Soft and Huggy

You know, sometimes the world seems like a pretty mean place. That's why animals are so soft and huggy.

~Bill Waterson - Calvin & Hobbes

As promised in my last post, below are just a few of them many creatures which have crossed my path in one way or another over the past few months.


I was really MOOtivated to get them posted for you. I saw this lovely beast when I was out driving, one afternoon. The farmer to whom it belonged seemed a bit alarmed to see a crazy woman stop the car to photograph his cattle.






This one goes back to March when I met up with a woman whom I hoped would be making curtains for our new addition. On my way back home, I saw this little guy taking his time, moving on up the road with his small tree branch. He was taking the scenic route, as the sign says.






The beaver eventually waddled over the the left and climbed up the snowbank, leaving his prize behind. Most evenings, we see one or two of them in our lake, depleting our neighbour's brush pile, one stick at a time.






Closer to home, we have Rufus.. or Rufette. Cute as a button and bold as brass. Gotta love red squirrels (even though I know some of you don't).






This was one of the last times we saw deer in our yard. He was checking out our garden. He must have been disappointed with its lack of growth which is probably just as well. They'll be back after hunting season in the fall. I hope.






This Northern Flicker was new to me. Frank had seen them before but I had not. He reminds me of a confused woodpecker, as he spends his time pecking for ants in the ground instead of trees.






Here's a woodpecker that understands what he has to do. It's a Yellow-bellied Sapsucker. Handsome little guy.






Our feeders attract a number of birds. Among them these darling Red-breasted Nuthatches.






Funny little acrobats.






This little cutie was a bit of a surprise. Frank's son Francis was visiting us and he saw him feeding on the deck railing. He was confused as to what he was. Frank had spent some evenings sitting out there in the dark and assumed it was Rufus getting a midnight snack. Now that the light was on him, it was clear to see that he wasn't one of our usual visitors. Those big black eyes (which I tried to return to their original state as best I could with Photoshop, after they were reddened and washed right out from the flash) gave him away. Frank correctly identified our nocturnal visitor as a flying squirrel. He was unconcerned about our presence, the light, the camera and our chatter. Of course, he felt otherwise about Benny who eventually scared him off.






Last but not least, my own handsome guys who turn 15 this month. Here, they were practising hard at being bookends.

That's it for now. I should have some more photos coming up soon.

Happy Mother's Day to all the Moms!