Wildlife in my yard - co-existing.

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(my photo)


I have a lot of wildlife in my yard. At least compared to some yards I've had in the past, where ants were pretty much the only animals there.
We and my animal friends co-exist together. Here is a small list of creatures I have noticed or know come visit every now and again:

Rabbits

Dogs

A woodchuck or groundhog

A Mole or Moles

Birds (many kinds)

Mice

The mole enjoys burrowing a lot, of course, and I can tell where he or she has been each week when I mow. I blithely mow over each little hillock. Sometimes he or she comes back and re-erupts the dirt in the same place, and other weeks he or she branches off.
I really don't want to kill it, and the little hills don't show a lot in my yard, which is mostly filled with evergreen plants like clover, violets, and crabgrass anyhow. It is a nice mixture that does not need a lot of water to stay green.
Dogs don't show up much. I think maybe the cows and steers across the street take care of the strays. We do get a few from time to time, who enjoy running past the dogs across the way as if to say "look at us! We might be lost or stray dogs, but we get to run around anywhere we like!"

I used to see gangs of dogs tease other dogs (my old neighbors' dogs) who were penned up or tied to a pole, (not good). Teasing seemed very un-dog-like to me. It is more something a human might do.
This happened a while ago. I think these mean or at the least, mischievious dogs went across the street to the fields. I have never seen or heard of them again, which the other dogs they teased might call Karma.
The woodchuck was seen by my neighbor going into my garage. I didn't think he liked it in there, and waddled back out. So no damage done.

Birds are making nests all around here. I like that, and enjoy looking at the hatchlings and watching them fly for the first time. Sometimes I think they are saying hi to me when I go outside.
I think birds like it better when they can pretend that their small territory belongs only to them. I imagine some of the birds are singing "go back in your house and leave us alone." But then some others could be saying "Hey, bring us some more food." They remember the peanut butter and nut cones from Christmases past.
Mice? They are running around outside, not inside, which of course is a good thing. All the animals, minus the dogs and rabbits, are really quite good at hiding. I saw a mouse outside last week, but it was pretty fast and hid right away.
Rabbits - I haven't seen any lately. I wonder if they migrated across the street too.
The neighbor's dog barks a lot. I think he is saying these things:
1. Hey, owners! Come outside and take me for a walk! You are pretty lazy, lazy, lazy, lazy, lazy...
and
2. I see a rabbit, mice, a mole, birds, other dogs, and a woodchuck.
I think there might be snakes around here somewhere, but they are exceedingly sneaky and hide well.
Do you have animals in your yard or nearby?

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