Author Topic: A random thread for the wildlife stuff - you know the drill  (Read 133998 times)

hellymedic

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Re: A random thread for the wildlife stuff - you know the drill
« Reply #525 on: 12 January, 2021, 04:50:33 pm »
Big. Tom has learnt to Miaow. Big Tom only started visiting us as an adult, when he was very gentlemanly to the litter we'd found and were looking after. He never miaowed at the time though the kittens did.
I don't think I've heard him miaow in the three years we've had him but Blackie does, when she wants/food/Dreamies/attention.
Seems an old cat (vets estimated he was 5 when neutered 3 years ago) has learned new tricks...

Re: A random thread for the wildlife stuff - you know the drill
« Reply #526 on: 12 January, 2021, 08:20:42 pm »
Re Big Tom
As he has recently started miaowing - just check he isn't going deaf!
Our previous cat had never been completely silent, but over quite a short period the miaowing got more frequent, and louder.  I realised she could not monitor the volume, like my husband, and worked out she was going deaf, also like my husband.
Vet confimed no other underlying illness, just old age. She adapted OK - when we wanted her in at dusk instead of shouting we put the outdoor lights on and she usually pottered in. Lived to 24......

hellymedic

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Re: A random thread for the wildlife stuff - you know the drill
« Reply #527 on: 12 January, 2021, 09:48:35 pm »
Thanks! I don't think he is deaf and has been quite vocal when seeing of other toms.

He seemed to be demanding food and didn't miaow after being fed. He has previously clawed my bum when demanding food.

I'll watch his response to sound.

He spends most of his time indoors in the cold weather.

Kim

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Re: A random thread for the wildlife stuff - you know the drill
« Reply #528 on: 13 January, 2021, 01:03:30 am »
Also watch your response to sound...

Meowing is a instinctive juvenile cat behaviour to demand attention from their mother; adult cats rarely use it for communication amongst themselves other than when being sexual or territorial.  Responding to mowling noises is an instinctive human reaction to distress of their offspring, and humans are hardwired to learn language.  Put the two together and the cat learns that meowing is an effective strategy for persuading humans to provide food, scritches, door opening services etc, and the human learns the arbitrary[1] meanings of a handful of differently-modulated meows.

I don't know much about deaf cats[2], but cats of deaf humans learn that meowing is largely pointless, and develop alternative communication strategies based on head-nudging, Getting In The Way, pawing, repeatedly jumping against the window, etc, etc.


[1] IIRC the SCIENCE shows that the vocalisations are specific to the individual cat, but their own humans can consistently determine their meaning.
[2] Other than that it's surprisingly hard to perform a distraction hearing test on a cat, because they frequently can't be arsed.

Mrs Pingu

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Re: A random thread for the wildlife stuff - you know the drill
« Reply #529 on: 13 January, 2021, 12:29:04 pm »
Agree. Our 5 ish yr old mogs defo miaow a lot more now than they did when they were younger. They're just wrapping us round their little finger...
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fuzzy

Re: A random thread for the wildlife stuff - you know the drill
« Reply #530 on: 13 January, 2021, 03:53:45 pm »
They just need time to work out what their equivalent of the Summoning Of The Staff Bell is.

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Cudzoziemiec

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Re: A random thread for the wildlife stuff - you know the drill
« Reply #532 on: 13 January, 2021, 07:36:11 pm »
Bison ranger would be a very cool job title, and it's great to have this reintroduction.
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hellymedic

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Re: A random thread for the wildlife stuff - you know the drill
« Reply #533 on: 13 January, 2021, 09:26:40 pm »
They just need time to work out what their equivalent of the Summoning Of The Staff Bell is.

I think this is what he's twigged!

I posted upthread I didn't think he was deaf.

If he hears anything like movement/opening cat food sachets he's up like a shot, sometimes from another room. Suggest's hearing's fine to me!

Auntie Helen

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Re: A random thread for the wildlife stuff - you know the drill
« Reply #534 on: 20 January, 2021, 08:11:39 pm »
Cycling to work today in the dark a very light-coloured and large owl flew across the road a few metres in front of me.

Klaus says they don’t have snowy owls in this bit of Germany but it seemed very light colour for a barn owl. I think it was probably a tawny owl, having looked at a website of Eulen in Deutschland.

Side note, the German for Eagle Owl is ‘Uhu’, pronounced oo-hoo.
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Cudzoziemiec

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Re: A random thread for the wildlife stuff - you know the drill
« Reply #535 on: 21 January, 2021, 09:08:28 am »
Barn owls look almost white in headlights.

Side note, the German for Eagle Owl is ‘Uhu’, pronounced oo-hoo.
I did know this but what puzzles me is the glue. Owl glue???
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Re: A random thread for the wildlife stuff - you know the drill
« Reply #536 on: 21 January, 2021, 09:14:26 am »
From https://www.uhu.com/en/more/about-uhu:

Quote
UHU COMPANY HISTORY
In 1905, pharmacist August Fischer acquired the small Ludwig Hoerth chemicals plant (founded 1884) in Bühl. At the time he did not yet know that he would soon make a discovery that would result in his company becoming one of the most famous adhesive manufacturers in the world.
In 1932 came the crucial innovation, when August Fischer developed the world's first ready-to-use, transparent artificial resin adhesive. It reliably bonded all materials known at the time, even the first plastics such as Bakelit®. As was common in the paper, office supplies and stationery industry, he chose the name of a bird for his new product: "UHU The All Purpose Adhesive".

Basil

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Re: A random thread for the wildlife stuff - you know the drill
« Reply #537 on: 27 January, 2021, 09:54:07 am »
Having not learned the first time, i set out a bird feeder.  Over the decking so we can sit and watch from our living room.
Only 10 days later I looked out this morning and there were two large rats on the decking gleaning the spill.
Bugger.  This time I'll not just clean the feeders and store them in the shed, I'll get rid of them completely to ensure I don't do it again.   :(
Admission.  I'm actually not that fussed about cake.

Mrs Pingu

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Re: A random thread for the wildlife stuff - you know the drill
« Reply #538 on: 27 January, 2021, 12:46:19 pm »
On Winterwatch last night they featured a bloke who had learned to embrace his rats. He reckoned he was getting more rat interested visitors such as weasles and tawny owls since they arrived.
Alternatively as has been said elsewhere, what are you feeding them? Less stuff gets thrown on the ground if you just feed straight sunflower hearts. We just get tons on pigeons instead..
(Meanwhile our cats have been known to eat this stuff under the feeders..)
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Basil

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Re: A random thread for the wildlife stuff - you know the drill
« Reply #539 on: 27 January, 2021, 12:59:24 pm »
The main problem is the large number of jackdaws around here.  Like sqiggles, they've learned to perch on the feeders and shake them about, to dispense goodies.
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Wowbagger

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Re: A random thread for the wildlife stuff - you know the drill
« Reply #540 on: 06 February, 2021, 10:32:21 am »
In response to a side-issue on another thread (whether crows steal bright shiny things), I had a crow steal a very bright, shiny tyre lever once. I was working on my velocipede in the garden and during a period when a particularly tame crow was visiting us regularly. The bloody thing nicked the lever, which had a gold finish, and flew up onto next door's roof and dropped it in the guttering.

I recall having some concerns about that crow: the children were quite small, well under 10, and I had worries that it might injure them in some way. A crow's beak is quite a formidable weapon.
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Mrs Pingu

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Re: A random thread for the wildlife stuff - you know the drill
« Reply #541 on: 07 February, 2021, 06:31:01 pm »
Somebody local to us is putting what I assume are giant seed & fat balls out where a cat can get at them. Pumpkin came home and deposited probably about a tennis ball sized pile of deconstructed fat ball on the porch rug so god knows how much she actually demolished, the wee terror.
*burp*
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Gattopardo

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Re: A random thread for the wildlife stuff - you know the drill
« Reply #542 on: 08 February, 2021, 04:07:27 pm »
Not a fan of urban foxes, or foxes in general. This little fox has been sleeping/napping on a law in the cold weather.  Now I don't like the idea of an animal suffering.

Now I think that these foxes should be controlled by humans being culled as we are a great food source. 

Now why does seeing this fox napping upset me so?

Here is the fox, asleep while it snows.  Find it upseting and want to give it a box to aleast get cover


Mrs Pingu

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Re: A random thread for the wildlife stuff - you know the drill
« Reply #543 on: 08 February, 2021, 04:40:16 pm »
I'm sure the fox could find itself some deep undergrowth somewhere to shelter & sleep in if it wanted to.
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Gattopardo

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Re: A random thread for the wildlife stuff - you know the drill
« Reply #544 on: 08 February, 2021, 06:18:43 pm »
You are right, no idea why I find it so upsetting.

Mrs Pingu

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Re: A random thread for the wildlife stuff - you know the drill
« Reply #545 on: 08 February, 2021, 06:33:40 pm »
Some sort of nurturing instinct I expect :)
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Gattopardo

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Re: A random thread for the wildlife stuff - you know the drill
« Reply #546 on: 08 February, 2021, 10:11:05 pm »
I don't like foxes, believe they are vermin. Then again I don't like that urban life is so waste full that urban foxes can thrive.  Foxes can kill cats, have seen two local foxes surround a cat, that was hiding under a car wailing.  Scared the foxes off.

Went and put some cat food that the cats don't like, well didn't like till I stuck the food in a gu pud ramekin, and put the food where the fox sleeps.  A fox came back and ate the food.

WTF is wrong with me.

MODIFY: Am from a farming background in another country, so seen what foxes do.  Am very anti fox hunting, no animal should come to such a horrific end, and I went on a hunt in the UK once.

ian

Re: A random thread for the wildlife stuff - you know the drill
« Reply #547 on: 09 February, 2021, 10:29:42 am »
Foxes are cool, we have a couple under the summer house. At least some wildlife benefits in urban environments. They're not vermin, the population size is regulated by food availability and vehicular predation. They mostly don't bother cats, they're not competing for territory or food, so unless either party feels threatened or the foxes are really, really hungry, there's not much point in fighting, they both risk serious injury. Foxes would rather eat smaller stuff with fewer claws and teeth. Cats would rather eat stuff from the supermarket.

They don't need extra food or shelter, they're wild animals. I wouldn't worry about them. Foxes and squirrels in other parts of the world have to put up with far colder temperatures.

Cudzoziemiec

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Re: A random thread for the wildlife stuff - you know the drill
« Reply #548 on: 09 February, 2021, 02:03:26 pm »
Bison online in Bialowieza national park: https://youtu.be/ZTZ9iyw-z1Q
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Gattopardo

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Re: A random thread for the wildlife stuff - you know the drill
« Reply #549 on: 09 February, 2021, 06:13:02 pm »