Heidi Chronicles: Got Milk?

This is the ongoing story of Heidi and friends, raccoons who visit my backyard wildlife buffet. It's spring now and things are heating up at the buffet. Many of the ladies are thickening around the middle, and it appears that Heidi has had her 09 kits already.

Prior thread: http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/t/952122/
Original thread that started it all: http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/t/603944

Below is a pic of Ursula as she takes a break from drinking fresh, raw milk to pose for her cover shot. Unusual face shape and coloring, don't you think? Ursula is always easy to spot in any crowd - at least until she gives us a bunch of little Ursul-ettes.

Goodness, Ursula is very different in appearance.

A friend brought me a gallon of raw, whole cow's milk straight from the cow, a Jersey cow even. Jersey milk is especially high in butter fat and has a very rich flavor. It did taste amazingly rich. Since I don't really drink milk as a beverage, I donated most of the milk to my furry friends. As the milk was not homogenized (or, for that matter, Pasteurized), it has to be shaken before each use to distribute the cream/milk fat.

In the photo Ursula can be seen with the dish of milk. Check out her white feet and you will see how rich this milk is. I figured it would do be good for the mother's to be.

Hi Sharran,

She really is. Her ears are smaller and seem to lay back on her head more. Her face (in profile) is flat where the others are more dish shaped or concave. And she has almost no mask when viewed from any distance as the size and color of her mask are such as to blend with her coat. To be honest, I used to think she was very homely, but she is growing on me and lately I've begun to be able to see her own unique beauty.

When Ursula eats, each time she chews she wrinkles her nose up in a manner that make it quite literally difficult for me to avoid bursting out in laughter. It's just so comical, not ugly, just comical - and she does it over and over and over every time she chews anything.

Some other photos from tonight. I poured 2 bowls of milk. I filled Heidi's dish - and then learned to late that it had a leak, but her children were happy too help her save the milk both from the dish and the ground. I filled this smaller dish to the top, and over the course of the night the youngsters took turns emptying it. Again, check out those white hands. Raccoons eat with their hands, you know. I can't imagine that grocery store milk would stick to their paws that way.

edited to fix a typo and to say that this is one of the youngsters.

This message was edited Mar 1, 2009 6:40 PM

Licking the paws.

Edited to add that this is the some youngster pictured above.

This message was edited Mar 1, 2009 6:41 PM

That is just too neat. I would think they would turn the container over. And I love when you describe the soft touch of their hands on yours, or on your leg.

Ursula again

Sharran,

You know, I thought the very same thing. The 1st time I wanted to give Heidi something liquid, don't recall if it was nectar or milk, I was trying to figure out how to keep her from turning the dish over and spilling it before she could drink it. All I had on hand, though, was a plastic dish, so I gave it to her expecting the worst. That was one of the many, many times when I was reminded of how much I underestimate them.

Raccoons are much smarter than that - except, for some reason, when it comes to water which they will spill in a minute, but with 'food' they know to keep it upright. It's the same with eggs. I figured they would loose 1/2 of the raw eggs when they cracked them, but an experienced raccoon like Heidi can roll a raw egg around in the pool for a while and then, while still in the pool of water, make a small hole in the 'top' of the egg and such all of its contents out without loosing a drop.

Interesting you should mention their velvety soft hands. I was just about to post this close up of Ursula's paw. It's covered in milk, but you can see the inside of the 'hand' somewhat. Notice, also, her smallish and oddly shaped ears.

Ursula was the star of tonight's pics mostly because it wasn't until I had finished with the feeding rush that I remembered I had the camera with me. That's about the same time that Ursula showed up and the others were leaving.

yep, that's right. Ursula, again

Yep, Ursula. See those chalk white hands? This is where she took the grape out of the milk.

She is a dainty little thing...I wish I could see them. We had that little family that lived in the empty house behind us a few years ago, and when they ran down my yard, then climbed the apple tree, I watched them for a long time. I blend in with my yard, and critters never seem to be afraid of my, but I didn't get too close since they were having such a good time climbing the tree and eating the apples. I did get some good photos, but not with a digital and I don't have a scanner. So I live vicariously through yours.

The hands look like velvet...well covered with milk, but I wonder if you could get a shot of them when they are reaching up to you, or taking something from your hand. For your files, and for future books that I am sure you will publish, then you need that kind of shot.

So beautiful. And I am so glad you are sharing them.

While it's still 'the Ursula Hour' here she is eating a peanut

Thanks, Sharran,

I'll see what I can do. That's a very good idea. As for 'your' raccoon family, perhaps they will be back again in summer.

One of the youngsters. I call this one "OMG, What Do You Mean We Are Out of Marshmallows?!"

Here is one of the youngsters licking the empty milk container.

edited to fix a typo.

This message was edited Mar 1, 2009 6:42 PM

licking the empty syrup bottle.

edited to add that this is one of the youngsters.

This message was edited Mar 1, 2009 6:43 PM

Sharran, Cheryl is exactly right about the soft velvet feel of a raccoon's paw. Imagine the pad on a cat's foot, especially where they don't touch the ground; the raccoon's entire paw has that smooth buttery soft feel. Their paws are incredibly sensitive, and they learn more than we can imagine by palpating food and other items with their paws; I always figure it's an incredible compliment when they use those paws to touch us, especially when they do so as consistently gently as they do with Cheryl. And then there's their manual dexterity. My favorite thing was to feed them a whole cantaloupe; they would lose their claws or teeth to make a very small round hole, and proceed to extract every last bit of the fruit through that hole, leaving a limp husk that looked like a volleyball with all the air gone. Of course their paws and face were a total mess when they were finished, but the melon was as neat as could be...

Cheryl, Dennis has really come a long way; her behavior is worlds better than when she was in the "jd" stage. Maybe maturity and motherhood have enabled her to get a grip on the ADHD; heaven knows wandering attention just doesn't work when you have kits to protect.

Great photos as always, Cheryl; sounds like the fresh milk was almost as big a hit as the syrup! [And certainly more nutrient-dense...]

Some of you have asked me to try to get photos of altercations. That's a tall order since most such disagreements are over in a flash - no pun intended. To make matters worse the flash series often breaks up the fight before the shutter closes.

Here Ursula and one of the kits are having a heated discussion over ownership of the milk. The flash caused Ursula to hesitate and back up a bit. (Hey, maybe I should use the camera to break up arguments.)

Hi spartacusaby,
I am just fascinated by what they eat....seemingly everything. One time when the kids were small we visited Mammoth Cave State Park and stayed in one of their rooms. At night, the raccoons would come to the sliding glass door, and stand watching until one of us would hand them something to eat. They provided entertainment for every minute we were there, but would not get close to us when we went outside. I think they were used to being fed by people, but were not comfortable getting too close. They were a bit like little tiny chubby people in their movements.

You know, it's a good thought to try the flash for breaking up spats. Of course the downside is making them uptight about being photographed. Something else to purchase and carry out to the diner: a battery-powered strobe light with superbright LED bulbs. Of course the neighbors may think the aliens are landing in your yard..... I still think you should try the supersoaker water guns for the spats; has a good chance of working and no chance of hurting anyone.

Absolutely, Sharran, they are true omnivores and will try anything at least once. In addition to the fruit, veggies and meat they find in the forest and at Cheryl's diner, they are also adept at catching small rodents, insects, grubs and the like, birds if they can catch them. And if all else fails, they'll eat carrion. I always say they have cast-iron digestive systems, and now you know why.

The lodging at the park sounds like great fun; a wildlife version of the B&Bs where you can request a cat to stay with you...

Hi Ruth,

Well, not exactly. I'm sure I would have gotten more takers on the milk if the bowl had been farther away from me, after all they did drink as much of the milk from Heidi's dish (and the ground) as they could salvage before it was gone. Anyhow, it's so difficult to throw milk, so the small bowl was at arms reach of my bench. Only a small number of the raccoons would come up close enough to drink the milk from it. They drank about 1/2 of it 'plain'. Then when they lost interest, I added the last few drops of syrup from the empty syrup bottle (which just happened to still be in my tote bag) to the milk. I figured the milk would be very good for them, and if a few drops of syrup would get them to drink it then it would be worth that little bit of sugar. That did the trick, well, except for the one smarty pants who intentionally turned the last bit of milk over to get at the syrup on the bottom of the bowl.

I still have about a quart of milk left for tomorrow. I gave Widget some, BTW, and he loved it. I'll have to take out another bowl for Heidi (w/o the hole).

See, here's the guy (or gal) who turned over the milk to get at the syrup. You can barely see the syrup on the bottom around the edge.

Ruth,

I am planning to take the soaker gun out this spring/summer but only for serious emergency use. Knowing Heidi, I'm pretty sure if I let loose with a big (and possibly noisy) water gun she would leave and fast.

The raccoons aren't afraid of the flashes. I think when they are arguing the flashes just distract them just enough to break their train of thought. Most of the time, that is enough to end the altercation. Apparently, that allows them to realize it wasn't that important - or gives them a much needed 'out'. Hmm, think I have a bright LED light around here somewhere. Might be worth a try.

One of the kits

and another

There was a pretty good crowd tonight including one that I thought might be Fraidy. She showed up at the end when there were only a few others around. She was smallish and a little thin, but her head and other features looked too mature for a kit. Her face was a bit long and resembled Fraidy's, but she didn't respond when I called her. I think this might be the one in question.

Here is Ursula licking her paws, but I think this might have been after I drizzled the last bit of syrup in the milk to get them to drink it.

Oh, okay, syrup milk: gotcha. No wonder it was such a hit. Glad I never thought of that when I was a kid; my mother would have killed me.

I suspect that if you're targeting the troublemakers with a supersoaker, Heidi will be quick to catch on. She might run the first time, but when she sees that it chases the "bad guys," she'll probably adapt to very quickly.

That looks like about all of the interesting pics. Had a nice night tonight. Took out a large bag of peanuts, a few lil debbie cakes, and a large cluster of grapes plus the milk. Dennis was there again briefly and was very sweet and well behaved.

This time when I went out to feed them and Dennis and Heidi were grumbling over whose dish it was, just as I stooped down to fill Heidi's dish, I quickly tossed a handful of food over by my bench for Dennis. That worked out great. Dennis was more than happy to go over there and eat, and Heidi stayed to wait for me to fill her dish.

While she was beside my bench, I gave Dennis some grapes and petted her. I ran stroked her back and sides repeadedly, and she stood there just as calmly as any pet. It was so nice to be able to do that again. Until her recent return, it had been a while since I had seen her and I had forgot how wonderful it felt to have such a close relationship with one of the raccoons and to be able to pet them and such.

For the most part, everybody got along pretty well tonight.

ROTF, Ruth!

The bottle was 'empty'. Really. I just held it up and waited for the last dribble or two to fall into the milk. And I didn't add the syrup until it was less than 1/2 full. Honest. ; )
Hey, I got them to drink their milk, didn't I? You've heard that 'spoon full of sugar' song, right?

I'm reluctant to do anything that might adversely effect Heidi's trust in me, but I will keep that in mind. If things get difficult out there, I might give it a try. Heidi is incredibly smart. She hasn't been letting Ursula eat with them lately (Ursula didn't show up tonight until long after Heidi had left). The last time Ursula tried the Steal to take Heidi's food, while Ursula was sitting on her food, I swear Heidi looked up at me as if to say, "Well, aren't you going to do something?"

I stood up and walked over there. This time everything worked as smooth as if we had trained for it. Ursula backed away as I approached and Heidi stayed right there. Heidi looked up at me - to make sure she had read the situation right I suppose. I spoke to her, and she moved back into her spot and started eating as I walked back over to my bench. I don't think we could have coordinated the moves any better if we had spoken the same language.

I didn't put any sugar in the peanuts. : )

As I've mentioned before, Heidi doesn't like to ruin her wholesome image by ingaging in such unladylike behavior as fighting at the dinner table. When someone annoys her at the buffet, she like to take the matter up with them later in the forest. Sometimes I hear her having these discussions with them when she leaves. Anyhow, I find it interesting that the last time Ursula tried to Steal her dish, which was probably a week ago, was the last time that Ursula showed up for dinner with the group. I've only seen Ursual twice since then, once after everyone had left and tonight when most of the others were gone and long after Heidi had left.

Incidentally, it has been quite a while since I last took the camera out and took photos, but you know what? I have no pain now, and that makes a lot of difference. With the pain, I end up doing the minimum to get by. Without it, I don't mind running upstairs to get the usb card reader and and the sim card. Makes a lot of difference in so many ways.

Oh, and while I'm OT, next week I'm going to school all week full time. I'm taking a post grad class. My classmates are Computer Science majors working on their PhD's. My degree(s) are in Electrical Engineering - and this is a computer science post grad class. Oh, and my classmates are sweating bullets about how difficult the class is going to be - and it's in their discipline not mine.

I think I'm supposed to be scared. I'm probably just crazy, but I'm looking forward to the class. I like school. That's what I say now, but I may be crying by mid week. We are going 8hrs a day for a week and will complete an entire course in that time. We have 3 textbooks. I've only received 2 of them so far, and they total a good 6in thick. We will have a test and h/w every day! My company is mortgaging the building, well close, for this class. It will be more than embarrasing if I fail - and the CS people, who are always trying to tell me that EE's are inferior, will never let me live it down. (We think they are inferior, too, BTW. LOL.)

Ok, enough with the OT stuff, just needed to share. I'm excited now but may well be crying by Tuesday.

Sounds like Ursula got a very effective talking-to from Heidi offstage; she's much easier to manage than Cruella, so hopefully that will solve the problem.

Nothing wrong with the "spoonful of sugar" approach; mothers have been using it forever with chocolate syrup to get kids to drink their milk. The nutrition in fresh milk is just too good to waste.

Sounds like you have the right mindset for your upcoming class. It's the folks who get all nervous about it who both do poorly and fail to absorb a lot of the material; if you think you can handle something, you almost always can. Good luck, and enjoy; I also always look forward to classes on subjects that really interest me.

Oh Cheryl Thanks so much for the pics. Such a great treat for us this morning. We like yoru coons looking at yorupaockets fo rtreats onyl we lookign for pics. : )

it snowign away out here and startign to accumulate on the ground, wonder if you gonan have a white winterland too.

Cool on the school. I knwo ya cna do it!!!!!!!!! You one smart lady. : ) Ya show them all. Hope you stay pain free for school too. That what I the most worried about. You'll ace the schoolwork, I just hoep yoru back adn hip holds up.

Ruth,

Actually, I don't believe that I have ever seen Ursula fight or even growl since Cruella left. Ursula even comes right up to me, and although I've been a little wary of her, she has always behaved with the best of manners around me. Her only vice seems to be stealing Heidi's dish - nonviolently, and she almost always targets Heidi for this although it might just be that I don't notice when she goes barging in on the others. Now that Heidi has 'switched' Ursula to the late schedule, it's working out better. If Ursula Steals the dish when Heidi's kits arrive, Heidi will be packing those kits up to go home.

Hope you are right about that school thing. I enjoy school and have always done well but wonder if I may be nieve about this one since the others have more schooling behind them than I do and they have the right schooling or prerequisites for this subject - but I remain optimistic.

starlight,

LOL at the analogy of you guys checking my pockets for photos.

Hope you enjoy the late snow - and that it will be too brief to be problematic. We are 'enjoying' a nice Tstorm instead. Too warm here for snow, in the 60's right now. We are under a strong Tstorm warning, a line of storms with 60mph winds, flash flooding, and large hail having been sited nearby and heading our way. Fingers crossed for a good outcome.

I checked the 10day outlook to see if we might have conditions ahead favoring snow, but we are looking for highs in the 60's with sunshine throughout the period after today. Night time lows will be hovering around 30 we could have nighttime snow (which would quickly melt at daybreak), except that the forcast is for 0% chance of rain throughout the 10 days - we are getting it all today.

Thanks for your confidence in me. I hope I can live up to it.