COTTAGE GROVE SENTINEL • AUGUST 1, 2018 •
It was 'Chili' in The Grove
A
5
Pet tips
‘N’ tales
By Mary Ellen
“Angel Scribe”
‘Fast’ food to crow about
C
PHOTOS BY GREG LEE
rows circle above Glen’s SUV, loudly cawing as they
escort him to the pond. A huge black cloud of them
quickly join the excited group. Th ey perch on his
sun roof and the cars parked next to him. One crazy crow,
Mini-Cooper, sits on his side mirror crowing, demanding
breakfast.
For decades, Glen has driven to the pond to feed “his”
birds healthy, organic seed. He knows that birds consuming
well-meaning people’s junk food and bread is deadly for the
birds and their babies.
“Last week something exceptional happened,” laughed
Glen. “As routine, I left my two dogs in the car, lift ed the hatch
back gate, scooped seed out of the 21/2-foot deep bucket, and
tossed it to the water fowl.”
He then drove home, parked in the garage, put the dogs in
the house and remembered he needed groceries. Back to the
car he went and drove to the mall.
As soon as he turned the car off he heard an alarming
swishing noise.
“I was confused. My radio was off ,” said Glenn.
Th en he saw a freeloading Cooper “IN” his car! Th e large
black bird had ridden, unseen, in the fast lane home and then
to the mall nestled down in the half empty bucket with his
head happily buried in seed. He’d been joyfully stuffi ng his
little feathery head. Cracked corn dust shrouded his head like
a white hood.
Glen’s dogs weren‘t aware of Cooper be-caws he was quietly
taking advantage of the situa-tion eating “fast” food as they
sped home.
Finally full, Cooper jumped up onto the vehicle’s back seat.
“I couldn‘t let this stuff ed bird fl y free, miles as the crow
fl ies, back to the pond,” admitted Glen. “So, I drove him back.
It was the craziest ride. He sat on the seat’s rim, crowing to
the radio’s rhythm. It was as if he had been riding in cars his
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Cooper loves peanuts and car rides
O
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6
-day
weather forecast
THURSDAY
FRIDAY
80° | 51°
81° | 51°
Mostly Sunny
Mostly Sunny
SATURDAY
SUNDAY
83° | 52°
81° | 54°
n Saturday, July 28,
nine contestants
fought it out for $100 and
bragging rights during
the Cottage Grove Area
Chamber of Commerce’s
annual chili cook-off
contest. A panel of
community judges made
the choice while attendees
also got to sample the
diff erent recipes just a
block away from the Rock,
Roll and Rumble classic
car show as temperatures
soared into the 90s.
Blazing Saddles was
awarded fi rst place in the
people’s choice contest
while Grill and Chill took
home fi rst place from the
judges.
Transmissions Plus &
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SPECIALTIES
PRACTICING THE ART OF TRANSMISSION REPAIR SERVICE SINCE 1991
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MONDAY
TUESDAY
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74° | 53°
Mostly Sunny
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Transmission Repair
Tune ups
30-60-90K Services
Brakes, belts, hoses and
cooling system services
Muffl ers & Custom Exhaust
All makes and models.
MAINTAINING YOUR VEHICLE AFFORDABLY
When you need
insurance, you
need people too.
Call today (541) 942-0555.
WE LIVE IN THE SAME TOWN WE WORK IN
“WE MAKE SHIFT HAPPEN!”
www.automotivespecialties.biz
PayneWest.com/Cottage-Grove
DUSTIN TULLAR & RUSS OWENS
541-942-8022 • COTTAGE GROVE
entire life, and he acted like I was his Uber driver!”
At the pond, I opened the door, and he just sat there crow-
ing at me. He was like my dogs. He loved car rides and did
not want to get out. Finally frustrated, I said,“Times up! Free
ride is over!” He fl ew out and hopped up on the vehicle’s roof
cawing.
Usually, when I arrive at the pond, Cooper hops on the
SUV’s roof forcing me to slow down.
How does he know my vehicle? Hundreds of white SUV's
visit the park.
On my drive out of the park, this crazy bird escorts me by
sitting proudly, like a Jaguar ornament, on the car's hood.
“People stare and laugh,” said Glen. “Cooper rides this way
for half a mile before returning to the pond, probably wait-
ing for another sucker. Crows live to be 50 years old, so he
is going to outlive me. I worry about that and on the days I
can't go be-caws of illness. I feel guilty if he is waiting, watch-
ing and scanning all the white SUVs for his breakfast. I never
thought that a bird would make me feel guilty — or ride in
my vehicle!”
Alaskan Tips ‘n’ Tales reader Charlie adds, “Crows recog-
nize people’s faces and cars. Th ere is another green RAV4 like
mine here in town. Once, the fl ock of crows that I feed regu-
larly freaked out the mechanic while he was test driving my
car.”
TIPS:
Debbie at Old Mill Farm store advises, “Don‘t feed birds
processed human food! Most are full of sugar and chemicals
foreign to ducks’ digestive systems. Bread dough has plasti-
cizers and preservatives. Moldy products and sugars harm
birds.
Birds who eat bread/chips/popcorn have disfi gured babies
with an incurable debilitating dis-ease, ending in an early
death be-caws they are rendered fl ightless with useless ‘Angel
Wings.’ Feed and bird stores sell inexpensive nutritious grains
for birds. Treat them to this and help keep our precious wild
fowl healthy.
“Tired of snails in your yard? Use an upside-down pot to
capture them and feed them to the ducks. Ducks love slugs,
chickweed, shredded carrots and dark green lettuce (not ice-
berg).”
(Share your fun, amazing or crazing pet tips and tales at an-
gelscribe@msn.com or Follow Pet Tips ‘n’ Tales on Facebook at
www.facebook.com/PetTipsandTales. Adopt loving pets online at
www.PetFinder.com. For spay or neutering, call the Humane So-
ciety at 541-942-2789.)
