A slow-mo video of eight hummingbirds at the feeders, plus one hummer using its beak and feet to dislodge two others.
Cat update for week ending December 14
132 pictures filtered down to 29 this week.
The cats have continued to enjoy the new platform and cabins. Ironically, especially Pumpkin:
He’s been spending more time in the cabins than in the cat house. Here he is having a drink:
Paladout has also been showing up most days, and checked out the cabins, though hasn’t been in one:
The other cats have been enjoying them too. Here’s Pommie:
Poppy and Pumpkin are happy to be neighbors, if Poppy arrives first:
Double-decker cats:
A rapid egress from the feeder when Pumpkin comes out, due to the food dispensing:
Three cats:
Poppy and Porcini:
Poppy and Porcini looking contented:
That contentment didn’t last, though; a few minutes later, Pumpkin arrived, and was greeted (warned off) by Porcini:
Then Poppy had a turn greeting Pumpkin:
Pumpkin really wanted to hang out, though:
He’s disappointed that both cabins are occupied:
After a couple of minutes, he gave up and went elsewhere, so Poppy and Porcini could relax again:
A bit later, after they left, Pumpkin had his chance, discovered by a returning Poppy:
Four cats; can you see them all?
Pumpkin chilling while a cat eats:
Pumpkin sleeping while I approach the bird box:
Pumpkin spots me:
With Pumpkin hanging out at the cabins so much, the other cats can brave the house; here’s Bella spending the night:
Pumpkin in the house, one cat eating, and three outside:
A bit of a queue while waiting for Paladout to get out:
Paladout was feeling trapped, and Poppy got tired of waiting:
Pommie and Pumpkin:
Again I startled Pumpkin when I approached the bird box; here’s a nice photo of him:
I did try talking to him, but he acted like a feral cat. He may be feral or stray, but doesn’t seem to be comfortable around humans. I will keep trying.
Screenshot of cat cams, showing a cat in a cabin, a cat waiting on the cat house deck, Pumpkin in the house, and Paladout in the feeder, again:
Paladout feeling trapped, Pumpkin peeking, and Bella wanting to get to the food:
I have a plan to add a back door (emergency exit) to the feeder, going through the wall above the food dish. With this happening a couple of times this week, I have made it more of a priority (probably after Christmas; won’t have time before that).
Let’s finish with a sleepy Pumpkin at the cabins:
Flock Friday for December 13
Some excitement with the chickens this week.
One of the chickens, Lola, was still outside when the pop door was closing:
You may remember me describing her as the introverted chicken. She often hangs back, and on this occasion hung back too long, and got stuck outside.
I noticed her perching on the waterer when I checked the cams after I got in bed, so I got dressed again, put on a head-mounted light, and went out there to take her inside:
Here’s me picking her up. I carried her out of the run and into the coop:
Another bit of excitement was that I opened the gate to the veggie garden, enabling the new girls to access that:
I also opened the hole in the fence between the two runs, so the old and new chickens can now mingle:
They are still laying eggs and roosting for the night in their own coops, though eventually I expect some will swap coops. Chickens are very slow to change.
A bunch of pictures of the chickens all together:
Let’s take a look at the ducks, too:
But we’re not done with the chickens: a few days later, Lola did it again, outside when the door was closing:
Actually it turned out that there were three chickens outside this time:
I realized that the pop door controller was closing the door too early, before it was dark, due to low hanging branches of the tree by the coop shading the light sensor. So I trimmed some branches:
The tree fought back, whacking me in the face; fortunately only lightly bruising me:
As usual, I left the cut branches in the run for the chickens to play with:
So far the chickens haven’t been caught outside again. I have a daily reminder to check as it gets dark, just in case.
Misty pond, with the ducks heading into the house for dinner:
Finally, some shots of the hungry hummingbirds on the feeders:
Building a platform for cat cabins
On yesterday’s Caturday post I showed the cats exploring a new platform with two cat cabins, that I built and installed under our main deck.
Here’s more info on the construction and installation process. It was a very simple project, taking only a few hours. I didn’t paint it or do anything fancy; it’s basically just a 4×5’ sheet of OSB, with some treated 2x4s underneath for rigidity, and some blocks on top to hold the cabins in place, plus a camera housing.
Since it’s not painted, the OSB will degrade over time, but it should hold up for many years, probably longer than the cats’ lifetimes. If it is still in use when it eventually falls apart, I can always whip up a new one.
Other than the second cabin, the camera, and my time, there was no cost (though of course those are non-trivial costs). The OSB sheet was one left from the chicken coop project, and the 2x4s from various other projects.
Here’s building the platform in the (messy) workshop. I used the new cabin as a template for the blocks, which were nailed to the OSB from the bottom. The two cabins are angled so their doors point towards the camera, for a better view inside:
I included treated 2x4s underneath to give it a bit of strength, plus hooks to hold the wires (some of which I didn’t end up using):
Me being me, of course I wanted to include a camera so I could watch the cats in the cabins. I bought a new one (I’m currently up to 18 cams!) and mounted it on some blocks at the edge of the platform, with a couple of bits of plywood to enclose it. The camera is waterproof, but I wanted to prevent the cats from knocking it out of position. The plywood forms a steep triangle to stop cats from sitting on top:
Here’s a shot of me about to cut a bit of wood, taken by that camera:
I then brought the platform, the new cabin, and various tools from the shop on a cart:
When I got there, a cat was in the old cabin, but departed after a moment:
I put the platform on the ground to prepare the site:
As mentioned in yesterday’s post, I decided to install it under the deck, below the gazebo, to shelter the cabins from rain and snow. The corner near the swimming pool area is a few feet off the ground, providing enough room for the cabins. I excavated a few inches of the dirt to give a bit more headroom:
Here’s a closer look of the dirt:
I put the platform in place, propped up on some wood to get it fairly level (a slight slope towards the front for drainage):
Here’s the back corner, sitting on a rock:
Leveling:
Hooking up the electrical cords for the heating pads in the cabins, and the camera:
The power cords are mounted underneath with hooks:
I attached 4×4 posts as legs on the front:
Then used a spare bit of stained cedar (leftover from the pool deck extension project) as front trim, which serves the dual purpose of giving the platform more rigidity, and making it look tidier:
I also used another bit of the same OSB sheet as a wall, to provide shelter from the wind and rain on the pool side:
Here are a couple of closer looks at the cabins:
The finished platform:
As I said, a very simple project. But they seem to appreciate it; the cabins have been well used by the cats so far.
A picture from yesterday’s post, of Porcini exploring the platform:
A view of our deck and the platform from farther back (and if you look very closely, two cats visible: Pumpkin in a cabin, Porcini by the pool steps):
Here’s a closer view, with Pumpkin looking at me:
No doubt you’ll see lots more of the platform and cabins in the weekly Caturday posts!
Cat update for week ending December 7
I made a new thing for the cats. Read on to see it. But first, the usual.
Two cats on the awning, one in the feeder:
Two cats in the cabin, and a third wanting to join them (it’s only big enough for two adult cats):
Four cats:
Two cats inside the house:
Pumpkin:
Two cats snuggling in the cabin:
Overflowing:
Poppy, Porcini, Bella:
Jumping from the awning to the roof:
And back down again:
Which of course freaked out the other two:
A nice last shot of the cabin in the garden (huh?!), with Porcini looking cute:
Two cats arrive, watched by a peeking Pumpkin:
My latest project: I built a platform below our main deck, under the gazebo, to house the old cabin plus a second one. Both cabins are heated. It also has a wall to shelter them from the wind, and a built-in camera watching the two cabins:
I’ll do a post about the construction of it tomorrow. The main motivation was that as I mentioned above, the cabin only fits two cats, and we care for six outdoor ones (including Pumpkin). While there’s plenty of space in the cat house for all of them, the ferals are reluctant to go in there with Pumpkin occupying it much of the time.
I also wanted to move the cabins to under the deck, and up off the ground, so they’d be more sheltered from rain and snow.
Porcini was the first to investicat the new platform and cabins:
Two cats investicating the new cabins platform:
Porcini inside the new cabin:
I temporarily moved the mobile cam to the edge of the path opposite the platform. You can see the deck and gazebo above, the bird food box and garbage bin to the left, and the empty swimming pool area to the right. And two cats near the new platform:
Chasing:
Between cabins:
Poppy went inside the old cabin; something I hadn’t ever seen her do before (this year anyway); it was exclusively occupied by her (grown) kittens. And of course Pumpkin had to check them out too:
Poppy’s traditional greeting:
Poppy and Porcini:
A screenshot with cats on each cam (5 total):
Both cabins occupied, and a cat peeking:
Three pairs of eyes on Pumpkin approaching:
Pumpkin hung out on the platform for about four hours, much to the consternation of a twin in the left cabin, and the slight interest of Poppy in the right:
Pumpkin on the platform:
This morning, contented cabin dwellers:
This morning Pumpkin decided to try going inside a cabin, while Poppy watched with her trademarked grumpy expression:
He seemed to like it:
Bella approaching, before backing off when seeing Pumpkin:
As I write this, Poppy and Pumpkin are still in the cabins:
It’d be rather ironic if Pumpkin decides he likes the cabin better than the house now. Maybe the others will brave the more spacious house again?
Flock Friday for December 6
A sad Flock Friday this week: we lost a duck, the female Cayuga (the dark one). More info below.
But first, happier times earlier in the week. Our pond mostly froze on several days, so the ducks got to experience walking on the ice:
And eating treats on the frozen pond:
Did you see the video of the ducks walking on the ice? And the second longer video?
Another day, waddling from a non-frozen portion to greet me:
Swimming in a non-frozen portion by the pump:
Duck tracks:
Bert & Gert:
Ducks on the bank:
Gert and Gill:
Birds in the duck house:
Treats on the bank:
On Tuesday, I noticed the two female ducks in a somewhat unusual place, in the northeast corner bank of the pond:
Gill was nestled down on the bank, with the two buff ducks hanging around nearby, possibly confused or concerned:
I kept an eye on them, and later saw them all swimming, though Gill looked a bit withdrawn, her neck kind of hunched down:
She was barely interested in treats, acting rather listless:
Later, she was resting on the bank again, and didn’t retreat as I approached to check on her:
I examined her, but couldn’t see any obvious injuries, so I put her in the duck house overnight, to protect her from predators. She had food and water, but mostly just settled down:
In the morning, I checked on her again, and encouraged her to have some water, but she was still very withdrawn. I kept an eye on her on the camera, and noticed she hadn’t moved for a while, so went out to check her again, and (as suspected) she was dead.
I don’t know what killed her. She could have eaten something she shouldn’t, or got blocked up, or injured herself on something, or been attacked by something. Since I didn’t see any injuries, it was probably one of the former.
Anyway, it’s always sad to lose one of the animals. Having lost the male Cayuga when they were ducklings, I wonder if that breed just isn’t as hardy as others.
Now we only have two ducks, the two Buffs, Bert and Gert:
I hope they both survive! When Gert starts laying, probably in spring, we’ll likely let them keep the eggs, and hatch ducklings. Which has its own risks.
Sorry to bring you down with this sad tale.
Let’s end with a couple of pictures of the chickens. Them rushing over to greet me in the veggie garden:
And waiting for treats in their run:
Ducks On Ice
The ducks sliding around on the frozen pond, inside their house, and swimming in the non-frozen water by the fountain pump.
Cat update for week ending November 30
Some interesting shots in today’s Caturday post.
Let’s start with some cat ID: Pommie (left), Spud (deck), Porcini (right):
An alien cat:
Porcini peeking at me from the cabin as I walk past:
Two cats, in a picture taken from our deck (you may have to look closely to see the second one):
There were actually three cats; a third on a rock, visible from a different angle:
Three cats at the feeder:
A raccoon encounter at the cabin:
All five cats in an iPad screenshot: one in the cabin, three on the cat deck, one in the feeder:
A closer look at the four cats at the cat house:
Plus one cat in the cabin:
Three cats inside:
The food ran out, so I did an evening food top-up:
Pumpkin is a big reason for the food running out; I’m going through the food much faster since he started hanging out:
A cat sitting on our front steps:
Two cats inside:
Double-decker cats:
Cabin licks:
Pumpkin startles two others:
Three cats in the feeder:
At the cabin:
Porcini on the awning:
Three cats:
Poppy greeting Pumpkin:
Pumpkin being a bit agressive:
Poppy and Pumpkin sleeping:
Cabin snuggles:
Peeking:
Poppy would like to leave now:
Cabin snuggles again:
Ducks walking on and falling through ice
Our pond mostly froze today, and our ducks walked on the ice for the first time, with mixed success.
Flock Friday for November 29
A rather duck-heavy post this week.
But also with a cat! The ducks zipped over to investigate a new alien cat at the back of the pond:
I went back there too:
It was a very friendly cat, obviously a pet:
I told it to go home (back north). I didn’t want to encourage it to hang around.
The ducks again from that vantage:
Earlier this week I slipped in the mud on the path to the duck house, so I added some straw to help give it better traction:
In due course we’ll get around to ordering some gravel for the path. I still haven’t decided if I want to tweak the slope a bit, or just leave it as-is.
Here’s a nice pic of Gill:
Bert and Gert:
The ducks rooting in the grass:
This morning, the pond was mostly frozen, and the ducks were vexed, trying to figure out how to get to the duck house:
The duck house door didn’t open, too; I think it may have frozen shut, since it opened fine once I recalibrated the opener. Hopefully that won’t be an ongoing issue. If it keeps happening, I might have to risk leaving it open overnight, if I can’t figure out a way to prevent it from sticking.
The ducks currently just have a small area of non-frozen water in the deepest part, plus around the fountain:
They hopped out to say hi to me:
A couple of token chicken pictures:
