Regrettably, not one member the Applegate fur family won the 2024 Cadbury Bunny tryouts. None of them entered the contest, but that was beside the point. The real winner was a raccoon, Louie, who would be donating his winning to some wildlife rescues and rehabs.
Nonetheless, a few not-so-willing participants donned rabbit ears for their annual Easter photo shoot. I was surprised when I was able to get a photo of all three dogs together. Unfortunately, I only had one pair of rabbit ears.
Nonetheless, a few not-so-willing participants donned rabbit ears for their annual Easter photo shoot. I was surprised when I was able to get a photo of all three dogs together. Unfortunately, I only had one pair of rabbit ears.
This pair of ears has apparently been used for the humiliation of Applegate pets dating back nine years. Nine years ago, there were still real rabbits here at the Applegate homestead. Time was not kind to the bunnies, and they all have passed on.
So, some of the rest of the fur family has had to act as Easter bunny stand-ins. This year with Sherman’s passing; Gus, Sadie and Clem were left to suffer the humiliation alone.
So, some of the rest of the fur family has had to act as Easter bunny stand-ins. This year with Sherman’s passing; Gus, Sadie and Clem were left to suffer the humiliation alone.
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Nonetheless, they took the abuse in stride.
Treats were involved.
Clem, of course, struck a regal pose despite having rabbit ears on his head. He even stopped for a photo with the daffodils after his daily swim in the neighbor’s pond.
Treats were involved.
Clem, of course, struck a regal pose despite having rabbit ears on his head. He even stopped for a photo with the daffodils after his daily swim in the neighbor’s pond.
Sadie was smiling, sort of, when she was captured.
However, the well-worn rabbit ears had trouble standing erect during her session.
However, the well-worn rabbit ears had trouble standing erect during her session.
 | Gus was a different story. I knelt to get a better angle. Gus saw this as a signal for petting. It was very difficult to get him to stay and get a photo in focus before he made it to me. |
 | Kennedy took off into a run when he saw me with the ears. I was able to catch up with him while he was enjoying some spring grass. I quickly affixed the shunned Easter headband and snapped a few shots. |
I didn’t have ears small enough to fit feline Lil’ Bit. He was content to pose with the stuffed bunny decoration on the front porch. I may need to check the internet for some cat-sized ears so that I can extend the torture to another species.
Meanwhile, he wasn’t impressed with the fake tulip display.
Outside, more spring posies were opening. The forsythia here had a few flowers on their spindly branches.
My mother’s tiny grape hyacinth finally added some color to the edge of the woods.
The previously tightly closed trailing arbutus buds had opened to display their flowers.
On the sunnier and warmer days, more mourning cloak butterflies appeared.
The wood frog eggs were starting to form into a more tadpole-like form.
I was able to capture another spring returnee from the birding kingdom. An eastern phoebe was kind enough to perch on a branch while I got in range for a photo.
However, one spring returnee was a not so welcome sight. Early last Tuesday morning, the dogs were carrying on something fierce. I went out to check the bird feeders on the other side of the house only to discover a large bear about ready to scale a tree. I was able to spook it out of the yard without any feeder damage. Even though it had been some years for a bear in the yard, we decided to take the bird feeders in at night.
A trail camera photo from the night after the bear’s visit revealed a bunch of confused deer who were looking for feeders that were no longer there.
The Nature of Things gang wishes everyone a Happy Easter, except for the bear. It can celebrate spring somewhere else other than in the yard.
That’s just the nature of things ‘round here.
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