Tuesdays With Tag - He's Gone!...

Hi, Everybody!

Well, I've got great news for you. Furgus has gone to a new home, and it's a wonderful story.

Mom was so worried about the feline dynamics in the Compass Barn. This big boy showed up in our yard some time around late fall, but with the extended halfway decent weather, he'd come and go as the girls snarled and hissed him off the property.

Once the weather got crummy, it seems that this guy was more of a homebody than feral cat. He wasn't afraid of Mom, and he never missed a meal time. The girls - on the other hand - were put out to no end. Claudette took to sleepin' on a lawn chair in the big part of the barn instead of her warm bed. Crystal made herself even more scarce. This was untenable for Mom. I mean, remember all the redecoratin' she did in the barn so the girls would be warm once the weather fell in the crapper? Furgus was even usin' their litter box, for Pete's sake!

Well, Mom started payin' more attention to him to see how friendly he might be. Not only was he friendly, he was downright lovable. Every time he heard her voice, he'd bounce out of the barn to see if she might be walkin' over to visit with him.

Mom put up a post on her Facebook page, asking if anyone might want to adopt him. She got three replies. One was for this lady who wanted him for her second house cat. He would be livin' with a dog or two, too. Then, the lady contacted her again and said her daughter, who has her own home was lobbyin' hard to have him. They set a date for a visitation at noon on Saturday.

Wouldn't you just know that Furgus was nowhere to be seen Friday and Saturday? They had planned to come out Saturday noon-ish, but Mom had to tell her she hadn't seen the boy. Mom promised to let them know as soon as he showed up (hopefully at dinner time). As an aside: a nice man wanted a companion for his older cat and we think he would have been a good choice, too, but these ladies had the first option.

Mom kept watchin' the girls, because they move out of the Compass Barn whenever Big Boy showed up. Around 6:30 on Saturday night, both the girls were back on the porch. That was unusual because she'd already put food in the barn for them. When the weather is cold, they then stay in the barn the rest of the night.

Seeing them on the porch, she hurried and put on her barn coat and went into the barn. Like clockwork, Furgus was up on the table stuffin' his face! She went to the table, said hello to him, and scooped him up. He loved that! He cuddled right up to her and she was easily able to put him in our kitty crate. Then she called to see if the lady and her daughter wanted to make a road trip. You won't be surprised to learn that they jumped in their car, and a half hour later were standin' in our garage with Mom.

Furgus came out of the crate to Mom, but he was apprehensive about these ladies. Even though they cooed and tried to pet him, he buried his face in the crook of Mom's arm. He was afraid, but not aggressive with his fear. Eventually, Mom was able to hand him off the the lady's daughter, Meadow. Isn't that a pretty name? Actually, it's a perfect name for the person who would be adopting Furgus. 

After visitin' a little more to make sure Furgus was gettin' used to them, Meadow and her mom put Furgus into the crate they bought with them and put him in their car. Mom was so happy that he had a forever home. These ladies already loved him when they left the yard.

Meadow sent photos to Mom the next day, sayin' that Furgus had spent most of the day on her bed, sleepin'. We said it's probably the most wonderful, safe sleep he's had in months. No fear of predators, antagonizers, or crummy weather. Mom was very happy. 

So the photos we're sharin' today are of Furgus' mom, Meadow, holdin' him for the first time; him sleepin' the first day (Isn't is cute that Meadow covered him with a blanket?); and a day spent hangin' out on her bed yesterday. He's really landed in a great place, and best of all, everybody is happy. Meadow's happy. Claudette and Crystal are happy. Mom's happy that he's in a safe, lovin' home, and Dad's ecstatic that there's one less cat (he's not a fan of felines) on our property. Mom tells people that we have two negotiated barn cats on our property.

I can safely say that this was a happy endin' all the way around. We're just hopin' Furgus didn't talk to any other strays before he left, directin' them to our house. We need a break from helpin' strays. Truthfully, it's a little hard on Mom's heart. She'd keep 'em all if she could...but I'm darn glad she can't. It's crowded around here as it is. Here, I'd hope to be an only puppy all those years ago. Especially since Bella's still raggin' at me these days. I'll just keep my head down and count my blessin's. Not inconsequential is the fact that Furgus will now sleep as nicely at night as I do, and that's a wonderful thing, indeed.

Merry Christmas Blessin's, Meadow and Furgus.

I'll see you again in seven. 'til then... 

"Been There, Chewed That!"

The Huntress...

For the past few years, Andy and Shelly have been trying to get rid of gophers in their yard. They said they're mainly concerned that one of our dogs will chase over onto the yard and catch a foot in one of the many holes. We actually know of a dog who lost a leg that way!

They've tried everything, to no avail. They were getting ready with their next course of action, when we told them that Claudette and Crystal are working on the problem. Every day now, after I feed the girls, Claudette strolls across the field between the farmhouse and Andy and Shelly's yard. She's on the prowl.

She checks all the holes, and then settles down to wait. I haven't seen her score yet, but I'm confident she'll accomplish her goal. I'm also confident she'll bring it back to our porch to brag. yippee

I wasn't in the studio yesterday at all. It was a gorgeous day, so after haircuts and grocery shopping, I spent more time outdoors. (That's how you got yet another cat story, you know. wink) 

Handsome and I are heading to an estate sale in the morning. We got a message from the friend (she and her husband actually bought our first farmhouse), and she runs family estate sales now. She has a piece of farm equipment that she thought we might like to have as a yard ornament. We're going to see it and decide.

Then, when we get home again, I will be making cookies! Heck. It's supposed to be 88º. Why wouldn't I light up a 375º oven? lol After that, I'll definitely get back to the studio. More on that tomorrow...

Broken Tree...

We have a casualty in the yard. Our corkscrew willow succumbed to high winds this winter. So, yesterday, I walked down to see how bad it was. Of course, I had company.

Claudette was the first to bounce down the hill with me. The wind is still blowing, so she stuck close. They don't like what they can't hear.

Crystal wasn't far behind. She was all floofed up, on alert for anything that might hurt her. Once she got close to us, her fur settled down. 

They proceeded to bounce around in the cover, climb the tree, and generally act silly while I did my inspection. It was cold outside, so when I headed back they followed me. It wasn't long before they were snuggled up in the wood shed again.

I haven't seen Leo for over a month now. He must have seen the "neutering" memo. I'm going to have to cancel his appointment. He's on his own. I'm not putting food in the Compass Barn, and man, do I have a serious cleanup out there once the weather's warm enough. My girls are comfy in the woodshed for now. 

We just have to wait until the ground is completely dry so we can tackle this tree and clean up the yard. I hope that's soon.

Tuesdays With Tag - Starting Over...

Here's My 2022 New Year Picture! - Tag

 Hi, Everybody!!!

Welcome 2022. Good riddance 2021.

Mom did a photo shoot with us New Year's Day so we'd have a new group pic for the new year. It's the one up in our blog banner up top. You like it?

Our 2022 Picture Outtake

I'm sharin' an outtake from our chilly foray into the front yard. There were a bunch of pictures that weren't gonna make the cut, but I want to show you this one in particular. 

Mom was holdin' a cookie (and we knew she had a whole pocketful), just to hold our attention. We always behave when cookies are involved. While it was hard for Carly and me to not drool, at least we were payin' attention. 

Mom kept wonderin' why Big Mama kept lookin' off to the side. Mom would wag a cookie to try to get our attention, I'd jump up to get the cookie, chaos would ensue, and we'd have to start all over again. All because Bella wouldn't look at the camera. (We finally did get a couple usable shots. Thanks, Boo! I was havin' phantom nards pain from sittin' in the snow so long!)

You See Her, Right?

When Mom got up and turned around, she finally knew why Bella was distracted. It appears we had an audience, and The Black Dog saw her movin' onto her perch to check us out. 

I'm glad the two Labs were with me, 'cuz if I'd been alone, it wouldn't have been for long. Claw Dette would have jumped down and sauntered right into the photo shoot. Knowin' her, she wouldn't have sat next to me and smiled for the camera. She would have aimed her big butt at the camera, wreckin' all the pictures.

Sometimes The Girls Get Along...

Speakin' of cats, Mom also got a couple pictures of the Barn Ladies yesterday. Like the caption says, "Sometimes the girls get along". Mom and daughter can be a real pain. Claudette is jealous of Mom payin' attention to Crystal, so she'll sometimes cuff her kid upside the head. Crystal is no shrinkin' violet either. I mean, she braved every scary and dangerous pitfall to get back home to us. Her own mother underestimates her ferocity! While I enjoy a good kitty fight every so often, Mom's not a fan.

Needless to say, Mom is workin' on this issue, but she's never trained cats before, and she's heard it's not an easy task. Don't worry. If anyone can do it, it's Mom.

Sometimes They Don't

She started pettin' both of them while they're eatin' and tellin' both of them to get along. Claudette usually turns her back on Crystal and Mom so she can eat in peace. Then, Crystal will move over right next to her mama, rub against her, and they'll eat out of the same dish. Kinda like an episode straight out of "All Creatures Great & Small". James Herriott would be proud.

I'll see you again in seven. 'til then... 

"Been There, Chewed That!"

Tuesdays With Tag - The Girl Is Here To Stay...

Brynwood's Taggart

Hi, Everybody!

Well, I'm sure you're waitin' for an update, so here it is. Crystal's stayin'. Mom figures that if she was willin' to trek twelve miles through construction, traffic, farm machinery, and coyotes, she gets to stay here where she'll be safe.

She's settlin' right in, too. Claudette slapped her around a little bit, but they sleep together at night now, so I guess she's earned her mama's stamp of approval. Mom makes sure they both get attention, so Claudette doesn't get jealous. Mom's makin' sure I don't feel jealous either. She just opened up a little compartment in her heart for Crystal, and we all have a special place that's just ours. Mom has a huge heart. There's always room for one more.

Dad loves Mom, so we'll just leave our comments about how he feels about another cat around here with that. As long as they don't poop on his tractors, take a swipe at the black dogs, or spend the night in the garage, he's not gonna say much more about it.

Where's Crystal?

I thought you might like to play a little "Where's Crystal" today, so here's a picture we took of herself last week. Sheltered from the cold wind, and sittin' in full sun, it's the perfect place to hang. She's not afraid of Bella and Carly either. She likes me 'cuz Claudette likes me. I've got an "in" that way. 

So, see if you can find our other kitty-girl...in her natural habitat. She's never far from the house now. She wants to make up for lost time. Me? It's just one more thing to bark at. I need a nap.

I'll see you again in seven. 'til then..."Corgi On, Corgi Strong!"