This weekend’s edition of Readlarrypowell.com has something we’ve never had before, Owls, and something we adore, an Earhound.
We stumbled across the Owls through good fortune and, indeed, anyone who takes Pixie the Earhound home will also be visited by good fortune -- you can see it in her eyes.
If are like me, when you first looked at that photo on the left you thought you were seeing a rabbit sticking its head out of a birdhouse! I realized that was crazy because I remembered that you can only catch rabbits at IHop or the harestylist. Now, today’s report:
DOES A SLEEPING OWL HOOT OR SNORE?
Yes, like 10th-grade algebra, there’s something else I can’t answer. But for this edition of Let Sleeping Dogs Lie & Napping Cats Nap, we turn to Sabra “Sabres” Taggart, the closest thing to an owl expert who’ll speak to Readlarrypowell.com.
We’ve known for years that she is a cat fan -- in fact she signs her emails “Sabes, Certified Ailurophile.” An Ailurophile is a cat fan and many of you smiled knowingly and petted a cat as
your the word.
It turns out she’s majorly fascinated by Strigiformes -- that’s the scientific name for Owls.
Now, this Owl fascination was something new and we discovered her Owl adoration (Owldoration? Why not!) by accident, just as she discovered Owls. The photos of the Owl in the Owlhouse showed up on our Facebook page. So, enchanted by the Owl in the Owlhouse, I got in touch will the Owl Lady. (Not sure anybody calls her that yet, but it’ll work for this edition!)
[LARRY ASIDE: We cannot be certain that the Owls with the closed eyes are really sleeping, but when you look at that Owl who is glaring at the camera with one open eye, you get the feeling that he or she did not like an Owlnap being disturbed by the clicking of a camera!]
Sabres confesses that she “got into this by accident, In 2011-2012 I was working out in my yard when I noticed a bird in my Yaupon Tree. At first I thought it was a Hawk but as I got closer it didn’t leave and then I saw it was an Owl.
“It was about 10 to 11 feet in the tree. Since then my camera has taken more pictures of my Owl(s) and Owlets then my own kitties.
“Sometime around March the Owl left and then in late 2012 two Owls showed up and were living in my tree again. So we put an Owl house up soon after we noticed that. Again they stuck around till the end of winter and In the spring of 2013 my Owls had two Owlets, they were the cutest little critters and so curious.
“By late Spring they were gone and no owls were around. Again at the end of 2013 one Owl came back to our tree. Only stayed for around a month.
‘And then in April/May on 2014 I saw four Owlets and one adult. That was way too cool. They still were not living in my Owl house but at least they were out in the open where I could see them. Then they all left again.
“Last week I finally saw one in our house! I think it might be one of the youngsters since my others have all been brown and this new one is grey.”
How did she know which house to get? “I checked on-line to see what type of place they would usually live and found the house I bought. I found many others but this one had a good rating from others that had purchased it.
“An Owl house is different from a regular bird house in several ways. The opening is at the top so they can go deep inside to rest, the opening is also larger than most bird houses. And there is not a perch. Owls do not use perches and climb into their homes.
“They are known to find old squirrels next or holes in trees to live. I really think they have been living in a hole in my pecan tree but I have never gotten on a ladder to check it out.
“These guys do not scare away as far as I can tell. When they first arrived I already had plans for a yard crew to come the next day and a lot of work in my yard. I ask the people to be careful and not knock around on the Tree Yaupon which they were careful to stay away from, but they mowed, raked and used a blower on my lawn and I’m sure you know how loud that all is and the Owl was still there when they left. Since then I’ve raked around the tree and my Owls have had many many visitors from friends and family. I’ve been told they are territorial so not sure if I’ll see the original Owls back or not.”
So, who are these Owls? Out-of-work extras from Harry Potter movies?
Nope, they’re local Owls.
Sabres says, “The Owls are Eastern Screech Owls and are small compared to something like a Barn Owl. They might to be around 8-10 inches high. I don’t feed them and so presume they find plenty of food around the neighborhood. I live in an established area where the houses are over 50 years old and a lot of the trees are over 100 or older years old so a very wooded area for them to live and find food. Shoot we even have raccoons and possums along with our feral kitties.
“I have a ton of pictures and tried to find a few that might look like they were sleeping it is hard to tell since they usually are squinting their eyes in the daylight and the later in the evening it get the more they open their eyes.”
[LARRY ASIDE: Click on the photos to make them larger. We really have to praise Sabres’ photo work on these Owls -- she captured the Owls perfectly -- got some action shots in the daytime when Owls traditionally sleep like Texas Legislator on a Sunday morning! I’m kidding the Legislators, most of whom are wise ol’ Owls, I’m led to believe. Now, if you want to know more about Owls, here’s a STARTING PLACE.]
[TO NOMINATE your sleeping dog or cat or perhaps a critter that simply nods off in your neighborhood for the spotlight of Let Sleeping Dogs Lie & Napping Cats Nap, send photo and info to [email protected]. Remember, we post the slumbering animals in hopes of inspiring our fellow insomniacs to realize that they, too, can nod off. Of course, now that they’ve seen Owls hanging onto tree limbs and balancing with one or both eyes closed, there’s no telling what we’ll see around here as this chilly autumn on toward winter! Keep your eyes open for insomniacs in the Yaupon!]
ABOUT THIS EARHOUND
This SPCA of Texas dog is the incredibly adorable and fascinating Pixie, a genuine Earhound. Look at those ears! Word is that before she retired from the clandestine forces, she worked as an eavesdropper for the National Security Agency. [LARRY ASIDE: Naturally, we’re attempting to confirm that through backchannels at the Pentagon.]
We learned about her because of hawkeyed Kelsey Keys, the SPCA communications coordinator, spotted the Earhound at the shelter.
Pixie is as cute as a pixie and, at 2 years old, weighs 49 pounds which, of course, is a tad larger than your standard issue pixie.
She also is a Mood-Eared, as you can see in these two photographs. She came to the SPCA on November 1, transferred from another shelter in a life-saving gesture.
She’s sweet, loving and enjoys a good playful romp. You can read about her HERE.
And remember, the annual SPCA of North Texas Home For the Holidays Adoption Center at NorthPark has the adorable adoptables on display now. Opened Friday and runs well into the Christmas shopping season!
[LARRY ASIDE: I believe that the SPCA and NorthPark teamed to present this annual adoption display the year John Neely Bryan built his cabin down by the river before the city was incorporated. He needed companionship and, legend has it, he went to NorthPark on the advice of a Neiman Marcus Prairie Shopping Advisor and picked out a large, scrappy cattle dog who’d been waiting for the perfect home. As the SPCA volunteers were filling out paperwork, one asked Mr. Bryan what he wanted to call the dog and he thought for a second and said, “I’ve always liked the names Dalton and Alice, so I’ll call him ‘Dallas’.” Later, during the era of the Republic of Texas, Bryan named his new city after this beloved dog, who also served as the first town sheriff. The facts of this report are being examined before
we submit this explanation of how Dallas got its name to the respected authorities at the Handbook of Texas. Please feel free to email [email protected] with additional information regarding the history of Dallas, the dog or the city. The gentleman in the photo is believed to be Mr. Bryan who, legend has it, took this photo of Dallas as the scrappy dog stood on Pickup Rock on the banks of the Trinity in preparation for the annual Running of the Trinity River Salmon just before the Republic Fair of Texas at Fair Park. The Salmon migrated to Alaska when it became a state in 1959. Some of these historic facts may be jumbled.]
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