Menagerie

I live with a menagerie. Mikey-kitty, the alpha, and Juliette our herder. Here, predator meets prey...and Mikey was NOT amused. Juliette simply sighs, knowing that her herd has grown, & so too, her work load. They have learned to co-exist. Bun-Bun seeking companionship with the closest to her kind, Mikey wanting no part of it. (translation: the lop chases the alpha-kitty around the house).
In addition to our 4-footers, he have a tank of albino frogs and a 50 gallon aquarium of tropical fish. Soon, our TWO "hotel tanks" will be open for overnight stays of local residents....toads and skinks, turtles and anoles and perhaps even a snake or 2. They will vacation for a day or two. My son and his friend will spend their days hunting insects and rushing back to feed our guests, before returning them to their real homes...outdoors. Most have names and we know where each of them live, so it is easy to bring them back for a return stay. This winter, we had no hangers-on and so we look forward with even geater relish to their return.
I wanted to add a bird to our menagerie...my husband is not keen for any more living things inside of our home. I do have window feeders full of songbirds. After keeping up with the lop's litter pan, I have decided he is right. I have found a no-maintenance way to have 7 birds and have added a wonderful relic to my home: a mobile. It is the mobile that my parents chose to lovingly adorn the crib of their firstborn son, some 56 years ago. The birds soar over me as I write and remind me of the part my parents played in my love for ALL of God's creatures.