Saturday, April 2, 2016

Rock On, On Rock

During the week, I work the overnight shift, but on Saturdays and Sundays, I start work in the late afternoon. It's typically on the weekend when I get decent pictures of my feline co-workers. I typically carry a small bag of kitty treats with me when I walk the site, for bribery purposes. Whenever the cats hear the crackling of a plastic pouch, their attention is immediately drawn. I used this to good effect to line them up on a particularly nice rock:




This picture perfectly encapsulates the dispositions of these two animals- Fred, with his eyes half-closed, is all blissed-out while Ginger, wide-eyed and alert, is looking out for number one... better make it with the treats, hairless ape, so nobody gets hurt. The same dichotomy between these feline siblings is evident in this picture too.

Recently, there's been quite a bit of coyote activity in the area- last Sunday night, I heard a chorus of the critters, and a couple of nights I've caught a quick glance of a fast-moving critter that I am confident is a Northeastern wild canid. The local geese are all on edge as well. I have made sure to limit Fred and Ginger's outdoor time to the daylight hours, and keep them close to me. I typically like to have them tag along when I do the periodic walkabout, but I really have to play things safe for my cat companions.

4 comments:

StringOnAStick said...

Beware, day or night; coyotes hunt at all times. We live in a suburb on the edge of Denver, and I've seen them walking through the open space trails during the day, rather unconcerned about humans walking about. Outdoor cats last about 1-2 years in our 'hood. Coyotes, foxes, bob cats.

Unknown said...

It is good to have some companionship but you should remember that, were the roles reversed, those cats would not lift so much as a whisker to save you from the coyote. They would, however, be mad when their treats were no longer forthcoming.

I love my cat, but I have no delusions about the mutuality of this relationship.

Big Bad Bald Bastard said...

Beware, day or night; coyotes hunt at all times. We live in a suburb on the edge of Denver, and I've seen them walking through the open space trails during the day, rather unconcerned about humans walking about. Outdoor cats last about 1-2 years in our 'hood. Coyotes, foxes, bob cats.

I've never seen one about in the daytime here, but I've made a report to the day shift crew to keep an eye out. The cats tend to stay in the heavily trafficked areas of the site, and there are a lot of people about during the day. In general, it's time to keep the cats closer to heel. We've had foxes and coyotes before, I'm sure we'll be okay.

It is good to have some companionship but you should remember that, were the roles reversed, those cats would not lift so much as a whisker to save you from the coyote. They would, however, be mad when their treats were no longer forthcoming.

Yeah, cats are pretty opportunistic... Timmy would have drowned in that well if Lassie had been Tabby. Still, it's hard not to feel affection for the furry little brigands.

ifthethunderdontgetya™³²®© said...

Of course! They're warm and fuzzy and they purr!
~