Summer 2011

It has been a very busy summer here with the newest generation of groundhogs. This year we have 2 mamas and 5 babies... we think 3 belong to one mama and 2 belong to the other. But we're not sure, because all 5 babies certainly did stick together (not so much now as they are getting older). The same cannot be said for the 2 adults. Serious turf wars.

We captured lots of great pictures. We named one of the little guys Braveheart because he was incredibly daring and social. He would come right up to us looking for a treat. He even took carrots from our hands. The others were more timid, but got accustomed to us after a while. They are so adorable and fun! Yes, even though they dig lots of holes in our yard and chew on our porch. How could anyone get mad at these sweet faces??

Our little orphan

My husband and I had quite an adventure involving a baby groundhog yesterday. As we were driving through our neighborhood, we had to stop to allow a little critter to cross the street safely. We looked closely and discovered it was a tiny baby groundhog, just struggling to cross the road into a neighbor's yard. We knew this wasn't normal. Our families of groundhogs have lived in our yard ever since we moved in 5 years ago. We know that the mama never allows her babies to wander away. Never. In fact, she nurtures them pretty much all through the summer until they are grown and can fully live on their own.

We knew this little baby had lost its mom. :( We went home to get a box and drove back to the neighbor's yard, where the little guy was still sitting. A man who lives in the house came out and said that the baby had been around for the past 2-3 days. So my husband and I placed him in the box and took him to our house. We placed clover, some carrot pieces and grass inside the box, as well as some cloths. We wondered if our mama groundhog would take care of the little orphan (by this time we had already named him "Lucky" - because we were lucky to have found him before a car or predator got him). However, information that we found online said that a mother groundhog would not welcome an outsider.

As my husband continued to research the web for information, he suggested that I call The Center for Wildlife in Cape Neddick - approximately 40 miles away. At least they might be able to give me some advice. Well, they gave more than advice. They asked if we would be willing to drive him to the center where one of their staff members would be delighted to take him in. (They told me that groundhogs were her favorite!) We of course agreed.

On the way to the center, Lucky clawed his way to the top edge of the box and almost escaped. So we placed a cover over the top, tucked the box in the backseat of the car and I crawled in and sat next to him as my husband drove. When we arrived, the staff quickly took Lucky and the box to a back room where they had prepared a pen for him. They gave us an "admission ticket" with a number to reference should we want to call and check in on him.

I did call today and spoke with the woman who is caring for him. She said that another baby groundhog was brought to the Center today, so now Lucky has a buddy - which is really important and good for both of them. She is feeding them a special formula and acting as a surrogate mother in a sense, because baby groundhogs bond with their mothers until they are weaned. She adores groundhogs and is taking extra special care of them. My husband and I are grateful to have such a wonderful place nearby. www.yorkcenterforwildlife.org

When Lucky and his buddy are old enough to be released, she will take them to a home that has acres of fields and woods. However, don't be surprised if you read another post in the near future welcoming Lucky to MY home. I just might have to go get him when he is ready! xoxo

The first sighting of 2010

The groundhogs are up and at it after a long winter slumber! My husband heard a "whistle pig" yesterday and sure enough, one appeared from this hole in our front yard an hour later.




Yep, all I have to show is the hole. My buddy would have no part of having his picture taken. I waited and waited... and waited... and well, he won. That's okay. We have all spring and summer to get reacquainted. :) There are still 2 weeks until the official start of the season, but as far as all of us here are concerned, spring has arrived!

Happy Groundhog Day!

Of course I could not let this special day go by without wishing everyone a Happy Groundhog Day. Punxsutawney Phil saw his shadow so I guess it will be at least six more weeks until I see my littles buddies pop up for the first sniff of Spring. I can't wait! :)

If anyone needs a truly heartwarming, inspirational boost, visit Faith's website:

http://faiththedog.info/

I'm adding this link to my blog. She is worth following.

Buddies

It's been a while since my last post. I thought today would be a good day to update my imaginary readers. ;-)

My groundhogs haven't been as visible this summer as in past summers. We have two this year who have stuck around, popping up from their holes to grab the peanuts and carrots we place nearby. However they aren't too keen on visiting. They prefer to take their treats back inside and all we can hear is crunching from underground. When the crunching stops, we wait a minute until the nose, ears and eyes appear level with the hole to scope out the scene. Pop up, grab, hunker down, crunch crunch crunch. This has been the entertainment for the most part. However... I did manage to get a couple of pictures of one the other day who enjoyed his peanuts alfresco:

We have a new buddy this summer who love peanuts just as much - if not more - than the groundhogs. And this little guy is not shy at all. Meet Buddy:

This is our resident chipmunk who has taken a liking to the groundhogs' territory. He is adorable and amazing to watch, scurrying around stuffing peanuts in his cheeks. I never completely understood the term "chipmunk cheeks" until I saw it for myself. He can wad 4-5 peanuts in his cheeks. He hit pay dirt one day when my husband was outside picking blueberries, ready with a container full of peanuts should a groundhog appear. Well, the chipmunk found it... in fact, the above photo was taken as he eyed the container... and he had a plan for each and every nut.

One cheek full, one more to go.

Today my husband actually watched a neighborhood cat dash out of nowhere and scoop Buddy into his jaws and run off. We were sick about it. But you will never believe it: Buddy reappeared about an hour afterwards! I was never so happy to see this little guy as I was today. :) Now we know to be vigilant about keeping cats out of our yard.

Cats like birds too. Good thing they are no match for turkeys, because we have a bunch who parade around the neighborhood and make our front lawn a regular stop. Yes, they know they can count on getting bread from us. They are quite the crew, very protective of one another. I enjoy feeding them even though i suppose I shouldn't. But who could resist?

Baby birds on the move

A few days ago my husband and I saw the baby robin flapping his wings and wobbling on the edge of the nest. We knew it wouldn't be long before he discovered he could fly and fortunately I was able to get a picture of him after he settled back down:




The nest was empty that same evening when we returned home from work. It was so much fun watching the entire process right from our front porch. I miss the activity.



Today we saw MORE bird babies - turkeys! Yep, 4 grown turkeys and 10 babies at least. We cannot believe how much wildlife we see in this neighborhood. You would think we lived out in the country.




Now if we could just have more sunny days like today. Who knows what other visitors might appear! :)

A fox is in town

Yes that's right, a FOX. I saw a red fox sniffing around not too far from the main groundhog entrance last week. I was stunned, as I've never seen a fox that close. My husband saw him again last night and chased him away. I don't want him anywhere near my groundhogs.

Mama and the 5 babies have not been around since last week and I suspect she moved them to a safer location. I don't know for sure - I've tried to find some information about groundhogs moving their young if they sense danger, but haven't found anything yet.

We do have one groundhog that has stuck around and I'm going to make sure he is safe. I'm tossing food as near to his hole as possible. Sure, they are speedy little critters but outrunning a fox might be tough. I miss the wee ones and hope they are okay.

We have a precious new addition...

... no, not a groundhog but a baby robin has hatched! :) We were fortunate enough to be able to sneak a few photos, as mama and papa are fiercely protective. It is fascinating to watch this robin family. Nature is truly amazing.


Papa robin guards the nest while mom is away in search of food...

... then she returns and takes over which is good because

somebody is HUNGRY!

Once his belly is full, he takes a nap and mama goes out again for a bit.

Such a good mama

Our little buddies have finally decided that we are okay after all. They have come to trust us and look forward to the treats we bring to them. It is an incredible joy to sit and watch mama and her 5 babies (yes, there are 5!) eat and play... and learn how to become big groundhogs. This evening, they were eating with her and every now and then one would try to steal a peanut from her paw. But no sir, they had to get their own. They are so adorable and fun.

Mama watches over the wee ones during dinner...

... then sneaks away when they get the hang of it.

Kisses for mom. :)

The first outing

I came home from work this evening to find our groundhog babies playing and eating in the backyard near one of the entrances to their underground home. I can't say for sure whether or not it was their first real outing, but this is the first opportunity that I've had to spend some time with them completely above ground. Up to this point my husband and I have only seen them peering from their holes.

But this evening they were up and about, exploring their new surroundings and enjoying carrots. Baby carrots, of course! Mama was keeping watch the whole time and didn't seem to mind me sitting on the ground nearby. I just love watching their playful antics... next time I'm going to try to capture them on video. Awww just look at 'em! :)

BABIES!!

I knew it... I just knew we would see more groundhog babies this year! Unlike last summer, this year's babies did not emerge until they were a bit bigger. Their mama must have kept them under wraps longer than last year's mama groundhog. In fact, this mama is far more shy and protective than the one last year. It has been quite a coup to get any pictures at all! But I managed to sneak a couple pics as they curiously investigated their surroundings under the rhododendron in front of our porch:

One was poking up through the hole looking for his sibling under the rhododendron... as you see he came out soon afterward.

There is A LOT going on around this rhododendron because a mother robin chose this as a great place to build a nest! My husband and I have a perfect view from our front window.

The beginning of construction

All moved in

The mother sits on her eggs and the father robin is always close by. He watches the nest when mom goes to get a bite to eat. He even chased a squirrel up a tree (no joke) when one came too close to the area. It is absolutely fascinating to watch. I managed to get a photo of the eggs this morning when mom went away. I won't do it again. Both mom and dad were incredibly anxious and protective and distraught. I still feel bad for invading their precious territory. But I did quickly snap this photo of 3 beautiful, blue robin eggs:

It is such a treat to be able to watch all of this from our own front porch. We are amazed at the brilliance of nature, not to mention endlessly entertained!

Now I have to share photos of my husband's special buddy, Nessie (nicknamed after the Loch Ness Monster). Nessie appeared from a pile of rubble/compost that my husband keeps and stirs around in our backyard. Okay... heeeeeeeeere's Nessie!

Yes, normally I would freak out at the sight of a snake. But this guy is more afraid of us and he is truly harmless. I have to admit, he is kind of cute in a slithery-don't come-too-close-to-me sort of way.

Gotta love all creatures great and small. :)

Mama's back!

I haven't had much success capturing pictures of my little guys this spring. They come out to eat and as soon as I show up, they dart back into their holes and wait it out. They win every time, despite my patience. I still believe they will get used to me but they are still trying to figure out who and what is safe. But our Mama groundhog knows and I finally had a chance to visit with her yesterday! She sat nearby eating peanuts and carrots and didn't mind the flash of the camera. I also learned that groundhogs like rabbit food and water too - thanks to HogHaven! It is an absolute perfect 10 today... it feels and smells like summer. A great day for a picnic with Mama. :)

The neighbors must think I'm nuts

We are enjoying a real, honest-to-goodness Spring this year in the Northeast. Perfect weather for groundhog outings... and we have witnessed quite a few humorous and adorable antics! Alas, our little buddies are playing hard to get. I had to work extra hard to get a picture of them this weekend, despite my clever efforts. Today, I swear I went outside FIVE TIMES trying to snap a photo. I tiptoed toward the hole, tossing peanuts and carrots in front of me to prove to the little fuzz-face that I can be trusted. He would look at me, braced and guarded, then dive into his hole.

After the fifth trip outside, I plunked myself down on the grass and waited. And waited. (Oh and I should mention that my next door neighboor can see all of this.) And waited until....... he popped back up.

I remained still and quiet long enough to watch him come all the way out of the hole and turn around.

Then as soon as he caught a glimpse of me the show was over and he dove underground. I waited again but he had caught on. So I called it good with two new pictures to add to my album.

(Of course as soon as I was inside the house again, he came out to feast on peanuts and carrots for dinner. )

Better luck next weekend. :)

Chillin' with mama and papa?

Today was another glorious sunny day, and two of my groundhogs didn't mind me snapping some photos while one enjoyed peanuts and the other munched on carrots. In looking at both of these pictures, it sure looks like one might be waiting for a few babies to arrive! What do you think... mama and papa here?

Getting kind of hard to bend over to eat the carrot with that belly in the way!

But doing a pretty good job just the same.

No belly on this one over here...

... perhaps he's papa.

Do I smell peanuts?

We are enjoying some beautiful weather this weekend, and with that comes lots of activity in the neighborhood. Our little buddies are still trying to figure us out, but they're getting used to the fact that we aren't going away AND best of all, we bring lots of goodies like peanuts. Ooooh they can't resist peanuts. (They have exquisite taste.) My husband threw a few peanuts toward their hole (with camera in hand, of course) and while they didn't quite dare to come too far out, they put up with him long enough to grab a snack.

Mmmmm do I smell a peanut?

Ooooh yes I do!

I'm ready for more...

Aw c'mon... stop hiding

Yesterday my husband was doing some spring cleaning around the yard. He was making great progress picking up branches, twigs and raking when guess who decided to make an appearance? Time to get the camera. Of course our little buddy wasn't too pleased with the idea.



Don't even think about it...




She was simply interested in nibbling on those peanuts under the bush.

Then she decided the branches looked good. She started gnawing away and finally stopped long enough to SMILE for the camera. :)

Okay okay now get that camera outta here.