Animal Kingdom

One thing I didn't give much thought to when I bought my home, and began turning the house and gardens into exactly what I wanted, was that every critter within a ten-mile radius would be equally enticed by my plans.  I often joke that my property would be the perfect site for a reality show on Animal Planet, because I've had no less than 10 different species setting up housekeeping on my property, and in my home.

Besides the variety of birds and frogs of all shapes and sizes, which have staked a claim to the patio and pond, we've had a snake in our basement, a rabbit in our daughter's room (okay, we actually put her there), a skunk under our front porch, bats in our attic and son's room (he very nonchalantly told us one was "flying around the fan," to which we promptly responded by cringing, whimpering, and all manner of undignified, "non-adult-like" behavior), a chipmunk in our dining room (that's a good story), a squirrel in our kitchen (that's an even better story), and a raccoon in our front-porch overhang (the best story yet).

We've had mice in our garage, basement, and even our closets (hence my foray into foam, plugging every crack in the place, and prompting my husband to dub me "The Great Mouse Hunter."), gophers in our garden, a baby deer sleeping in the day lilies, and an opossum in our back yard, which surprised my two pooches and I with its rather creepy hissing.

One year, a family of squirrels decided to worm their way under our siding, creating a place for themselves in our walls.  Hubby had to shew them out.  "Ha," said I.  "Who's The Great Mouse Hunter now?"  He laughed and explained the title was still mine.  He was going after bigger game (pretty ironic when I recall that he won't even kill a spider--he catches insects in cups, then sets them free outside--we both do).

A few weeks ago, we began adding to a wall on our patio, which prompted much curiosity amongst the chipmunks who hang out in that area--a prime piece of real estate right under the bird feeder.  My husband had painstakingly set cement blocks in place, only to be thwarted by the little buggers, who decided to call his newest creation "home."  As he set mortar around the blocks, he started to worry: what if he sealed them inside?  And what if they'd had babies in there?  No worries...he came up with the perfect solution: he'd make a little "doorway" for them, by cutting a hole in a block.  Here's the result:

Most recently, the stray cats in the area have taken up residence in our shed, and I let them be.  They earn their meager keep by chasing all the other critters away (except the chipmunks and squirrels--they're usually too fast to get caught).  And since I'm a cat lover, I enjoy their company.  They sunbathe a few yards away from me when I'm planting and pulling up weeds.  I smile and leave them to enjoy their well-earned place in the sun, thinking if I was an animal, I'd want to live here too.