When we first moved here, I wanted to "save" every bird and critter that needed help, and quickly learned no one else around here was as worried about the wild things as I was. Our first year, a big owl crashed THROUGH the fiberglass skylite panel on the roof of the chicken coop. He cut his head and hurt a wing. I called all over southern Oklahoma and no one (least of all the local Fish and Wildlife people) were interested in helping that owl. I was crushed. Finally, we moved him to an adjacent small guinea coop/pen and put the guineas in with the chickens. We left the door open, and he finally flew away on his own after several days. I refused to catch mice for him, so he had to live on canned cat food for those few days. I guess if you live in an area where wildlife is very abundant, people don't get as excited about one injured bird. If blue jays are engangered, you can't tell it here! We probably are overpopulated with birds, though, because we put out food for them and have a constant water source. I HAVE noticed that there are more birds than usual hanging out around the garden and eating bugs in the garden. Birds are a terrific method of pest control, so I encourage them in every way possible. We ALWAYS have a pair of owls who stay together all the time and hunt together. One is a really big barn owl, and we call him Hooty. The other is a little screech owl, obviously named Screechy. You never see one without the other, which is fascinating. They've been here as long as we have. I don't know if the current Hooty and Screechy pair are the actual same Hooty and Screechy pair that we first saw in 1999. I think it is an odd pairing. I feel sorry for them....the crows harass them relentlessly and try to run them off. Our owls are mostly out at night, but every now and then I see them out late in the morning. For all the birds we have coming to the feeders, predator birds do not come into the yard much. Maybe the cats and dogs help keep them away? Oh, and the Purple Martins also like to chase off other birds attempting to "hunt" in their territory too. Dawn

Wow, I LOVED that! Adorable hummer, and what a cool kid!! Thanks so much, taigen

It is a cool video. The thing that touches my heart the very most is that a male of this age has such a heart for nature. Too sweet for words.

I came across this message board when I saw the reference to Mustardseed Ranch Doodles. I have no personal affiliation with them other than being an owner of one of their dogs, a beautiful 9 1/2 year old F1B Goldendoodle who is a healthy sweet dog who we treasure. I had researched breeders back in 2010 when we lost a Goldendoodle at the young age of 3 1/2 from a sudden heart problem which had not been identified by our vet. We had purchased it from a breeder who we later discovered was running a puppy mill. After that tragedy, we sought out a reputable breeder who was concerned with heart, hip and eye health and we discovered Mustard Seed. I put down a deposit in January 2011 when the litter was born and I was in touch with the owner, Wendi through the weeks of development. She sent us photos of the litter, each identified by collar color, a description of their temperaments (which pups played well with others, which were more dominant, which gravitated toward her own children, etc.). She sent us links to youtube videos on a special channel of the pups at play. We drove to Ohio from New York to pick out our pup at 5 weeks and the dog actually picked my son out, climbing up his leg, pushing the others away. We saw the home (lovely and clean), the larger pen set up in the house and had a wonderful visit. We arranged a delivery with a retired couple who drove our dog home to us at 8 weeks complete with a toy with the essence of the litter, a personalized blanket, food, treats, chip info, and complete vet and genealogy documents. Before they sent the dog to us, they had worked on housebreaking and they were very successful. Cassidy was and is a truly remarkable dog with the most gentle temperament and personality. As a F1B she doesn't shed but does need proper grooming every 4 to 6 weeks to keep an immaculate coat, free of matting. I loved our experiences with Mustard Seed and thank them for giving us the perfect dog!