Animal Whisperer

We’ve had the distinct pleasure and challenge (we being me and Montana) to stay in the home of a dear friend and true animal whisperer. This New York City born and raised woman never had any pets or room for them. However, as an adult, she’s made up for lost time!

Montana and I have shared this unique environment of cats, dogs, horses, ducks and rabbits for about a week now and they all get along amazingly well. It’s the guests who are challenged! Montana loves kitties and is in a constant cat-atonic state! Her nose twitches just like a bunny’s nose trying to figure out all the smells bombarding all her senses.

As my BFF neighbor will affirm, Montana truly loves her bunny play time. The ones here are quite a bit bigger than the wild ones in my front yard but that doesn’t keep Montana from lusting after them.

This is the best I could do with getting a bunny picture! I’m surprised they let me even get this close because Montana was at my side! I have to keep Montana on a leash all the time because of the openness of the environment. As I carried my salad to my seat with one hand and Montana’s leash in the other, she bolted through the doggie door toward not only the rabbits but a cat! She’d obviously been paying attention to the dogs running in and out of the doggie door after the bunnies have been put to bed and saw her moment. UGH!

A couple of years ago, my friend rescued a duckling. Of course she made it a pet and of course she got it a friend (as she did with all her foundlings). The male duck was supposed to be female but, as is true with many small animals, it’s not until they get older do you actually know exactly what you’ve gotten your hands on. So now there’s three!

The ducks are named Schnoooldz (mom), Dooodlz (dad) and Nooodlz (baby). Montana hasn’t really paid any attention to the ducks until today when Dooodlz flew off the handrail and did a nose dive into the mud. I had a close tether on her not knowing what she was going to do…or him either for that matter. Because he goes around hissing and flapping his wings all the time making sure everyone knows he’s the BOSS, my friend  aptly nicknamed him “rattlesnake!”

Nooodlz is about two weeks old.

My friend  has several names for each of her babies. She calls Schnooodlz  her “eagle” because she actually can fly. My friend has taught her to give “kisses” and to perch on her shoulder like an eagle! Who knew?

Dooodlz…the rattlesnake.

For dogs, she has them in three sizes: LARGE, Medium Large and small. Reno, a Bernese Mountain Dog, is “my” dog and weighs in at about 120 and is who I call Big Baby….because he is. He reminds me of my Newfie/Lab (Doobie) who passed in 2010.

The little scruffy dude next to him is Reign a/k/a The Enforcer.

This is Brody a/k/a Three Legs. He always looks confused! LOL No other name needed as I can remember numbers!

Then there’s the goat killer from the Caribbean she rescued while in medical school, Bella. Bella is the only dog to ever attacked the unsuspecting Montana so we were overly cautious when I first got here. Bella found a way out and charged Montana within seconds. Bella wanted to establish her pecking order to this new female!

Needless to say, I asserted MY pecking order and have continued my pack leader role by carrying around an empty water bottle that makes a very loud crackling sound when squeezed. If Bella even looks funny or if Montana even thinks about a cat or bunny I pull my water bottle from my holster and crackle away!

Bella’s a/k/a is Dingo Dog.

This is the only cat I could catch a photo of. I’m so confused about all the official and unofficial names of her menagerie that I’ve come up with my own. This one reminds me of Ava’s black cat Vinnie. She’s very curious about us and opens the bathroom door in the middle of the night when you think you’re alone.

My friend also rescued a large white fat cat from the Caribbean whose a/k/a is Cab Cat, one I call “Patches” and one I only catch a glimpse of so I have no feel for it’s other name.

The horses are Jessie (red on the right) and Moose. Moose is “my” horse because when I met him years ago, I told her she needed to get him because he was so sad. He’s not any more! He’s no longer confined to a tiny area without any contact. He’s a retired professional barrel racing horse and I found that out a few years back when I goosed him to go faster not knowing he’d run full bore toward the gate! WHOA!

Montana hasn’t been too interested in the horses until Moose got a little too close to me and she stood up and touched his nose establishing his boundary with me.

This is Montana laughing at how easy it was for her to get that big dawg to back off! LOL

My friend is not only a great animal whisperer but an awesome friend. She’s been there for me and Ava many times over the years and I’ve loved having this time with her in her new digs.

Tonight we’re going to eat steak. A big ole juicy one at Ruth’s Chris’s Steak House! I’ll let you know how that works out for me being able to get an early start in the morning!

HAPPY TAILS!