This must somehow be a very fortunate day. Standing in the kitchen I glanced out the window and thought, “Who’s dog is that?” Looked a little harder. Ah. God’s dog. The young coyote trotted casually up the long side of the property, as I silently tugged at my hubby’s sleeve to get him to look out the window. Hubby ran for his camera, then remembered that it is not working. In silent concert we dashed out the front door and peeked around the corner of the enclosed front porch as the coyote rounded the corner of the trailer and headed north.

“Boy, you are lucky the camera isn’t working.” My husband commented.

The young coyote glanced at us, startled, then ran, his full thick tail bouncing behind him.

This is why the chickens don’t get to free range on cloudy days! I think God’s dog must have been hanging around off and on all day, as our dog has been barking at the door off and on, too.

My pal, the juvenile Sharp-Shinned Hawk, has been hanging around the barnyard all day. I’ve been watching him out my window by the computer here. When I went to feed this evening he had settled on top of the carport – much to the consternation of the Eurasian Ring-necked Doves who like to use it for a courting ground. He sat right there as I talked to him on my way to the barn – teasing that before long he would be coming to my hand and letting me pet him. He just watched me without comment.

As it happens, the barn cat killed a medium sized mouse the other day and it has been laying in the barn. I usually toss them out in the field before they stink. I grabbed this one, walked back out and dropped it in plain sight of the hawk on the carport. The chickens had also killed a large kangaroo rat in their pen sometime last night. So when I fed them, I picked up that rat, and also walked it over and dropped it in plain sight of the carport. The young hawk watched, then flew up to his favorite perching tree in the yard, distainful. I didn’t take offense – I didn’t know if he would take carrion, or anything I had touched anyway. No big deal – sooner or later something here in the desert will take them away.

I didn’t know it – but the hubby was watching me through the back window. As I walked into the house my hubby was calling me, quietly but urgently.

“Hurry, hurry, you’ve got to see this.” he stage whispered.

Right as I walked into the back bedroom where I could see out the window, the young hawk soared in a graceful curve to the gatepost. Eyed the rat I had left in the drive for him. Then gracefully swooped down, delicately lifted it in his talons and without actually landing, carried it away.

Great. Now feeding time includes not just our chickens, barn cat, horses and mule – AND the wild quail, doves, and smaller birds who all seem to think the chicken and horse feed is also for them – but a certain young hawk who seems to think I have taken him to raise.

I hope he realizes that I’m not really a very good hunter – but just “steal” from others who are. The barn cat sometimes eats her catch and sometimes not. The chickens, of course, don’t usually kill many rodents and never do eat them. It seems more of a “this is OUR dinner” sort of thing with them. Hubby is kidding me that soon I will have Young Hawk eating from my hand.

It is pretty cool, isn’t it?

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