Home Again

It is good to be home, even though we did not get the Libertarian Presidential Nominee that we had hoped for.  Bow was well cared for in my absence, and on my return, he took time out from his dinner with Lawrence to greet me warmly, and then later to thoroughly groom me.

Bow getting read to groom me in the outer pen

It rained constantly while I was away, and for the first few days after I got back. This was a big contrast to the constant sunshine and ninety degree plus weather in Florida. But all this rain has paid off for my cherries.

These are small, extremely sour cherries, and most people I know don't like them in their natural form, though they enjoy them as maraschino cherries, which are preserved and sweetened. However, Bow and I like them just as they are -- very tart!

Bow enjoys the cherries so much that he sometimes eats them whole, pit and all. I tried to slow down his eating and asked him to give me the stems and the pits.


Later in the day, the dogs were barking at something on the other side of the fence, and Bow wanted me to go check it out.

Bow concerned about something going on outside

It was a beautiful black rat snake.

The snake was long and fat, but it may have recently eaten, for it was quite calm and perfectly harmless toward me, even when I got close.

On my property, life and death happen naturally. Many beings every day give their lives so that other beings may live. For all animals, including humans, food is a living thing, whether animal or plant. We are all predator and prey in turn. I eat meat, and I plan to continue eating meat, because that is the healthiest and most effective diet for me.  But I do not kill unnecessarily, and I know that for me, that black rat snake is more friend than foe.  So the snake and I went our separate ways without hurting one another, and I reported to Bow that all was well outdoors. He looked at the picture of the snake briefly, then went back to grooming me.

I wish that my fellow human primates could recognize when someone is not threatening them and avoid killing others unnecessarily. I am not sure I understand completely why it was necessary to kill Harambe at the Cincinnati Zoo. In any event, a zoo is clearly not a safe environment for a great ape, as there are not adequate barriers in place, and any time there is doubt about safety, nobody cares whether a human is trespassing in an ape enclosure or an ape is trespassing on human territory.

I would never send Bow to live in a zoo or in a sanctuary where a breach of protocol by a human could result in Bow's being shot. But I am afraid, very afraid, that with US Fish & Wildlife tightening the noose around the necks of primate owners, my time for idyllic grooming with Bow and quiet time together may be rapidly drawing to a close.

Delegates from Missouri
Austin Petersen,
 Aya Katz,
 Thomas R. Fiedler,
 Rebekah Fiedler,
Jeremiah Barnett

I went to the Libertarian National Convention in Orlando to help select Austin Petersen as our presidential nominee, because I trusted that as President, he would direct U.S. Fish &Wildlife to stop sending our tax money to Africa and to stop harassing the owners of primates here in the United States. But Austin Petersen was not chosen. Gary Johnson was chosen, and I have no earthly idea where he stands on this. I suppose I will now have to reach out to his campaign to find out.

While there, I met the National Chair of the Libertarian Party and got to interview him for LibertyBuzz.

http://libertybuzz.us/story/a-party-of-principles-an-interview-with-nicholas-sarwark/2016/05/28/416/

We Libertarians disagree about many things. We are individuals, and we vote our conscience. No two Libertarians agree on everything. But it was encouraging to see that we all at least agreed on this: Taxation is theft!

If taxation is theft when it comes to redistribution of resources here in the United States, how much more so when taxpayer money is sent to Africa for conservation efforts by an agency that seeks to nationalize all chimpanzees, here in the United States!

http://www.fws.gov/news/ShowNews.cfm?ID=E81DA137-BAF2-9619-3492A2972E9854D9

Another Snake Caught and Released

 I was taking it easy this morning, while Bow lounged around in the outer pen. The last thing I wanted was to deal with another snake. But the dogs gave the alarm, and Bow got very excited, too. This time, the snake was not nearly as aggressive as the one we met before. Rather than attacking anyone who approached, it was engaged in mostly defensive maneuvers. I was able to get it into my plastic container with very little trouble. In fact, I think the snake cooperated with me. Brownie tried to tug at the tail that was not in the container, but the snake tucked itself inside and allowed me to secure the lid.

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I showed the snake to Bow, who was leaning forward in the pen, eager to see. The dogs milled around me, but they accepted that the snake was mine to do with as I pleased, since I had captured it.

The snake seemed very relaxed within the container. It was not making any gestures that indicated a desire to attack.

I took the snake to the front yard near the pasture and opened the lid. At first the snake did not move at all, and I was concerned that it might have been asphyxiated. 

However, when I prodded it with the tongs, it did move.

It had a very stern, but non-threatening expression. At no point did it attempt to strike out at me. The behavior of this snake is what I associate with black rat snakes in general, as I have handled many of them over the years. I would not attempt to handle a snake that I don't feel comfortable with.

Eventually, I tipped the container over and allowed the snake to make its way through the grass to the pasture.

 

If all goes well for this snake, it will capture and eat many rodents.

Snake Season Begins

With the weather warming up, it is snake season again.Yesterday on my walk I met a black rat snake. Snakes are much slower than rabbits, so this one stayed very still.

He was sunning himself out by the well house, and when I came in closer to look, he flicked his tongue in and out.

Here is a different view of the snake from the other side, so you can see the length of its body.

I left the snake unmolested, since he is guarding my well house from mice. But if for any reason he ventures into the back yard where the dogs are, he is unlikely to survive. Let's hope he is smart enough not to try that. Leo is already quite agitated by squirrel sightings.

This morning Bow and I went outside into the outer pen, and I brought along the watering can. But Bow refused to use it, so I had to water the seeds by myself.

In the interest of full disclosure, I think I should tell you that Bow knocked over the planter once yesterday, and all the dirt spilled out on the floor of the pen. I scolded him for it, and he has not done it again, but I have a lot of doubt as to the outcome  for those seeds. I picked up everything I could and put it back in the planter. This morning I saw that one of the pea seeds had moved up to the surface and was trying to germinate. I pushed it down a little, so it would have a dirt covering.

Bow seems to be against the idea of gardening. He knows all about it, for when he was much younger and not yet in the pens, we did have a flower garden up front. We all took turns watering the plants, and even children who came to visit enjoyed doing that. But not Bow.

It would be nice if Bow would cooperate just a little in earning his own keep or growing his own food. But he has to want to first.