What a Weekend!

Okay let’s start from the beginning. Friday night we went out with former coworkers. Very fun. Great to see them.

benny
Saturday we took Benson to the vet. We think Michelle, the vet tech, is smitten.

improved
Benson’s leg has improved, but this old x-ray shows that he will always have a pretty bad limp. The joint feels much better though.

fecal
Benson had a fecal test to see if he and Reggie could be let out of confinement to roam the yard. Both parasites we knew they had before have cleared up, but while we were there, Benson pooped a tapeworm. (Yeah, sorry, we hope you weren’t enjoying lunch or dinner).

reg
Surprise! We didn’t know they had tapeworms. They don’t show up on the fecal test, so frankly we got really lucky that Benson held a show and tell for us.

ha
So they both have new medication and are locked up for another 2 weeks. Then we have to watch poo. Yep, we have to keep an eye on poo and make sure we don’t see any more tapeworms. Super gross!

satu
Saturday night we had a silent auction for NARN, the Northwest Animal Rights Network. We’re on the Board of Directors. It’s our big yearly fundraiser and it went great! It was a lot of fun and we had a great turnout.

flap
One guy walked up to me at the auction and started taking his shirt off. That was fun, so I just encouraged him. It turned out he was trying to show me this tattoo, which apparently means “mallard.” He heard I was the duck lady and had to show it to me. He was super cool and we chatted about ducks and chickens for a while. “A tour of Flapper’s aviary” was one of the auction items, but we’re not sure who won it yet.

sure
Later at the auction, another guy said he works with the Seattle Animal Shelter and they had a female muscovy duck who just came in. He asked if we might be able to give her a home. I went to the shelter on Sunday and found this girl next to some big barking dogs. There isn’t anywhere else to keep a little duck in the shelter. A female muscovy is the exact duck I still have room for here, so we brought her home as a permanent member of the family. We can’t keep Benson & Reggie because they are both boys and O’Malley is our muscovy drake. Two muscovy drakes don’t really get along. George we couldn’t keep because he was a little loud for our neighborhood and he needed to be with other geese. But a female muscovy can be integrated with Petunia and O’Malley, and then she won’t even take up extra cage space. It’ll take a little time, but it’ll be a good match for them, and it’s better for a muscovy drake to have more than one hen for company.

she
Isn’t she pretty? That’s Reggie trying to put the moves on her through the partition. She actually has coloring very similar to O’Malley. We think we know her name, but we’re going to sleep on it. She was found at a light rail station in Seattle and brought to the shelter. It’s my guess that she was probably looking for a good nesting spot and flew out of her yard, then couldn’t find her way back. It’s pretty common this time of year.


Here Petunia and O’Malley meet the new girl for the first time. She will be able to come out and play with them once she passes a fecal test. Hopefully she’ll do better on her test than Benson & Reggie did!

So that’s it for the busy, busy weekend. We’ll keep you posted. Have a good week!

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March 20, 2011|O'Malley Peepers, Petunia Peach, Rescues, Silly Human|15 Comments

Post-It Challenge on the News

post
The three-building post-it challenge reached a crescendo today when KING 5 News showed up to film a story about it.

we
We made sure to ask them to film us doing actual work, not just goofing off with post-its.

story
The story was also picked up online by Geek Wire. Here’s a link:

http://www.geekwire.com/2011/playing-bellevue-postit-wars

And here’s the video clip from KING 5 News in Seattle.

See the full set of post-it challenge photos here:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/tifotter/sets/72157626197869404/

It was a fun few weeks, but I think we’ll get back to work now… maybe. :)

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March 18, 2011|Silly Human|1 Comment

Humane Lobby Day

capitol
Today I took a day off of work and traveled to Olympia, WA to meet my legislators and talk to them about the opportunities they have to help reduce the suffering of animals in our state. There are various bills to talk about, and I wanted to make sure they knew that while animals can’t vote, I sure can, and I speak loud and often for the hens, dogs, cats and other furry & feathered friends who share this land with us and count on our responsible, compassionate stewardship.

office
In case you wonder where your tax dollars go, rest assured, they’re not being wasted on fancy office space for our Representatives and Senators in Olympia.

frockt
Here’s Representative Frockt talking to some 4th graders about the legislative process. He took time out of his busy schedule to listen to me talk about HB1813, which is a sham bill that egg producers introduced to keep hens locked in battery cages with less than 67-square-inches of space to live in for their entire lives. That’s less space than a sheet of paper, and it doesn’t allow them to stand up, turn around or flap their wings… ever… for their entire lives of suffering. I hope my representatives, Frockt and Kenney, vote NO! on HB 1813.

senate
Then it was off to the Senate side to meet with Senator Scott White, who was running late because he was entertaining those same 4th graders from earlier in the day. Senator White is a loyal advocate for the animals, and knew almost all we had to say before we even spoke. So we had fun talking about his campaign instead, and how I’d wave to him standing on the corner of Lake City Way & 80th Ave NE every evening on my way home from work. Special thanks to John in his office for squeezing in our time with the Senator, even when he was running behind schedule. We hope we can count on Senator White to vote NO! on SB 5487.

great
It was a great day in Olympia, and I was happy to be a part of Humane Lobby Day for the animals.

home
After a bit of a drive back to Seattle, I was home before 5pm, and spent a little quality time with George in the yard.

Then something really special happened.

lester
I brought Flapper and Lester Leroy outside for a little sunshine, and Lester STOOD UP for the first time!

remember
As you remember, Lester has not walked since he arrived here, after being bitten by a dog and suffering from parasites and osteomylitis from not being treated promptly (bone marrow infection). But after twice-daily physical therapy, he is finally sitting better and amazingly, able to stand up! Yay for Lester!

It was a good day for the animals, a good day for the people, and a great day for Lester.

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February 17, 2011|Lester Leroy, Silly Human, Yard Stuff|10 Comments

Lester Leroy, George, Olly Astro and Flapper


Little Lester Leroy is a little bit of a biter. I don’t blame him a bit as he has been through a lot in his life.

leg
I’m pretty concerned that he may not be “fix-able.” His right leg is bent and stuck at an odd angle. I looked at his x-rays today and it isn’t broken or dislocated, so it’s just weird.

up
It’s constantly sticking up at an odd angle, and it can’t feel comfortable like that. I guess I’m still hoping that the antibiotics treating the bone marrow infection can help him, but that leg looks bad to me. I didn’t want to bend it or try any physical therapy until after I’d seen the x-rays, and tonight I tried to maneuver the leg a little bit. It doesn’t seem extremely painful but it’s not comfortable. I bent and held it down in a normal position for a bit, but it just pops back up when you let it go.

what
Whichever way you look at him, that right leg is always sticking up funny. Our friend Peggy said, “Maybe he just always has a question to ask.” Ha ha… “Waiter? Excuse me, waiter!? More lettuces please. Hello!? Waiter!”

craw
He really is a cute kid. It’s unfortunate that he has been through so much. He’s missing chunks of feathers and has a few nodules on his neck that are probably old wounds. I was hoping that at the very least he could recover and live a happy life from here on out. But if he can’t get to the point of walking or even sitting normal… I’m not sure what his prognosis will be. He’s not super friendly like Flapper is, so it’s not likely he will enjoy being around me. He does enjoy Flapper’s company for now though. Right now he just needs to take his antibiotics and eat and be good, and he’s doing that really well. So for now, he’s doing his best.

news
In other news, George went to the vet today for a check-up. I wasn’t sure he was feeling 100%, and we needed to have his blood tested anyway before he can go to his forever sanctuary, so we took him for a check-up today. I think he’s fine, I just worry too much. George is as sweet as ever and a very good goose. His foot is still improving and the scab is down to a very shallow tiny scab of less than 1cm long. In a few more weeks it should finally finally finally be healed. Whew!

ol
Olly Astro has yet another respiratory infection. When it rains, it pours! This is Seattle, after all. If you remember, she came to us as a rescue after being treated for eight weeks for pneumonia. She has had two more infections since then, and this week she got another one. It looks like she’ll always be susceptible to respiratory infections since she had a really bad one. Maybe she has some lung damage, I don’t know. But she is responding to antibiotics and doing well. Her latest trick is running right into the house when I open the door, like she owns the place.

fl
Lastly, Flapper was extra sweet tonight. He must have missed me today, because I sat down with him and he snuggled for over an hour.

teddy
I hate to share photos of myself, but you just have to see this teddy bear snuggler. He cannot be contained.

snugs
He loves to be as close as he can be, and to tuck his beak and snooze and chat.

sweet
He couldn’t be any sweeter. It’s just impossible.


And as always, he is a great storyteller.

It was a busy day, so we’re off to get some rest.

Good night and quacks (and honks from George).

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January 26, 2011|Lester Leroy, Mr Flapper, Rescues, Silly Human|8 Comments

George to the Vet

latte
See that orange spot? That’s George’s beak. He’s riding in the back seat on the way to the vet. But I had to stop for morning coffee first. That’s my frequent buyer card in my mouth. The latte baristas really liked meeting George, and then we were off to the vet to check on George’s foot.

no
George wasn’t so sure he wanted to step out of his carrier at the vet’s office. He knows now that it’s not his favorite place. The first stop was on the scale, where we learned George has gained weight! He may have been a little underweight when he was dumped in a park, or he might be getting a little too much food while cooped up here at Hotel Flapper. Either way, he now weighs 7.28kg or 16lbs! When he first arrived he weighed 6.06kg or 13.35lbs, and that was only five weeks ago!

nope
The extra weight won’t be great for George’s foot, so we’ll have to watch the treats and make sure he doesn’t gain much more weight. The good news is that George’s foot is looking much better. When he first arrived, the bumble infection was really deep. It was cleaned out and bandaged, and cleaned out and bandaged, and bandaged again. Today the vets picked at the remaining scab a bit and found that it is healing really well from the inside out, and it is really shallow now. It was bandaged yet again, and George will only have to keep the bandage on for a few days. Then he just has to spend most his time on super soft 4″ of wood shavings and limit his play time. We’ll keep his foot clean with chlorhexadine and novalsan until what’s left of the scab finally heals, and then he’ll be set to go to the sanctuary!

si
In other news, Simon was at the vet this past Tuesday. He is at least 14-years-old now (hard to say exactly since he’s a rescue) and he just didn’t seem to be acting right. It turns out he has diabetes, so now he’ll get insulin twice a day and hopefully we can manage it pretty easily for him. I was not going to intervene in Simon’s aging with drugs and shots like I have in the past with cats. I had decided that he was going to have a natural decline and not hang around extra time for my benefit. But the insulin is very easy and doesn’t hurt him and he should do well on it. Also, he’s diabetic because he’s fat, and that’s my fault. He has always been a big guy, but he really gained weight when Hodjee and Meelee (his play buddies) passed away in the past two years. So we’ll keep you posted on how furry guy is doing.

In the meantime, enjoy this short video of a… holiday-spirit-filled neighbor’s holiday lights.

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December 12, 2010|Fuzzy Indoor Ducks, Rescues, Silly Human|4 Comments

Cough cough, honk honk


It was dark out, but I wanted to capture George talking to my cough. As I mentioned before, he’s a very good conversationalist.

He was standing on his blankie, since he has to keep his foot dry for another 20 days. He’s doing well, other than being a little stir crazy from not being able to run and fly. We’re keeping him entertained with toys and treats, and his foot is busy healing so he can run and fly again soon.

Until then, cough cough, honk honk.

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December 1, 2010|Rescues, Silly Human|7 Comments

Flap & George to the Vet

It seems like we’re always heading to the vet around here, but that’s not all we do. I promise.

flap
However, today Flapper and George both went to the vet for check-ups. Flapper goes every 8-weeks to maintain a chronic scar tissue problem he has from past surgery. He does really well and it’s just routine for him now.

belly
His arthritis is still pretty bad, and unfortunately this update it seems that he gained some weight. His belly is bigger and that makes it hard on his legs. So he’ll be watching his figure a bit, though the extra weight does probably keep him warmer for the winter. He went from 3.12kg to 3.34kg which is 6.8lbs to 7.4lbs! But overall he’s pretty good.

george
George went to the vet too. His foot wrap came off last Wednesday, but he was supposed to get his foot checked that day too. Unfortunately Seattle was closed from ice and snow, so we had to just keep it clean until we could get to the vet today.

patient
George was a very good patient at the vet, and was super sweet while his foot was being looked at. His foot looks much better, but it still has a ways to go. So he got a new wrap to cushion his foot while it heals more. This wrap will stay on for 10 days and then he’ll get ANOTHER wrap. Unfortunately, that means he will be a little stir crazy for a while, but it’s best in the long run to get his foot as healed as it can be so we can place him in a sanctuary.


Billy the cockatiel works at the vet’s office and takes his payment in pets as you check out at the counter. He’s a good bird and we like him, as you can see.

That’s about it for today. Oh! We’re getting over a cold and still have a cough. The funniest thing about the cold is that when we cough, George honks back. Cough cough. Honk honk. Cough cough. Honk honk.

That George… he’s a good conversationalist.

Have a great week!

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|Mr Flapper, Rescues, Silly Human|9 Comments

Weekend Update

flap
Flapper and the crew hung out together on Saturday and Sunday, searching for bugs under the fallen leaves that have yet to be raked.

assert
Flapper asserted his dominance by taking over the tree trunk pool for a while.

goose
Goose was a little upset about having to share the tree trunk pool, but they worked out a schedule.

goose
Goose is doing really well. On Tuesday, goose will go in for foot surgery to clean out the infection and help the foot heal as best it can. We may also find out if goose is a boy or girl on Tuesday, so then we can properly name the goose.

meanwhile
Meanwhile, goose enjoyed the weekend and took several swims in the tree trunk pool. So far there has been very little honking, which is good since we live in a quiet neighborhood. Goose is being a good neighbor.

crows
The crows hung out with us this weekend too, and the chickens turned over all the leaves to search for bugs. Petunia’s cold is improving and hopefully both she and O’Malley will forgive me for giving them pills twice a day.

gang
The chickens all get along pretty well now, though they argue at night over who gets top spot on the roost. They’re molting a bit right now, too. So I’m sure that adds to the crankies. But you can see they’re a pretty tight crew.

cuddle
In spite of this photo, goose is not super friendly. Goose is just lonely and needs attention.

nap
I am happy to be a soft spot for goose to rest, at least until his/her foot is healed and s/he can be reunited with the flock or sent to a sanctuary with other geese.

goose says
Goose says “keep honking” and have a good week.

ps
P.S. The tree trunk pool isn’t the only spot that needs a sharing schedule. Flapper is willing to share my lap with the goose, but only for a while.

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November 15, 2010|Chewy Magooey, Mr Flapper, O'Malley Peepers, Rescues, Silly Human|5 Comments

Electric Fence Details

magic
Here is where the electric fence magic lives. As you can see, it is also where the holiday lights end. This means that if you follow a strand of holiday lights you will find an electric fence at the end of the strand. I’m pretty sure this works everywhere.

tarp
Inside the tarp-covered former rabbit hutch (that has never seen a rabbit) we have the power supply for the holiday lights set up on a timer. Holiday lights are on from about 3:30pm to 10pm right now. The plug runs over the deck and through the woods and plugs in inside the house.

also
Also inside the magic tarp-covered hutch is the raccoon taser system. I like to call it “Bandit Blaster!” We went with a Havahart model because we don’t want to harm raccoons. But we went with medium-duty because we want to hear them swear just a little bit before they run away never to return. You can see three wires coming off the Havahart system. It’s really just two wires, but the ground wire plays two roles.

ground
One end of the ground cable is clamped to this 8-foot long copper ground rod that is pounded into the ground. But because raccoons won’t be touching the ground to complete the electrical circuit and shock themselves, we had to go with a two-wire system at the top of the aviary fence. (Most electric fences rely on the animal touching the ground and the fence at the same time. This won’t protect the top of my aviary unless the raccoons are 8-feet tall. So we had to go with a 2-wire system).

ugly
This is the back side of the aviary that backs up to the ivy wall behind our yard. You can see the bottom wire of the two-wire system at the top of the photo. It runs along the length of the back of the aviary and around the corner. This is where raccoons come through the yard as they stop to lounge in the pools and use the aviary net as a hammock.

end
Here’s the other end. The top wire is the fence hot wire and the bottom wire is the ground wire. When raccoons try to climb up onto the top of the aviary, they touch both wires which completes the electrical circuit and shocks them. BZZZZ!

havahart
This is pretty much the model we got, except I bought a much longer ground rod, because I heard that makes it more reliable: http://www.havahart.com/store/pet-dog-supplies/ss-750rpx

with
With a raccoon taser system in the back and holiday lights up front, the aviary is ready for the dark winter of Seattle. Between the secure night pens, the day aviary with in-ground fencing and top netting, the nitegard lights, the shake-away urine-scented yard spray and now the electric fence… it’s pretty secure around here.

Sleep well, little duckies and cluckies.

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October 11, 2010|Silly Human, Yard Stuff|Post Comment »

Cranky Molting Dinosaur

O’Malley is molting these days.

one
That means he likes to fight.

two
I think the combination of his feathers being sore, along with his worry that he will lose top alpha duck status while he molts, makes him want to challenge me all the time. He also can’t talk to me, so he gets angry when I misunderstand him and don’t do what he wants me to do.

stop
I try to stop him and back away.

but
But he just keeps coming.

dis
I try to discourage him.

rs
But he’s persistent.

iver
He’ll even jump over obstacles to get to me.

more
Once in a while he’ll pause to catch his breath.

lunge
But then it’s time to lunge, catch his talons on my legs and smack me with his wings again.

Here he is in motion.

love
In spite of his cranky behavior, he really is a lovable guy. Here he is sitting on my lap, telling me about his morning. Although he can be a cranky biter sometimes–especially when he’s molting–he is always a super lovable duck and I’m happy he’s my buddy.

In other news, Olly Astro’s 2nd blood work came back normal, so she’s done with antibiotics. Simon is on antibiotics for a very slight infection, and seems to be doing great. He’ll go back to the vet next Saturday for a quick re-check. Everyone else is doing great.

Happy weekend, and watch out for cranky biters.

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October 9, 2010|O'Malley Peepers, Silly Human|1 Comment
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