I love a good mystery crime tale, don't you?
Especially when they happen in the vegetable garden.
I see pumpkins overturned and plumpest rats gobbling away.
Tomatoes nibbled gently.
Remnants of seeds scattered as a memory.
I don't mind.
But this morning, this morning there was grand commotion in the autumnal veggie garden…
Dogs barking like crazy.
Trying to climb in trees.
Shadows of pointy ears flashing up above…
Pumpkins with grand fang marks, such excitement!
I looked up through the branches, and what did I see?
But a beautiful healthy bobcat, looking down at me.
Here kitty kitty I exclaimed with fear and glee…
And then just like that, he started wagging his tail, whilst looking straight at me.
Oh you pretty pretty thing.
I wanted to hug him and love him.
Cuddle him in my lap.
Put him in a bonnet and plunk him in my antique baby carriage.
Take him to Petsmart, he he 😉
Of course, he is wild and dangerous, so I couldn't.
But I wanted to, oh my oh me.
My heart!
The dogs were madly entranced, barking away.
Now, how to wrangle them in, so kitty kat could escape?
Well, all it takes is saying "who wants to go in the car?"
And they are off, racing.
Car equals burgers to them.
I shuffled them past the car and into the house –
And then I went out, watching the big pawed beauty gracefully leap from branch to branch, and run away into the little stream out back.
(look at those glorious paws!)
Of course, because I have a biggest worry wartiest animal loving heart…
I wondered, what is kitty eating?
Is he or she safe?
I love thinking that all night long, while I toss and turn, the purring creature sleeps outside my window, right in our tree.
What a glorious cat.
Wish he wasn't wild and would move in with us.
Wouldn't he look so handsome sitting on my bed?
Or in my big red chair?
Alas, some of us must run free.
Free in the cool breeze, tip toeing to and fro, freedom of the heart and soul.
Sounds like my own heart speaking there 😉
Any curious creatures in your home or garden??
I'd love to hear.
There is a HUGE light brown rat living in my flower garden.
His belly is big and round and extra lovely.
When I water he peeks out at me and runs back and forth.
The other day he lept right over my foot, onto the stair, and back into the rose bush.
Like he owns the place.
Mister Lovee doesn't like the idea at all.
But secretly, I love all things small.
Eeeeeks!
Love, V
ps: Can't wait to hear about any of your own little unexpected visitors.
I wish I wasn't allergic to cats, darn, double darn.
pss: Please use extreme caution if you ever see a bobcat. They can be dangerous. Get your pets away, and yourself. And use a telefoto lens if you want to take a pic 😉
psss: I am planning our Halloween soiree. It will be small on my end, but you all can go way out. Make it a blast! More very soon.
pssss: Thank you thank you thank you for your kind and encouraging words!
Is it okay to love people you don't know in person?
Me thinks yes 🖤
Oh he’s wonderful…just wonderful…so happy you had this encounter…and so happy he has a place to be wild and free…the way it’s meant to be!
I think we had a bobcat in the garden the other day too. I didn’t see him/her but there were distinctive paw prints (too big for our cats). I also hear a strange animal call at night. I’ll have to record and post it …
So, so, so happy to see you back on your precious page xo
My son was showing a vacant home out in the desert one afternoon, and in the back yard was a sweet bobcat family that had taken claim. Mama and two fairly independent wee ones.
Later, he took us to the house and what we witnessed ( through the patio door ) was such a treat . Baby bobbies up and down trees, frolicking here and there, coaxing mom to join them in their fun. We were so close yet safe beyond the glass doors. Can’t tell you what a delight !
So glad to hear you are happy again…be good to yourself while you heal.
~xxoo~
Wow! What a lovely creature to spy, and right in your own yard.
Does and fawns are frolicking here @ BirdSong. Much safer to have around. Although the gardens may not agree with me.
~brightest blessings~
Birdie
I am glad you are doing well post-op however I am afraid they may have done something to your brain while you were under….are you CRAZY? Standing there taking pics of a Bobcat! I hope you weren’t as close as you look-in other words I hope you used that telephoto lens. He/she is beautiful and your tree must be really special- hanging pumpkins and beautiful wild cats.
Yes..He’s beautiful…AND DANGEROUS..silly you..on your red chair, I guess..Yes..I love all things warm and fuzzy..Don’t know about rats!! He’s gorgeous..Hope he’s home now..
Love to have you back, Vanessa!!
Why yes, yes indeed for it is reciprocal, most assuredly.
As we are urban dwellers, wildness rarely comes to visit. I did see on TV that a family of javalina were prancing through Scottsdale the other day. Down here is good ole Gilbert one can find all manner of domesticated farm life on horse properties. There is one wee farm in the center of a subdivision, on the canal that raises, among other animials, peacocks! Its quite grand when all the boys are showing off their fine feathers.
Have a great day.
Always, Queenie
Great photos!!! I never got really good photos, because I have an ordinary camera.
When we use to live out where the burbs meet the desert there was a bobcat that visited our yard almost daily. He liked the fountain. The fountain was made of giant bowls set in the ground by the swimming pool. Many creatures hung out there for a drink and a catch.
We also had a couple of owls that like to perch on the courtyard walls and a Great Horn.
We also had a daily roadrunner as a visitor. He was nasty, but really just doing what he does naturally. Poor wild birds lost their heads regularly. He wasn’t even afraid of humans, because he had become use to the golfers.
Now that we live in the city, we only have an issue with alley cats. 🙁
Yes, I used my telefoto lense 😉
And I did it fast and got out of there, haha!
Wow! So beautiful!!!
He’s sooo beautiful! But I’d be scared to death of the rat! I definitely think it is possible to love people you haven’t really met,cause I love you!
love & blessings
~*~
So excited to see your beautiful picture of Mr. Bob Cat! My husband just saw one yesterday while coming back from his morning walk. It was in our next door neighbor’s driveway flicking his tail when my hubby saw him. We do see them occasionally (north Scottsdale area), and they are such beautiful cats! Thank you for capturing him on your camera!
I used to have all kinds of wild cats when I lived in the country. Yes, they are extremely beautiful and what an amazing thing for you to see it and get a few photos, too!
Luckily, now the most exciting thing I get at my house are wild parrots in vibrant colors, but usually it’s insane squirrels, hahaha.
I’m so happy you are up and about and able to enjoy life of all sorts!
I wake up to a procession of deer crossing the hill behind my bedroom each morning. There is a coyote pup who seems to be an orphan who wanders the creek behind my barn. So far he has left the goats and chickens alone 🙂 there are raccoon and fox that cross the same hill…did I mention the hill is right outside my bedroom slider?!! During the day turkeys roam about, plenty of quail and squirrels?? There is a family of them in the oak tree above my bedroom and the two youngsters are so very funny to watch…natures entertainment…free for the taking! Occasionally we see a bobcat or a pheasant but not too often. But mice and rats…I must draw the line somewhere!
I use to have a blog…maybe I’ll start another …
Continue to rest and recoup!
Much love~ Tina
What a beautiful pussycat! 🙂 I looooove cats and want one some day.
We get all kinds of desert animals in our backyard and we call them our “pets.” Currently, it’s the scrub jays. We feed them peanuts so they stick around. The most awesome sighting we had were two HUGE great horned owls. They were sitting on our fence and they must’ve been 2 feet tall. Their eyes were so big and they looked fake. There was a capuchin monkey on the loose last year in our neighborhood but it never showed up in our yard. It wouldn’t surprise me if it did… it’s like a zoo around here. 🙂
I love him! I showed the picture to Mister B and he said “I want to kiss him!” haha, probably not the best plan.
What a treat/blessing, to see such a gorgeous animal. I’ve had my share of nature encounters. The best are stories to tell face to face, like the half grown deer that thought my sleeping cat was a salt lick, or the deer and fox deep in conversation that I interrupted l late one night. Grand elk and wee froggies no bigger than my fingernail, a nest of baby snakes, getting caught inside the dance of a hundred dragonflies….. the wild part is part of why it’s so magical though. I can’t imagine that bobcat willing to put on a bonnet, oh the look of disgust I imagine he’d (she’d?) have on her face.
I think you can definitely love people you don’t know in person. Because I certainly have so much love for you! And Mr. Bobcat would have had me running for the hills, though he was probably a bit spooked with the pups causing such a ruckus.
What a glorious bobcat! I love cats, all shapes and sizes. And to see one in raw nature, and in your own yard, on top of that! is amazing. A bit scary for sure, beautiful, yet on your guard for any sign of sudden approach. I did see one once up in the mountains, so huge and healthy at a distance.
Cats are amazing.
Thank you for these gorgeous photos!
XO
Miss Teresa
I couldn’t figure out why Douglas was barking at the front gate for so long last night, until I heard the trash bins starting to fall over… People wheel out their trash bins before the garbage truck comes to pick them up in the morning… The javelinas were knocking over all the trash bins down my street and gobbling up any food they could find. There must have been at least 20 of them in all different sizes. I think they are cute… Something about their chubby rumps and their dainty little legs.
Anyhow, sis, glad you are on the mend and scurrying to take photos of bobcats. As soon as my cold is all gone, I’ll come up so we can pick some pumpkins and sip some tea.
* sigh * I would love to be in an area with wildlife like that! What a cute visitor! LOVE those paws! I love kitties. All kitties. I would want to have him curl up in my lap and pet his paddy paws. Though, he looks like he wouldn’t quite fit! And, I’m sure that would not be his idea of fun! 😛
Alas, I have only a raccoon that occasionally visits and completely destroys my tiny pond every time he visits. I used to think they were cute . . . he has caused sooooooooo much work and trouble for me that . . . w e l l l l l l . . . cute is no long the word I have to describe him! 😉 You are sounding like you are getting back to your usual self! Yayyyy! I hope you are making good progress on getting back to 110%! 😀
What a beautiful kitty! But, as you probably already know, a wagging kitty tail is not a good sign. It translates in to “very bothered”, more angry than scared actually. And on a particularly bothered and hungry day a bobcat could kill and eat a smaller dog. Though of course it wouldn’t take on two large ones like yours!
Some people forget that cats are ferocious carnivores – much more so than dogs – because they’re so goddamn cute. Our kitties bring us dead things all the time; mice, rats, birds, ferrets – even pheasant young-lings! And they only weigh about 5 kg’s (10 pounds). Imagine what a cat 3 times that size would bring home…
What a fabulous post-great photos and your words–so interesting and exciting!
How lovely to live out in the country…..maybe :/…..My daughter lives in the city hills.I was babysitting Her 2 and 4 year old little boys.When I pulled out their little plastic slide from leaning on the house,not even 3 feet away lying in the shade of the slide was a raddle snake.No one was bitten,but I stopped dreaming of living in the country.
Oh he`s beautiful indeed!
Next year my family and I will move into a new house in the middle of the forest (were my husband and I will grow old and stay forever), and there`s a lot of wild animals there. My parents, who will be our neighbours, often have red squirrels, hares and foxes visiting their garden. When we visited them this summer, there was a tiny little red fox that followed us around, and earlier we have seen baby bunnies eating and playing in the garden. They also have a lot of squirrels that eats from our hands, and knocks on the windows if they need more nuts. Not to mention herons, woodpeckers, ravens, crows, magpies, bats, roe deers, reindeer, moose, lynx, wolverines, lemmings, stoats, frogs, and lots of other animals and birds that live in “our” forest (can you tell that I`m excited, lol). I can`t wait to live there again, and see my two daughters grow up in the same forest that I wandered when I was little 🙂
What gorgeous photos of a beautiful animals!
Sadly, it could be eating someone’s loved domestic pets.
I am glad your boys were content to sound the alram but choose the promise of burgers over a romp with the big kitty.
You can keep your rats, too.
We have the occasional coyote and beautiful red foxes run through.
I kicked myself for not having my camera when the huge heron trio sat on the pond bank and posed for me.
Here in the suburbs of Long Island, we only get an occasional racoon looking for food in someone’s garbage. Some lucky people have wild rabbits around. Eastern LI has deer. I have a huge fear of snakes. When I was a child, we saw an occasional garter snake. I haven’t seen one in decades and thought they were all gone because of the pesticides everyone uses on their lawns and such. HOWEVER, my friends backyard was overrun with them because they set up house under her very low deck. Now I’m afraid to venture out to my yard at night. When she had the siding changed on her house, a snake dropped out from behind the old siding that was being removed!! I do so admire your love for all things in nature, including fat green caterpillars and rats! Are you sure you’re not a flower fairy?
My friend and I had pet rats our freshmen year in college 🙂 They were spotlessly clean, came when we called their names, and rode on our shoulders around the res halls!
On a autumnal yoga retreat in Calistoga: we were all practicing outside in the late afternoon. I came out of a pose to take a drink of water, looked across the (mostly wild) grounds, and thought “Oh! Pretty kitty. Wonder if I can find it to pet it later…”
Realized in the next moment that the “kitty” had to be fairly large for me to see it at all from that distance..
*Then* realized I was looking at a beautiful Bobcat, who turned and looked back at me…
And was gone before I could show anyone else 😉
How amazing that you had a Bobcat in your tree!!! Oh how wonderful and frightening at the same time!!! Glad the fur babies, you and Mr. Lovee did not get harmed. So looking forward to your Halloween Soiree!!!! Also glad to see you here in Blogland….it is a good sign that you are getting better🖤
Much Love,
Dena
Gorgeous creature! 🙂
We get a few raccoons, foxes, tons of bunnies, even a sugar glider on our balcony! They are all soooo cute…me too…wish we could all live together…wish we could talk to them…that we may understand each other…what a dream….
Ok, I see that I’ve missed a ton of posts, and I am off to see your wondrous posts…and you are ok now? What happened? Off to read….be well, dearest Vanessa!!
Love and hugs,
– Irina
You know in the old cartoons where a cat scratches a character then suddenly they fall in to several slices………..all I could think of was you saying ‘here kitty kitty” and well….. So glad you took the pics with a telephoto and then got out of there. BUT I will say he/she is gorgeous and I cannot believe there it was in your tree!
As for the plump rat…….uh no, never. And run over my foot?…….neighbors would hear my screams all the way to another town. I am a wuss.
Now one time we heard commotion in our backyard, BohoHandyman went out to investigate turning on the light before opening the door…….well right then a fat raccoon ran across the yard. The little bandit was after the can we had dog food in but didn’t succeed. From then on we never left it outside.
What a lovely Bob Kitty Vanessa! Such gorgeous pictures! I live in California, in the valley, but a residential area. We have tons and tons of Orange trees, so the critters love us. We have fat bottomed possums waddling along our chain link fence. Cute squirrels that hang upside down and eat the oranges, inside out. They look like they are wearing orange helmets…LOL. A family of raccoons hang out in our neighbor’s tree and run around on our roof. Once the dogs were going crazy, so we looked outside and didn’t see anything. They were barking and we looked up and 2 raccoons were looking down at us from the roof. During the summer, we keep the back door open so we can get a breeze. One night I was on the computer and a rat ran through my kitchen from outside, jumped over the doggy gate and when I shreiked from surprise, he jumped back over and ran out. It’s so funny how bold the critters can be. We also have an adopted cat that wanders in our yard, now and then. We call her Luna because she visits us once in a blue moon! She loves to be cuddled and then goes on her way, probably to the next house that named her something else. Thanks for sharing your stories! If you can get a pic of the plump rat, it would be so awesome. Maybe upside down, chowing down on one of your pumpkins! <3
I’m allergic too! Such a gorgeous creature.
I was wondering about the Halloween soiree! glad it’s in the works.
xox
Chrissy
I love all kinds of cats: big and small. What a sweet bobcat sitting in that tree. Adorable. (Glad you were safe while takng the picture.) It is true cats can be unpredicatable..even domesticated housecats still have that touch wildcat blood flowing in them. In my mind, you have Templeton from Charlotte’s Web in your garden. Just enjoying all that beauty and pumpkins!
Around here, there are big fat groundhogs running around. My best friend is scared of them, I love them. They are so cute. Just this week, I saw tiny
lizards running around. (Where I live is right next to a river) We have all kind of
wild creatures here.
Ooh! What a lovely kitty….from a long ways away, that is!!!!! I’m glad you had your telephoto lens!! The only critters we have here other than the neighbors cats and dogs are a lovely selection of birds and occasionally, a deer wanders through. We have heard very frightening sounds very early in the morning and our neighbor told us they were foxes, but we have never seen them! Also, someone recently told Mr. V that there are minks that live in the brook the next block down from us, but we’ve never seen them either!
Can’t wait to know about the Halloween party!!!
Sending very biggest hugs to you!!
Betty
Oh my goodness!!! That is incredible! What a pretty kitty 🙂
Jennelise
oh wonderful! I’ve never seen one in the wild. The last interesting visitor in our yard was an owl but sadly I didn’t get a glimpse. He sat in a tree in our backyard for a few nights and then was gone….
Wow, what a beautiful creature. He looks like our lynx wich is a huge cat animal that can hunt down a deer. So if this one is around I hope you watch your dogs (if it is as big as the lynx).
He was soooo beautiful. His size was about the size of an overgrown
house cat. Not too big, but he can still hurt us and the dogs. So we
are careful, luckily he ran away from us and not at us 🙂
Blog: http://www.aFancifulTwist.com
Website: http://www.VanessaValencia.com
In a message dated 10/5/2013 11:05:34 A.M. US Mountain Standard Time,
OH WOW!!! You’re so, so lucky. Such a gorgeous animal friend you’ve made. <3 We don't really have any unique visitors here, minus magpie which isn't unique as we live in Utah, but is to me, as I once lived in Illinois. When I was growing up, however, my family and I hand fed most of our raccoon visitors, so they made them home in our yard, and we raised quite a few of their babies with them. We also fed the opossum family, birds, squirrels, deer, and more.
Here in Utah, we currently have two neighborhood kitties, one gray and feisty, the other black and as sweet as could be, and they constantly come over for love!
He is beautiful but use caution he or she is not as sweet as it looks……. Beautiful shots you got of him though 🙂 woulda scared the sparkles outta me lol
Hello Vanessa, nice to meet you! My friend susie sent me your photo knowing i am cat ma I I am owned by 6 cats) and i followed the link here.I am green with envy, what a privilege you had! and what a memory for lifetime. he is absolutely stunning. My youngest cat George is really a tiger, or so he tells me, he is often to be found in the treetops, but your visitor makes him look very small!
Leanne x
http://talesofsimpledays.blogspot.co.uk/
http://georgetales.blogspot.co.uk/
We had a bobcat in our backyard when we lived in Southern California in the 80’s! Amazing …. I took pictures! Now we are back in Texas and it’s mostly deer… beautiful sweet deer and their babies!
Hello Vanessa, What a terrific bobcat experience! I love your pics and story! I can see you have a great appreciation for all of our wildlife neighbors. I was lucky enough to have a few bobcat encounters this year as well (my blog pics are not as high quality). Thank you for sharing this experience of your encounter with this peaceful (though sometimes misunderstood) desert neighbor.
Que bello animal!!mi perrita Olivia tambien esta atenta cada vez que ve un gatito.
A pesar de la distancia yo tambien te tengo un gran aprecio.
Ojala algun dia podamos conocernos en persona….quien te dice…no?
La fiesta de halloween la estamos esperando con mi niña.
Un beso amiga.
Jor
Your garden is so magical!! A bobcat sighting! How wonderful!! I’m asthmatic and allergic, yet still have two kitties. 😉 Actually Maine Coon cats are said to be safe for those allergic, FYI… I got a new little kitten (pics on my blog) – he’s wonderful.
My last house was an unfenced acre that had a little creek run through it and we had plenty of visitors, but most notably was a HUGE woodchuck. We eventually had to fence in our veggie garden to protect it from him/her. That was in the suburbs, funnily enough – our new city home has MORE animal visitors as far as I can tell and they are even more hungry and ruthless. They kept stripping my peach tree completely bare before I could get ONE peach! Squirrels were only part of the problem – we have possums, which I think were what was really stripping the tree completely, and raccoons, etc. But the sightings I love to see are the humming birds, finches of all kinds, chickadees, lots of Cardinals (it is St. Louis, MO!!) and best of all – beautiful hawks and eagles! I see them soaring all over. Beautiful. And once – the most AMAZING sighting of all – a Snowy Egret. Now you don’t see those in the middle of the country nowhere near a pond or lake often. Mom and I were sitting in the living room and suddenly over my neighbor’s roof I saw a HUGE wingspan shadow. I was convinced a pterodactyl had arrived! LOL I ran outside and there was this huge white bird perched on our roof. It was beautiful. Naturally, by the time I went inside to get my camera it was gone. I figure it was on its way to the Missouri Botanical Gardens. They have many wild animal visitors there and I guess she stopped by on her way there. Blue Herons are spotted there, too. The funny thing about it being a Snowy Egret is we recognized it as we had just moved in not that long before and cut out an Audubon print from National Geographic of…you guessed it, a Snowy Egret and put it up in my mom’s room for inspiration. And then one just happened to visit and only perched on our house! 🙂
Please do visit my blog to see my kitten, Orion – he’s adorable! My little hunter.
Nicki
58Cherries
YIPES!!!! My goodness me! What a visitor, indeed! We have had a bear round the neighborhood again…no pictures, alas. (Or, perhaps that is good…tee hee). I’m glad to see your feeling well enough to post and be your usually-splendidly-loverly-self! : ) Wishing you a most merry of afternoons there from across the lands!!
Beautiful (and scary) photos! Nothing as exotic here in my wee garden but for the usual skunks, raccoons, voles, mice, wood rats and feathered friends. Though, one day last month, 3 different gray catbirds fought to eat the last large cherry tomato from the vine, all day until it was gone! That was definitely a first.
Yes, it is OK to love someone you have not met.
This kitty is gorgeous! I love your words of love toward him.
Fantastic Photos as usual! You are so blessed.
Mario
Such a glorious adventure! Mr. Bobcat was just waiting there to welcome you home and wish you a continued, rapid recovery.
it´s really Interesting to see … thank you it’s well done 🙂
Oh how amazing and gorgeous! What a once in a lifetime event…so special! xo
That is SO amazing! What a rare sighting and to be able to take photos is wonderful! I hope you’re taking care of yourself my friend! I keep you in my prayers. Sweet hugs!
That is gorgeous!!!!! Amazing!! Glad to see that things this wild are still around and so healthy looking. We name and make up stories for all the critters who come to visit our yard. There are many…a snapping turtle, snakes, toads, deer, opossums, skunks, a fox, partridge, pretty birds + hummingbirds, hawks, mice, squirrels, chipmunks, bunnies…but never a bobcat!
Man! What an amazing sight to have such a visitor!
Great pictures you got of him, too!
Since we moved out to Corona which is more remote than where we were before, we’ve had bats roost in our porch covering, praying mantises so green and lovely, frogs! Yes frogs….never thought a So. California girl like me would ever catch a frog in her own yard before and see a hawk on a telephone pole every single day.
Nature is gorgeous!
(except when you have to see the feeding part, like in your most recent post….ewww)
Of course it’s okay to love people you’ve never met in person. ^-^ That’s part of the magic of the internet. We can meet & get to know & become friends with wonderful people all over the world, those who we may never get the chance to meet in person, yet thanks to the internet, we are able to create a fantastic tribe and family. Makes me all smiley. ^___^
As for your fluffy friend… Oh my goodness! What a cutey!!! =D
I want to cuddle him too… He looks like he might secretly love some ear scritches… ^_~
I’m glad he stayed in the tree & didn’t wrangle with your pups. Or with you, for that matter. ^-^
What a cutey fluff though! And yes, those paws are just the best. And such gorgeous markings! You’re lucky you got a visit from someone so lovely. ^-^
XOXO
Oh how I love chance encounters with beautiful wildlife like that!
One of my favorite encounters I’ve ever had is when a pair of sand cranes used to visit our house in Florida. My father has a way with animals – it’s a natural gift. For weeks he would feed them when they visited and everntually they got so used to him, they would eat right out of his hand! He brought me outside with him one morning when they came and they ate out of my hand too! It was amazing.
😮