Crazy weather coming up

As I’m sure you’ve heard, they’re predicting snow and very cold weather for the next week here in the Willamette Valley.

We’re not exactly sure how to respond to the predictions. Monday and Tuesday’s lows are supposed to be in the mid- to low teens — not the kind of weather we know how to deal with. Would it be prudent (or effective? useful?) to row cover crops right now? Will anything we’ve planted for winter be hurt? Will any of it survive at all?

It’s a big unknown on so many levels. We’ve checked in with other farmers who are similarly wringing their hands with no clear answers. Everybody think happy thoughts!

… to add to our anxiety, we’ve been dealing with a minor cat drama at our farm over the last few weeks. A mama cat and three kittens have been living in and near our pole barn, and recently they’ve been dwindling in numbers. Two kittens disappeared. Then a cat/kitten was crying in the bushes for several days. Last night Casey found mama cat lying in the pole barn, completely out of it with bloody paws and nose. He put her in a box on old row cover with some food and water and she didn’t respond at all. Every few minutes her whole body would spasm as in pain and she would cry out. It broke our hearts.

This morning, she was still alive, with her remaining kitten sleeping on top of her. By mid-morning, mama cat had died, and kitten was still there. So sad. We couldn’t catch kitten and it ran outside. We’ve left mama in place, hoping to try again soon. We can’t stand the idea of this cute little kitten perishing in the upcoming cold weather while we all sit cozy by the fire.

How did these animals get here to begin with? Mama looked pretty healthy and tame, so I’m guessing someone decided they didn’t want kittens and dumped their pregnant cat near our place. It happens all the time in the country. We have a lot of feral cats around, thanks to such decisions. Hopefully, we’ll be able to save this kitten.

Anybody need a kitten?