Terror from above

The week started off with a bang, or should we say a swoop. Gizmo, our male Chihuahua was in the backyard doing his business. Max the German Shepard was out there with him to supposedly ward off any sky born predators we have. Max began barking aggressively, and I went to check on them. Gizmo was not in the backyard. I went to the front where he is sometimes found running around if he finds a way out of the yard. He was on the porch at the door quivering. I noticed a spot on his side, and figured he had punctured his skin getting out of the fence.

Closer inspection would reveal a long tear in his skin. No large amount of blood loss, but a large long clean looking tear or cut. We rushed him to the Vet, had him sewn up and he was home the next day. We told the vet that the injury may have been caused by the top of the chain link fence. She asked if we lived in the city or county. She stated that it looked more like an injury from a large bird such as a hawk. We have plenty of those. There was a puncture to the flesh where the injury started, but just the slice or tear upwards from that. The vet thinks he was grabbed, but was too heavy to hold, and it ripped his first layer of skin from the super sharp talons of one foot of the hawk. That would explain why he came straight to the front porch and got close to the door, instead of running the yard exploring as he usually does. He’s doing fine now and on medication, if we can just keep him still, as he is straining the stitches.

Smitten with Kittens

The week would also discover a kitten in a non-operational pickup truck across the street that has lumber and parts in the bed. We have rescued it, and it is healthy and happy. The mother cat, had disappeared for two weeks, someone must have caught and carried her off, and she just returned after the recent storm. We then discovered another kitten. After checking with the neighbors of the area, we were told they had seen five kittens initially with the mother by a shed. They think a large owl that lives across the road may have carried off the other three, before they were moved by the mother to the bed of the truck, under the lumber.

“Midnight”, or Rottie mix has decided they need motherly love. She is actually producing milk like a false pregnancy. She sits at the puppy gate in the living room, and whines till we let her in for a moment to clean on them and roll them around with her big nose. Maybe she’s just checking to make sure they haven’t lost any parts. She hasn’t allowed them to nurse though.

Weather Rock Time

I’ve grown tired of the inaccurate forecast of the paid talking heads on the weather stations locally. After some joking on the general discussion forum, I decided to install my own Weather Rock. This is the resulting post on The Country Depot.

I’ve gotten tired of the forecasts by the paid Weather Guessers changing every few minutes to the hour. I think I can do as good as they do now days. So with that in mind, I have installed a micro mini Weather Rock here at home (The Country Depot Forum). We even have some fancy initials for it. TCDFWR.

Weather Rock (TCDFWR)
Manufactured by: Mother Nature.
Location: The Country Depot Forum  Millbrook, Al. USA
Over 1 million years of accurate service.
Dependable and weather resistant, will last a lifetime.
Various sizes available. This is the micro mini version. Larger one supported by twine or rope on order.
Easily replaceable.
Disclaimer: Although much more accurate for up-to-the-minute conditions than a paid “Weather Guesser”. The Weather Rock should not be relied upon for long range predictions.
Note: Accuracy based on location of installation and mounting methods.

Weather Rock Indicators as installed in this location.

Dry: No Rain
Wet: Heavy dew/light rain.
Dripping wet: moderate to heavy rain.
Sparkling appearance: Temp below 32F or frost
Soft white coating: Snow. (or bird droppings)
Repelling hard shiny objects from above: Hail.
Icy covering: Ice storm conditions.
Rock Movement Perceptible in any direction: Heavy winds
Rock Missing: Possible Tornado. Or as we call them, “Naders”.
Rock covered by house debris: Refer to “Naders” above.
Rock and mount missing: It’s all over.
Dark shade on rock/contrast with background: Clear Skies.
Rock changes from bright to dark: Partly cloudy.
Rock still dark 1 hour after sunrise: Very Cloudy/Overcast.

Manual tactile indicators
Rock Warm: Pleasant Temperatures
Rock Hot to touch: Hot as H**l
Rock very cold: Yea. It’s cold.
Rock melting: Global warming apocalypse?

So, how has your week been? Stay safe. Comments always welcome.