Tracks

Hi: 40°F
Low: 26°F
Conditions: increasing clouds; wintery mix by nightfall

Break out the bikinis and mai tais: we're having a heat wave here in Central Maine! It may not seem like much to our Southern friends, but here in New England anything above freezing is awfully exciting for humans and animals alike.

Many of the four-footed creatures in our area use this heat wave as an opportunity to stretch out their legs, move around, and even get a snack or two. Knowing this, Ari and I set out to see who might be on the move. We found plenty of deer, squirrel, and feral cat tracks, which is what we expected. But we also found some impressive surprises, too.


These are moose tracks. You can tell both because of their size and the division between the two branches of their hooves.


Ari took a good long time sniffing these tracks. And you could tell by watching her that she was impressed by whomever left such enormous foot prints. Her ego got the best of her--just for a moment--as she tried them on for size:

But it was pretty obvious to this furry Goldilocks that these tracks were WAY too big.

So we continued on our way, and that's when we found the most exciting thing we've seen in weeks:

Can you tell what these are? They don't have claws, so they aren't canid. And they're bigger than Ari's feet--at least the fronts one are (way bigger, in fact). But for all that size, this animal hasn't broken the surface of our fragile snow (which is more than this human and her 45 lb dog can say).

We'll give you a second or two to guess. After you've settled on yours, scroll down a bit and see if you're right.

Can you guess?

Are you sure?

Did you pick. . .

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This guy?

If you said bobcat, you're right! We've had one in our neighborhood for about a year now. We saw him this summer, when he made the mistake of bullying a fox kit (mom and dad were not happy--and it showed). We haven't seen him since, but these telltale tracks are all the evidence we need: Mr-Giant-Where'd-My-Tail-Go seems to be here to stay.

Overdue Meme

Our good friend, Maverick the Salty Pirate, tagged us in a meme a while ago. We have no good excuse for taking so long to get to this, and we hope we won't be forced to walk the plank in punishment.



The rules for this meme are these: go to your photos and pick the fifth photo in the fifth file. Here it is:




I don't know exactly why I took this picture, except that I have a minor obsession with the caninaturalist's ears. I also like that you can see how her hair gets all crimped when it's damp out.


The provision of this meme also asked us to tag five other bloggers to participate. We know this one has been around a little, so instead of tagging anyone in particular, we'll just invite anyone who hasn't participated to post their photos. Be sure to let us know when you do--we can't wait to see them!

Brave Ben

This week, I left Ari curled up in front of the woodstove and headed to Ottawa, Ontario, home of the National Archives of Canada. But today, no one is talking about dusty old files from the nineteenth century. Nope. They're talking about this guy:

Meet Ben. He's a lab mix who is making headlines across Ontario today. More importantly, he's a guy with a heartwrenching story and an admirable spirit. Ben arrived at a Quebec shelter late last week with his four littermates. His 'owners' claimed that his missing front leg was a birth defect, but the shelter vet soon discovered that someone--either as an accident or deliberate act--cut off most of it. Remarkably, Ben has remained a playful, friendly pup in spite of this cruelty and the discomfort that comes from a shattered bone in his shoulder.

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The SPCA is accepting donations for a surgery that will hopefully undo some of this damage and make him more comfortable (although, obviously, no one will be able to replace his paw and forearm). After he recovers, Ben will be looking for a permanent home.

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Even if you're not able to donate to Ben's cause, I hope you'll read his full story by clicking here.

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Take good care, dogs. It can be a mean world out there.