I love chipmunks!

 I love chipmunks! There have been a few babies running around lately and voila! I discovered their den.

A pair of young ones chasing each other around is more fun than a barrel of monkeys. Or something like that.

Chippy time

I have several resident chipmunks who love when I fill my former herb pot with peanuts. More fun than a barrel of monkeys.

Climbing chipmunk

 I had no idea that chipmunks climbed. I just thought they ran around on the ground. Until I saw one of my hollyhocks starting to sway.

 The little guy reached for a seedpod and balanced on a stem while he ate the seeds.

Then a big reach for more seeds. Just amazing. 

So happy the seeds are filling a hungry tummy.

Cuteness Alert!

Over at the Dunvegan Post Office, the resident robins have been at it again and have already produced their first brood.

In Alexandria, my friend Scott found four abandoned baby squirrels so he and his landlady provided them with some food and a warm place to curl up in.

Back here in Dunvegan, my chippies have returned for another season of hilarity and peanut grabbing.

Yes, it's a slippery slope and I'm tampering with nature, but who can resist that face? I can't! And all my cats are of the indoor variety, so it's chippy heaven out here.

Chippy Tales

How do you get a vaguely shy chipmunk out of the downspout of your eaves trough?


Offer him peanuts, of course.


They work every time!


And with all my kitty cats living indoors, the chippies have the run of the place. Spring means it's time to buy more peanuts.

Chippy Makes the News

Click to enlarge.
Chippy shared the billing with me in the Glengarry News the other day. Seems the reporter was quite taken with him and snapped this great photo.

Chippy's Back!

I was delighted to see the return of my little friends this past week. Chippy East and Chippy West are both back and ready for peanuts.


They have a water dispenser for when the weather gets hotter and drier.


I was about to get rid of this strawberry pot because I can never successfully grow anything in it. But then I thought it'd be perfect for peanuts.


And sure enough it is! I call it my "Chippy Dive-In."

Feeding Chippy

I've made friends with several chipmunks around my house this summer...


...and they love being fed peanuts.


Looks like this little guy is going to take flight!

Nutmeg's TV

Nutmeg watches her own specialty channel out the window. It's called "The Chippy Show" and it's on from dawn to dusk, as long as I'm feeding the little guy peanuts (off camera).
Chippy can be seen in the bottom left of photo.

Baby Chipmunks

Yesterday afternoon Richard and I were sitting on the swing, doing the New York Times crossword puzzle and feeding 3 or 4 hungry (or not so hungry) chipmunks. When two of them came up to us at the same time there was a complete frenzy of rolling around and athletic jumps through the air. During quieter moments, I noticed a hole amongst a rock pile and saw three little chippies emerging. So darn cute. Of course after I had the camera with me, I had to wait another half hour till two would would come out (number 3 was very shy and wouldn't appear).

Please Feed the Animals III

Last year, I fed a chipmunk till hibernation time. I somehow think this chippy must be the same one as last year. She came out of her hole in early spring, ran up to me and stood on her two back legs wanting food. I've tried feeding a few other chipmunks and they're not nearly as friendly as this little chippy. Now that I've bought peanuts, there's no stopping her. Yesterday, she jumped on my lap wanting more.