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Post by thinker on Nov 2, 2006 11:22:22 GMT -5
Crow is here, swallowing four peanuts at a time and telling me to write this - that it is important. I wrote it before and deleted, thinking it was not appropriate here. But she tells me differently.
She is special, speaking loudly and often. She is as disgusted with the majority of mankind as we are.
You see, she, her husband and another "married" couple were in the trees one day, singing in unison. Then I heard the shot. The shaved-head, redneck neighbor kid put her husband's life to an end in the blink of an eye.
The 3 flew off with a mighty clamor or rage and panic. I ran into the alley and picked him up, but he was shot in the heart, very dead. Already, there was a hawk hovering and I literally fought him off to take Mr. Crow. I knew I would need proof for what I was about to do.
First, I went to this monster's house, asking if his parents were there. No, and I screamed, "Give me the gun!!" in such a rage I guess I freaked the kid out and he gave it to me. I rangled with his father when he came to retrieve it.
I called authorities, beat on doors. This "child" could be the predecessor to a serial killer - he fishes by SHOOTING the fish from the water. His favorite hobby seems to be killing. My husband has caught him shooting at cardinals and mockingbirds. And he was taught by Dad, so between influence and genetics, he is a sad soul. In the days to come, I made sure that every authority paid Goomer Bob and his dad a visit.
Crow Widow and her friends watched me retrieve the bird and the gun. They heard my wails and undoubtedly felt my horror and grief. Crows are the very hardest to train for they are the smartest. The time I spent volunteering in the animal rehab center taught me much - honed my communication skills. In my part of the country, a favorite pastime is going onto the lake (a hole dug and filled with water) and beating pelicans over the heads with oars, leaving them to suffer.
Are you starting to imagine just how ecstatic I am to be here with you guys? I live here on purpose - I know. Most enlightened move from here to be with like kind, but I remain behind, able to impart wisdom and knowledge covertly to the braindead. Sometimes they wake up, although I never have expectation for anything. I am truly the Stranger in a Strange Land but it's my "job."
One day, there was incredible ruckus in the trees - the sound of many crows - and not the call for peanuts. Such a clamor, but a happy one!! I knew they were calling me, so I stepped outside, recognizing immediately what they were here for. She found a new mate, apparently, and they were all here to tell me, to alleviate my lingering grief over what I had witnessed. They were singing with such joy it brought warmth to my entire body. I'll bet it even changed my aura for a little while. She was so very happy.
They made sure I knew what was going on and then flew away in delight. A few moments later, I heard the gunshot in the distance. One crow was down, 3 left. She became a widow once again. Her cries of agony haunt me. I weep as I write this. It is the animals and children I grieve for the most in this surreal time.
She is alone now, sometimes coming with her other 2 friends, but mostly it's just the two of us.
So know that when I write about Crow, I write about a special bond. She flies over daily, on her way to forage, and she ALWAYS speaks. Sometimes she joins the white dove that watches over my house, sitting and circling it from time to time as if to chase the evil ones away.
I don't need Morse Code to speak with Crow. I need it to speak with Goomer Bobs whom I will never understand, and whom I try not to have ill feelings for. I'm still working on that part. We are overrun with Goomers and I am so very, very pleased to be here with you all.
And since then I found 12 dead starlings in the alley in one week. The kid is pure evil but now he's got a shiny pickup truck and he's society's problem, not just mine and Crow's.
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Post by sickandtired on Nov 2, 2006 11:34:02 GMT -5
Thinker......that was sooooo SAD.....my heart aches for the animals why??? are so few it seems to me in touch with these precious ones....they have more HEART than most.....I too feel so connected to the animals is it Morgellons that awakens this inside of us.....I don't know
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Post by thinker on Nov 2, 2006 15:02:19 GMT -5
Crow was here again. This time it was anxious caws of danger!! Danger!!
Looking outside, I saw a cat stalking - closing in on an unwitting young sparrow. Of course, I chased it away and gave Crow peanuts. I love Crow, and I promise I'll stop talking about her.
But, if you want to start listening, begin with blue jays. They are the great communicators and will train you well. If you ever are outside and hear a microwave beep or the ring of a phone coming from the trees - you are not crazy. It's the mimicking jays who've been exposed to those sounds.
They warn everyone of incoming predators and weep hysterically when one a chick is abducted. They beat on Crow with their wings, greedy for peanuts.
I thought I'd taught the mockingbird to say, "Birdy, birdy, birdy," but while at a friend's country estate, I astonishingly realized hers said it, too. We all had a good laugh.
Our mockingbird also mimics the neighbor's car alarm very well - in mating season - all night long. How annoying is that?
The real car alarm goes off repeatedly because the new neighbor is clueless (one of about 30 that live in that house), speaks no English and doesn't want to, has no driver's license, apparently has never driven before, but he's got a cell phone and a shiny new king-cab pickup that he spends a lot of time running down the sidewalk in, on his way to the job that others would like to have - at a decent wage, or on his way home at 3 a.m., obviously very inebriated.
How can this be? Please refer to the Fenced IN? post.
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Post by sickandtired on Nov 5, 2006 12:13:20 GMT -5
My husband feeds the birds and is dedicated to doing so.....we have many beautiful birds that stop by for a visit....it is like a aviary in reverse they are free and we are on the inside looking out from our bay window area to their feeding station.....
a huge family of Stellar Jays that visit every day....when a Hawk or bird of prey like our Raven's (always see Raven in pairs.....talking and cakkling to each other) the Stellar Jays start sqwalking making quite a ruckous really
we collect their little treats they leave behind for us - their beautiful feathers.....one day I will be inspired to use those feathers in one of my craft projects....
Here's to our feathered friends.....
SickandTired
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Post by whiterose on Nov 14, 2006 18:18:21 GMT -5
It has been longer than a week that I have had a very upset crow outside. Every morning when I walk outside he has been desperately trying make me understand what is happening. If he is there again in the morning, I'll go feed him and visit awhile.
whiterose
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Post by thinker on Nov 14, 2006 21:44:49 GMT -5
Mine like raw peanuts in the shell. What on earth do they do in snow? Nature amazes me, for sure.
A couple of days ago, there was a blue jay in my yard that was imitating a barking dog. How fun!
I thought for sure it was a jay but I had to look because the imitation was really good.
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Post by skytroll on Nov 14, 2006 23:29:27 GMT -5
Oh my, I am missing something here. I had a whole flock of them. And I think one crapped on my coat, but, I never realized they were talking to me. I talk to the squirrels, but never thought of talking to the crows.
In Michigan, they tell us if we find dead crows, or blackbirds to bring them into DNR for testing for West Nile Virus. I wonder how they are effected by this, but other smaller birds are not.
Haven't found dead ones, am so glad.
But, o my goodness, I will be more nature prone now. thank you for that. I will let you know if they come around during the snow months.
Red squirrels have been real friendly lately, many have died here of squirrel pox. I had one frozen, seem paralyzed in my garage, and had to have him taken out. It was awful. I felt so bad for them. The ones I see now are loading up for the winter, and getting fat. I now see more black and gray squirrels, the red ones are numbered, I guess.
But, I will talk to the animals more, my daughter is known as "Mrs. Doolittle" she keeps taking in cats and dogs. One cat got bit by something, had one operation, and then had obstruction and another operation, and is doing fine now. Keeping her indoors is hard, she loves outside, but keeps getting in trouble.
We had squirrels here that were walking into Lake Michigan and drowning a while back. It was as if they were being led to the water. These also were red squirrels. It seems they were targeted because they originally were immigrants from Europe. So, the genetic powers that be, made sure they disappear. Same as with mute swans. They are considered "exotic" and do not belong here. What a racket......
skytroll
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Post by thinker on Nov 14, 2006 23:53:13 GMT -5
Skytroll, you are so funny. I'm sorry about your coat. They're really messy.
Our squirrels (all named Earl) have become very friendly, too.
The starlings that we have were brought from Europe - only 100 to start with, so I hear. But now they are horrible pests in many ways and are considered to have upset the eco balance. I still love them anyway.
Imagine being concerned about upsetting the eco balance - ROTF.
As far as your daughter, please be careful. For my birthday last year, I got a really really cool dog from the city shelter. Barkley. Got him late Fri. afternoon. He had vet appt. for Mon. a.m.
In the meantime, he fell ill. Three days and $400 later, my beloved dog died - from parvo. I never knew about parvo before - just that the dogs get vaccinated for it. Allow me, in case anyone here is unfamiliar with parvo ...
It is a canine virus that is very serious - mostly fatal. It affects their stomach lining.
It gets worse, though. Parvo is highly contagious to other dogs. If you get parvo on your auto tires, you can literally transfer it and infect other places - from your tires!!
I cannot get another dog for 2 years - it takes that long for the virus to go away. If you Clorox your yard, you might get by in a year, but the new dog will have to get all kinds of shots and I can't see putting a new dog through that.
I had to clean everything in the house and pray my vaccinated animals were OK. Seems like I've been doing a lot of cleaning lately!!
Coming soon ... thinker's story of the baby sparrows and Murphy the baby dove.
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Post by thinker on Nov 15, 2006 13:13:39 GMT -5
The Baby Sparrows - for Skytroll
In the spring, babies pop out of shells everywhere. Some are on the ground, having gotten a little too eager to leave the nest.
I watch for predators like cats and hawks, as their parents swoop down to feed them, and as they loudly warn the babies when I near their bushy hiding spots.
One night I scooped up three babies, safely tucking them into a cage, feeding them several times, covering them for beddy-bye.
In the morning, I fed them and placed the cage on a table in the back yard. I only do this if I can watch the cage - an unattended one could be total tragedy..
Their parents were soon hovering, chattering with them. In amazement, I watched the entire sparrow community become overseers. Everyone spoke to the babies, continually flying around them, chirping wildly.
Next, I saw the parents cautiously walk across the table, up to the cage, and stick food through the bars, stuffing into the baby's throat. Wow!! Wow!! Both mom and dad arrived every few minutes with more food until each baby was full.
It was apparent two birds were from one family and one bird was from another, and the parents did not cross lines and feed each other's. The whole group was in protection mode, but only the designated parents did the feeding. I could almost hear everyone discussing the best way to get the babies out of captivity.
The cage is rectangular shaped with the door on the top of the cage. My rule is that when the baby is able to make it to the top perch near the door, then he's certainly good-to-go, so I keep the top door open.
But I did not expect to see what happened next.
Dad continued to feed his kids through the side of the cage. But mom!! Mom figured out she could go into the cage, testing it carefully before taking the plunge.
She began delivering food by entering into the cage, not only stuffing the baby full, but cuddling with him, speaking to him, nurturing him. She would stay minutes at a time and seemed to make so much difference to her child. Dad seemed rather oblivious with an attitude that you wouldn't ever catch him in that cage. (giggle)
I've always been awestruck at the tremendous work that birds do. Being a bird is not easy, even when thinker is there to provide food and water. I used to think they just sat in the trees and chirped all day. Not so at all. Our lives are much easier than theirs.
As the babies ate, they grew stronger (yes, in one day). The largest one made it to the top perch. I heard all of the chattering and looked out to see him hop out the door and from the cage top, launch feebly into the air. It was awesome. The whole community was talking about it, carefully watching, still in protection mode.
The baby joined the adults and continually spoke to his ex-cagemates. There was a flurry of activity and noise that afternoon. In about an hour, the second bird launched, to the cheery congratulations of the whole gang.
But the last little bird was rather frail, younger and thinner. He barely made it to the middle perch, looking up to what must have seemed a mile-away cage door. He wanted so badly to follow the others and verbalized it loudly.
Suddenly, all of the birds began flying by the cage, one at a time, as if lined up and waiting for their turn. They dove toward the cage, flew around it, by it, performing all kinds of aerial feats. They talked constantly to the baby. After one flew by, another would come, repeatedly.
It was at that point I realized they were teaching the bird how to fly, just as we learn to walk. They were putting on quite an exhibition - a feathered air show with incessant chatter.
More feeding and nurturing, more demos, more communication. Everyone was pitching in to teach the little one. Dad was still sticking food through the bars, mom still going into the cage. (giggle, again)
The little bird watched intently. He learned rapidly and with all his might he made it to the top perch. I got misty-eyed when he finally made it out. When he did, the entire community made such a clamor - a congratulatory, jubilant clamor...just awesome. Such a flurry of feathers!
I said a little prayer giving thanks for allowing me to have this experience. These guys constantly teach me and I am constantly in awe. I'm glad I didn't have to keep him another night.
I do not condone capturing and caging birds. I only do it if they need help. Babies develop much faster when hiding in the bushes. The parents always know where they are and will defend them (or at least try) if danger approaches.
But night time is different, and I know how many cats prowl through here at night, so I always keep some baby bird formula and an eyedropper on hand for those special occasions.
These kinds of gifts, of blessings, are all around us if we just accept them.
Skytroll, thanks to you, I'm going to start working with the squirrels. Till now, we just enjoyed watching and feeding them. I love it when they verbally reprimand Crow for taking peanuts, and Crow talks back, just before snatching the nut and flying off, laughing all the way.
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tiger
New Member
Posts: 16
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Post by tiger on Nov 16, 2006 13:02:09 GMT -5
Does anyone here ever seen a 3 feets tall crow!? Its amazing how much these little bird can grow!!!
Ten years ago, I was 10 years old kid playing outside with my baby labrador dog. I was front of my house playing alone when I heard my dog barking. I runned in the back of my courtyard , what I seen its 2 big crows trying to catch my dog in the back like an eagle and the second crow was distracting my dog front like a wolf pack. I charged the 2 crows with my baseball bat and they flew off.
Tiger
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