UNDER THE MAINE SUN

MOVING FROGS -- AGAIN

I thought I had all the frogs safely moved to the marsh pond.  Then the weather warmed up.  We had balmy spring days with rain.  Guess who's back!  I guess I'll have to wait until it starts to get cold again and move these stubborn little guys again.

Jean, Somewhere in Maine

MOVING FROGS

When the spring thaw came during my first year in Maine, I was dismayed to find a couple of dozen frog bodies frozen into the ice on the garden ponds.  It seems that the little creatures hadn't had the sense to move themselves to the marsh pond where there was plenty of mud at the bottom to burrow into for the winter.  The garden ponds have plastic liners and, while some debris settles to the bottom, it's not enough for the frogs.  They not only freeze, but the oxygen supply is cut off by the thick ice.

The following fall I instituted a plan to move the frogs to the marsh by hand in a bucket.  I bought a small fish net meant for aquarium use and found a large pail.  I spent a day scooping the wily frogs out of the ponds and carrying them in the bucket to the marsh pond where I released them.  I had to watch the top of the bucket as they attempted to leap out.  I saw them safely into the pond before returning for the next group.

RAT POISON

Laura took Georgie's remains to her vet to be sent for cremation.  The vet, perhaps having a little remorse about turning the poor dog away, checked the remains and contacted Laura.  All signs pointed to poison.

How would a dog who is either in the house or in his pen become poisoned?  Laura, with her naturalistic practices, does not keep poison around her house.  If an owl, for instance, picks up a mouse or rat that has been poisoned, and drops it, it could land in a dog pen.  A poisoned rodent could also crawl into the dog pen to die.  The chain link fencing is not proof against the world.

We know that Goneral advocates setting out poison as a remedy for rats and that she has had rats at her house.  We can guess at the chain of events that led to Georgie's horrible and painful death.

Another cost in the Rat Wars?

Jean, Somewhere in Maine

RAT WARS - THE BEAT GOES ON

When Laura told me awhile back that she saw Goneral's husband flag down the one neighbor that lives beyond us down the private camp road, and that the frequent glances of both in her direction clearly indicated that she was the object of their discussion, I thought perhaps she was over-reacting.  The neighbor, not one to be taken in by petty neighborhood squabbles, waved and called a greeting to her before he drove off.

Laura qualifies for certain services requiring visits from representatives of various agencies connected with the Department of Human Services. 

One could say that Laura's complaint that Goneral and her husband spend a lot of time watching her are figments of her imagination, a little paranoia in action.  However, two of these workers have commented to Laura that they have noticed that when they visit, Goneral chooses that time to rush to her mailbox, craning her neck to look over at Laura's visitor while pretending to rummage for her mail.  It happens enough to be more than coincidence.

One worker told Laura that Goneral and her husband once tried to flag her down as she was leaving Laura's in her car.  The worker ignored them and drove on.

Both workers, and undoubtedly the neighbor, have found this behavior bizarre.

Jean, Somewhere in Maine

RAT WARS -- ANOTHER COST

Laura attributes her latest loss to the Rat Wars.  Her means are very limited and the legal problems caused by Goneral and her husband cost her dearly in fines and other expenses.  She has not been able to carry on her little buying and selling business that she is allowed in order to supplement her disability income and has fallen behind on some of her bills.

One of these is her veterinarian bill for the care of her dogs.  There was an increase in these bills for care following her incarceration due to some deterioration in their condition because of that.  The dogs are aging and have increased medical needs.  One of them developed severe abdominal swelling last week and was obviously in severe pain -- not eating, whimpering, and general lethargy.  Her calls to her veterinarian met with the response that she would not see the dog until the bill was caught up.  Laura had no choice but to watch the poor animal suffer for four days until he finally passed huge amounts of blood and other matter and died.

Laura had been taking her dogs to this vet for seven years and had always caught up her bill sooner or later.  I find it difficult to understand a doctor who will stand by and allow an animal to suffer like this dog did, especially in view of the past record with the client. 

Had life continued as usual for her, she would have been able to keep ahead of the vet bill and the dog's suffering could have been ended by medical intervention.  Another cost laid at Goneral's door.

Jean, Somewhere in Maine