Cottage Grove Sentinel
Community News
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THURSDAY | AUGUST 27, 2020
Pet Tips
‘n’ Tales
Betty Kaiser’s Chatterbox
Mother Nature surprises city girls
Betty Kaiser
(Originally published in
The Sentinel Aug. 1, 2018)
A
s a former
city girl, I am
constantly
amazed at Mother Na-
ture’s surprises. Living
in the country has been
a whole new learning
experience. My latest
wildlife encounter had
me shaking my head
and my heart pound-
ing.
It seems worthy of
sharing on this hot
summer day. Feel free
to sit back and laugh
with me.
First, I am not a fish-
er woman. The closest
I ever came to catching
a fish was at the Blue
Jay Trout Farm in the
San Bernardino Moun-
tains. My family spent
a month every summer
in nearby Crestline.
My grandfather
wasn’t a fisherman ei-
ther but he loved trout.
He would pile us kids
in the car and off we
would go to the trout
farm where you paid to
fish.
Grandpa said it was
the most expensive
activity of the summer.
There, an employee
baited the hook on your
fishing pole and the
fish would practically
leap out of the water
into your lap.
Fortunately, I not
only didn’t have to bait
the hook but someone
else took the slimy,
it briefly swam a few
inches and was still.
A fisherman was
nearby with his little
girl. I asked him if he
knew anything about
fish.
Duh. Of course he
did. He was fishing!
I told him my fish
story and could tell
that he thought I was
a few bricks short of
a load. Finally, he got
curious, came over and
said, “Doggone, it’s a
Catfish.” (Or something
like that.)
He called his daugh-
ter over to check it out
as he nudged it into
deeper water.
The fish, however,
had other ideas and
kept coming back onto
shore!
The fisherman asked
me where I found it. I
told him it was covered
in mulch under the
trees but came alive
when I poured water on
it from a tea kettle.
I still didn’t know
how it got there. Then
it dawned on me:
There’s an osprey nest
nearby. Sometimes
other birds try to steal
their fish when they’re
coming home.
Perhaps there was a
tussle and he dropped it
on our property — but
three feet under the
trees?
By this time my
fisherman’s daughter
is asking questions
and he is describing
the fish as identified
by its whiskers. Then,
hoping to get rid of
me, he assured me
that my fish was going
to be fine and I drove
home — still shaking
squirming fish off the
line and put it into the
bucket for me.
Fast forward a few
decades and I’m living
at Cottage Grove Lake
where fishing is a reg-
ular pastime. But not
for me. I’m more like
someone out of a Justin
Moore Country song: I
can’t even bait a hook.
That all sort of
changed a couple of
weeks ago. A strong
wind had blown
through our six acres of
trees and branches were
scattered on the deck
and under the trees
closest to the house.
I got busy with my
rake and wheelbarrow
and began cleaning up.
That’s when I saw what
looked like a 12-inch
log covered in mulch
about three feet inside
the tree line. I went
over to pick it up and it
moved! It was breath-
ing.
Yikes! I practical-
ly jumped out of my
jeans!
I gently nudged it
with a stick and it
rolled over and fanned
out what looked like
tail feathers.
A bird? And it was
still alive? Eek! I ran
into the house, filled
the tea kettle, dashed
outside and poured
water over the “bird.”
Well, the bird was a
fish and its gills were
opening and closing. I
had to rescue it!
I covered the fish
with a damp cloth, laid
it in a box, grabbed
the car keys and drove
over to the lake. At the
boat ramp, I gently put
the fish in the water,
— to ponder what had
happened.
Later, I was telling
this story to my friend
Emily who proceeded
to confound me with
her own Mother Nature
story. She lives in a
house on a city lot in
Eugene.
Her backyard has a
nice big deck overlook-
ing a little stream that
runs into a pond.
A small Blue Jay
(slightly handicapped
because of a chopped
off tail!) has been fre-
quenting the pond to
drink water and check
out the tadpoles.
One day while Emily
was relaxing outside,
she noticed that the
tadpoles were now
frogs.
Suddenly, a HUGE
Bullfrog leaped out of
the water, jumped on
her bluebird and swal-
lowed its entire head!
Emily leaped into
action and eventually
was able to free her
bird’s head from the
bullfrog. The frog dove
back into the pond and
the bird has never been
seen again.
Emily will never
trust her bullfrogs
again. Evidently they
are carnivores that
will even eat their own
young.
That’s Mother Na-
ture at work.
We city girls sure
have a lot to learn.
Contact Betty Kaiser’s
Chatterbox at 942-1317
or email bchatty@bet-
tykaiser.com
LORANE COUNTRY NEWS
Contributed by
Lil Thompson
for The Sentinel
• Registration for the
Crow Middle/High School
is Sept. 8-10. Calls will be
made this week and next to
schedule appointments for
families.
Students in K-3 will
begin full time in-person
classes on Sept. 14. Students
in 4-12 will begin distance
learning classes on the
same date.
Teachers for grades 4-12
will offer students and
families a chance to meet,
checkout textbooks and/
or Chromebooks, and help
students adapt to Compre-
hensive Distance Learning.
Teachers with students
in kindergarten and grades
1-3 will co-teach in small
groups called “stable co-
horts.”
This will reduce risk
of exposure and simplify
contact tracing. Parents
of these younger students
will have an opportunity
Yard of the Week
brought to you by:
Cottage Grove Sentinel
116 N. 6th • (541) 942-3325
Week of August 27th Winner is: 1375 Whitman Blvd.
Yards will be selected each week by nominations.
To nominate a yard you can call City Hall (942-5501)
or Chamber of Commerce (942-2411)
to meet with teachers and
support staff to answer
questions and review the
whole process.
If you have any ques-
tions, call the district office
and Applegate Elementary
at 541-9935-2100 or CMHS
at 541-935-2227.
Remember, we are a
small district and we can do
this.
• Lorane Grange meets
on Sept. 3 at 7 p.m. It is still
potluck snacks, wearing
masks and distancing.
There is not a dinner
and bingo in September
planned at this time. They
are talking with Rural Arts
about movie nights set to
start in October.
This will depend on state
guidlines at the time.
• Once again, many Lo-
ranians enjoyed another
sunny Sunday at drive-in
church at Lorane Christian
Church.
All are invited.
• Please be careful
driving on Stoney Point.
Northbound lane is crack-
ing again. Also, slow down
on these corners. Too many
people cutting corners.
• For all interested, many
community members are
sharing their extra veggies
in front of the Lorane Deli.
Help yourself.
By Mary Ellen
“Angel Scribe”
‘Fast’ food to crow about
Cooper loves peanuts and car rides.
(This column was fi rst published in The Sentinel
Aug. 1, 2018)
C
rows circle above Glen’s SUV, loudly caw-
ing as they escort him to the pond. A huge
black cloud of them quickly join the excited
group. They 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, lifted 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 grocer-
ies. Back to the car he went and drove to the mall.
As soon as he turned the car off he heard an alarm-
ing swishing noise.
“I was confused. My radio was off,” said Glenn.
Then he saw a freeloading Cooper IN his car! The
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 situation eating
“fast” food as they sped home.
Finally full, Cooper jumped up onto the vehicle’s
back seat.
“I couldn‘t let this stuffed 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 entire life, and he acted
like I was his Uber driver!”
At the pond, I opened the door, and he just sat there
crowing 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 waiting 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, watching 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
recognize people’s faces and cars. There is another
green RAV4 like mine here in town. Once, the fl ock
of crows that I feed regularly 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 plasticizers and preservatives. Moldy
products and sugars harm birds.
Share your fur-avorite pet memory or adventure at
angelscribe@msn.com. Visit Pet Tips ‘n’ Tales on
Facebook at/www.facebook.com/PetTipsandTales
Humane Society for Neuter/Spay Assistance Program.
541-942-2789