Lizzie – The McGerik Homestead

Lizzie and a Prairie Skink (Plestiodon septentrionalis)

Prairie Skinks (Plestiodon septentrionalis) have been making our yard their home for many years. I often see then near a block retaining wall next to our patio. I suspect they like the many nooks and crannies the retaining wall blocks offer them.

A Prairie Skink (Plestiodon septentrionalis) on our retaining wall. — A Prairie Skink (Plestiodon septentrionalis) hanging out on our retaining wall.

Lizzie has been vaguely aware of them because she notices them moving through the yard but until recently hadn’t had opportunity to investigate them. The other day, a skink hung out on the retaining wall long enough for us to take photos of it and for Lizzie to sniff it.

She was curious but with gentle encouragement we taught her to leave it alone. She eventually lost interest, probably because it wasn’t furry and didn’t squeak like a rodent.

Lizzie Chasing Squirrels

As I wrote previously, Lizzie likes chasing squirrels. I recently placed our game camera so it would capture some of the action.

The buffet line is a table we have placed next to our fence. It is frequently visited by American red squirrels (Tamiasciurus hudsonicus) and Eastern Gray Squirrels (Sciurus carolinensis).

Red squirrel eating seeds — An American Red Squirrel (Tamiasciurus hudsonicus)

A gray squirrel eating seed — An Eastern Gray Squirrel (Sciurus carolinensis) eating seed.

Lizzie often watches for squirrels from a futon we have next to a window. Sometimes, she sits under trees watching the squirrels run around.

If they don’t come down after awhile, she barks at them, almost as if to say, “Come down here and play!”

If she is lucky, they come down to play and run along the fence for her to chase them.

Staying-at-home

Minnesota is entering its third week under a stay-at-home order as issued by our Governor, Tim Walz, in response to the SARS-CoV-2/COVID-19 pandemic. The stay-at-home order has closed all bars and sit-in restaurants, while leaving open gas stations, delivery/pick up services, and, thankfully, liquor stores.

The McGerik household is well-suited for the stay-at-home order. We had been utilizing online ordering for pickup and delivery for many years prior so we are familiar and comfortable with them. I had been slowly transitioning to working-from-home full-time and had reduced my work-in-the-office schedule to two days per week approximately a year ago so I was already of the mindset to work remotely.

The biggest beneficiary of the stay-at-home order has been Lizzie! She is loving having both of us home more. Upon getting Lizzie, we had made the decision to not go out as often so we could be home with her but the stay-at-home order has dramatically re-enforced that decision. Kat was low-needed, which means she was sent home from work because they didn’t need her. She normally works in the clinic three days per week but last week she worked only one day in the clinic. Which meant Lizzie had both of us home every day but one!

Being home with both Kat and Lizzie for so many days has been great. I have really enjoyed our days together. Kat has her productive hobbies, such as making protective masks, which keeps her occupied while I work, so we rarely get in each other’s way. We often enjoy a cup of coffee on the couch in the morning with Lizzie cuddled up next to us. I find it a great way to start the day.

With both of us recently at home so much, I wonder how Lizzie will react when either one of us returns to a more frequent work-from-the-office routine. I’m hoping I’ll be able to continue to work from home full time. I wonder if I could plead the case that our dog needs me to be home with her. I have greatly benefited from being with Lizzie this much, so maybe, I could plead the case I need to be home with her.

Lizzie Watching a Squirrel Eat Peanuts

Lizzie, being a typical dog, likes to chase squirrels. While I let her chase them because she enjoys it so much, I put Lizzie at the disadvantage by warning the squirrels, usually by making extra noise when I open the door. I enjoy watching her chase the squirrels but I don’t want her to actually catch them. Truth be told, I like squirrels, particularly the Eastern Gray Squirrel (Sciurus carolinensis). I enjoy watching them and they are, for the most part, harmless.

This winter I noticed a dearth of gray squirrels in our yard. We normally have 3-4 gray squirrels and an occasional American red squirrel (Tamiasciurus hudsonicus). I have seen Red fox (Vulpes vulpes) come through our yard so I suspect they have reduced the squirrel population. The situation became so bad that entire weeks would go by without me seeing any squirrels in our yard. Deciding that I had to do something to help the squirrels (and keep Lizzie entertained), I began placing food out for them. I put the food in locations that they could easily access without putting them in undue danger of predators.

Lizzie watching a squirrel eating peanuts — Lizzie is watching a grey squirrel eat peanuts on a Tiki statue we have in our backyard.

Today, Lizzie and I looked out a window to see a gray squirrel eating peanuts on a Tiki statue in our backyard. Despite her penchant for chasing them, she quietly watched it eat. Perhaps she too understood that she can’t chase squirrels if there are no squirrels to chase and, therefore, let it have a meal.

Lizzie Chases Balloons

We recently discovered that Lizzie loves to chase balloons. The following video is Lizzie chasing a balloon and catching it and popping it.

Lizzie Chases Shadows

Lizzie chases shadows. In the morning, when the sun is shining into the living room, she will lay on the floor, waiting for birds to come to the feeders and make shadows on the floor for her. And when a bird does make a shadow for her, she will bite at shadow while animatedly wagging her tail.

In the winter, on sunny days when the snow can be formed into snowballs, we will throw snowballs in the air so that shadows move across the yard. Lizzie happily chases after those shadows, occasionally barking at them. If our timing and aim is right, the snowball will land on her back as she chases its shadow across the yard.

After the snow melted this spring, there was no handy shadow making materials. Kat got the idea of using balls and purchased a bag of cheap plastic balls. The slow-motion video below is of Lizzie chasing the shadow of a ball and then catching the ball.

In the above video, Lizzie is wearing a bandage on her right front paw. She had a torn nail that was causing her some discomfort, so we bandaged it up. She is all healed up now.

Acorn Bombardment

We have a dozen White oak (Quercus alba) trees on our property, several of which are large and overhang the house, patio, and sidewalks. Starting in August, there is a constant staccato of knocks on the roof when the oaks drop their ripe acorns. When the wind gusts, the bombardment from the falling acorns is particularly heavy. And this year, the bombardment has been especially heavy, even on calm days with little wind.

Last year, the oaks produced a very small crop of acorns, so much so that I don’t recall seeing any on the walkways. This year, as if to compensate for last year’s meager output, the oaks produced a copious quantity of acorns. Regardless if we sweep the walkways once or twice a day, by the next morning, they are covered with acorns.

An image of acorns scattered on a sidewalk. — Acorns scattered on a sidewalk.

This morning, the bombardment by the back steps seemed strangely intense and concentrated. Looking out the window, I saw two acorns hit Lizzie in quick succession. When I went to investigate, I saw a gray squirrel up on a branch. It was the cause of the intensified bombardment!

After the squirrel had ran off to a different tree, I ran inside the house to retrieve my phone so I could take photos. Returning with the phone, I squatted to take pictures of the acorns scattered on the sidewalk when I was hit on the head by an acorn! Unbeknownst to me, the squirrel had returned while I was inside and had renewed his bombardment!

American Toad (Anaxyrus americanus)

This summer we have sighted a numerous American toads (Anaxyrus americanus) in our yard. There have been so many that occasionally it can be difficult to walk through the yard without stepping on one.

An image of an American toad — An American toad (Anaxyrus americanus) in Lizzie’s water bowl.

Whenever Lizzie shows interest in a toad, we tell her to “leave it” because we don’t want her to harm it. However, their prevalence and their using her water bowls to relax in makes that task somewhat difficult.

Images from the Game Camera, Part 1

I bought a game camera with the hope of recording the coming and going of a nesting pair of White-breasted nuthatches (Sitta carolinensis) that were nesting in one of our nest boxes. For various reasons, that didn’t work out to my satisfaction. Looking for a use for the game camera, I placed it in various locations in our yard to discover what it might record. Below are a few images captured by it.

As expected in east central Minnesota, there are plenty of Eastern Gray Squirrels to be photographed.

A picture of an Eastern gray squirrel (Sciurus carolinensis) — An Eastern gray squirrel (Sciurus carolinensis) looking for lunch on our patio.

Another frequent visitor to our yard is the American robin, often with an eye towards the ground, looking for worms to eat. While gardening, I place any grubs I find on a stump for birds to eat. Robins are usually the first to snatch them up.

A picture of an American robin (Turdus migratorius) — An American robin (Turdus migratorius) foraging in our yard.

The Chipping Sparrow is a regular summer-time resident. I frequently see them hopping through the grass, looking for seeds and insects. They appear to be fairly bold birds, approaching within a few feet of Lizzie. Lizzie, for the most part, ignores them preferring to hunt for rodents.

A picture of a chipping sparrow (Spizella passerina) — A chipping sparrow (Spizella passerina) foraging for insects and seeds.

Lizzie and the Game Camera

I recently bought a game camera, a ruggedized motion-activated camera used by hunters and wildlife watchers. I plan to use it to record the comings and goings of the birds using one of our nest boxes. Since the nest boxes are not yet being used, I’ve been using it to record activity of our back steps. I was hoping it would record the activities of squirrels visiting the feeding stations but all it seems to record is Lizzie coming and going.

A picture of Lizzie playing in the backyard. — Lizzie playing in the backyard, probably chasing a snowball.

Early one morning, Lizzie walked out the back door and knocked the camera off the steps. The camera captured her looking down over the steps at the camera.

A picture of Lizzie looking down at the knocked over camera — Lizzie looking down from the steps at the camera she just knocked over.