Coyotes, Cougars, and Skunks

Gee, it's been a busy day on the wildlife front - carousing coyotes, a curious cougar, and rabid skunks - what a crazy mixture! There have been multiple reports of rabid skunks in the northern areas of Colorado lately. Skunks have been reported chasing horses in pastures, and acting aggressively towards pets and humans they have encountered. Several skunks have been trapped after reports of aggressive behavior, and, unfortunately, each one has been confirmed to be rabid. Please be certain that your pets and livestock are up-to-date on their rabies vaccinations. (Yes, there are rabies vaccinations available for horses, cattle, goats, pigs, llamas, alpacas, rabbits, etc.)
  Yesterday, while we were having such a chilly and snowy day, a fat, good-looking pair of coyotes spent several hours along my sister and brother-in-law's back fence line. They spent the first couple of hours hunting, playing and patrolling on the north side of Kathy and Jim's back fence, which is an open area. Then they hopped the fence and stayed in back yard for another couple of hours. Jim had to put covers and curtains in place over the back patio doors, as Mona and Boo really wanted to go out and remove the interlopers from the property. They left the area just before dusk. Jim said they were a "very handsome" pair.
  This morning, a young lady was walking her dog (leashed) on Flagstaff Mountain near the Sunrise Amphitheatre. She and dog suddenly became aware there was a crouching mountain lion less than a yard away in snowy brush. The woman raised her arms above her head, with the dogs leash around her wrist, and started talking very loud. She glanced around and saw an outhouse/bathroom not too far away, so she started backing towards it. While the mountain lion did not attack, it seemed curious, and advanced as slowly as the woman and dog retreated. The pair got inside the bathroom and bolted the door. The young cougar stayed in the area for about five minutes and then disappeared back into woods. The woman had called 911, and wildlife officers arrived, but the mountain lion was long gone. As the cat had not actually acted in a menacing way, and paw prints confirmed a younger, smaller individual, officials decided that the cat was simply curious.
  Officials want to remind you that with the dry, and now cold, winter, mountain lion sightings will probably multiply. Make yourself appear as large as possible, and make loud noises. Do not run away - you then become prey. Unless an animal is rabid, or defending it's young (not at this time of year!), it will not attack you, a larger and extremely vocal creature.

Rabies is a Serious Threat

If you are a responsible pet owner (or guardian - the official word in Boulder), your pet, animal, or charge (or in plurals) is up-to-date on its vaccinations. Please be sure that your pets' rabies immunizations are current - whether you own a cat, dog, horse, rabbit, ferret, whatever.... I know that on the Eastern Shore of Virginia, there have been at least 8 attacks made by rabid foxes - and I am also aware that many feral cats and dogs have died horribly in that area. Foxes, squirrels, bats and raccoons are carriers of this dreadful disease - I love all of these critters, and it's disturbing to know that there is the usual summer epidemic breaking out once more. Rabies is known in every country with large populations of mammals. Please keep your pets and your family safe.
Nothing much is going on here - this weekend I will start taking care of two new charges, a pair of 12-year-old cats, originally from Baltimore. Tugger is a very dark tabby, while Sasquatch is a handsome black guy. One has hyperthyroidism, while the other suffers from pancreatitis - so I'll be mixing meds into food and making sure each kit eats only their own food. These kits are about a block away from the Irish kids, so things should work out well. I visited my Lovey and Neddy yesterday evening, and let them go outside to play. About 8 p.m., Bridget, a new neighbor, tied Kitkat, her large cat, out on her patio. We both heard an awful howl, then Neddy and Lovey were inside my apartment looking out, while Kitkat had broken the buckle of her collar and was back inside her house. Bridget and I talked about it, and I offered to buy a new collar for Kitkat; we parted on good terms, and I took my kits back inside with me (they followed me back outside and over to Bridget's patio - it used to be Riley's, the Shar Pei's, patio).