...what this is...?!?!?!
Well, sit back and enjoy this story.
So on Thursday, I was in the house working and Basil came over and whined/wimpered at me. I thought maybe he was lonely because the Schwartz's were out of town for spring break. So, I stopped and pet him for a bit. But then followed over to where he purposefully walked. He stopped in the original stairway area and perked his ears and froze in his position...listening intently. I walked around to the north room to see if I could see anything, but I didn't hear or see anything unusual.
On Friday, it poured rain. So, I worked on tearing up the kitchen floor and then Josh came around lunch time with the boys. I had just been sweeping in the north room when some of the debris fell through a crack...and I immediately heard squeaking. I couldn't tell if it was baby mice or baby birds. But it was the same area Basil had been quietly investigating. So, I kept knocking debris in the crack and trying to pinpoint the sound.
When Josh arrived, I took him over and had him listen. Then as I took the boys upstairs to see all the water leaking through the not-quite-finished-being-shingled- roof, Josh took a flashlight to the spot in the north room to see what he could see. I never asked if he was surprised by what he saw. But do you know what it was? A momma coon and her baby pups...like maybe 2 days old pups. Four of them.
So, I was going to take the boys home while Josh dealt with the situation. Josh didn't have Eric's gun with him, so he headed to the neighbor. Troy (neighbor) and George (another neighbor who was at Troy's) came over and the coon was shot. The pups were pulled out. And I asked Josh to bring the pups home for the boys to see. Basil was allowed one of them. So, three rode home with Josh in a bucket.
The boys were very interested in the pups. We explained the pups wouldn't live long b/c their mom had to be shot since she was in our house. They seemed to understand. But they still felt the need to give them some milk when Josh suggested that option just before dinner time. Jake was especially eager to take care of them and help step in in place of their mom. Joe just enjoyed watching everything and talking up a storm about everything. It was neat to watch the boys respond to various things over the next few hours.
After we ate dinner, Jake wanted to get outside to feed the pups again before we took them back to Basil. Well, the pups were getting cold and weak (even though Josh put some straw in the bucket for them) and they were hardly squeaking so they decided not to try to feed the pups again. And as I came out from helping with the dinner dishes, Joe suddenly looked very choked up and distraught...saying, "I don't want Basil to have them for a treat." I hugged Joe and held him on my lap telling him it would all be okay as Joe wiped his eyes. We tried to ease the worry in the situation by stating we wouldn't take them back to Basil, but we'd take them back to the woods behind our house and maybe another mom coon would find them and be able to take care of the pups. That quickly made both boys feel much better.
So, we loaded everybody up in the car and listened to the pups squeak during the car ride to the house. Josh suggested we place them right next to one of the coon paths at the edge of the woods so a mom coon could find them more easily. We covered them with straw and grass to keep them as warm as possible. And said goodbye.
Saturday morning, the boys stayed behind at Mama and Papa's. So, Josh and I checked the pups. They were surprisingly still in the same spot, but obviously dead. Shortly after checking the spot, along came Basil. And within a few minutes, he had disappeared and relocated all three pups.
I remember the boys asking us to check on the pups Saturday morning before we left, but I don't remember them asking about it in the evening. So, on Sunday afternoon as we got to the house, Jake eventually went to check the spot where we'd left the pups. "They're gone. Mom, another coon mom came and took them. Joe, they're gone! Yeah!" Such a bittersweet moment. I was in the middle of carrying some large branches to the burn pile. So, I didn't have to directly become part of the conversation. And that was all they said before galloping off to some other adventure.
And an adventure it has been...within the last few days, Joe has declared his desire for a baby goat and coon pups. I think we're going to have to figure out what practical pet to get!
What do ya think about chickens? :)
Well, sit back and enjoy this story.
So on Thursday, I was in the house working and Basil came over and whined/wimpered at me. I thought maybe he was lonely because the Schwartz's were out of town for spring break. So, I stopped and pet him for a bit. But then followed over to where he purposefully walked. He stopped in the original stairway area and perked his ears and froze in his position...listening intently. I walked around to the north room to see if I could see anything, but I didn't hear or see anything unusual.
On Friday, it poured rain. So, I worked on tearing up the kitchen floor and then Josh came around lunch time with the boys. I had just been sweeping in the north room when some of the debris fell through a crack...and I immediately heard squeaking. I couldn't tell if it was baby mice or baby birds. But it was the same area Basil had been quietly investigating. So, I kept knocking debris in the crack and trying to pinpoint the sound.
When Josh arrived, I took him over and had him listen. Then as I took the boys upstairs to see all the water leaking through the not-quite-finished-being-shingled- roof, Josh took a flashlight to the spot in the north room to see what he could see. I never asked if he was surprised by what he saw. But do you know what it was? A momma coon and her baby pups...like maybe 2 days old pups. Four of them.
So, I was going to take the boys home while Josh dealt with the situation. Josh didn't have Eric's gun with him, so he headed to the neighbor. Troy (neighbor) and George (another neighbor who was at Troy's) came over and the coon was shot. The pups were pulled out. And I asked Josh to bring the pups home for the boys to see. Basil was allowed one of them. So, three rode home with Josh in a bucket.
The boys were very interested in the pups. We explained the pups wouldn't live long b/c their mom had to be shot since she was in our house. They seemed to understand. But they still felt the need to give them some milk when Josh suggested that option just before dinner time. Jake was especially eager to take care of them and help step in in place of their mom. Joe just enjoyed watching everything and talking up a storm about everything. It was neat to watch the boys respond to various things over the next few hours.
After we ate dinner, Jake wanted to get outside to feed the pups again before we took them back to Basil. Well, the pups were getting cold and weak (even though Josh put some straw in the bucket for them) and they were hardly squeaking so they decided not to try to feed the pups again. And as I came out from helping with the dinner dishes, Joe suddenly looked very choked up and distraught...saying, "I don't want Basil to have them for a treat." I hugged Joe and held him on my lap telling him it would all be okay as Joe wiped his eyes. We tried to ease the worry in the situation by stating we wouldn't take them back to Basil, but we'd take them back to the woods behind our house and maybe another mom coon would find them and be able to take care of the pups. That quickly made both boys feel much better.
So, we loaded everybody up in the car and listened to the pups squeak during the car ride to the house. Josh suggested we place them right next to one of the coon paths at the edge of the woods so a mom coon could find them more easily. We covered them with straw and grass to keep them as warm as possible. And said goodbye.
Saturday morning, the boys stayed behind at Mama and Papa's. So, Josh and I checked the pups. They were surprisingly still in the same spot, but obviously dead. Shortly after checking the spot, along came Basil. And within a few minutes, he had disappeared and relocated all three pups.
I remember the boys asking us to check on the pups Saturday morning before we left, but I don't remember them asking about it in the evening. So, on Sunday afternoon as we got to the house, Jake eventually went to check the spot where we'd left the pups. "They're gone. Mom, another coon mom came and took them. Joe, they're gone! Yeah!" Such a bittersweet moment. I was in the middle of carrying some large branches to the burn pile. So, I didn't have to directly become part of the conversation. And that was all they said before galloping off to some other adventure.
And an adventure it has been...within the last few days, Joe has declared his desire for a baby goat and coon pups. I think we're going to have to figure out what practical pet to get!
What do ya think about chickens? :)
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