Heidi Chronicles: Can't Be Long Now, Can It?

Susan, ROTFLMBO!!!

I knew it! I knew you guys could see me!

^_^
=^..^=

LOL, Susan! Hey, if anybody gets time and they need a laugh, there's a website of funny, true, tech support stories. There are computer illiterates who actually believe they can be seen through the monitor, and even funnier stuff! Oh, and thanks for the insight on nursing mothers' daytime feeding habits.

http://www.rinkworks.com/stupid/

Forgot to mention that Dennis dropped by around midnight. Alas, I fear that my little Dennis may be growing up. Tonight when I saw him at the door I ran out with a box of dog food and about a cup of grapes, the loose ones left in the bottom of the bag they came in. These were the very sweet, red, seedless ones we had recently. Dennis, being Dennis, was trying to grab the box while I was trying to pour it in his dish. As soon as 2 or 3 nuggets fell into the dish his head was in there - i had to pour the rest of them on his head and let them roll off into the dish, well, most of them anyhow.

Then as soon as I sat down he realized I had the grapes, smelled them I guess, and he turned all Diva on me, you know, got that sugar Jones and started acting out like an addict in withdrawals reaching for a fix. He grabbed the plastic bag and stubbornly refused to let go. I was just as unwilling to let him get away with 'stealing' the grapes as he was to let go of them. We sat there playing tug of war with a plastic bag, Dennis with a death grip on the bottom and me yanking on the top while admonishing him to "no, let go! Stop it! No". As you might imagine the game ended when the combination of claws and tugging exceeded the capacity of the material. I won though, sort of. I mean, I ended up with the bag - from which most of the grapes immediately tumbled from the gaping hole Dennis' claws had made in the bottom!

I've heard that males get attitude when they grow up. It makes sense really. I'm sure they need it out there in the wild. I think I'm seeing that attitude developing in sweet, little Dennis. He's becoming increasingly determined to have his way. After he ate the grapes (off the ground), he nearly drove me crazy with his determination to have more - even when there were no more to be had. He looked and looked and looked - look in the chair, looked in the food box, looked in my hands, looked on the ground here, there, and everywhere. Looked and looked and looked endlessly and, although he had been excited to get the dog food before he found the grapes, was now totally unwilling to eat dog food - just kept stubbornly demanding more grapes. I kept telling him to get down and behave himself, that there were no more grapes. He didn't do anything aggressive (after the bag incident), just kept looking and looking and asking and asking and begging and begging. I was tempted to go inside and get a stem of the new grapes I'd bought the other day but then I realized that's how he got this way in the 1st place; so I didn't.

Eventually, Trouble showed up and took Dennis' dog food (that he wouldn't eat anyhow). After that Dennis sulked for a while and left. Then Cissy arrived and whipped the tar out of Trouble so as to claim the food. lol. I've been meaning to tell you that lately the girls have really been whipping that boy into shape. Lately, when Cissy growls and snarls at him, he back off in a hurry, and Blondie is even worse on him. One night when he just started walking through the weeds in the direction of the dishes in Juliet's old area, Blondie who was over there eating, left her dish and ran some 5 or 6 feet to 'greet' him, smack him around a bit, and send him back where he came from. She was pregnant at the time and had that nasty wound. I don't think she was in a particularly good mood and was having none of his 'stuff'. Yes, they have been kicking Trouble around all over the place lately. Maybe this, many years of this, is how the males eventually become sweet, mellow, and mannerly like HRH?

You mean, we can't be seen through the monitor?

Well, darn, Cheryl, you found the spycam. The raccoons assured us all that they hid it in a spot you'd never find. Since they are ninjas and all, we bought it....

KyWoods, conventional wisdom is that raccoons out and about and feeding in the daytime are very comfortable in their territory, and probably pregnant or lactating. Much of what's been happening in Cheryl's backyard goes against all conventional wisdom, so there are no guarantees; but it's most likely that the guys visiting in daytime are pregnant, lactating, or yearlings who haven't quite gotten with the program.

Cheryl, glad to hear the yearling girls are putting Trouble in his place: it needs to happen for the peace of all. And yes, males do need and acquire "attitude" and assertiveness as they mature; their survival and ability to reproduce depend on it. I know that Dennis is terminally cute and appealing, but you should think about establishing a bit of control over your interactions with him while you still can. The insistence on grabbing the bag of grapes is really cute, but as he matures it may not be wise to let him be that insistent with you. The only easy way I can think of to accompllish this is to deny him, at least occasionally, what he is insisting on: like, for instance, removing the grapes by taking them back to the house when he pushes the issue like that. It would be hard to do, I know, but you don't want to unintentionally create a spoiled brat who's maturing into a powerful and assertive male; tug of war with a mature male like HRH would be more scary than cute.

And yes, as in most species, spring is prime mating season for raccoons, so scuffles and minor wounds like you spotted on HRH are unfortunately common. Sometimes the wounds result from more or less serious wrestling matches with other males, usually timed and sited to impress the lady; and sometimes from pressing his suit before the lady is receptive, which seems less likely in male with HRH's years and experience.

Yes, I suspect that the ladies do over time train the males to be gentlemen like HRH. The male's goal is to mate, and he will do what it takes to win fair ladies. And if you were a lady raccoon, would it be a tough choice between a bully like Trouble and a Clark Gable-esque suitor like HRH?

I saw you too....nice PJs! But could you brush the hair first. hehehe

Debbie

ROTF, Debbie! You have no idea how funny that really is. Unless...

you really can see me. LOL

I can't see you, but Tessa cat suddenly looked very intently into the monitor and then jumped off my lap and ran down the hallway -------- LOL

So, does that mean that Tessa also thinks I need to brush my hair? ;^)

I wouldn't worry too much about it, just tell whoever asks that you believe in "casual friday" heehee

In any case, miss Tessa does not have room to talk considering that in spite of being a short haired cat I still have to brush mats out of her occasionally near her tail. :^)

Awww, what a cutie!

Ruth,

No, I still haven't found that spycam, just noticed the coincidences. They did a good job of hiding that thing just as they promised. ;-)

I know that you are right about Dennis' behavior. Even though, for the story after the fact, I played up the funny part, in my preface about little Dennis growing up I tried to imply that I suspect I will need to back off a bit and put some more distance between us. Much like with Trouble before him, I knew all along that I had to be happy with the time we had together while he was a kid and be prepared to let him go in time - and I think that time is rapidly approaching.

In my hurry the other night to finish the story and get to bed, I probably didn't do a good job of explaining things. On the one hand, I actually see substantial 'improvement' in Dennis' behavior as a result of my recent decision to make him get back whenever he is acting too excited and 'grabby'. As a baby he would stand upright with his paws resting gently on my knee. As he got older - and I don't think this was so much intentional as just natural - I started to 'notice' his claws when he would 'climb' up on me, esp when he was particularly excited and competing with the others for treats. He didn't scratch me. It's just that whereas before I always stressed how gentle he was and how only the velvety pads of his feet touched me, as he got older I began to feel the presence of claws. Naturally, I knew then that he had to stay back a bit.

After that, as soon as I noticed him getting in that mode and before he could actually make contact with my knee, I would stand up. That always causes him to stand back a bit. I only had to do that a few times before he changed his behavior. Now, even when he gets in the 'grabby' mode, he keeps a little space between us as he dances around looking for food. The other night when I described him as searching and searching for more grapes, although he kept circling me and getting into and out of the chair, he never touched me, so that alone is a big improvement over his behavior even just a month or so ago.

As far as him grabbing the bag of grapes, unfortunately, he did that so fast and without warning that I really had no opportunity to walk away. One minute he was standing back, behaving himself, and just looking interested in the grapes. The next minute he had a hold of them. The more or less empty bag with just the singles that had fallen from the bunch was about 15in or so long, so it's possible that when I went to take it out of the chair I may have dangled it before him without really thinking about it. Anyhow, while i think your idea about not giving him the treat when he behaves that way is a very good one, in that particular situation, I didn't have that option. Once he grabbed the bag, it was all over. Even when I got the bag back, as i mentioned the grapes were tumbling from the hole in the bottom onto the ground. I wasn't about to feel around in the grass in the dark to pick them back up. (eiw!)

Sometimes, as with the box, Dennis will reach for things gently as a sort of gesture without actually grasping them, his paws either waving in the air or just brushing past the item. It is possible, too, that I may be partly to 'blame' for this behavior. Recall that when he was a kit I used to play with him by dangling the little toy on the string for him to bat around, tug on, etc. It could be said that, however unintentionally, I taught him this behavior, or at least taught him that it was ok. But, regardless, you are right, I need to be very assertive now in teaching him that it is not ok to grab things or behave in any other aggressive manner with me.

Luckily, Dennis isn't around often anymore. He always did like to roam, and the older he gets the more reason he has to roam. I notice, BTW, that he has grown substantially larger, but I haven't seen the characteristic change in face/head that seems to signal the onset of reproductive maturity. (Things will no doubt get worse then.) As he approaches full maturity, I detect a bit of rivalry now between him and Trouble. Where as he used to seem so nonchalant about everything and even to delight in toying with Trouble, now he seems to sulk over the fact that Trouble can take his food and evict him from his space at will. He tries to mount a defense, but unlike the girls always looses to his older brother - for now.

I definitely think Heidi is preparing to bring those kits very soon. More on this in a minute.

Oh, tetleytuna, she is a cutie - and so much personality - it just comes right through the net.

Do you ever think that sometimes we (humans) invest a lot of energy in our efforts to devise solutions to problems that don't require our attention at all? Or maybe it's just me who does that sort of thing. As an engineer, problem solving is in my blood I guess. (Someday, I'll tell you about the time when I tried to help my surgery team solve a problem when they thought I was 'out'.) Meddling in this way just seems to come natural to me.

I guess I just think everyone and everything around me needs my help to solve life's little conundrums, like recently how I've been silently worrying about the fact that Heidi eats over in Juliet's old area instead of by the pool and have been secretly scheming to fix this problem before the little ones arrive on the scene. We do, after all, want the little ones to have an opportunity to play in the pool, right? Nor could I really understand what Heidi was thinking all these weeks as she 'humbly' gave up her spot by the pool any time that Trouble rushed over to take it. Didn't she realize that she needed to stay over there by the pool for the sake of the kits? Or was I expecting too much of her? And how the heck was I going to keep Trouble out of that spot and move Heidi back into it without frightening everybody away, especially considering that Trouble isn't particularly afraid of me? But wouldn't the problem be all the worse if I waited until the kits got here to try to 'fix' it? That would lead to even greater pandemonium at the buffet. What to do, what to do? (This wasn't covered in engineering school.)

...and then tonight I went out to see Ms Heidi take command as only she can, whip everybody into shape, take back the spot by the pool, defend it vigorously and even mark off a 15ft perimeter around her into which no one was permitted - period. Suddenly, Trouble was turned around before he got within 10ft of her spot as was everyone else, chased out of her 'circle' and told in no uncertain terms to stay out. It was something to behold - how Heidi in just a few minutes solved that problem over which I had racked my brain for weeks. She hadn't required my help with that issue at all. She did know what she was doing all along, and she had things quite well under control. She was still the master of her domain, the Queen of her territory.

As is their way, avoiding confrontation, Heidi had readily relinquished that spot to Trouble all those weeks when it didn't matter if she ate there or somewhere else. Now she is planning to bring those kits to the buffet. Now it does matter. So today she announced to everyone "New Rules!" No one is permitted within a wide area around that dish or that pool.

I had gone out late (as in not before dark), having napped a bit after work, so everyone was there waiting just over the fence. I usually try to give Heidi a bit more food in her dish, since she's feeding a family. In the dark it isn't always easy to tell how much I'm putting where, so I gave her a bit more than I had planned and found it difficult to stretch what was left to cover the remaining dishes. Normally, though, this would not be a problem as Heidi would eat her fill and then leave, and the others would share the food she left behind.

Tonight, however, Heidi seemed to be taking her sweet time lingering over that dish while the others fought and scrapped over the rapidly dwindling food elsewhere. I was sitting about 12ft or so from Heidi. As usual I had put a bit of food in a dish beside my chair (about 2ft away, not super close) for Dennis or whoever. Cissy had come over there to eat, and I had given her a piece of buttered toast which she seemed to enjoy immensely. Now I know Heidi quite well enough to know that she did not want any toast, but as I tossed the 2nd piece of toast to Cissy, Heidi had apparently had enough of that. She came over, attacked and evicted Cissy, and then walked right up to me and smelled my shoe.

At 1st I didn't know what to think. Heidi never, ever comes over to me like that (except right before she brought the 07 kits). She stood there right in front of me for a minute or so just looking at me. What did she want? I was happy to be getting this attention from her, but I didn't know how to react. Even knowing that she never eats treats, I offered her a pb dog candy which she promptly rejected. Then she started eating from the dish beside me, the one she had taken from Cissy moments before. Well, that didn't seem like a smart move. That dish had but a scant handful of food in it where as the dish she had left behind was almost full, but none the less, she stood there eating beside me, and me not knowing quite what to do (there i go again, as though I needed to do anything).

I had feared that one of the many other raccoons who had all night been playing musical chairs with the few remaining dishes would surely take that most coveted full dish that Heidi had left behind - but even as shrieks and growls and snarls continued to emanate from the res to of the group as they argued over the ever dwindling assets, no one dared step foot into the now sacred perimeter around the pool. A few minutes later, Heidi returned to her dish. While she had been eating beside me, BTW, she had clearly marked 'me' as part of her new territory, refusing even to permit Cissy to approach the other side of my chair. I had the very definite impression that I was one of the assets she was claiming for her new kits: the pool, the dish beside it which everyone knows gets the most food, the play area around the pool, and me. We were all her belongings now.

She seemed especially determined to keep females away from me. I figure she knows I bring the food and the treats. She may not care so much for the grapes and such, but her kits will. I gather she sees other females as special threats as they may bring kits of their own to the buffet, and Heidi doesn't plan to have her kits share the wealth with any others. Even when she had returned to her original position over by the pool she continued to sound that deep, throaty "Huuuuuu! to anyone who ventured within a couple of feet of my bench, and you can bet that upon hearing that sound they all turned around promptly.

As the night wore on it became increasingly obvious that Heidi was no longer hungry, was in fact quite stuffed to the gills as she stood there popping the occasional nugget into her mouth much like an aristocrat eating bon bons, yet still quite unwilling to relinquish that food to the host of hungry 'jackals pacing about the invisible barrier surrounding her zone. She spent ever more time sipping water from the pool and even just standing guard over her dish toying with the food in a manner reminiscent of the hours I myself spent sitting over many a dish of green peas in my childhood (green peas must be universally hated by everyone under 13). Yet she would not leave. I began to realize that, tonight, as part of the New Rules Heidi was reluctant to have the others eat from her dish and in her newly defined territory even after she left. Perhaps she didn't want them hanging around (like they were doing tonight) waiting for her (and the kits) to leave in the future as that would make her and the kits uncomfortable. Better not to reward the others for pacing around the area by leaving them this 1/2 dish of food on her departure.

By the time that HRH arrived, almost all of the food had been eaten and Heidi was just toying with what remained of hers. One could see that the big guy was hungry as he even came over to me a time or 2 to see if I might give him something, but I had long since given everything out. He leaned waaaay in one time to sniff the air around my shoe, still seeking food. He paced the area, went to every feeding spot only to find them all empty except for the one where Blondie was munching eating the last handful of food. And all that time, there was Heidi standing over a bowl of food she clearly had long since lost interest in. Anyone could see she didn't want that food. I could see it, and so could HRH, but she just wouldn't go. Finally, HRH started to move in slowly inching a little closer to her but all the while careful to look disinterested, as though he just happened to be there for some other reason, a drink of water perhaps...and then, when he got close enough, maybe 4ft away, with his body aimed away from her, looking elsewhere, totally not paying her and her food any attention, just looking off into space - zoom - he made a quick dash for it, slid into to home plate right beside the dish bouncing her gently out of the way.

For an instant Heidi, now a foot or more away, turned back as if to fight him for it and then apparently realizing that food she couldn't eat wasn't worth the brawl, turned and left the yard.

All in all, I suspect that it won't be long now.

HRH may be getting up there in years, but he is still one smooth operator isn't he? Quite the guy. Now if they only made that model in bipeds we would certainly have something -----

LOL, tetleytuna, isn't that the truth! (I think they do make that model, but they are very rare and hard to find, sometimes difficult to appreciate at 1st, and often already claimed)

BTW, I'm trying (for the 3rd time: different computer, different OS, different file type, different site) to upload that video fo HRH eating the peep. Everybody, cross your fingers.

Arg! My upload attempt timed out - again! Not sure what the problem is. It's a rather long file relative to the others I've uploaded. I wonder if it may be too large, may exceed size limits. Major frustration. I was so excited to get footage of the king eating a peep. : (

Still trying...

Maturity and experience are wonderful, aren't they? What a great story of the two "royals" doing what they do best, managing the situation and everyone in it without the need to ever resort to violence. Really slick move on HRH's part; and I'm quite sure he is the only one who could've gotten away with it.

I figured you were already aware of the need to establish some distance with Dennis, and it sounds like you're handling it admirably. And I didn't mean to suggest that you should've tried to reclaim the grapes once the bag broke: no no no. Competing with them for food would never ever be a good idea. I know it's hard to work at establishing distance when the closeness you had in their first year was so welcome and truly remarkable. But it's also true that you're getting closer to them as babies every year: for example, your relationship with baby Dennis versus baby Trouble. That speaks volumes on the trust you've built with Heidi, that she will allow you to interact so closely with the kits; not to mention that she's claiming you as her own personal resource (lol). If she is claiming the area near you as part of her own very exclusive territory, clearly she plans for the kits to be comfortable there.

that's too bad, I wanted to see the king eating a peep too.

=^..^=

About that video, I determined that it's > 3x the max for utube standard upload but also found that they have a downloadable installer for multiple files and larger files. Per the info given, that should (fingers crossed, fingers crossed) fix the problem. Am trying AGAIN for the 5th time now. ARG!

Wow, kudos for persistence: after two or three tries on something like that, my blood pressure hits slow boil and I give up. Hope it works this time!

Wow, Ruth,

I hadn't thought of that - that by claiming me and the area around me, Heidi is pretty much indicating that she expects the kits to be around me. Cool! Incidentally, tonight when I headed out with the food Widget slipped through the door again. As i really didn't want him out there chasing raccoons, I went out fussing at him, speaking in a harsh tone, etc. About that time as I was trying to gather Widget, Heidi stepped out from behind a shrub seemingly undaunted by my negative tone. I thought that was another positive indication of our progress. I've always been very careful to only speak in calm, positive tones around Heidi. In the not so distant past even if I sneezed or coughed (allergies), I would have to fight to squeak out a quick, "It's ok" in between coughs or bouts of sneezing as Heidi and the others would be looking at me and poised to run, apparently thinking those sounds might be warnings or threats of some kind. Thankfully, they have now learned otherwise, as it was touch and go there for a while during allergy season - which around here is almost always. I was quite amazed to see Heidi walking around nonchalantly while I was intentionally issuing threatening sounds to let Widget know that he was being 'Bad' and needed to follow commands.

Even though I already realized the need to get a little distance from Dennis, it never hurts to hear it again. One can never be too careful. Thanks for helping to keep me straight.

I just wasn't sure if it was clear that in this particular case I didn't have a chance to take the bag in side. As for taking the food back, actually, I've already done that many times. The others naturally move away from me anytime i move in their direction. Even those that will come to me, will move away if I reach in their direction or move toward them. Dennis often won't move away unless I move and speak in a manner that indicates that he should do so. None of them ever behave in a threatening manner if I take the food. It's not something I do often but have once or twice taken a dish from say Trouble to give it back to who ever he took it from (I don't even bother anymore, but did a time or 2 in the beginning). They never act aggressive over the food with me. With Dennis I've been reaching in to the dish since he was a baby, so he doesn't seem to mind at all. Again, it's not something I do often but I have taken food from his dish to toss to one of the others if he has plenty and they are out. I've also taken food from his dish to put in the box for him to play with and a few times when I gave him an egg or he inherited one from Heidi I went over to pick it up, chip it, and put it back because after a few half-hearted attempts at playing football with an unchipped egg, Dennis will give up - I'm afraid I've conditioned him to think that all eggs will come pre-chipped. He may have a rude awakening in store someday. Anyhow, I wish you could see but he/they are totally ok with me touching the food.

Sometimes, I guess when they really want to be sure they can keep something, they will just run off to one side with it - like the other day when Cissy stole my food box and ran away with it to eat the food I had put in there for Dennis. But Dennis never runs off with his food. He just doesn't seem to care, maybe because he grew up so close around me that having me handle his food seems normal to him. He actually acts like it's a good thing, believe it or not, when I reach into his area. I think it's because rather than associating it with food being taken away, he associates me reaching in with me giving him treats.

Must admit that I've given up several times already. Several of the attempts were early in the week, and was tempted to give up again for the night, but thankfully kept at it. The upload tool that I installed says that 3 of the videos including "Cissy Eats a Peep" have successfully uploaded. Yay! (I think. will feel better when I see it up there.)

I was just so crushed to think that after having had the good fortune to get such coveted video as that of HRH and Cissy eating peeps in the daylight, something that won't happen often, that I might not be able to show it to you guys due to the size of the videos. Apparently, it takes a while to eat a peep correctly.

Sometimes, yet another characteristic from my engineer side, I will get so determined to do something that I will move all manner of outrageous obstacles to make it happen, and with respect to the videos I was actually thinking, "Don't tell me I'll have to set up my own server just to host and stream those videos!" (lol, like i have time.)

It says it's about 40% through with the really big Heidi video. One day I recorded my entire 'session' with Heidi. It's not particularly action packed. Many of you, perhaps all of you, may choose not to watch it in its entirety. I figured since they only seem to venture out in daylight for a brief time each year that I would take advantage of that nice sunny day to record for you exactly what I see - the whole enchilada. If you choose to watch it, it's shot as though you were me just sitting there watching Heidi eat...and eat and eat. Warning, however, if it does manage to load successfully, it is just under 1G, the max allowed even with the downloader, so you may fall asleep during the 'movie'.

OK, I am righteously impressed that you're able to handle their food while they're actively eating: especially in the case of Trouble, who's now a mature fellow. They definitely regard you as a source of special things to have that much trust in you. I remember the days when a cough or sneeze from you would alarm the troops; it's remarkable that their comfort level has reached the point where scolding Widget isn't a red flag.

I do understand being goal-oriented and truly determined to accomplish something, like posting the video: as a Taurus, that sort of defines my character, even if it sometimes comes across more bull in china shop than bull in pursuit of goal. But technical stuff tends to defeat me when it just won't work the way it's supposed to: I reach a point where the choices are to put my foot through the hard drive or quit. Having just had to replace a computer that had outlived its useful lifespan, I opt to quit; can't afford another one (lol).

Yay! Here are the latest videos! (and it only took me 4 days to upload them.lol)

HRH Eats a Peep (actually he and Cissy both are on this one): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6UaiUTJn9A8

Prologue: Unfortunately, he didn't show up that day until almost dark and it was cloudy as well so you can't see his golden coat. Hopefully, I'll get another opportunity to record him on a brighter day and earlier. And, he's eating from a bucket which obscures his face, but what can i say? I have to work with what I have.

HRH eats cat food: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bVyzmMQVrNA

Cissy Eats a Peep: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PWPOJ1DL2bo
(Take the food and run example)

This is an older one from spring 07.Juliet eating cherries in pool: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nGaWSOfybn8
('reprinted' for those who may not have seen it)

Heidi Eating Cat Food:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AivLxU6IVnw

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pj51yQhAiIU
(kind of long. ends when some tweens go by out front making noise - just normal fun stuff but scares her)

Another repeat from last year. This is Heidi demonstrating the proper way to eat a raw egg: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Aqh0kpA8bnM

The videos are great, Cheryl: thanks! Man, those peeps don't last long, do they? But they surely are enjoyed. Love the one of Heidi with the egg; it's hard to explain to people how they do that, but the pictures say it all. HRH is as handsome as in still photos, and he sure does dive on those treats.

Cheryl, the videos are too neat, thanks for sharing! :) Those peeps must be very popular!! LOL

LOL... How does it feel to know you've been claimed as terriorty. ^_^

You really gonna have your hands full when them kits show up. I wondering if you gonan need to add another kiddy swimming pool. Especially when it gets hot and if there more than one set of kits plus the regulars there gonna be a pool fight .

I wonder since your group has grown so large if it would help to put maybe a couple of them automatic dog feeders aroudn the yard so that some cna eat the dog and cat food, cuz you gonan go crazy tryign to pass out treats to everybody all at once if the gang all there.

I see you having to walk out with gunny sacks attached to your shoulders like them old planters wear and a back pack with woith treats , and cartoons of eggs in yoru hands ( remembering the pocket episode) and you coudl tie bunches of grapes to yoru shoe strings. As far as a camera goes you gonan need to stap that to a hard hat and walk aroudn with a clicker attached to your thumb.

Very interesting to watch and see the techniques they use to eat!

Thanks Ruth, doccat, starlight, and nanny

I guess they came out a bit darker than I thought, except for the ones of Heidi. I also found out today that they seem even darker when viewed on my other laptop. And you definitely don't want to try to watch them on the full screen setting. Oh, well, I tried. Guess for decent video I'll need to get a camcorder. Even that won't be able to take pics in the dark though. Wouldn't it really be nice to see video of the kits? Don't know how I could do that though, unless Heidi brings them out in daylight which seems unlikely.

Thanks, again. I guess today when I viewed them online I was a bit let down, but I tried.

starlight,

LOL, at that image!!!

Actually, I believe that Heidi is handling crowd control and managing population growth for me. If you notice you don't hear the names of most of the adults from last year lately. It looks to me as though she is sending the ones that aren't hers off soon after they mature (yearlings) and letting her own kids stay at least for part of the 2nd season - so they can acquire more skills while helping her with the new litter and with chasing the others off, etc before bouncing them out of the area as well. As a result, it looks like the population stays roughly the same now year to year. At least, that's what I think is happening.

I've capped the daily cat/dog food to the size of my little box/canister to give my group some semblance of reality in hopes that the size of the local group will be constrained by the availability of food. Remember, I live in the city with neighbors close by on either side. Too many raccoons packed into too small an area would be bad for many reasons, not the least of which is the fact that too great a wildlife presence across the fence in my yard might prompt someone to call authorities - and put and end to the whole thing, and we don't want that. Last night when the raccoon were fighting over the remaining dishes, the neighbor on one side was out back. Their house wraps around their patio for privacy. They have a nice grill set up back there where they cook out virtually every night. When the weather is nice they also eat out there. And they have a very small child. All of those sounds (comes across much like cats fighting) just over the fence must be pretty scary to them wondering what's going on over there and whether they might be in danger. At one point last night I thought it sounded a bit like I might have a couple of cougars and a bob cat back there. Don't want to attract too much attention.

I have considered adding another pool, but don't know quite where I would put it. The other pg female: Blondie/Juliet, still not sure about the ID was back last night after a bit of a 'vacation'. It looks as though she has given birth now, too, and is also trying to mark off a space for her new arrivals. She normally eats at one of the 2 spaces in what once was Juliet's area (and may soon by dubbed, Blondie's area). The cat litter pan (bought for this purpose, never used for litter) of watter is in that area so it looks like she is trying to establish that as her space where her kids will have a tiny 'pool' and fresh drinking water as well as food. Now the big question is, where the heck to put everybody else. Heck, I even need to move Dennis' dish from beside my chair now that Heidi has claimed me as part of her territory. Can't have anyone eating over there when the new kits arrive. Looks like a need a bigger yard.

Oh, I'm kind of flattered to be claimed as part of Heidi's territory! ;-)

Cheryl ... i viewed a few of the videos.. and they looked fine to me. though i have a very small screen. think it's a 12"
[Dell latitude X1]

I'll watch them all when i get home. as i mentioned last year... when i'm up in Wisc, on Wireless, i dont post much or view much .... but always reading.

Terese

Terese,

Thanks for taking time (while away in Wisc) to let me know. (And thanks again to all who complimented the videos). I had been so excited about the opportunity to get and post videos of HRH and Cissy, esp eating the peeps, and was then a bit let down to see the quality once I viewed them online. The clips always look better when viewed locally than via the net. Even though you guys have seen numerous still shots I thought the video clips would provide additional info as to the personalities of the individuals.

Thanks again. Glad you got your purse back and all is well with it.