Category Archives: pets

Letter to Dave

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Dear Dave,

There has been much talk recently of airborne drones and the
possibility of loss of privacy due to their use. Lisa and I have
recently been under intense surveillance, not by drones but by a small
calico cat. Otherwise it’s been a good winter, how ’bout you?

The cat is the stray we put up in the barn. I made a nest of straw
bales and opened a sack of cat food and left it. We rarely saw
anything of the cat except her shining eyes when vehicle headlights
flashed the barn. The little cat came up to the house for water and
then would quickly leave. We made a few short sightings which allowed
us to identify her as a tiny, black calico. She has now begun
visiting more often and we suspect she is in heat. We suspect this as
she meows loudly enough to vibrate the windows and watches us
constantly. She also likes to crawl on the screens, sometimes
parallel with the ground. This brazen, open display of amour is a bit
disturbing but I guess it is just nature. The little cat has lost
most of her fear and I suspect I may have been able to pet her just
yesterday but felt that may have caused complex and confusing
emotions and so stayed indoors. Our cat, Twich, instead is in charge
of “stray calico social development” and pretty much treats her as a
either a servant or pest which is how he treats everyone.

Onto something more serious, Dave; the History Channel is presenting
“The Bible,” each Sunday night during the month of March. Roma Downey
from “Touched by an Angel” and her producer husband Mark Burnett
created the series. “The Bible” has been met with much acclaim and we
liked it too. Dave, you and I were fortunate that guys like Pastors
Mathre, Hofrenning and Gabrielsen made sure we learned the course of
the Bible. Because of this prior knowledge, I was able to follow the
pace of “The Bible” however some people may need to watch it a couple
of times to catch everything. There is, however, a fair amount of
narration that will help most keep up with the rapid-fire pace at
which the greatest story ever told, is told.

Here’s the deal, Dave. I believe this production of “The Bible” is
doing so well because people really needed to learn this story in a
familiar format; the television. People have chased possessions,
money, status, politics and have found these things unsubstantial.
They want something more. I saw a poll just a few years ago that said
more people today believe in unidentified flying objects than in God.
I believe this is nothing more than the need for a higher power by a
populace that has no religious education; their bibles are comic
books and their church is the internet. “The Bible” is a series
delivered in a way most-easily absorbed by a populace who need a
story that is believable, not because of clever storytelling, but
because it is the truth. So many people have made science fiction a
part of their personal belief systems, they may find historical fact
refreshing and more satisfying. It will fill a void they have been
trying to fill with Bigfoot, teen-age Vampires and little green men.

That’s enough for now, Dave. I purchased a mower out in Garrison,
North Dakota and so suspect I will be seeing you soon and so will save some
conversation for that time.

You’re little bro
Grant

A Winter without Cattle

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If you wonder why I haven’t written about our cattle lately, the
reason is simple; they’re gone. I sold the cattle last December, the
Hay in January and the straw last week. It has been a winter without
cattle.

Feeder cattle prices typically go down with high corn prices but the
most recent cycle of cattle prices has been extended because of
overseas sales and reduced cattle sale numbers. Corn has stayed high
because of ethanol supports and decreased production-most grain
prices are predicated on the cost of corn so they are high also. Both corn and
feeder prices have been affected by drought. Hay prices are also incredibly high mostly as a result of shortages caused by dry pastures. In short, our little farm
had become a place where outside influences stood tall enough to either magnify or block out our daily sunshine. I thought it was a volatile time and best to jump
off the ride until we see if it rains this spring and if a farm bill
assumes form.

I also needed a little break. It has been twenty plus years of cattle
during which I worked nights a lot at my job. I have never found
winter a pleasant time to own cattle, anyway. I take turns worrying
about either the cattle or the water they drink from December through
March. It was time to take the winter off.

I define “puttering around” as taking the simplest task and
breaking it down into many elements, then agonizing over each element
until the day ends and you begin again the following morning. I will
not answer God one day by responding that I’ve spent my life
puttering. I have, however, occupied myself with some experiments
around the farm this winter.


I’ve spoken at length of my hydroponic fodder project which is still
a “work in progress” and a “work in the way” out in the shop. I’ve
also made a few more tire/barrel mineral feeders. I most recently
used my digital inspection camera (yep, Lisa gave it to me
one Christmas) to follow the tunnels created by red squirrels in the
snow. I never found their underground nests and suspect these
tunnels are really just for temporary escape. The area under the
hollow tree was a bit more interesting and appeared to have some
small stores of bedding and food suitable for all squirrels red.

Socially, I have become much more entrenched in the lives of our
cats. We have gotten to the point where our personalities
occasionally clash. I also believe there are lines of social conduct
which have been crossed to include the fact that I cannot remember a
time when I have been allowed to go to the bathroom without at least
one feline chaperone. I guess maybe the cattle formed one of my
social contacts and that cross is now born by Twitch, Laine and Magoo.
I actually believe I can distinguish between the tones of Twitch’s
caterwauling and understand what request is married to each
tone. My world has become condensed and my animal relationships more
involved.

It is warm outside today. The pasture will green up soon and may not
be so washy because of drier conditions. It may be one of the best
pasture years yet. We will soon have cattle again but for now I am
happy to plow the snow, visit with Lisa, learn cat language and chase
squirrels.

Winter Visitor

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I had planned on one more Christmas column this week but I found a
story that I want to tell today. Please have a nice time with your
family, take time to reflect on the true meaning of this holiday and
Merry Christmas.

Lisa and I had a visitor this week. He was a beautiful striped tom
cat with an enthusiastic personality and an empty belly. Yeah, you
guessed it; we had another cat drop-off out our house. We fed him cat
food covered with chicken soup and set him up temporarily in the cat
house on our porch.

There exists a group of people who see pets as nothing more than
disposable toys. These folks think of pets as furry servants and fail
to realize the responsibility of pet ownership. Spaying, neutering
and proper housing are the basics of pet care. Those who fail the
basics of pet care are the same folks who cause most of our pet
overpopulation and strain the resources of local humane societies.
These are the same folks who I always encourage to either develop
some common sense or just stay on the sidelines of life and try to do
no harm.

That nice little tom cat dropped at our place was the victim of this
sort of person. He was either dropped off or not connected enough to
his residence (i.e. no love or failure to spay/neuter) that he
wandered to our home. He was not the perpetrator of this trespass; he
was the victim of a lack of human responsibility.

I remember a recent time when people welcomed responsibility. They
used responsibility to define themselves. Have we now failed so much
as a culture that we not only no longer welcome responsibility but we
can’t even perform its most rudimentary aspects? If you place the
level of responsibility of a pet with the enjoyment of same on either
end of the beam of a scale then you will find them equal. What I am
saying is that the more responsible you are with the care of your
pet, the more you will enjoy your pet. You will also be a better
person.

Here’s what happened with the lovely little tom cat that came to our
place. We have three cats and that is all for which we can
responsibly care. I was able to easily put the cat in a pet porter
and bring him to the pound/humane society. In placing him inside a
cage, I felt as though I had betrayed him however that betrayal
occurred well before he arrived at our little farm. He easily went
into a cage at the pound and sat there dejectedly.

There are many sweet discarded pets with short memories that await
new lives at the humane society. Please offer your generosity and
either adopt a pet or give to the Pennington County Humane Society.
The little animal left for us now needs a home and there are more
like him. Lisa and offered him temporary shelter and have now sent
enough money to the humane society to cover a portion of his stay.
Please include the Pennington County Humane Society in this year’s
Christmas gift-giving. After Christmas, please consider adopting one
or more new pets and bring them into your responsible care. For
donations or questions, please call the humane society at
218-681-8045 or go to pawstrf.org.

Burley

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Burley the steer

Here is Burley, the most easy-going steer I’ve ever met.

I once named all of our cattle. It was fun but apparently I was too lazy to continue this tradition as our numbers gradually increased. I want to talk about one little steer whose personality stuck out enough to attach a name. I want to talk about Burley.

 

First off, I was still too lazy to name Burley. My brother, Steve, gave him the moniker when he was young. I didn’t realize the tag had been given him and considered naming him “Teddy Bear.” I felt that was a name that he would labor under all his life and decided against it. Steve later told me they had already given him a name which fit him just right.

 

Burley is the last to do everything. When I shift the cattle from one paddock to another, he is consistently the caboose. He has those disheveled, boyish good looks of the kid that is always late to class but never gets reprimanded.

 

The first time I noticed Burley was when he was sitting by himself next to the fence. Cattle are herd animals and a loner is sometimes sick or hurt. Burley just wanted a little time by himself and I couldn’t judge him poorly for it as I often want the same thing. I left him to his own thoughts and moved on.

 

Burley has a little buddy he spends time with, a calf un-named but not un-noticed. I have seen them sitting together on sunny afternoons and they seem to enjoy their shared company. Honestly, they remind me a little of Kenny Krohn and myself as kids sitting in the playground at Viking (Minnesota) Elementary and shooting the breeze. Burley has that laid-back way about him just like Kenny although he looks more like me at that age-which is indicated by his name.

 

I guess it’s times like these that inject some humanity into my relationship with cattle. It is not so distant a concept to believe that cattle make friends and possess each a god-given personality. I think it is important to remember that love and friendship are not something humans alone receive nor alone bestow to each other. I mean isn’t spending time together one of the most tangible acts of love and friendship?

 

Anyway, Burley is a steer and wouldn’t exist except for the fact he will eventually taste good. Cattle would not be a good fit as pets and so wouldn’t exist without this final purpose. However, a little guy like Burley is constant reminder to consider one’s own humanity in dealing with all creatures with which we share space.

 

Finally, I have included a picture of Burley with this column. He is not tame however he is patient and relaxed so the picture was easy to acquire. I believe if I’d wanted too I would have been able to dress this calm steer in one of those silly pet costumes people wrap their cats in for pictures. Anyway, I can’t imagine Burley as an elf, angel or super hero. He is best as just Burley.

update to Project Fly Trap

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I posted a story of how to build a Manitoba fly trap in July of 2010. I had to make some changes and I wanted to bring those to your attention.

I ended up changing out the flimsy plastic to a combination of 1/4 plywood and screen fabric. It is mcu more sturdy and works very well. However, it is heavier and I had to bolster the legs because they started to crack under the increased weight.

(original story is at http://rreflection.areavoices.com/2010/07/01/project-fly-trap/)

I ended up changing out the flimsy plastic to a combination of 1/4 plywood and screen fabric.

Fly trap as it looks today.