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Saturday, August 30, 2014

First Saturday Critter Party with Eileen

This is the first Saturday Critter Party that I'm sharing with Eileen now that I'm back in Mwadui again. Ironically, I had no bird photos yet,  but while Grant was home for lunch he called me to see a Lilac Breasted Roller on the cottage roof behind our house. We see many Lilac Breasted Rollers, but have never seen one in our yard and on the roof.  

While we watched, nearby a Red-Eyed Dove lay down on its side and looked up at the Lilac Breasted Roller. We've never seen these birds interacting and I grabbed my camera and focused. The photos are a little hazy as I had to photograph the birds through the windows but I managed a few of this strange phenomena. Lilac-breasted Roller and Red-eyed Dove interacting on our cottage roof

 The roller flew off the roof ...
... onto the water tank just below and looked up at the dove still on the roof
As if on cue, the dove strutted a little further along and...
...promptly picked up a twig from the roof top
The roller flew onto our back fence and looked up to the dove which was adding the material to a nest under our eaves

This morning the roller was sitting on the cottage roof again but shortly afterwards it flew and into the bush beyond our garden. There was no sign of the dove. 

And now to our only doggie on the yard: Princess. Many readers will remember how Princess came to live with us late last year. She was about six-eight weeks old. So that meant in July this year she was probably about six and a half months old; a lovely age, but also a risky time. If she got out, she could return a different dog altogether! And that's what happened. The night she and Toffee escaped under the reed fence, and where Toffee hurt herself, Princess probably met up with a handsome male dog who also took a liking to her. 

When the vets arrived to attend to Toffee this week, I asked them if it would be possible to spay Princess. They said it was too late, as she was already four weeks pregnant. I was very disappointed. Here in Africa, dogs normally have seven to nine pups, although I'm praying she only has one or two. I didn't want to be responsible for more unwanted pups in this country.

When her time comes, Princess will be moved to the kennels at the workshop and have her confinement there. As soon as the pups are born, Michael and I will visit her and check out a replacement for Toffee. And about three months later, the vets will come again and spay Princess.

Meanwhile I'm feeding the young mama-to-be tasty treats and calcium tablets to strengthen her for the time ahead. 

Never a dull moment in Africa, is there?
Princess, such a pup herself, is going to have pups of her own!


I'm linking my post Saturday Critters Party with Eileen which you can access by clicking here


11 comments:

  1. so sorry about princess! i hope she only has a couple, for her sake! beautiful birds!

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  2. Now that's something ! I would put the puppies asleep forever and maybe only keep one if Princess needs it. There are already so many almost starving dogs around in Africa ! If she has 8 who wants them ? That really is a misfortune ! Poor Princess, such a cute doggie, which the unknown male probably thought too !

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  3. Hello Jo, I love the Lilac-breasted Roller! It is a gorgeous bird. Sorry about Princess being pregnant..I hope the puppies find a good home..just like yours...Thank you so much for linking up to my critter party. Have a happy weekend!

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  4. The roller is so colourful! I'm so sorry that Princess is pregnant so young!

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  5. she is so beautiful and we have the same problem here, our county puts down almost 4000 dogs each year. our rescue units are jammed and no one wants the dogs.

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  6. Love that colorful little roller, and the red-eyed dove! I enjoyed seeing them very much! Sorry about your pup getting pregnant...that happened to us once with a 5 1/2 week old cat! I hope you can find good homes for the puppies.

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  7. She's a beautiful dog, but its unfortunate that she's pregnant. I hope everything goes well though.

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  8. Cute birds. Good luck with your puppies - I can't imagine looking after nine puppies at one time!

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  9. Princess is a beautiful dog. I hope you can find homes for her pups.
    The bird behavior you recorded is rather fascinating. I love the coloration of the Roller.

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  10. You could have lots of watch dogs this way.

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  11. Lovely birds. Dogs in heat seem to draw all sorts of suitors.

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