(I didn't take this picture.The camera was in another
room and the turkey was
out of sight before I could
go get it.)
I got up this morning, made a pot of coffee and picked up the Strib Sunday paper from outside my door. As I sat down in front of the CBS Sunday Morning Show, something passing the patio door caught my eye. I got up to look and two of my cats were crouched down in front of the door. It was obvious why. The huge turkey was less than 10 feet away! The sight really made my day.
I sometimes wonder what other strange things my cats see at other times when I'm sleeping or otherwise occupied. I've seen deer, raccoons, opossums, foxes and other less exotic animals around here. But the kitties who are watching out the windows at all hours of the night have seen far stranger things, I'm sure. If only they could talk.
Except...about ten years ago I read a book called, If A Lion Could Talk by Stephen Budiansky. The author makes the case that the consciousness of animals has evolved so differently from that of humans, even if they could talk it wouldn't make any sense to us.
How would the cats, hunkered down in front of the patio door watching the strange giant creature have perceived it? I can't even imagine. I try to imagine how they perceive me; the large presence that smells of soap and food and does incomprehensible things, and speaks to them in a high-pitched voice making incomprehensible noises. All the while I'm of the opinion that I'm the all-knowing mommy. They tolerate me and sometimes allow me to pet them. I am more than amply rewarded with purrs.
"When your kitty purrs to you, doesn't it break your heart that you can't purr back?" Candea Core-Starke
"Purring would seem to be an automatic safety valve for dealing with happiness overflow." Dronica Edwards
2 comments:
Halloo dearie...don't know what is causing the trouble in calling up my bloggie -- the Google Ghost is causing trouble again, no doubt!
I think animals certainly have similar emotions to people's emotions, and feel things very deeply, in their way. I'll have to read that book by Budiansky.
I have never seen a wild turkey! But I have seen bald eagles in my yard, when I lived in the NW, and they are MUCH bigger than I ever imagined. But a turkey would dwarf them, I think.
How funny, I saw a wild tiurkey on my way home from Thief River Falls Sunday. It was in the same area where I saw a Bald Eagle a few years ago. I was driving and an eagle swooped out of the sky and nabbed a bird in midair. They both went to the ground. It flew off carrying the poor bird. It all happened in a matter of seconds, but was quite incredible to see.
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