Saint Nick - The Sentencing

One year ago (on Christmas Eve) Saint Nick was found tied in a ditch. He was emaciated and filthy and had a badly injured hind leg. I often wonder what he was thinking as he stood there in the cold. Had he just accepted the idea that this was how his life was to end? If you haven't read his story, please do. It is in the Journal section of the Wildlife Rescue page on the website.

On Halloween 2007 the owner of Saint Nick was found guilty of inhumane treatment of animals. His sentencing was on December 21, 2007. He was given 5 days of jail time with work release, has to pay a $200.00 fine and also has to pay $800.00 in restitution ($500.00 of which goes back to the rescue organization). This man owns 20 other horses. I wonder what condition they are in. This man breeds horses. How many more unwanted, un-cared for horses are there going to be? The issue isn't the money. He should have had his horses taken from him. He should have been prevented from doing this again. Some feel he should have been tied in the ditch in the cold on Christmas Eve. An eye for an eye.

Bits 'n Pieces

I thought this might be a good time to post little bits of information that I've been storing in the back of my mind. I'm afraid I may forget to mention them if I wait much longer.

First, the man found guilty of inhumane treatment in the Saint Nick case is scheduled to be sentenced on Dec. 21 at 10:30 in the morning in Sioux Falls. I'll post an entry as soon as I hear the outcome there. If you haven't read the story about Saint Nick you will find it on the Journal page of the Wildlife Rescue section of the website.

Second, the crows that were hanging around the 3 weeks prior to the death of my dog, Abby, have not been around since she died. (Read previous posts and the story about Traveler the crow on the website) Isn't it interesting?

The cardinal is still here everyday. I guess he has decided this isn't a bad place to spend the winter. His red is even brighter now. If I am able to get a good picture of him I'll post it in another entry.

I had an e-mail a while back from the conservation officer who helped me release the fawns (two mule deer and one white tail) in Sept. of 2006. He had been up in the area where we released them and happened to see 3 young deer hanging out together--two mule deer and one white tail. It was too far away for him to be able to tell if they were bucks or does or even if they had small spike antlers. The chances of it being those three fawns are very slim. But what if?

Summer of the Heron

Today the kayak rack on my jeep carried a Christmas tree home from The Club for Boys. It wasn't too long ago that I loaded up my kayak and headed for my favorite little lake any chance that I got. It's a beautiful little lake, quiet and serene. During the summer months there are many ducks and turtles there to watch. The ospreys nesting there are always busy diving for small fish to feed their young who can be heard calling from the trees. Sometimes they dive right in front of you. Most of the time they come up empty handed. When they do take flight with a fish in their grasp you just want to jump up and down and cheer them on. It will be interesting in the spring to see if they are there again, raising another family. There was also a great blue heron in residence there. Sometimes he could be spotted standing motionless among the reeds looking like a statue that you might see in someone's yard. He liked to perch on one particular dead tree, too, and unless you were looking for him, you might miss him. He blended in to his surroundings so well. I had the opportunity to rehab a great blue heron this year so was very happy to see this one. When the time came to release "my" heron, I took him to this little lake. When I opened the carrier, he came out and stood for awhile just taking in his new home. Then he took flight and I held my breath until he was safely on the other bank. He was beautiful in the air and had an amazing wing span. I was ecstatic to see him fly and couldn't have been happier about this release. I went back to the lake several times after his release and sometimes I'd see two herons, sometimes only one. My last trip to the lake was in mid-October. It was 43 degrees out. It was foggy and misty and began to rain. I loved being on the water in this weather. Most of the ducks were gone and the ospreys had moved on. I didn't see either of the herons. But as I sat out on the water thinking about how quiet it was now with all the wildlife gone, I saw a huge bird silently approaching from the far side of the lake. As it came closer I could see what it was. No, not a heron. It was a bald eagle. Beautiful and massive. How lucky to have had the chance to see that. It made me think about the opportunities that might be missed if we tell ourselves, "The weather isn't ideal." or "I'm too busy." or "I have a messy house."

Winter Cardinal

I have rarely seen a cardinal. Several years ago I was in Missouri and saw so many. There they are as plentiful as the sparrows are here. But around here I think I have only seen one cardinal. So early this fall when I received a young cardinal it was very exciting. He was found in a parking lot and was unable to fly. There were no injuries or broken bones but his feathers were a little "scruffy" looking. I took him home and put him in a small cage where I could keep an eye on him. He ate alot, was very active and alert and before long he was strong enough to move to a larger cage outside. He was very popular with the other small birds that come to the backyard to eat. Sparrows, nuthatches and chickadees would visit him daily. He grew stronger as the days went by and eventually was flying all over in his big cage. There was no need to keep him any longer. I was going to take him to my sister's place in eastern S.D. since she has cardinals there every winter. Then I thought, "Why not just release him here where he knows there's plenty of food, water and shelter if he needs it?" So that's what I did one nice sunny day. That was about a month ago and he has been here ever since. He still enters his cage to eat and brings along several friends to share with. It's not unusual to see him in his cage eating side-by-side with the sparrows and the chickadees and nuthatches. He is very easy to spot among the browns and grays of the other small birds he hangs out with. His bright red stands out especially well now that it has snowed. He is very easily startled which makes it hard to photograph him. None of the other little birds seem to notice or care that he is different from them. And he doesn't seem to be bothered by the differences either. Perhaps there is a lesson to be learned here.

“Peaceful Easy Feeling”

Yesterday I lost my best buddy, my dog Abby. She was 15 years old and had recently become ill. The illness progressed very quickly. At least it wasn’t a long drawn out thing. She died here at home on my bed where she spent most of her time lately. I found her when I came home for lunch. She just looked like she was sleeping. She looked peaceful and comfortable. I know when she died. I was at work looking at a lab sample under the microscope and all of a sudden I had the strongest feeling of calmness. To steal a line from an Eagle’s song, it was a “peaceful easy feeling”. And I knew that she had died. I don’t know how I knew, I just knew. When I got home and opened the back door to the house there were more of my cats there to greet me than usual. It was as if they were telling me something was wrong.

Traveler bids Farewell

The two crows that have been visiting for the last 3 weeks have not been here today. Yesterday morning there was only one of them here. He was way up in the maple tree looking like he was standing guard. I have not seen or heard them today. Is it possible that it is Traveler and that he knew Abby was dying and came here to be close to her and to me until she passed away? They were very good friends. Is it possible? It will be interesting to see if they come to visit again.

It has been a long time since I’ve been without a dog, but it will be some time before I will be ready for another one. Abby was very special and was so good with all the little creatures that came our way. I miss her so much.