PARTRIDGE IN THE SPRING

This past spring we had a pair of partridge that spent time in the backyard quite often in the afternoon or early evening.  I am sure they were the same pair along with other partridges who would come in for an afternoon snack of niger seed during the cold winter months.  The DH would cast niger seed on the snow swept ground for these birds.  

This spring, the pair came to feed on birdseed and also rest.  When the female was eating or resting, the male bird would be on the lookout for any potential or real danger.  The only danger in the backyard is the dog.  At some point after the birds had been in the backyard for awhile and the dog wanted to be let out, we would open the back door and he would sometimes stay on the deck and watch what was going on in his kingdom.  He didn't always notice right away that the partridge were there.   Once he noticed that these birds were on his territory, he quickly trotted down the few steps and ran in the direction of these birds.  They would quickly lift off and fly away.  

I am sure that if the dog didn't occupy the same backyard, this pair of partridge would have nested here.  Access to seed and water from the pond was very tempting.

ENCOUNTERS WITH SOME WILD ANIMALS

Several weeks ago I had a wonderful outing to the San Diego African Safari Park.  It is part of the San Diego Zoo but it is located north of San Diego.  This safari park is also special because of the breeding programs being done at the park.  Wonderful work on helping preserve endangered species has occurred here.  

I don't know if I will ever get to take a safari in Africa so I leaped at the chance to take a safari in the back of a 3/4 ton truck to view both African and Asian herbivores in an open large area but of course fenced in.  There are a series of double gates to go through to get into the compound.  The African herbivores are in a separate compound from the Asian animals.  I have included some pictures of the animals we saw on the tour and other photos taken while walking through the park and seeing animals in their large enclosures.

The 3/4 ton truck that we travelled in.  There were ten people on this tour. 

A black rhino we saw on the tour.  We fed the black rhinos cut up apples and were able to pet them on the head.  Of course we stayed in the back of the truck while feeding and petting them.

This king of the jungle was lying on top of a frame of a jeep.  He is a massive cat and has quite a mane on him.  I wonder who brushes him?

I always like to watch the cheetahs.  A bit bigger than the cats I have at home.  My cats at home stretch out like this one here. 

One of my big cats stretching out in the sun.

In the lowland gorilla compound, an impressive silver back showed his size.  He is a  big boy and I could smell a musky smell from him when he first appeared.

We fed the giraffes a certain kind of leaf that they love while we were in the back of the truck.  The giraffe would take the leaf out of your hand.  We were not allowed to pet them and that was hard.

There was a colony of meerkats in a large penned area and they were interesting to watch.  This guy was doing guard duty.

SEALS- LAZY VERSUS DEMANDING

Recently I had the opportunity to visit San Diego.  One of our excursions was to take a two hour boat tour around its harbour.  We saw some very interesting things and the tour was a great way to learn about this city. Several things on the tour captured my attention and imagination.  I saw both the art of being lazy and enjoying oneself and also doing demanding and physically training.  These two extremes were being done by Seals.  Both are mammals but operate a bit differently.  These pictures tell the story.

These first two pictures display the art of being lazy. These Seals appear to have no cares in the world.  Seals are fin-footed semi-aquatic marine mammals.  These mammals include the walrus, seal lions, fur seals and earless seals.  There are colonies around San Diego and I am sure there are many stories about these animals from the locals.

These two pictures show SEALs who are doing demanding and physically work.  The water around San Diego offers a playground of training.  I was told that these SEALs are out training every day.  In these particular pictures, the chopper was bringing up SEALs from the water.  It was fascinating to watch.

  

The United States Navy Sea, Air and Land (SEAL) Teams, also known as Navy SEALs, are the U.S. Navy’s principal special operations force and are also part of the Navy Special Warfare Command as well as the maritime component of the United States Special Operations Command.  The first SEAL teams were commissioned in 1962.  Their reputation as reliable individuals, individual and collectively disciplined and highly skilled, are considered by many to be the toughest individuals in the world.  Training begins at the Naval Special Warfare Center in San Diego.  To become a SEAL, individuals must complete a demanding six month basic training course, three weeks of parachute training and fifteen weeks of advanced training prior to successfully earning the right to be called a navy SEAL.  And I thought training for a marathon and half marathons was tough at times!  You can read more about the Navy SEALs at their official website (Navy Seal Link)

POLO

One of my favorite movies, that I never tire of watching is Pretty Woman with Julia Roberts and Richard Gere.  There are a number of scenes worthy of comment including the shopping on Rodeo Drive, the sports cars, the hotel, and the polo match.  The polo scene in the movie showed everyone dressed up for a charity event at a polo match.  Julia Roberts was wearing a sleeveless brown polka dot dress and a lovely hat.  You don’t need to get dressed up to go watch polo.  I went to my first polo match in casual summer attire.  I may have also been wearing a ball cap.

Polo has been around as early as 500 BC when it was played by Persian noblemen.  The Indian army introduced polo to the Western world and the 19^th century British cavalry officers refined the game.  

Polo is really about the horse or polo pony.   Most ponies are about three quarters thoroughbred of needing stamina, speed and the disposition for polo.  If you don’t have a good horse to play polo, you will be left behind the others while chasing the ball.  The original American polo pony was limited to 14.2 hands and was developed from the cutting horses used by ranchers.  Today’s pony doesn’t have a height restriction but usually averages 15 to 16 hands.  The average age of a playing pony is nine years old but they can also play well into their teens.

Polo consists of two teams that play against each other.  Whoever scores the most goals wins.  Each team has four players who play certain positions.  Position one plays offense and stays up front to get the passes and score the goals.  Position two plays defense and offense and goes back and forth.  This player needs to be fast and aggressive.  Position three is like the quarterback.  This person stays more behind and figures out the strategy.  Position four plays defense and tries to stop position one of the opposing team from scoring goals.  Finally the captain of the team can be any one of these four players  How you tell which person is playing which position is by the number on the back of their shirt.  The game I watched had two referees on horseback and they will blow a whistle if anyone commits a foul.  A foul can be called for a variety of reasons.

Each player has a handicap and it is given to them by one of the professional associations.  You are ranked on control of your horse, how well you hit the ball, how well you play.  The higher the handicap you have, the better the player you are.  The games can be described as low, medium and high goal polo.  The high goal games would have better players and horses.

As you can see from the pictures, the ball is hit with a mallet in order to move it down the field.  These horse and riders can be going pretty fast.  They also have a lot of ground to cover as the playing filed is 300 yards long by 160 yards wide.  This is the approximate area of nine American football fields.

Polo is different than hockey or football where you change sides after each period or quarter.  Every time a goal is scored they change sides.  The periods or quarters are called chukkers and each one is usually seven minutes.  Depending on location, a game can have four or six chukkers.  Furthermore, the horses are changed after each chukker.  Three minutes are allowed for changing your horse.  Horses need to be changed after each chukker as they can cover a lot of ground.  Sometimes the horses can cover three miles in each chukker.  In high goal polo most players takes 10 horses to each game while lower goal polo will require less mounts as the game is played a bit slower.

If any of you get a chance to watch a polo game, do so as it is quite enjoyable.  I enjoyed watching the game, the horsemanship, being outdoors, the pace of the game and the skill needed to score the goals.

A MEETING WITH THE LOCAL COYOTE

Over the past few weeks I have been seeing the local coyote while out walking the dog.  Most sightings are in the early morning while still dark.  The distance between the coyote and us has been acceptable and the coyote knew that I knew it was there.  The dog has not always seen it because he was focused elsewhere or the snowbanks obscured his view.

This past Sunday morning I went walking when it was light out.  There was light snow falling and it was looking like it was going to be a cloudy day.  I was coming up to the end of the path that I usually walk on and from there you walk on the road.  I was six minutes from home.  I saw the coyote and it was on the banks of a creek sniffing around.  The creek is very close to one of the turns in the path.  I did not have many escape options unless I wanted to go through deep snow to cut to the road.  It wouldn't have been pretty.  The coyote was not interested in the dog or me and was focused on other things.  Plus s/he was moving away to give us more space.  I stopped by the end of the path and close to the road to see what s/he was doing.  The coyote was hunting for mice and as I watched it, s/he got one.  The coyote jumped up as if s/he was pouncing on it and was successful as I watched it chew it and swallow the critter.  The coyote started to walk further along the edge of the creek so we left.  The dog had definitely seen the coyote and was watching it and he was interested in going over.  Of course, that was not going to happen.  I was also happy that I hadn't let Shane off the leash as I sometimes do on this stretch of the path.

Upon arriving at home and recounting this story to the DH, I decided I needed to see if I could get some photos.  The dog and I got into the car and quickly drove over to see it the coyote was still there.  I left the dog in the car, much to his dismay and went back on the path to see if I could find the coyote.  I waited around and finally saw it behind a city equipment building that is situated by the path.  I couldn't get a close photo as the coyote went behind the building.  By the time I could get some photos, it was walking and trotting along the creek system and was putting some distance between us.  It was definitely hunting rodents.  The following photos show some of the scenery and the coyote.  I darkened the photos so that you could see the coyote better.

The creek that runs close to the path. The coyote was along the top ridge.  

Another side shot of where I would have seen the coyote. 

The coyote is moving along.  To the right of the photo is someone walking with their dog along the creek system and would likely not have been aware of the coyote being there. 

Another distant shot. 

The coyote is getting close to a back country road but didn't cross and instead came back again. 

MERLIN - A BEAUTIFUL BIRD

The other day while driving home, I came upon a Merlin hawk on the street where I live.   Based on colouring in one of the bird books I have, I think the bird was a 'she'.  She was actually on the road hovering around a morning dove that she must have killed and dropped on the road.  I saw her on the road and slowed down.  I didn't want to hit her or damage the dove.  She flew off and I continued down the street to my house.  Once home, I decided to get my camera and see if she was still down the street.  I walked down the street and she was perched on a street sign.  I got close to her and started to take pictures.  I looked at the dove on the street and it was definitely dead.  It had a puncture wound by its neck.  We feed birds in the backyard and I wondered if this dove was one of the family of doves that spend time in the backyard.  When any Merlin is flying around and making their "kikikiki"shrill chirp, the sparrows and other birds in the neighbourhood become quiet and disappear.  

The Merlin (Falco columbarius) is a small type of falcon from the Northern Hemisphere.  It is sometimes also called a pigeon hawk.  The Merlin is 24–33 cm (9.5–13 in) long with a 50–67 cm (20–26 in) wingspan.  Compared to other small falcons, it is more robust and heavily built.  Males average about 165 g (5.8 oz) and females are typically about 230 g (8 oz).  

After taking a number of pictures, I left and walked back home.  The dog was waiting by the front door and was glad to see me.  He knew I left the house without him!!  In his mind, that is not acceptable.  Since it was such a beautiful day, making supper could wait so we went for a walk.   We walked past where the Merlin had been perched on the street sign.  Both the Merlin and her supper were gone.

LIFE AROUND THE CREEK

After seeing the beaver by his lodge one early morning and realizing that I didn't have my camera with me, I have started to take my camera on my walks along the creek.  There is all sorts of wildlife to watch and sounds to listen to.   These baby goslings were less than a week old when I snapped this picture.

This pair of mallard ducks started to waddle off when they saw the dog and I coming their way.  They were not in a big hurry.  

These geese are the same ones with the goslings.

I took the picture of these five rabbits from a distance.  I knew that I couldn't get very close to them before they would take off and run in several directions.   

A red winged black bird.







My companion who thinks it is great to go walking each morning.  He is wearing a haltie around his nose.  Same concept as a horse or cattle halter.  It gives you more control than just trying to manage with a leash clipped to a collar.

EARLY MORNING WALKS

As part of my morning routine, the dog and I take our daily morning walk and check out the neighbourhood, the creek, the parks and the wildlife.  Our walks can vary depending on the weather, my energy levels, how much time we have and if the sun has started to rise.

One route we both like to take is a walking/bike path that goes along a creek.  The creek attracts all sorts of birds including song birds, ducks and geese and beavers.  Also I have spotted deer and coyotes near the creek.

Yesterday morning I saw a beaver sitting beside his lodge.  Of course I didn't have my camera with me to get a photo of him/her.  I will call the beaver a him as it looked more masculine and he was big.  I walked close to the edge of the creek to try to get his attention and he couldn't care less about me.  He paid no attention to my voice and didn't even acknowledge my existence.  I am not use to such rejection.  The dog was with me and he could have been over to him in two shakes of a paw by jumping into the creek and swimming over.  It wouldn't have mattered that I would have been at the end of the leash.  I would have been swimming too.  The dog didn't pay any attention to the beaver.  He had his nose to the ground fascinated by millions of smells and breathing all of it in.

This morning I took my camera with me on our morning walk determined to see the beaver again and maybe get a picture of him by his lodge.

In this picture you can see him swimming along the creek with a few ducks in the background.

This is another head shot and it doesn't show the size of this beaver.  These pictures were taken while holding the camera, trying to focus the picture and the dog moving around me while on his leash with his nose to the ground and drinking in all of the wonderful smells that only a dog can love.  This is a perfect way to start the morning - the solitude and sounds of life around a creek.

ZOONOSES

One area of science that I find interesting is the study of diseases and specifically the topic of zoonoses - diseases that can be transmitted from wild and domestic animals to humans. Of the 1,461 pathogens recognized to cause diseases in humans, at least 60 percent are of animal origin (Science Daily, October 28, 2009). Examples include:
- the 1918 influenza pandemic
- HIV
- severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS)
- avian influenza H5N1
- anthrax
- brucellosis
- creutzfeldt-jakob disease
- ebola
- e. coli 0157:H7
- lyme disease
- rabies
- salmonellosis
- west nile virus
- yellow fever


Many modern diseases started out as zoonotic diseases. Examples include measles and smallpox. The appearance of new zoonotic pathogens in human populations has increased due to the increased contact between humans and wildlife. The other influencing factor that helps spread diseases in a quick manner across continents is due to air travel. You can get anywhere in the world within 24 hours. Climate change is also an important consideration.


New funding is being made available by the U.S Agency for International Development (USAID) for five new initiatives. USAID is putting effort into this research funding in order for the world to be better prepared for infectious diseases. A good example of an infectious disease that we are all experiencing is H1N1. One of these five initiatives will be done by the University of California at Davis (UC Davis) who is receiving funding of up to $75 million over five years to develop a global early warning system called PREDICT. The UC Davis team is developing a global consortium to implement an early warning system. They will be active in hotspots around the world where wildlife hosts have significant interactions with domestic animals and high-density human populations. I know this must sound like a hollywood movie and if fact there have been some movies made on this very topic. Sometimes fiction is not far from the truth.


So why does this all make sense. It has to do with the holistic concept of recognizing that human, animal and environmental health are all linked and need to be thought of as 'One Health'. This concept makes tremendous sense to me. The science daily article quoted above provides a bit more information on the work to be done by the UC Davis. Global pandemic diseases can have a huge effect on human and animal health and the economic impact can not be ignored.

WHAT'S FOR SUPPER

Ducklings can be fussy about what they eat. The DH and I have started to feed seven ducklings and their mom (she is called a hen in biology terms) for the past few weeks in a pond close to where we live. In an earlier blog I described the menu of food offered to these ducks and their preferred food choices. They seem to have a fondness for crickets and worms (larvae) as in live crickets and worms. That seems to be their comfort food. We have been making sojourns to the pet stores buying these live critters. We even know the delivery dates for when live crickets are shipped to the stores. These ducks can eat a container that is suppose to contain 100 crickets within two days. I haven't counted the crickets in the container to see if there are REALLY 100 crickets. The crickets and larvae are stored in the garage and when you go into the garage you hear a chorus of crickets. The first time I got out of my car and heard this chorus, I couldn't figure out how a number of crickets got into the garage. I didn't know that the DH had gone shopping that day for crickets and that these crickets were contained within a container.

I don't do much of the feeding as handling live crickets and larvae/worms doesn't rank up there for me as one of my favorite tactile experiences. I have had to help my DH when the crickets are jumping out of the container as he is trying to grab individual crickets to feed them to the ducks. That is tricky as I am helping him I have 70 pounds of lab pulling me and wanting to go in another direction. Feeding ducks is also an art. You have to throw the crickets or larvae out in the water and the ducks have to move fast in grabbing these critters as the larvae sink fast into the water. We have also been ensuring that the runt of the litter is getting extra food thrown his/her way as it needs extra protein; it is smaller and its development is a little behind its siblings. We will be sorry to see these ducks fly off in the fall for a warmer climate and hope that they come back next year. Until next time......

ARE DUCKLINGS PICKY EATERS?

Close to where we live there is a lovely park that includes a small pond. I don't know for how many years this female mallard duck has been raising her young at this location. This year she has seven ducklings, one of which is a runt. Of course the runts of the litter are the cutest, have to try harder and sometimes need that extra push or assistance in competing with its siblings. We always keep an eye out for this runt from this particular brood.

The pond is not big, it has vegetation but I don't think it has a lot of different food sources that a flowing creek would offer. Seeing these seven ducklings and mom brings out the maternal instincts in me and I have been offering them different food on a daily basis. I never before thought of raiding the fridge to see what morsels would tempt ducks. My DH even googled to see what these critters would prefer. Well, we found out over the course of a week that they have particular tastes - they don't always subscribe to what google says.

From our daily offerings, I found out they like bread of course. You have to tear the bread into very small pieces as they will not attempt to eat it if you throw them chunks. Small bills and small mouths. They like my homemade olive bread and will eat healthy whole grain bread. I made hard boiled eggs, chopped them and took care to not mash them. To my astonishment, they turned up their bills. The dog enjoyed the eggs. I chopped up organic baby greens used for salads and carted the small bag to the pond. Again, rejection by the ducklings. The dog was not interested in this leftover. I made extra organic basmati brown rice one night beyond what I needed for supper, thinking that the ducklings might like a change in their menu. Again, they turned up their noses. There is about half of cup of rice left on the bottom of the pond. I think that the salamanders in the pond also turned up their noses at the rice. We took samples of our Koi fish food pellets out to the ducklings. Again, no interest. Then my DH went shopping determined to find something with more protein than bread. So he bought Koi fish food flakes as they are light and maybe easier to eat than pellets. The ducklings turned up their bills to the offering. This morning after getting fortified with coffee (a skinny vanilla latte for me), we went to one of the local pet stores. We looked at containers of live crickets and mealy worms. I know that the dog wouldn't go for these leftovers. I wasn't too excited about this prospect. Close by we spied two small containers of freeze dried plankton and freeze dried shrimp. After departing with $20 at the cash we drove to the park and walked to the pond with our latest offerings of food. It is a miracle, they sampled and ate this freeze dried food. The duckling runt was busy eating and appeared to be much more of a hustler than his/her siblings.

For the next month, until the ducklings get big enough to fly, we will be making daily or twice a day offerings of freeze dried plankton and shrimp. So if you plan to feed your own ducklings, keep to the bread, it is easier. Until next time.....

WALKING WITH ANIMALS

As far as I can remember, my fascination with animals began at an early age and continues to this day. I have had pets for a good part of my life and enjoy their companionship, playfulness, adoration of me, simpleness and complexity. Dealing with dogs and cats can be both simple or complex depending on the situation. Watching shows on television such as Animal Planet, National Geographic, the Oasis channel and the dog whisperer are entertaining. I have numerous books about cats, dogs and horses and still have a copy of Charlotte's Web. This first picture to the right is not my pet though it would have been interesting to live with this creature in my house. The photo was taken when I was a teenager. She was a cheetah owned by a woman who used her for promotional events and other commercial venues. I got the chance to spend some time with her one afternoon. She put up with me petting for awhile and then she had enough. She lifted her paw and gently swatted me across the face. I am sure this was gentle according to her power and strength. She kept her nails in so no harm was done. The stories I remember about her include no birds came into the backyard because she would go after them; you couldn't bother her while she was eating out of her food bowl - she was protective of her food; and she slept on the same bed with her owner. I am not sure about sharing my bed with a big cheetah. The cheetah was not my only encounter with an exotic cat, I have met a black leopard while in university and that animal was a bit more wild.

After not having been to the exhibition fair for many years, I had to go this year because of the animal shows. Most people go to the fair for the food and rides but not me. The lions were the big draw. Where under one venue could I get to see lions, butterflies, dogs and raptors as we don't have a zoo or a eco-park? I told my DH that we just had to go and to be there when the gates opened. As the various shows were spread out over the venue and had different start times I figured out where we had to be for what time.

The first show to visit was the butterfly exhibition. The show was walking with butterflies in a tented off area. I have walked in tented off areas with butterflies before but it is always neat to see butterflies close up and have them land on you. Their colours and sizes are interesting to watch with their delicate wings. We had to monitor our time in order to walk to the area where the "walking with lions" show was being held. There was limited time to browse all of the junk food stands (I swear people go to the fair just for the food) as I was worried there would be people already seated in the stands half an hour before the show started. I was not disappointed. We got one of the few seats left and sat in the baking sun watching the lions in their cages (located in a semi) laying around and looking lazy before the show started. The half hour show was interesting including that they have one of few male white lions in the world. His name is Lufuno. You forget how big the lions are until you see them close up. You also think to yourself, would I want that job of being the trainer in the pen with those lions? I contemplated spending $20 to have my picture taken after the show with the male lion who actually was behind a plexiglass as there is a safety issue. After seeing the line-up and plexiglass I decided to skip this picture event.

With stomachs growling we had big decisions to make on our food choices. I know many of you would have gone for the corn dog but my arteries said no, so the smokie on a bun was the pick. Along with an expensive lemonade we were set to go find the agility dogs. I know this crew of handlers and dogs as I have taken numerous classes with some of these handlers and I participate in an agility league. The show was great and it is more fun when you know the personalities of both the handlers and the dogs. Regrettably I don't think my dog and I are ready for prime time shows. He has no honor and would take off on me and leave my side to go smell sometime that caught his fancy. As the show was being held in the same area as cattle and horse shows are held, I am sure that there are remnants of smells that would drive a retriever to distraction.

As we had some time before going to the birds of prey/raptor show, we walked over to the area where the rides are. You don't need to go on these rides - watching people go and down at fast speeds, upside down, on a variety of rides, gets your stomach up already totally on its own. The speed of the rides, line-ups, screams and heat was enough for us and we made our way to the building with the birds. Again, the bleachers were filled but we found two seats and settled in to wait for the show to start. There were four different birds brought out and they all flew without a tether to the handler who had pieces of raw chicken in her gloved hand. The only bird that stayed tethered and which she paraded around was a golden eagle. That breed is the largest north american bird of prey. It looks big but only weighs 10 pounds. What was impressive was its long and sharp talons. You can see why they can pick small animals.

So today I walked with butterflies, lions, dogs and raptors. Quite the day to remember. Until next time.....