We returned from our summer vacation and found we had lost part of our flock of fine-feathered hens at our Alta Vista Bed & Breakfast Inn. While sad, we counted our remaining flock, picked up the eggs and moved on. Several days latter our next-door neighbor reported our resident bobcat was hanging around and being very bold, but not aggressive. They heard a sound that they could not recognize. Turns out our bobcat is a SHE and she was a mother!

One of her kittens slid down a gutter of our neighbor's rain-harvesting system. The mother apparently had her den on their roof, which would explain all the thumping noises the neighbors heard. Anyway, the gutter goes directly underground to the water tanks. Tom, our neighbor, called the wild animal rescue folks and they came out to survey the situation. The rescue group and our neighbor had to cut a big section out of the pipe to get to the bobcat kitten. As the rescue people pulled it out with funny gloves, they saw another kitten. It slid farther down the pipe, but our neighbor used water to push the kitten back to the opening.

The rescue team thought they were through, when they heard a noise coming from another downspout. Soon our neighbor had to cut a section from that downspout as well. Sure enough, there was a third kitten! The rescue team put the kittens in a box and put the box on the roof of their house. The mama bobcat came back and got the two kittens that were strong and frisky. We were all worried about the third one, which was very lethargic. But mama eventually came back to get the third one. We don't know quite where she took the kittens, but this morning our neighbor heard one of them up on the other side of his roof. And this evening we saw the mother going down an embankment close by.

Update: Mother has kittens up on the neighbors' roof again! Every now and then one of the kittens sticks its head out of the hole in the downspout that services a roof scupper. Mama sits on the parapet roof wall sometimes and watches the activities below.

We are not housing the animals. We are just observing and working with nature where we can! Many thanks to Tom and Beverly for sharing photos and filling in the wildlife gaps.

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To Whomever It May Concern At The Tucson Visitor Center,

On August 25/10 I ended up in downtown Tucson and, lo and behold, I saw the sign "Visitor Center". Walking in, I was immediately struck by the cordiality of the lady working the late afternoon shift, the vast number of brochures to be found, and the great advice given to myself by the wonderful lady (whose name I unfortunately never got to know). She not only gave great suggestions as to where I might find a suitable hotel within my budget range, but she also put me in touch with Michael Foltz -- owner and operator of Reisen Arizona Day Tours.

That Michael Foltz is extremely knowledgeable about all of Arizona goes without saying. After all, that is his job and the sort of thing one would expect from a tour guide. But unlike most tour guides (and I've had a few over the years), Michael is possessed of a certain charm, wit, and wisdom that can turn even a seemingly mundane exercise (such as standing on a street corner in Tombstone) into an exciting intellectual adventure.

Stated differently, Michael is not someone who merely goes through a series of perfunctory motions in his role as tour guide. To the contrary, he bubbles with the sort of enthusiasm which suggests that, even if he were not being paid, he would gladly inform individuals about Arizona out of sheer enthusiasm and willingness to help people. In fact, while guiding me through Mission San Xavier del Bac, we encountered a stray truck driver who was hopelessly lost and who, despite his predicament, saw fit to step inside the church after Michael gave him the proper directions in addition to telling the driver that he had mistakenly strayed onto the parking lot of the oldest church in the United States.

Quite clearly, then, Michael comported himself with the sort of cheery enthusiasm about Arizona that I found both quite remarkable and contagious. Indeed, because I enjoyed the first tour so much (Tombstone), I felt the strong urge to go on yet another tour with Michael. Unlike most guides, Michael was able to offer social, political and cultural commentary which, for a Canadian such as myself, proved to be indispensable in enabling me to tap into the "pulse beat" of Arizona. Had I been able to stay for another week I would in all likelihood have taken another two or three tours with him. Alas, I had to fly back to Toronto on the first of September.

Once again, therefore, I must thank the Tucson Visitor Center for having provided myself with such sound advice and such a remarkable tour guide in the person of Michael Foltz. I will tell others. Cheers from Toronto! jvk.

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