May 15, 2006
The Saving of the Shrew
Yumi rescued a tiny shrew from the clutches of one of the neighborhood cats today. We had just returned home from helping some schoolchildren release chum salmon fry in Byrne Creek, and she stayed out to sweep the walk.
A few minutes later I heard pounding on the door, and there she stood, blood trickling from her hands as she cupped the shrew. The blood was Yumi's -- she'd torn a fingernail against the fence as she battled the cat for possession of the shrew.
I grabbed a plant container, poured some dirt into it, and placed the shrew in it, covering it with an old towel. After Yumi treated her finger, we took the shrew to the ravine behind our place and released it.
While we understand the cat is a cat, and does what comes naturally, we still think it's a shame for well-fed house cats to kill our dwindling urban birds and other beasties. We're still friends with the cat -- he likes to come calling on Choco, our strictly indoor cat -- but we had already found one dead shrew near our door yesterday, so we were happy to save one today.
The shivering shrew just before Yumi released it.