Hummingbird: The Joyful Dynamo

Here's another post about which bird matches your personality.

Cute Whimsical Hummingbird Bird Watercolor Art
by countrymousestudio

  

Hummingbird lovers are full of energy, optimism, and sparkle.

Watercolor Whimsical Rufous Hummingbird attitude
by countrymousestudio

 

You’re the kind of person who lights up a room and leaves people wondering how you do it all.

 In Aztec mythology, hummingbirds were symbols of vigor and passion. You’re fast, focused, and fiercely protective of your peace. 

Thank you Blank Cherry Blossom & Hummingbird
by countrymousestudio

Little Hummingbird Personality Fun Birthday
by possibilitee

Hummingbirds
by Country Mouse Studio

Custom Name Fun Hummingbird Bird Nature Art Post-it Notes
by countrymousestudio

Animal Protectors Angels or not

 Many humans believe that there are good and evil spirits to contend with.  Most believe that the majority of animals are good and even that most animals are better than most humans.  Thousands of stories are available to tell us how dogs, cats, horses, and other animals came to a human's rescue.  The bible itself tells us how God sent ravens to feed Elijah in his time of need.

Many also believe that each animal has characteristics that we can learn from and it wouldn't be a stretch of the imagination to think that God would send us examples so we could see and feel what love feels like and then hopefully imitate it since He teaches us that love is the most important thing we can do. For instance, the wolf is known to have incredible loyalty to its family or pack, ants and beavers are hardworking.  These things can teach us what is good.  The animal totem or spirit animal idea is based on that.  If you see lots of Magpies maybe it's time to try and socialize like they do.  This doesn't go against any religion it should show you a loving God that is trying to help you by sending you examples of things you may want to consider.

Sometimes animals are simply a comfort to those who need love and companionship and what greater privilege than to love and comfort someone who needs it. 

I have found in my lifetime (and I've been around a while) that God has used animals to help me many times.

When I was a young girl living in the country I had a Border Collie named Shep that was my best friend.  We did almost everything together.  Then one day when he was outside and I was in the house alone I decided it was a beautiful summer day to go for a walk.  I pushed and pushed on the door but Shep wouldn't budge.  He sat so firmly against it until I got frustrated and went around to a window to see if something else was stopping the door from opening.  In the berry bushes, just a few feet away was a big black bear.  Shep never barked or made a noise he just sat firmly against the door so I couldn't go out.   When the bear moved on so did the dog and the door opened freely.   

That was my first encounter with an animal protector.  I was thankful for the dog but also thankful for the one who made the dog and gave him the ability to do that just like He sent the ravens to feed Elijah.

 

Ravens The Problem with Image

I grew up in the north about 600 miles south of the treeline. It was inhabited by many ravens. We didn't see them too often in the summer but as the cold weather arrived, they were more willing to come near people.

The colder the weather, the more of them you saw. Usually they sat on wires above your head all fluffed up and chilly looking.

Occasionally, the cold would break and for a week or so warm weather would come. Just like children let out at recess, these huge birds would react by flying loops, diving and generally acting silly and calling to each other. Research says they are one of the most intelligent and the most playful of birds and to see them in action put a smile on your face. They have been observed playing tag with dogs and wolves and even making toys from sticks etc. I've seen videos of them undoing zippers on backpacks, garbage bags and opening containers.

In the spring, they perform the most beautiful aerial courtship dances. I spent many hours watching in fascination. It was even possible to see them fly upside down in their efforts to impress. I don't know if it got them a mate but it sure impressed me.

Unfortunately, they have a bad image but maybe that's been their salvation because with their intelligence if they were beautiful seed eaters they would have been captured then sold as pets.

So I draw them because I love them and have fond memories

I love Ravens Quote Watercolor Raven Bird T-Shirt
by countrymousestudio

Love Ravens "Raven Lunatic" Bird Fanatic Grunge Outdoor Pillow
by countrymousestudio

and then of course Halloween is coming and there's always Edgar Allen Poe

Edgar Allan Poe The Raven Poem Raven Watercolor Shower Curtain
by countrymousestudio

Edgar Allen Poe The Raven Halloween Poem Fleece Blanket
by countrymousestudio

December - A Month of Raccoons

December is Raccoon month at Country Mouse Studio

I recently received an email from a US Marine who had a request.  

He wanted to know if I'd paint a special Raccoon for him.

Him and his wife had an encounter with one while dating

and now after many years of marriage he wanted

to get her a special gift that would mean

a lot to both of them.

Being a raccoon fan myself how could I resist?

Their little fellow needed to have a top hat, a cane and a pocket watch
so here he is!

I know they can cause a lot of grief by getting into your house and garbage but I also know there are many people who love them so this is their month.

I found this sweet story about a Raccoon rescue named Pumpkin on Instagram
Pumpkin the Raccoon


I have always been fond of Raccoons and they were the first wild animal I drew.  I was so pleased one day to meet a kid who had one as a pet.  I was surprised to find that his fur looked soft but was rough and bristly but all the better to shed water, I guess.

Later, we moved to an area that had Raccoons.  I only heard about it because they'd get into everyone's garbage at night.  No one had a good thing to say about them but I hoped I'd see one.

A few more years passed and we moved into a community by a creek.  Then one night on our deck one peered into the patio door.  Before long we had quite a few of them who would come by and visit.

The Old Goat

One summer, when I was about 10 years old my parents acquired a couple goats.  We lived quite a distance from neighbors so after the goats escaped their fence for the 100th time they were given their freedom.

Curious, playful, friendly and so darn cute, these wonderful creatures quickly became my entertainment and although I don't remember much about those years, I'll always remember the goats.

Years later, when I married, they got a small herd of goats.  My parents were going to raise dairy goats so they carefully build an escape proof fence but from then on the most commonly heard comment was, "#&*#!, the goats are out again." 

This one was my favourite.   Her name was Blossom and she would follow you around everywhere tugging at your clothing, pulling at your hair and just being a lovable nuisance.

Lovable Old Goat, Farm Animal by countrymousestudio

Humor Lovable Old Goat, Animal, Farm Pet by countrymousestudio

Birthday Brother Over the Hill Old Goat Humor, by countrymousestudio

The Owls have it again

I'm still recovering from some sort of flu with sinus problems so I haven't been around too much.  I've noticed that other people are having a hard time getting rid of this illness too.
The one good thing about needing to rest is that I just read the most wonderful book about a woman (biologist) who raises a rescued Barn Owl. If you love birds or nature or need a gift for someone who does, this is a great read. I hope I did the link right  Wesley the Owl


Owls have really become popular perhaps it's due to Harry Potter. Fortunately, they are one of my favorites too as their faces seem to display so much emotion.

Barn Owl, Bird, Animal, Wildlife Nature by countrymousestudio
Browse Barn Photo Sculptures

Custom Dated, Cute Little Owl,Bird by countrymousestudio
Make personalized photo ornaments online

Fun Birthday Humor Owl, Bird, Nature, Wildlife by countrymousestudio
Shop for a card with zazzle.com

Funny Owl with Attitude, Bird, Nature, Wildlife by countrymousestudio
Browse Funny T-Shirts

Old Age, Over the Hill Birthday Owl Humor by countrymousestudio
Become a greeting card affiliate at zazzle.com

Christmas Screech Owl Watercolor Bird by countrymousestudio
Browse more Screech Cards

Snowflakes Winter Owl, Watercolor Bird by countrymousestudio
Browse more Snowflakes Mugs

Great Grey Owl Print by countrymousestudio
View other Owl Posters

Magpies

 This family of Magpies has been coming to my house for about 3 years now.  They have a particular call for me on days when I've not put any food out yet.

There is a large bear population in this area making it a bad idea to have a compost bin with scraps of food in it so they recycle my left overs for me and in exchange provide some entertainment.

I've read that they prey on eggs and nestlings of smaller birds but my huge flock of sparrows and finches don't seem to mind them, even when nesting so perhaps it's the scarcity of food that makes they prey on smaller birds.

I have no idea why this fellow has a crest on his head.  I didn't see it when taking the photo and even enlarging it didn't reveal why.
He does have a beak full of stale muffin.

  The photos aren't great as magpies are hard to capture with a camera. They are very alert and intelligent so the slightest movement scares them away

Here are a few Magpie images by various artists for sale at Zazzle

Watercolor Magpie in Bird, Animal Collection by countrymousestudio
sell your art online with zazzle.

I love the pose of this Magpie on the Fence from aquartistic

A Magpie perched on a fence by aquartistic
View other Magpie Bags

The colors are beautiful on this one from  lemmingsolution

Yellow Billed Magpie by lemmingsolution
Browse Yellow billed magpie Posters

Great bird images for all species available from  birdorable

Cute Magpie by birdorable
Create a full color post card on Zazzle

Rudolf in Summer

The other morning I went out to check something in my front yard and my son came with me. He spotted this fellow asleep by the hedges.

He was about 6 feet from us and we worried that we might scare him so we dashed back into the house.
We needn't have bothered because he wasn't too worried. He looked at us then got up and sauntered over to the apple tree and began munching on the leaves.

When he had his fill, he went back to lie down but by now the sun had begun to heat up the yard as it's very enclosed with hedges. He moved several times to find shade then eventually left.


You can see where he's eaten all the leaves.

It's been a long time since I've had any adventures in nature so this was a real treat.

I can see where he'll make a great Christmas card.

Mouse Adventures

Pocket Mouse Mug by countrymousestudio

They're predicting a cold snowy winter in our part of the world and I'm beginning to believe it. I've never had mice in this house before and I've heard either an old wives tale or old native legend that stated; when they start moving into places they don't normally go, it's going to be a cold winter.

After moving here and until we decided where we wanted to settle, we rented a unit in an off season resort. It was furnished, right on the lake with graceful weeping willows lining the banks. We shared our front yard with Canada geese, ducks, Coots and turtles. It was a wonderful place and we loved it. Unfortunately it also had way too many mice.

One evening, while watching tv, a brave little mouse popped out from under the couch. When we didn't react too strongly, he stayed. Most evenings, he'd find a crumb or stray popcorn and he'd sit there eating it with us and perhaps enjoying the show. Some days, we left the occasional grape or peanut on purpose.

As cute as he was, we knew he'd soon be trouble, so we told the landlord who provided us with a live trap. We caught him, handed him over to the landlord who then released him right behind our unit and that evening he'd be there again.

As spring approached and the resort came to life to prepare for the upcoming tourists we were still searching for the place we wanted to settle. We rented another place on an acreage in the country and there we met a whole new community of mice.

I know that living in the country can mean putting up with more critters but these guys just took over. I don't have the heart to use traps and didn't want to use poison because I had a toddler at the time so we used the live traps again.

But what to do with them after you've captured them? I figured with just a few we could take them far away in the back part of the property where maybe they could find a new life in the wild. My plan failed because of the sheer numbers of them. I was catching them so fast and in such huge quantities it would have been a full time job taking them so I began to save them in a very tall bucket.

Once the bucket was full, we would take them for a drive into the wilderness where there were no homes and release them. As silly as it sounds, it was easier on me than killing them and we had a laugh over it.

We did eventually move out of there and into the city where this is my first experience with a mouse in my house in many years, so maybe this really is going to be one cold winter or maybe it's the peak of their cycle. That would certainly explain the huge number of coyotes in the area.

Hang on... Encouragement Card Cute Mouse by countrymousestudio
.

Springtime Delayed

We had a setback in the warm, spring weather and have reverted to the cold, dark days that feel like snow may be possible.  The higher mountains have all fresh white snowy tops and the wind has been strong.

We weren't the only ones feeling the cold, as late one evening, we heard buckets being thrown around on our deck.  While the weather was warm, we hadn't heard nor seen the raccoon family that lives under our deck then last night, with the cold, they arrived and weren't too pleased to find the bucket of dog food empty.

After making a couple swipes at the bucket, they came up to the window and leaned in, looking at us.  How can you resist such cuteness?  We fill up the bucket while they pretend to hide behind the deck furniture and before the door is closed, they are eating.  My dog has made peace with them and no longer barks but occasionally they will touch noses through the glass.  The cat just sits on the handrail watching and waiting and although I've read lots of stories about them attacking cats, they seem to have a truce with ours.

Our neighbors have had to close up their cat and dog doors because when the raccoons are hungry, they simply come in and help themselves.  One elderly lady I know, woke up at night to find one growling at her in the hallway. He didn't want to be disturbed while he helped himself to her cat's food.

Along with hungry cold raccoons, we have a variety of birds which don't usually visit.  A Ring Necked Pheasant strolls by once a morning now, a family of Mourning doves and a flock of California quail.  They all visit because the new bird food has too much crushed corn in it but the sparrows and occasional finches love it too.  We have a pair of starlings nesting somewhere close by and I'm afraid to look in case, they've gotten into something they shouldn't have.  They tried to nest under our eaves and their persistent noise, scratching and chirping almost drove my daughter batty.  She would dash out in her nightgown waving a broom and yelling at 5 am.  Whenever she did that, they would respectfully move to a tree close by to watch and the moment she went inside, return to set up their squabbling.

I am hoping this cold spell passes through quickly and we can return to our spring weather, I have tulips waiting to come out and my bag of dog food is close to empty.

Animal Totems

A while back, I read a book on Animal Totems. While I know that anything can be taken to extremes, I liked what it had to say about animals characteristics.

The idea originated with the Native Americans. They believed the creator had placed animals on this earth to help and to teach us. They lived close to nature and animals were a large part of their life and gave them knowledge of their environment that helped them survive.
In a survival situation, animals could lead them to food. If they observed behavior, a bear, might show them where honey or fish could be found and a wolf might lead them to deer or other game they needed.

They also believed that animals came into their life at certain times when they needed wisdom to handle something or to give comfort, for example:The wolf could teach them about honoring family and loyalty. The owl could teach them the value of being observant, whereas an otter might remind them of the need to play. A mouse saw the small details and it was after reading this, I came up with the name for my store. For them it was a way for the creator to communicate to them.
For a lot of modern people, I think the power is taken from the Creator and given to the animals to the point where the animals themselves  are  worshiped, but that is not how the original Native Americans believed.

In modern times, many stories have been written about a dog, cat and even pet bird that comforted a loved one left behind after a death or how they've rescued a person by letting someone know their owner needed help or even alerted people to fires.

This generation has also learned to use animals for therapy in senior's homes and hospitals. A few years ago, I took care of a group home for people with physical disabilities and I never saw more joy expressed by any of them then I did when I brought in an wild duckling that had been abandoned by it's mother on the hot pavement in town.

Growing up on a farm with dogs, cats, cows, goats, chicken, ducks, geese etc, I always knew animals had the power to calm and heal so I was happy when research revealed that pet owners live longer and are better able to handle stress. This new idea that they could teach us something was even more fascinating to think about.

As I studied more about this, I came to the realization that each animal has their own characteristics and unique way of dealing with stress, loss and the difficulties we all face in life. I recently watched a video showing crows mourning the death of one of their own. The whole family gathered at the site and it was easy to see how upset they were.

Later, when my daughter developed an interest in horses, it was at a time when the equestrian world was discovering how horses could be used as therapy animals. Apparently, horses work very well for women who have been in abusive situations as the two find a common ground quickly because horses are prey animals and women often feel like prey animals too.

So thinking along that train of thought, I developed a line of products with the characteristics we can learn from and here are some examples:
Who knows what more we will learn in the future about our relationship with animals.

Otter Animal Totem by countrymousestudio

The text on the cup states that Otter teaches us to take life as it comes, be curious about everything and most important take time to play.

Cougar Animal Totem by countrymousestudio

Cougar teaches us to balance strength and grace in body, mind and spirit to find our power.

Raven Animal Totem Mug by countrymousestudio

Raven teaches us that even in the darkest times we can find light and bring out the good.

Raccoons

We have a family of raccoons living with us. They moved in under the back deck one cold winter night several years ago and since have multiplied. We have the mom and dad and their 5 babies, which we had the pleasure of watching grow up.

Sometimes in the summer, in the morning, they would bring them to play on the deck. Unfortunately, they dug in all my plant containers, removing decorative rocks and if I put the rocks back they'd dig them all out again. They had to inspect under all the cushions and chairs, quite often sitting on them to play with each other. As idyllic as this sounds, we would just hope for a breeze to blow the raccoon odor away from us.

I tried scrubbing the deck with everything I could think of and worried that we would be blessed with the smell forever but winter came and it disappeared. My daughter had developed a desire for water, pond, fountain things in large containers and we realized it was the water that was so interesting to them. Anything you put on the deck they had to investigate.

Gas got spilled on a sweatshirt and we hung it out on the handrail hoping nature would fix the problem. For a few days, it remained untouched, then curiosity got the better of them and they began pulling it down and playing with it. I'd replace it the next day on the handrail and they'd pull it down again.

The one question they raised that we couldn't answer is why an axe forgotten in other parts of the yard was hauled under the deck and into their little nest area.

My son figures they heard the coyotes howling as they often do at night and figured they needed some self defense and they've proven to be so smart, I begin to wonder.

While looking up raccoons on Google I came across this wonderful website on keeping them as pets. It's illegal in our country but not in all countries.
http://remocoon.mnsi.net/index2.htm

Here is one of my raccoon pictures

Racoon Hoodie by countrymousestudio
personalized t-shirts

Otters

I doubt if it's possible to see an otter up close and not fall in love with them. What other wild animal has so much joy in playing.

Nature programs on television always show the ones wrapped up in seaweed lying on their backs cracking oysters on their bellies with a rock. A quick look through Google images will reveal incredible photos,their faces are so expressive.

We lived near a river that had otters but unfortunately, I was never able to catch them at play. I could only find the mudslides they made all along the banks. Anywhere there was a bit of a stream pouring into the river, they would slip down it until they had created quite a well shaped muddy slide. I'd find little footprints and could imagine the fun they'd had but I'm not sure what time of day or night they came so our paths never crossed.

This little fellow I drew seemed to have that curious look on his face that typifies the species.

Funny River Otter & Footprints, Tracks Neck Tie by countrymousestudio

Fun Otterly Adorable Cute Otter Animal BooginHead Pacifier by countrymousestudio

Cute Watercolor Otter Wildlife Animal art T Shirt by countrymousestudio

The Wolf

I grew up in the northern Canadian wilderness and often at night, we heard wolves howling. There is no more thrilling sound if you are home in your warm bed, nor frightening if you are outside by yourself.

We were isolated enough, that Timber Wolves still passed through our farm and I remember one morning hearing my parents excitedly call us kids outside. We stood shivering in our jackets and nightgowns staring at the biggest wolf footprints I'd ever seen. Apparently in the night, a pack of Timber Wolves had passed through our yard, howling just enough for us to know they were there. Then in the morning, my parents rushed out to see the footprints left behind

Although they'd seen many wolf footprints, these were so impressive that they took the old wash tub and placed it over top to preserve them for further inspection by friends and family.

In all the years we lived there, I never heard one story of a wolf pack attacking or even stalking humans and they had plenty of opportunity for roads were not plowed in the winter, so vehicles weren't used and people walked everywhere.
It wouldn't have been unusual to find a lone person walking at night, yet never a report of attack. My own father walked, pulling a sled, the 8 miles to town for groceries and supplies once a week and since it was dark out by 4pm he often came home alone in the dark.

As a result we learned to not fear wolves but it still didn't stop that thrill of excitement whenever we heard them.

Family Pack Strength Quote Wolf Head Animal Art Silver Plated Framed Ornament by countrymousestudio

Birthday Sweetheart Wild Thing Wolf Humor Art Large Greeting Card by countrymousestudio

Pack Leader, Family Pack Strength Wolf Quote Greeting Card by countrymousestudio 

Wolf Head Animal Birthday Custom Invite by countrymousestudio  

World's Best Mom Wolf & Cubs Animal Watercolor Double-Sided Heart Ceramic Christmas Ornament by countrymousestudio

Wolf Howling across Lonely Lake Monogram iPhone 5 Wallets by countrymousestudio
Check out other Name Wallet Cases at zazzle.com