SHI BLOGS TOO

Cats

We have been getting prepared for our trip next month. Getting new summer clothes and arranging for our two kitties to be taken care of. Actually, they are both grown cats now. But, we call them our kitties or babies. Our babies are spoiled and they love us dearly. They are truly special felines. They love our attention and are very good companions to each other and us. At first we were going to kennel them down in Sedro Woolley during our trip...but then Ron changed his mind and asked the neighbor guy Larry if he would feed and water them while we are gone. He is a good neighbor and said that he would. He is our age...both he and his wife. So we are relieved that the babies won't be uprooted to cages while we are gone.:)

Speaking of cats, my daughter Julie is dealing with a bigger wild one at her house.
She has photos of the cougar tracks around her property and up close to the house that she has posted on her MySpace. She has been calling me and telling me all about what that cougar is up to. Seems that it is stalking her dogs. They have two pups( 80lbs or so) now that they keep in their utility room at night. They will be around 100 lbs when they mature. There is a window in the utility room and the cougar has been stalking the window outside.

Her teenage kids have been taking turns taking the dogs out to go potty on a leash for weeks now during the night. But, lately the dogs have been growling in the utility room and waking them up more. When thirteen year old Alex took them out to potty last night around 1:30 in the morning she later told her Mom that the smaller one Lucas, did not want to get down off the steps. He began
whinning and pulling back on his leash.

Then Julie heard them growling in the utility room around 5:00 am this morning . So she took them out and Lucas would not leave the door. She said he pulled her back on the leash and whinned again. Marley (the bigger braver one)went down off the steps with his hair raised up across his back and barking at something. The neighbors dogs were barking across the road also. Julie said she felt uneasy and took them both back in right away. She had seen the cougar tracks and took pictures of them in the snow a couple of days ago before the snow melted.

Then when she went outside at daybreak she saw the cougar tracks in the mud up by the porch steps and off under the utility room window and down the driveway!
She is calling the Wildlife office today. Hopefully they will come out to her place...take pictures of the tracks...then trap and move the mountain lion away from the area.

Julie, and her hubby, Justin have 2 1/2 acres that butt up against the 1,600 acres of AlpineTree Forest without fences. So the wild animals roam through Julie's yard and surrounding property all the time. She has so many deer there, coyote, and raccoon. She tells me that the coyote no longer come around lately. That has to be because of their dogs...or the cougar.

Anyways just thought you'd like to hear this story! I am going to give her a call back to see what the Wildlife people told her.

I'm sure that if they don't take action, then Justin will take the matter into his own hands and get himself a cougar even if it is illegal!

He is not going to put his family or his animals at risk for much longer.


For those of you who aren't familar with cougar tracks - a cougar has index (fingers)toes and a dog does not.


Photo my daughter took March 17th. of cougar track in the snow.
** Image ID #1540178 Unavailable **


Photo my daughter took of cougar track in the mud March 18 th.
** Image ID #1540179 Unavailable **

Photo of cougar tracks on fallen tree at my daughter's.
** Image ID #1540190 Unavailable **