It’s edging to below zero, but the animals don’t seem troubled. Zip defies the conventional wisdom of many animal lovers.
He has a warm cat house, but even last night, we saw by footprints that he spent the night in the woodshed inside a box with blankets, heaving waves from the kitchen below. That’s his favored space, high up, safe, sheltered, soft blankets.
Barn Cats know what they are doing, and I love their independence and ability to make their own decisions and not be told by anyone what to do (except they have to go to the vet two or three times a year.) Their choices are always savvier than mine.
I don’t know what other cats are like, and I would never presume to tell another cat lover how to care for their cat. I am happy with my cat; he makes me smile a dozen times a day, and if he isn’t happy, I’m a Kangaroo.
Cold like this has a unique beauty; you can see it in the camera and the trees. It is cold but worth it. Zip, as usual, starts this morning; he is quite a character, happy and curious to the end.
photo by Maria
We keep shuffling the food around, but we catch Zip once every morning sneaking into the roost and eating some of the chicken’s food. They get rattled, but he never harms them, and they increasingly ignore him. Zip is a rascal but also a charmer. He believes in sharing the food of other animals. He jumps out and runs to the barn when he sees us coming.
It’s too cold for me to go outside and take flower photos, but Zip still shows up every morning to report for work. He adapts and accompanies me on my photo walks for “Beautiful Day” photos. He is a rascal, for sure, but quite a loving one.
Birds in a storm. We had a snowstorm this morning; I loved sitting with the wood stove on my right and the bird feeder window right over me. The birds look breathtakingly beautiful to me; they are slow, find, and have frosted windows.
Georgia O’Keeffe and I have vast differences in talent but not in taste. The two kinds of painting and photography she loves best are flowers and landscapes. I’m getting more serious about my landscapes.
perhaps Zip is your muse (or mews?) — a person or personified force who is the source of inspiration for a creative artist
Every time I think of those folks who message you saying Zip is suffering, I have to laugh. You only need look at the photos to see he is a most happy and even spoiled cat! A whole farm to roam, hundreds of cozy hideouts, and humans to follow and investigate – he is living in cat heaven!
Love your photos as always.
Briana
I love your landscape photos the best, in all of the seasons. Our back yard is our oasis, so I spend a lot of time staring out at it, in all seasons too. It’s where the bird feeders and bird baths are, and watching their antics is so much fun. It’s so cold here that we had cardinals at the sunflower feeder during the afternoon, which is very rare. They are early morning or nearly evening feeders.
Our barn car Alistar much like Zip makes his own choices. I got several phone calls asking if Alistar would be in the house during the big cold snap since night lows would be well below zero. I said no, he has an assortment of hidieholes filled with straw, a heated mat that gets warm when he lays on it and his favorite place, a wood box lined with straw and a saddle blanket. He has a heated water dish and plenty of food. He wants nothing to do with the house or garage. Like Zip Alistar makes his presence known and leaves us gifts of mice on the stoop. I’ve been accused of being mean, but Alistar is a happy healthy barn cat doing what barn cats do. Yay for Zip and Alistar, living the lives 5hey love!
He’s a lucky cat Josie..
As is Zip!