When I was telling my mom about seeing 2 of the babies, she interrupted me with a bad situation at my sister's.

My sister lives in Tehachapi, with a big gully running behind her house. They deal with skunks, snakes and raccoons. There has also been reports of mtn lions running in that gully.

They used to feed the raccoons, because they were so cute. That lasted about a month. Now the only food the coons get is when they forget to pick up the cat food at night. The raccoons are really prevalent, there almost every night.

She also has 2 dogs, doxies.

I had no idea that a raccoon will not run away, but stand and fight. Luckily it just missed Allie's anal gland when it bit through her rectum. Lila's missing pad will eventually stop oozing every time the bandage is changed. Their puncture wounds will heal, and the vet said no lasting damage.

I will never be able to look at a raccoon the same way again.



Oh, and after living in Tehachapi for 13 years, she is finally having trouble with deer in her garden.

Yeah, raccoons are cute but they can be vicious. Their claws are sharp and long and their fingers very mobile and they are fast. I won't let Thurston out in the back yard at night any longer to roam free - he only goes on supervised walks at night. Oppossoms are a little less dangerous because they are almost blind, but they do have very sharp teeth.

I don't know where I read this, but it takes an average of 2 times for a wild animal to "know" a place as a food source and 200 more visits not finding anything before they stop visiting. These guys are currently using my porch fountain as a water source, but I have been seeing them less and less. There are plenty of outdoor cats and cat food in the neighborhood for them to find.

Cars aren't the only reason all of my pet are indoor only. But, I still get a thrill seeing wildlife in the 'hood.

They can be vicious and they most likely have rabies. They've the gift of being carriers sans the symptoms. Love the babies! There's a pretty one and an ugly one - hah!

Alex, I really, really, really want to see the owl pics.