Rats!

A very proud Chick came home with a dead rat, slightly bloody and still warm. I think her very brave, taking on a rat but would prefer her sticking with mice.

Rodent Around

We knew there was a roaming rodent in the barn - we heard it scurrying, hidden from view by some old junk. The we saw a furry four-footed shadow dissappear between the wooden logs. Chicky noticed it, too - she could also smell it. The next few hours she she was alternately sniffing and sitting perfectly still, hoping to catch it. She had more patience than I had - I went to bed eventually. I have no idea if she caught it.

Goat cheese salad is yummie

Zjealous

'Aaibaar raadsel' or Cuddly Enigma says the heading. And of course Chucky will not let Inge read a text that may help her to really understand Catness. Of course. Who wants to read about cats if you can stroke the Real Thing?

Animal Day

Some animal lovers do not eat meat on Animal Day. We do and  we share. Our Steak Tartar was also enjoyed by Rouschka, Quincy, Chick and Chucky. Here is Chucky taking his share.

Curiosity

 Chick likes to be in the know - nay, she demands it. She noticed we were in a room she did not have access to. Unacceptable, of course. She worms her way in...

... to find Inge nursing Brownie. Brownie was attacked a few days ago, probably by a cat from the neighbours. She has no visible wounds and she can eat, drink & poop. If you hold her, she'll stand. If you let go, she falls. She cannot stand or walk by herself. We're hoping she will improve.
Chick does not hunt chickens - she and Chucky leave the chickens alone. But Brownie clearly did not like a cat - any cat - this close to her. Poor, traumatized Brownie! An indignant Chick was removed from these premises right after this picture was taken.

Bummer

Would love to take some action pictures - cats chasing things (birds, mice, bugs, spiders, each other). But I guess no feline cooperation  is forthcoming any time soon.

Boat Cat

Chuck has a new hangout: on the main sail (folded and resting on the boom) under the tarpaulin of the new boat. He spends most of the day there napping. I had taken a bad picture of him yesterday with my mobile phone but today I went back with a real camera. I woke him up inadvertently when I entered the boat, but he was happy to see me. So happy that while torn between greeting me or stretching first, he fell off the main sail.

The top picture was taken just before he started gliding. He fell only about 1.2 m (4 feet) which isn't much for a cat (I would not recover within seconds from a such a smack to the floor). I put him back on the main sail. He first thanked the tarpaulin for protecting him from the wind and then jumped into my arms for a hearty hug. My man.

AutoCat

Like a true mechanic, Chick is trying to figure out the working of the Land Rover.We expect her to come up with a solution to its problems as soon as she has finished thinking about it.

Love on a Ladder

Excuse me

I owe Chucky an apology. In my last post I wrote that Chick was the courageous one, sitting on the cart while while it is being pulled by Feye. But on this snapshot you see her brother Chuck sitting on the Feye's back. True, he is sitting on the horse's coat, but under that coat is a real, life, living, humongous horse. How's that for Burmese courage?

Hey Ho

Sun bathing on the courtyard. As long as it doesn't move, it's fun.



But when Feye is harnassed and starts pulling, only Chick is cool enough to stay on board and look as if this chariot was made especially for her.



Snapshot from the hip. Rouschka is on board now, too: ready for a family outing.

Behind the scenes...

Who's the shadow next to the dancing cows?

A Good Example?

What is with cats & high places? Does Chicky like to get away from her boisterous brother and the maddening crowds of Woudsend? Or she yearning for some good old fashioned devotion and should I place myself on hands and knees in the lower left-hand corner?

Whattheheck?

It's been a while since my last blog - not because of Chick and Chucky, haven't got any adventures any more, but because I have been too busy to document their roaming about the farmhouse. This picture was taken seconds efore Chick realised it is an ox sniffing her butt. She was not amused, but oxen are curious. They like to investigate and their sense of smell are key to find out more about the world around them.

In the Picture, too

Hurray! Clean Towels!

If Cat Heaven exists, I'm sure warm clean towels are an essential part of it.

Baby It's Cold Outside

Outside, winter is back. You can still see the grass through the snow, but the wind is cutting and cold. It is a day stay inside and fight boredom: Chuck has already chased his sister all over the place twice. We try to distract him with s shoe-string, but Chicky beats him to it: she jumps first at the rope. Now Chick and Chucky have strict rules about playing with humans:

-  one human per cat; and
-  first come, first served.

Since I'm taking the pictures, I'm not availbale for playing and Chucky has to wait untill Chick has finished playing with Inge and the rope. Chick is clearly not in a hurry.

Ennui

Yeah, we could play. Then again, we could just not play. We could go outside. We might stay here. Have a bite to eat. But then again, we're not that hungry. We could chase each other. Play with a string of rope. Then again, we could just sit here. Yeah.

Crooner

Elvis is not dead, he lives!

Challenge

It is difficult enough to keep one's balance...

... without others disturbing one's concentration.