Sunday, January 24, 2010

Tale of Two Tails...

If you live on a ranch you know that things can get a bit on the weird side sometimes. If you follow me on Twitter or Facebook then you know since before Christmas (maybe even Thanksgiving) I have been tormented by a possum. Well now I get to torment it, well them.


Rick laughed because I took pictures, but you need to know the situation, because I need help getting these danged things out!


See the possem in the hole?



Overview of corner.

Now there has been a hole in the heater room since we moved in April 2003. For several years there was a cabinet sitting there blocking the hole. I moved stuff around a couple of years ago and didn't realize that the hole went in to the heater room. Here is a view of the heater room.


Veiw of heater room.

The door to this room always has stuff in front of it since the washer and dryer are just outside of it. We don't store lots of things in it and I tossed some of them this morning. There was storm windows for the house, drying rack, some tables (that are ruined) and two windows to some truck that have been there since we moved in. Yeah, we are great at collecting things and not so great at tossing. LOL!

The picture above is after cleaning and spraying bleach in the area. We got to smell the bleach through out the house, but that is much better than the poo smell we had been getting a whiff of every now and then. ACK!

Last night Rick heard things moving in the garage. He had not believed me that the critters were in there, until he saw the one last night. We started looking and there were actually two possums. What fun. NOT!

We tried to get them out last night, but they got between the wall and the heater and us nor Bubba could get them to leave. So we left the door open thinking, OK they will leave since they have been found. NOT!

Silly critters did not to appear to be in there this morning. I got the old horse beet pulp soaking and started cleaning out the closet. I finally found something to put between the wall and the chest. I started moving said things above, when stuff moves. Yeah, fun. NOT! I keep pulling things out and get down to the big glass from some truck. The critters are sleeping on a towel back behind the smoked glass. Still not sure how the towel and other nesting stuff got in the room.

The possum were not so happy that I found them. I tried to shoo them out the door. Not thinking about the fact that the escape route that they were used to was the hole I blocked up so freaking well. (Sometimes it doesn't pay to be smart!) So the smaller one moves and I am thinking "Just please don't run up my pant leg!" and the silly thing runs into the wall and is clawing in the wall trying to get out. Dang!

The bigger one just sits there. I don't have any thing that I could loop him with and he is not scooping well with the shovel. So I figure I will leave them alone, go feed the old horses, wait for Rick to get up, and regroup.

Where they get in...


I go out to start laundry and finish this thinking the danged things have left. Rick sees the silly critters up in the wall. So we place the auto glass between the heater and the wall. It's pretty heavy and I don't think they will move it. We blocked it up against the hole on the inside wall as best we could. I tried to get it tight and broke one pane. Oh well, not like we were ever going to use them. And with the coating it should not totally shatter. We will see.


I sprayed the area down really well with bleach hoping to run them out into the garage, but I think it just made them mad. I heard lots of hissing. LOL!


Later I looked the silly critters are still holed up on the wall, but I don't think they can get back into the room. I know these guys have been eating the cat food and I think they are moving onto the dog food. So, I may have to get the food source to go away for them to actually leave. I am hoping they don't have babies, and probably don't yet, but they so need to leave.


And yes we have the fire power to kill them. And we have numerous ways to kill them, but I can't do it. Even Rick was touched by their cute faces last night. Between that and running the risk of hitting the heater or TV (if it went through the wall). He is considering using the cross bow. Might sic the girl that feeds on the target. She likes killing small woodland critters, so maybe she could get them out. It's worth a try.


If anyone has any tips on getting the silly things out of our wall I would be willing to listen. Hate the waiting game, but right now that's the only way to do it. Hope you have enjoyed life on the ranch. Yes, some days are good ones and you get to ride a race horse. Other days you get to chase possum out of the cat food. All pays the same.


Hope you enjoy. Make it a great day!

Deb Stowers
Sierra Ranch, LLC
http://sierraranchok.com/
http://sierraranchok.net/

Tuesday, January 12, 2010

Check out these interesting articles...

These are from the Tulsa World.

This first one is about how a network to fix up hurt rodeo folks has been set up. And it's based in OK. Is that not cool?

Rodeo RX By KIM ARCHER World Staff Writer Stan Williamson of Okmulgee, a two-time world rodeo champion, has been hurt plenty in his steer-wrestling career

This one is about Remington Park changing owners for our race horse fans.

Chickasaws begin changes at park By RANDY ELLIS The Oklahoman At the stroke of midnight on New Year's Eve, a Chickasaw Nation subsidiary took over ownership of Oklahoma City's Remington Park racetrack and casino, ushering in a new era of local control.

Hope you enjoy. Make it a great day!

Deb Stowers

Sierra Ranch, LLC

Http://sierraranchok.com

http://sierraranchok.net

Monday, January 11, 2010

January New to Use...

I know many of us have already been through the worst, or hopefully the worst, part of winter, but these are good tips to keep in mind. remember you can ride in the winter, it just takes a bit of preparation!

COLD WEATHER HORSE CARE REVIEW Winter has an icy grip on most of the United States, and with even sunny Florida facing record freezing temperatures, horse owners across the country need to keep a close eye on their herds to prevent cold-weather related ailments. In cold weather, horse owners should be thinking "water, water, water," said Jean T. Griffiths, extension horse specialist at Cornell University in Ithaca, NY. Continue reading...

WINTER WORKOUTS Come May, Trisha Dowling of Saskatchewan, Canada, is ready to take on the challenges of competitive endurance--and, equally important, so are her horses. The same can be said of Carey Williams of New Jersey. Her sport is eventing, in which she competes spring through fall. Andy Kaneps of Massachusetts used to raise and compete hunters and jumpers; today he prefers riding noncompetitive dressage year-round. Continue reading...

WINTER HORSE CARE RESOURCES What to do when the weather turns bitter? Bring the horses in or leave them out? Blankets or no blankets? Hay or grain? Or both? While bringing your horse into the house might seem like the simplest option, TheHorse.com offers a wealth of information on winter horse care to help you handle the dropping temps. Continue reading for the highlights.

You may have to create an account with The Horse to read these articles, however the account is free.

We apologize for the interruption of our newsletter. We have been working on getting another business online and hope to be posting more regularlly now we have it going. Thanks for your understanding.

Until we meet on the trails!

Deb Stowers

Sierra Ranch, LLC

Http://sierraranchok.com

http://sierraranchok.net