World Veterinary Day today

.

Happy World Veterinary Day!

Let's appreciate the veterinarians who keep our livestock and pets healthy.

I don't have either, but I really admire vets (and for years wanted to be one). 

These are some good-looking cattle at a private farm not too far from my place. 
They also raise goats and we go there to buy creamy yogurt, tangy labaneh, and wonderful cheeses. 

Enlarge the photos and you'll spot the new concrete security wall just across the road.
Less than two years ago there was only a rather useless fence. 
On the other side you can see Palestinian villages in the West Bank. 
. 
(Linking to Camera-Critters.)
.

A water buffalo farm, in Switzerland!

.

A farm full of water buffalo -- in northern Switzerland! 

I found it while staying the last few days at Sonnenhof, the French-speaking Community of Grandchamp's "branch" over in the German-speaking part of Switzerland.
One of the nun-friends walked me up the mountain to see the impressive  water buffalo.

The youngsters still have stubby horns.

We saw no one around to ask, but we are assuming these animals are raised for milk and maybe also meat.
The best mozzarella cheese is made from water buffalo milk. 

I had fun posing with the big tightly-wrapped hay bales.
You can see one of the farm houses in the background.
.
(Linking to Camera-Critters meme.)
.

Listen to the cow bells, on real Swiss cows!

.
In Switzerland the cattle herds follow the good weather.
In summer they are taken to progressively higher alpages to live for a while.
Now, with snow on the Jura Mountains, they come down here to graze on the warmer plain. 

Today was the first time I heard the familiar din of cow bells out in the big field (grand champ, in French)!
I walked out from the Community of Grandchamp and into the field, walking carefully along the narrow muddy path in the middle of two fields, being careful not to touch the electric fence. 
I was so happy to see the pretty cows up close!
But how can each one stand wearing (and hearing) a big bell around their neck all their life??

Enjoy seeing and HEARING the videos!

(Linking to Camera Critters.
And for ABC Wednesday, T is for tongues licking a salt-block.)
.

Cow Appreciation Day

.

Today, July 12, is Cow Appreciation Day.

When I volunteered at the Franziskusgemeinschaft community in Austria last autumn, I certainly appreciated the cow.
Her rich milk was made into butter, cream, and cheese; the fresh raw milk was also great to drink. 

She loved to eat the mash that was left over after we pressed apples.
Ah, I do miss the good folks and the friendly animals there at the farm.
.
(Linking to Camera-Critters and  ABC Wednesday.)
.

Can one teach a bear to dance?

.

Z is for zoo, the Biblical Zoo in Jerusalem.

And another old Yiddish saying:

With time, even a bear can be taught to dance. 
 אַ בער לערנט מען אויך אויס טאַנצן. A ber lernt men oykh oys tantsn.
 .
(Linking to ABC Wednesday.)
.

Can't make a streimel out of a pig's tail

.

Y is for Yiddish wit, for example:

You can't make a shtreimel out of a pig's tail.

• Fun a khazer-shventsl ken men keyn shtrayml nit makhn.

• English equivalent: You can't make a silk purse from a sow's ear.
• Meaning: You cannot produce anything of good quality from poor raw material; often used of people.

In case you've never seen a shtreimel, it's that fur hat on the right.
Worn by certain ultra-orthodox Jewish men on holidays and Shabbat.
.
(Linking to ABC Wednesday.)
UPDATE: Please see added interesting information in the comments.
.

Two turtles, two ways

.

While walking in the desert today I crossed paths with two turtles.
The first was on a rocky road.
The second could lie down in green pastures.

.
(Linking to Camera-Critters.)
.

An egg roll

.

For ABC Wednesday,  H is for head.

This is the skull of a Nile crocodile, displayed at the Negev Zoo.

You'll never guess what this croc does with its big mouth!
National Geographic tells us --

 One unusual characteristic of this fearsome predator is its caring nature as a parent. Where most reptiles lay their eggs and move on, mother and father Nile crocs ferociously guard their nests until the eggs hatch, and they will often roll the eggs gently in their mouths to help hatching babies emerge.

.
(Linking to Camera Critters.)
.

Six Persian fallow deer reintroduced in the Jerusalem Hills

.

These are Persian fallow deer at Jerusalem's Biblical Zoo in photos I took last February.
Enlarge the photos and enjoy.

Just last week six of these animals made big news in Israel.
Six yachmurot, female fallow deer, were released into nature--right here near us in the Jerusalem Hills, in a nature reserve in the Soreq Valley! 

The breeding and return to nature program of this once almost extinct breed  has been going on for quite some years.
But it was halted over the last three years because of the increasing danger to the deer from packs of hungry feral dogs.
Because the number of now-wild dogs grew, along with the danger of rabies, it was recently decided to once again allow official rangers to shoot such dogs in parks and reserves.
 (See details in Haaretz.)
[If the article is behind a paywall you can do a simple registration for ten free articles per month at http://www.haaretz.com/misc/subscription .]

You can read more by enlarging this Zoo information sign.
Or see Zoo articles here and here. 
.
What I heard yesterday in a radio interview with Zoo director Shai Doron:

The six deer were tranquilized for the 20-minute drive from the zoo to their new home.
Each doe got a radio-telemetry transmitter collar so they can be tracked and monitored.
At Shmurat Hasoreq the cage was opened and they staggered out.
At the beginning they live in a big acclimation enclosure and when they have gotten used to the Mediterranean Woodland surroundings, they are set free.
Except--the first night one of the does managed to jump over the 2-meter high fence.
They found her dead the next morning, with no signs of having been attacked.

I wish them luck.  How I would love to be hiking in my beloved Jerusalem Hills and one day see a wild deer!
.
To learn how the first four Persian fallow deer were flown out of Iran just in time, see in the Wall Street Journal 
"How Bambi Met James Bond to Save Israel's 'Extinct' Deer --
It Took Cloak-and-Dagger Effort to Return Creatures From Iran to Biblical Home"
.
.

(A post for Camera-Critters)

. 

Mammals of Israel, stuffed

.
While the grandkids were visiting, I finally had an incentive to go check out the old Nature Museum in Jerusalem's German Colony.
Here are some of Israel's most common mammals, all of which I have seen in the wild.

Once I met a big porcupine in the woods in the dark of night.
Luckily it was in a hurry to dig down into its burrow.
I could hear its quills rattling as it ran.

My old friend, the jackal.
So many of them here in the hills and even in my backyard.

One evening I saw from afar a hyena down at the spring.

And there are still wild boars, too!
.
All for Camera Critters meme.
.

Family fun at the zoo

.
For ABC Wednesday, F is for family fun!
My daughter and my youngest (age 1.10) granddaughter just arrived for a visit from Australia, and today we had a fabulous time at the Biblical Zoo.

A lemur with chutspah almost climbed into Libby's pram!

In the petting zoo, the goats were snoozing in the semi-warm sun.

Shalom Tisch Family Zoological Gardens Jerusalem, see you again next time Naomi and Libby come home to visit.
.

Preaching to the donkeys

.

Happy World Animal Day!

Wikipedia says it "is celebrated each year on October 4. It started in Florence, Italy in 1931 at a convention of ecologists.
On this day, animal life in all its forms is celebrated, and special events are planned on locations all over the globe.
4 October was originally chosen for World Animal Day because it is the feast day of Francis of Assisi, a nature lover and patron saint of animals and the environment.
Numerous churches throughout the world observe the Sunday closest to 4 October with a Blessing for the Animals."

Of all the animals I love donkeys the most.

In 2005 I was lucky to work as a volunteer for one month at the Good Samaritan Donkey Sanctuary in NSW, Australia.
I got to know the 130 donkeys that the dedicated and hard-working Kokas family has rescued.

(Enlarge the photo to read the sign about donkeys.)

They let me live in a little caravan at the sanctuary, in the middle of rolling hills, with only donkeys and wild kangaroos and koalas and exotic birds for neighbors.

There was a washing machine, but the fence had to serve as my clothesline.

What a rare chance to be far from any human!

One evening, remembering how St. Francis is said to have preached to the birds, I stood on the picnic table and began preaching to the animals in the loudest voice I could produce.
"My brother and sister donkeys, brother and sister kangaroos and birds, sister moon . . . "

I can't remember the words of my sermon, but I did sing Taize songs to the animals.
And you know what? -- They stood still, out there in the pastures and in the bush, looking at me and listening.
.
God bless our animals, today and every day.
.
(See more posts about donkeys and one about the Aussie sanctuary.)
And for ABC Wednesday, L is for loving lovely donkeys.
.
UPDATE: Crystal at Perspective blog posted some really unusual footage of Donovan in the role of Francis (before he was a saint) from the 1972 Franco Zeffirelli film "Brother Sun, Sister Moon."
Recommended!

..

Doorway to a den

.
Doorway to its den?
.
This Rock Hyrax lives right near the shore of the Sea of Galilee, at Tabgha.
In Hebrew the Procavia capensis is called shafan sela (literally, "rock rabbit").
.
They are also plentiful in the desert near the Dead Sea, e.g. at Ein Gedi.
.
.
The D's are for ABC Wednesday D-Day.
.
UPDATE! By happy coincidence Prof. Todd Bolen of BiblePlaces Blog also posted about hyraxes today.
Apparently the little critters are becoming a nuisance in Israel, migrating to the towns.
.

Israeli salad for a blue-tongue

.
Even though its bustle and size make me dizzy, I stepped into Malcha Mall.
The pet shop is the one store there that I cannot NOT go into.
.
The picture taped to this skink's enclosure makes me believe it is what Australians call a blue-tongue.
I, for one, would not want to keep a 60-centimeter reptile in a glass case for its 20-year life expectancy.
.
Well, at least this guy had a nice bowl of "Israeli salad."
We humans eat it for breakfast, lunch, and/or dinner.
.
Shalom to friends at Camera-Critters meme.
.

Zany creatures at the Zoo

.
Zany creatures at the ZOO for ABC Wednesday today!
.
These animals are wild!

Many of the 23 or more sculptures in the Noah's Ark Sculpture Garden may be climbed on.
That is just what Dean did when he came to visit Israel in 2006.

Niki de Saint Phalle and Swiss architect Mario Botta completed their work at the Biblical Zoo in 2001, in the dark days of the intifadah.
.
Niki's other landmark in Jerusalem is the Golem, popularly know as the Monster (hamifletset).
.

No mincing of words here

.
Psalm 3 for Robert's PsalmChallenge at Daily Athens:

1. A Psalm of David, when he fled from Absalom his son.

2. Lord, how many are my enemies! There are many who rise up against me.
3. Many are there who say of my soul, There is no help for him in God. Selah.
4. But, O Lord, you are a shield for me; my glory, and the lifter up of my head.
5. I cried to the Lord with my voice, and he heard me out from his holy mountain. Selah.
6. I laid down and slept; I awoke; for the Lord sustained me.
7. I will not be afraid of ten thousands of people, that have set themselves around against me.
.
8. Arise, O Lord! Save me, O my God! For you have struck all my enemies on the cheek bone; you have broken the teeth of the wicked.

9. Salvation belongs to the Lord; your blessing is upon your people. Selah.

Verse 8 can also be translated in the future tense.
David hopes God will once again smite or break the mouth of the enemies who "bad-mouth" David.
Whether this is meant literally or figuratively, you choose!
.
Lashon hara is the Hebrew term for "slander" but literally it means "the evil tongue," so it is not far-fetched that David would like the tongue place in his slanderers to be messed up.
.
א מִזְמוֹר לְדָוִד בְּבָרְחוֹ מִפְּנֵי אַבְשָׁלוֹם בְּנֽוֹ: ב יְהֹוָה מָה־רַבּוּ צָרָי רַבִּים קָמִים עָלָֽי: ג רַבִּים אֹמְרִים לְנַפְשִׁי אֵין יְֽשׁוּעָתָה לּוֹ בֵֽאלֹהִים סֶֽלָה: ד וְאַתָּה יְהֹוָה מָגֵן בַּֽעֲדִי כְּבוֹדִי וּמֵרִים רֹאשִֽׁי: ה קוֹלִי אֶל־יְהֹוָה אֶקְרָא וַיַּֽעֲנֵנִי מֵהַר קָדְשׁוֹ סֶֽלָה: ו אֲנִי שָׁכַבְתִּי וָֽאִישָׁנָה הֱקִיצוֹתִי כִּי יְהֹוָה יִסְמְכֵֽנִי: ז לֹֽא־אִירָא מֵרִֽבְבוֹת עָם אֲשֶׁר סָבִיב שָׁתוּ עָלָֽי: ח קוּמָה יְהֹוָה הוֹשִׁיעֵנִי אֱלֹהַי כִּֽי־הִכִּיתָ אֶת־כָּל־אֹיְבַי לֶחִי שִׁנֵּי רְשָׁעִים שִׁבַּֽרְתָּ: ט לַיהֹוָה הַיְשׁוּעָה עַל־עַמְּךָ בִרְכָתֶךָ סֶּֽלָה
.

Heat loss

.
Instead of showing the usual JHDP's cute cats, today I give you our hard reality for Camera-Critters Sunday.

Israel in summer means hot, sunny, and no rain.
But this summer has been abnormally hot.
And this last week has been brutally hot.
.
The farm animals are suffering just like the rest of us.
.

A report in Ynet (Yediot Aharonot) explains that the extreme heat makes it hard for cows to conceive and this lowers their milk production. By over 20%, in fact!

.

The cows get misted with water and have fans blowing on them, but still, as one dairy farmer says, "It's like going around in a leather jacket in the heat of summer."

A million chickens died on the first day of the unprecedented heat wave alone, last Sunday.

Poor chickens.

.

Even if the farmers spray the roofs and try to cool the coops, the water runs in above-ground pipes and comes in hot, even the chickens' drinking water.

(Even my water comes boiling into my cold water tap now in my hot little house. )

.

Exacerbating the problem is the reduced water allotment that the government gives the farmers. Israel has been in drought for years and we are running out of water.

.

The current heatwave is also ripening many fruits before their time.

Like peaches, plums, nectarines, grapes, watermelons.

.

Also, there are not enough foreign workers (mainly Thais) to pick the fruit.

Imagine working in the field in the sun or in a hothouse the whole day.

.

Sadly, thousands of tons of fruit are being tossed, wasted.

.

Let's hope it will cool down soon, in Israel and in all the affected countries.

.

Rock hyrax on a rock

It was so hot in the Ein Gedi Nature Reserve that this rock hyrax was just slung out on a rock in the shade, trying to chill.
.
The Procavia capensis are mammals but their body temperature is not constant; it changes according to the ambient temperature.
.
More about hyrax, including one in an ancient mosaic, in my winter post about Ein Gedi.
.
The cute critter is joining all kinds of other animals this weekend at the Camera-Critters meme.
Go have a peak at them.
.

Room for all in the water

.
Christian pilgrims are not the only ones in the water . . .


. . . at Yardenit, the baptism place on the River Jordan.

(Photo by Kristine S.)

Here I am, trying to shoot these giant catfish just as they rose to the surface in a feeding frenzy whenever a tourist threw them bread.
.

But then another animal came over to the stairs.

Is it a muskrat?*

I've never seen this rodent before.

.

Even more fun than the catfish and the small fry and the (maybe) muskrat* was the little baby which appeared from under its mama.

You can see its head if you enlarge the photo!

.

Seems like the Galilee is better for finding animals for our weekly Camera-Critters than is Jerusalem.

.

(More on Yardenit here in the coming days.)

.
*UPDATE: Blogger-friend (and now also RLF) Robin helped us identify the furry animal as a lutria (aka nutria or coypu), Myocaster coypus.
So it's NOT a muskrat.
Robin used to live in the area and swim in the Jordan, so she knows! See her comment. Better yet, see her blog about their life in Israel!
.

Rock hyrax everywhere

.
Psalms 104:18 says

חָרִים הַגְּבֹהִים, לַיְּעֵלִים; סְלָעִים, מַחְסֶה לַשְׁפַנִּים
"The high mountains are for the wild goats [ibex]; the rocks are a refuge for the hyrax."

I posted a picture to prove that about the ibex, now let's look at the hyrax.
Here is my last-Thursday hiking friend communing with a hyrax near the first waterfalls at Ein Gedi Nature Reserve.
.

Families of rock hyrax (Procavia capensis) , or conies, live in rock crannies or in thickets of reeds.
Even though they are mammals, their body temperature changes according to the ambient temperature. So on cold mornings you can see them sunbathing on top of rocks before resuming activity.
.

Like the ibex, the hyrax are remarkable climbers.

.

And they run really fast!

The rock hyrax have lived in the Jordan Valley for a long time, as evidenced by this ancient mosaic in Tabgha.

.

Next week for Camera-Critters Sunday meme we can look at the birds of Ein Gedi.

.