good pics of her lately. Just wanted to show you that she is still here.