Lake Koocanusa - The Tobacco Valley Animal Shelter

Yesterday Koty and I went down to the Koocanusa to see what we could see. It was cold, rainy and gray. The annual draining of the lake is underway and the water level is already quite low. Where once was beautiful blue water there are now steep cliffs and deep valleys. It's an amazing transformation. Boat ramps rest in the sand with the water line far away. No doubt they are anticipating a pot load of water from Canada. When it warms up the snow melt will surely be massive.

Lake Koocanusa 03/29/2011

Lake Koocanusa 03/29/2011

You can't make it out in the photo but the sign says "No  swimming or diving off docks". I reckon it will be awhile before anyone tries either of those ideas.

After the lake I decided to pay a visit to the new Tobacco Valley Animal Shelter. The shelter has been in operation for a number of years but until recently their facilities have been woeful to say the least. The Tobacco Valley is a part of the world where many still think animals are of no particular value. If your cat has kitties and you don't want them it's perfectly fine to put them in a gunny sack and toss them in the lake. If you have a dog that's a bother boot him out in the forest and let the wild take care of it.

With the support of the community the shelter has been able to build a new facility. It's really very impressive for our backwoods area. Thanks to the work done by staff and volunteers people are learning there is an alternative to dumping pets like so much garbage. It's a wonderful thing.

I had a nice visit with the kitties and got introduced to some of the dogs. The kitties got to me. I wanted to take them all home with me. Since the loss of Tigger I frequently entertain the idea of adoption. But, mine is a special circumstance and I must think it thorough carefully before acting.

I also learned something that I did not know before. Anybody can hang out a sign and call themselves the Human Society and just because someone does does not mean they are in any way sanctioned by the Human Society we all know. This bit of information has knocked me off the fence. From now on I'm going to adhere to the old adage "Charity begins at home". I won't miss all the crap the Human Society jams up my mailbox with all the time. I find the practice of sending a "gift" so one might feel obligated to send a donation offensive in any event. Nope, I'm going to forgo the "gifts" and give where I can see for myself what happens to the money and who's really benefiting.

When we got back to the ranch we had a welcoming committee of about twenty mule deer waiting for us at the gate. They were standing in the trees so it was difficult to get a shot of them as a group but I did get this one of this little bucky buck. Boy, he sure has grown this winter.

Young Mule Deer

©Kinsey Barnard