Sleep Clinic

From the Too Good to Not Repeat Department: from August 2009

Squirrels amuse me to no end. And gobble up my heart hook, line and sinker. They are just so darn sweet AND funny. Here are some glimpses into what I've seen over the last 18 days raising this little Gray. He started out weighing 55 grams, and ended up at 130 g over the course of these pictures.

To start with, a normal looking pose..... a few days after I got him. Here was already putting on weight and eating more vigorously. Sleeping like a little angel.


Sometimes I'd open the lid and see him just plain crashed out. Zzzzzz


Fuzzy white belly full of milk. He grew so much between meals that clearly his cells were doing important work when he slept like this. I literally could see that his tail hair had grown longer, or that his ears had suddenly popped up from being pinned to his little head, or that the pads on his paws had gotten fuller from morning to the noon meal.

Having just stretched his legs waaaaay out... Like an adolescent boy, his feet got big first. If you saw the little yawn that goes with this kind of thing, you'd keel over from cuteness overload.


I call this the Keith Haring pose.


One of my favorites. The ankles crossed, the big tootsies. His pink little mouth, how soft and furry his little chest and chin and forearms are. And we won't make any comments about other visible body parts....


From his first box, he grew to being in a heated tank. Since he had no buddies, I put a stuffed kitty in there with him. Clearly, he liked it. The squirrel isn't in the middle of climbing here. No, he's fast asleep.


I have been giving him nut eating lessons (that needs to be a whole post of it's own), but he just doesn't seem to understand the stuff in the bowl is to eat. I died laughing when I found him passed out with his face in the food, like a drunk in his beer. You can click on any picture to see it larger... This one might be the one to do that with.


Lastly, just this morning I went over to look and this is what I saw. He opened his eyes a little as I snuck the lens under his "roof". I lied, you need to click to make this one larger too.

If they are this funny when asleep, no wonder they are so entertaining when they're awake. I hope this has made my case, or at least, made you smile today.

Sorry Folks!

I usually post every day -- or every other day-- but I've come down with some kind of flu and just have not been able to post... Will be back in a few days I hope, so please keep checking in. Hope you ALL are well. I hear this thing is going around.

Mr. Personality

I have mentioned someone who I volunteer with at the Rehab Center that we affectionately call Uncle Bill. Not because he is like an uncle to us... no, to the animals he cares for.

I adore Bill myself. Just took an instant liking to him. He comes in and works hard... took on the outside stalls called mews where we keep all the little ducklings that come in, the songbirds that are transitioning from fledgelings to adulthood, gulls, herons, geese, etc... and further back in the yard there are a few fenced in pens, that can have anything from the baby goat and little pigs to alligators. Uncle Bill cares for them all no matter how scorching it is, no matter that he is sloshed in duck poop and slimy fishy water. He takes his time and he is gentle with the animals. We are not to treat them as pets, so as not to imprint them to humans... but Bill spends time with each animal as he goes about his chores. He delights in them -- as many are quite amusing... like this black crown heron that he named Mr. Personality. There are 5 in this pen, but you'll know which one he is.




Before I knew of this name, I had gone in to help clean up the fish they'd had for lunch, and had no idea why that one was going on. I mean, I heard him going on while I attended to the ducks in the pen close to this, so he's not reacting to a person in the pen. At some point I thought to myself, maybe he fell or flew into a window to get to us, and he has suffered some kind of brain damage, lol.

We figure the other ones have no idea what he's going on about, and possibly want him to just STOP. The poor guy to the left is not related to him, but they came in together. We figure he just thinks: "Somehow I got stuck with wacko over here."

If you view it again, U.B. also named the three who stand regally at the top left as the Three Magi's because they stand so stoically, looking upon it all. I think the names are perfect.

What a crack up animals can be. Have you ever seen a black crown heron? And why, I wonder, aren't they black?

Bits and Pieces

BUSY LITTLE HANDS:
A little video I forgot I shot -- oh these little digital snap cameras with their mini movie capability. When I zoom in it takes it's time to focus and makes a strange noise at times. But I get the shot -- there are countless numbers of antics going on every day that I don't catch. I can hardly post the ones I do, so filming quality gets pushed even further down the list...

That said, I still hope to brighten your day. I am finding lately that when I give a squirrel a hard nut, like an almond, 3/4 of the time they bury it. When I give them something soft like a pecan or a walnut, they stay close and chomp it, keeping their eye on me, hoping for another as soon as they can chew it up.

I did catch a little one hopping around to find a spot, digging, pushing the nut in with his mouth and doing a very hearty job of packing down the soil, with one last whiff to either be sure where it is, or maybe be sure no other squirrel could detect it and steal it away....

BIRD UPDATES:
Also -- a vulture update. I told the story of the baby black vulture HERE. Last week I learned he'd gotten so big he was transferred to a big boy cage. Another woman was taking a quick pic so I joined her and did the same. This is for the Grilzzled

Scribe in particular.

In other news, the Chimney Swifts I guess got big enough to be returned to the wild. I have not yet found out how that happens... but I am so glad I got the pictures I did. Don't know when I will come across those again.

IT'S THAT TIME OF YEAR AGAIN:

And I have gotten my sub-contracting license that allowed me to take home a very sick baby squirrel who came in to the Center Thursday near closing. I had just managed to get a cc of lactated ringer’s solution down him (the fluids that they give for dehydration) and asked who was going to take him home for the evening feedings. The answer was -- you are!

I drove home probably with more care than I have in years, as I had very precious cargo. I am happy to say that he has gotten stronger with each passing day, and watching his progress on an hourly basis, for several days has been an amazing and most rewarding experience. I got him at 55 grams and unable to eat and now he's 73 grams, and quite a joyful eater. I hope to raise him just until his eyes open. Then I feel I can turn him back over with confidence that he will live.

He completely cracks me up, as he conks out in the craziest positions. I will do a little photo post of some of them in the next little while. Until then, here's the little munchkin. I swear these little guys just KILL me! Click on it to see it bigger. Those feet! So CUTE!

We're coming into baby squirrel season so I will have a lot more to feed when I go in to the Center. I just hope nothing happens like last year, where we were struggling to feed over 1200 of these due to Hurricaine Ike. Are you a fan of squirrels?

Check Out the Houston Zoo Website!

Good Morning Everyone!

I have some good news to share. I've begun to write for the Houston Zoo's website, as they have recently started several blogs. I'll be writing some pieces as a docent would for the educational blog, and will be interviewing and profiling other volunteers and staff alike-- there are so many interesting people who are drawn to contribute to the world of animals...

I'm really excited about it, as it's such a natural fit. I have many ideas, and will be looking forward to hunting down new stories, learning and sharing about more animals, and taking photos and BETTER video than I post here to go along with it!

Though I will link here the posts that may be of more interest to you --mainly the ones about cute animals, conservation efforts, habitats, Keepers, etc -- I did want to share this one with you just because it's the first. It's just a little roving reporter bit. That said, you should definitely click on the name TOBY that I mention in it though. He is the brand new red panda at the zoo and he definitely earns the title of Cutest Animal in the World! (after your own dog/cat/hamster/fish/bird that is!).

http://houstonzooblogs.org/zoo/2009/08/everyones-a-winner/

OR JUST CLICK HERE!

And you must know that any comments you leave there would be greatly appreciated. Even just a word or two.

Every Day, Something New

After a fair amount of experience feeding baby birds, I was asked to go to the area what we move them to once they become fledglings and clean and feed those in there. It turned out to be a most enjoyable task. There were only about a dozen tanks in there, filled with birds unfamiliar to me, save the few Blue Jays. The last one on the end held a group of half a dozen soft ash-y black birds, who were making the biggest racket!

I opened the top of the tank and was greeted by an unusual sight: Instead of perching on a branch or standing on the ground, these guys were vertically clutching on to fabric that had been placed along the left side of the tank wall. Their chirps swelled to a crazy cacophony and their mouths opened as they vied for position when I came at them with their soaked science diet cat food on my fake mother's beak -- the kind of scissor handled tweezers I've mentioned in previous posts.


As soon as I was done with this feeding on the end, it was time to replenish my coffers and start a second feeding on those in the first tank. By the time I got to the Chimney Swifts again, one who'd been stuck lower down last time flew forward and attached himself to the pocket of my apron, much like a woodpecker would, where he apparently felt nice and comfy because he was very well behaved.

When I came at him with the food he began flapping his wings to get "Mama's"attention... but otherwise, he sat very patiently and in truth it made it much easier to feed him and the others in the tank.
Just adorable these little beings! Maybe not when they are squawking in your chimney. But when not being fed, you might never know they're there.

These little guys are the color they are to obviously blend in with their environment of choice... the smoky ash-encrusted inside of your chimney. They obviously breed at a time of year when there are no fires burning, and this explains why they grip upright. Yes, they make some noise but they are there for such a short time. And they do you the favor of catching thousands of pesky-to-humans insects.

They used to build in hollow trees but they now choose chimneys due to loss of habitat... and with all the new gas fireplaces, that alternative is also dwindling. If you have any in your chimney, please think twice before you hire someone to shoo them out. They usually just remove the nests and discard these helpless babies! Oh no, that just won't do!

If you click HERE, you can read more about that. Among other useful info it says: "Chimney Swifts are protected by Federal Law under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act." and if you hire a company to clean your chimney, you need to find a reputable company whose policy it is to protect the little dears.

I am very curious to know if any of you have ever had or seen them before.

The Great White One

When I lived in Greenwich Village in New York City, there was a great big white dog that I would see on a side street, maybe 4th and 11th, sitting on the top stair of a brownstone, on a leash that was connected to the doorknob INSIDE.

There he could enjoy the breeze and watch the people go by, but would not get away. A good solution for a large and gentle dog. Apartments are small for the most part in the village, and it can be hard on large dogs. And backyards are few, so here he was. And he became a mascot in my mind.

So on my last visit in June, I was sitting in Le Pain Quotidien on Hudson and I saw him! I leapt out of my seat and ran out to get a picture for my own sake. He's got to be seen to be appreciated. A happy face, no? And somehow he manages to stay snow white in this city. A very special dog indeed (possibly a very special groomer too).


And a second snap of him in all his largeness (pls. Click on the pic to enlarge). He's just about the size of those bicycles behind him, but this angle doesn't do his stature justice.

It was cool this day, but I remember seeing him on sweltering days and thought, "How does he handle the heat with all that hair?"And so, it was time to say so long to my very furry friend, for now at least. I'm so glad I caught him on film... otherwise he'd just be a memory. .

I have no idea as to his breed and have been looking on the internet to no avail. It's probably just easier to ask you -- do you know what he is?