All Creatures May/June 2022

IT’S MAY-One of my favorite months of the year. The spring flowers have bloomed and, as you may recall from our last issue, it’s quite busy at my bird feeder. What excites me most, though, is the season just around the corner. I know technically the first day is in June, but for me (and many others), Memorial Day weekend marks the unofficial start of summer. By late May, the air has really warmed up here in the Northeast and I can almost feel the salty ocean mist on my face as I make plans for days at the beach over the next few months. Summer means setting up our annual lemonade stand and my kids swimming for hours. It also means the return of the deer looking for noshes…

MOTHER’S DAY MAY 8 Mother’s (and Father’s) Day is for pet parents too! The All Creatures staff shares photos of their furry companions on page 15. ASPCA’S ADOPT A SHELTER CAT MONTH JUNE Thinking about adopting a cat? Find a shelter that’s going above and beyond to care for homeless animals, like Father John’s Animal House in New Jersey. Director Garret Barcheski gives us a peek inside (page 18). NATIONAL POLLINATOR WEEK JUNE 20–26 Peggy Frezon shares tips for attracting butterflies to your yard by creating a natural, inviting environment (page 44).…

Sarah Austin, a certified wildlife rehabilitator who helps animals at her home in St. Johnsville, New York, has always carefully watched crows. They can be aggressive while protecting their territory, and she’s worried they’ll injure young animals in her care. That’s why she was surprised when a wild crow that she found emaciated and covered in parasites became best buds with Siren, a pygmy goat. After Crow-Crow healed and was released, Sarah noticed him hanging around the roof of the goat house. Siren had a penchant for climbing up there as well. “They would sit on the roof and ‘talk’ to each other,” she says. Crow-Crow also preened his friend, combing through Siren’s hair with his beak. The two remained inseparable for a couple years. Crow-Crow hangs out with other…

Twenty-five years ago a curious seal approached me while I was completing an underwater assignment in Point Lobos, California, for a marine ecology class. As I looked up, she firmly yet gently placed her flippers on each side of my face mask and pulled me toward her. Our eyes locked just inches from one another. We were upright and spinning slowly. I was spellbound. Respecting her wildness, I didn’t touch her. After multiple rotations, she let go, giving me a final lingering look as she swam away. I’ll never forget that moment of connection with another of God’s creatures. —Coral Noble, Anchorage, Alaska Share a moment of connection you’ve had with one of God’s creatures (poems and prayers welcome). Send it to allcreatures@guideposts.org…

YOU EXPECT TO hear beeps, buzzes, even shrieks from machines and monitors in a hospital, but not clip-clop, clip-clop. And definitely not a neigh or a whinny. Yet those are common sounds in the hallways of Calais Hospital in northern France. Why? Because towering over the doctors and nurses in white coats and scrubs, you’ll find the sweet chestnut-brown face of Peyo the horse, accompanied by his owner and handler, Hassen Bouchakour. Peyo, a Barb stallion, now 17 years old, didn’t always work under fluorescent lights, surrounded by the smell of antiseptics and those incessant machine alarms. He had a remarkable career in the show ring, where he was accustomed to the roar of applause and the flash of photographers’ bulbs. The competitions and exhibitions, known as dressage, require a…

AT LOOK AHEAD VET in Oroville, California, patients are cared for by a team of professionals—and a team of cats. Six rescued felines live and work at the animal hospital, enjoying free rein over the space. “The cats came to us at various times—most seriously injured—and each with their own story,” says veterinary technician Crystal Bessmer. The cats’ unique journeys have led each one to fill a special role at the hospital. Bea, a short-haired tabby, was brought in as a kitten with a severe tail injury. The staff planned to monitor her for a while and then find her a home, but they noticed something unusual about Bea. She would often reach into cages of pets under their care to gently touch the animal inside. They decided to name…