National Cat Day! (We only have six...)

When we first began raising quail down here at Nowhere, we housed them in little contraptions called tractors.  These are lighter-weight cages on wheels.  We move them around, the quail eat the grass and weeds, and contribute fertilizer.  In theory it is a very efficient practice, keeping weeds at a minimum and helping the desired plants grow.

At first it worked fairly well.  We got busy in incubating and hatching and caring for quail and all was well.  For a little while.

Then we started losing quail.  One here, one there; we would wake up in the morning, go check on them, and discover a dead quail in the tractor.  We finally realized something was tunneling under the tractor, coming up in the pen, and feasting on the quail.  

We decided they needed better protection.  Some friends gave us some scrap metal, Cletus had a bit of lumber left over from some projects, and he built an aviary.  It was nice being able to go into their enclosure and sit with them.  

 

Unfortunately something was still getting not only the birds but also the eggs.  Many nights (quail lay in the evening) we would go out and there would be no eggs but we would hear something rustling around.  We finally realized we had rodents coming in and getting the eggs.  Cletus built some cages and we put the quail in the cages inside the aviary and that helped.  He reinforced the aviary with hardware cloth.  Unfortunately rodents do not need a very large hole to get in and do damage.  The little buggers had the audacity to build a nest in the corner just under the roof!  It was discouraging.

Last year after two neighbors died, we inherited their four barn cats.  We were not expecting quite that many (especially since we are the kind of people who think it necessary to keep even our outdoor cats vetted and vaccinated), but those cats have earned their keep!

They act as building inspectors.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And protectors of the quail, of course...
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 They "help" me when I hang out the laundry.

They have been known to try to help with harvesting garden produce (*ahem*)

Best of all, we do not have any rodents any more!

Happy Cat Day, Boots, Sweetie, Pi, and Mama Cat!  We are glad you four are a part of the family.