Awaiting the Great Pumpkin

Lisa Steele, author of Gardening with Chickens, in Dixmont, ME, USA, shared these photos of her tuxedo cat:

"We rescued Linus from the local shelter when he was a kitten and he's about 12 years old now. We originally got him as a 'barn cat,' but somehow he has managed to have full access to the house too! He loves being outside though, especially in the nice weather. He's partial to sunbathing, but is a good mouser, keeping rodents out of the chicken coop and barn. "

You can read more about Linus and Lisa's chickens at www.fresheggsdaily.com.

Last week I stayed at the lovely Pheasant Run Farm Bed and Breakfast in Lancaster, PA. On the grounds were several barn cats (they actually live in the old chicken house). Most of them were very camera-shy, but I managed to get shots of two of the friendlier ones.

And here also are a few more photos of the farm setting to give you an idea of the beauty of the place. In a few more weeks, everything should be bursting into bloom and be even more gorgeous!

Princess of the Piccaninny Tribe

This is Tiger Lily, another kitty living with Marianne Willburn, author of the brand new book, Big Dreams, Small Garden, and a columnist/blogger at www.smalltowngardener.com. Last week she shared these photos of her kitty, Daisy.

This week, she writes:

"The naming of Tiger Lily and her sister Daisy still gives me hope that gardening may take hold in my daughter’s heart – for it was she that named the pair of them, these friendly little ‘barn cats’ that spend as much time in the house as they do near the barn. Tiger Lily is a tabby, and a gabby tabby at that – a more vociferous cat I have never owned. Thankfully (for her) she is also sweet-natured and a good huntress. "

"Rather inconveniently for my Jack Russell Terrier Mungo, she also believes herself to be his girlfriend. Watching her swish her tail against his bemused but unflinching face is a regular occurrence around here.  Mungo is generally not amused, however I have caught them on more than one occasion spooning up on the dog bed."

Fresh as a...

"Zen kitty."

Marianne Willburn, author of the brand new book, Big Dreams, Small Garden, and a columnist/blogger at www.smalltowngardener.com, shared these photos of her kitty, Daisy.

She writes, "Daisy came to us with her tabby sister, Tiger Lily, as a kitten. They were both meant to be barn cats, but I made the mistake of letting my daughter pick out the friendliest kittens in the litter. Daisy now spends a good deal of the winter inside, but of our three cats, is the one who wants to be outside the most, hunting voles. She is fluffy, friendly, and both she and her sister will follow you down the lane when you’re taking a walk – a mile if necessary. Her unusual facial markings have earned her the nickname “Twoface” and this is an apt name in more ways than one. Sweet but deadly – friendly but aloof – barn cat or house cat. That’s our Daisy."

"Daisy believes my office chair is her office chair.  All the time."

Raindrops on roses and whiskers on kitten...

Eva Stern writes: "This cat is Raindrop. He lives at my aunt's farm in Lothian, MD, USA. I am not sure of the history on Raindrop, but he and his partner-in-crime, Katrina, have been around for at least 10 years. They are tame barn cats with access to a heated space in the winter and all of the regular house-cat perks of food and treats."

La Niña

David Creech from Happy Cat Farm submitted this orange feline. "This is Nina from Inverbrook Farm in Pennsylvania. I took this picture on a rainy day about five years ago, when I was working on the farm. I'm not going to lie; Nina could be mean as a snake. But on this afternoon, he (yes, he) looked so adorable snoozing on those bags of soil in the hoophouse that I couldn't help but grab my camera and take a few photos. Here's another one of Nina in the middle of a big ol' cat yawn: "

We Three...

My cousin, Jessica Eikenberry Paullus, took these photos in Indiana of three barn cats playing at a farm. They are approximately four-months-old and are full of vim and vigor.

A Roll in the Hay

Matthew Cuba (@MattintheGarden on Twitter) sent photos of his barn cat, Princess. He wrote: "The name fits. She's probably the friendliest cat we've ever had and was a rescue that we got from a no-kill shelter out in Orange, VA. She is around 5 years old now"

"She and her fellow barn cats do an admirable job of keeping birds from nesting in the barn (and messing on everything in the barn) and in keeping the mouse and rat population in check."

"One picture (above) is Princess doing what she does best: supervising my activities in the garden.  On that day, she was doing quality control on the straw I was spreading.  I think she approved."

"The other is a shot (below) of Princess attempting to evict some bluebirds from one of the birdhouses.  Fortunately for the birds she couldn't quite reach them due to the position of the entrance.  I snapped the shot and then shooed her away so the adult birds could get back to the the nest."