Cavan's Critters: Fred, Charlie, and friends

Cavan has made some interesting friends as of late—critters from the animal kingdom. She has always liked creatures—last year she carried around a dead cicada for a month, as a pet. I finally had to throw it away after its wings and legs all fell off. About a month ago after a rain, she found a giant slug outside on our deck. The slug was about four inches long—brown with black spots. My sister was in town visiting, and she encouraged Cavan to name the slug, which earned the moniker Charlie. They started a silly conversation discussing why slugs don't need to sleep with blankets. The answer: because they are slimy and because they have spots. Duh! Doesn't everyone know that?

Then a week or so ago, I went into Cavan's bedroom to wake her up from her nap. As I was sitting on her bed, I saw a piece of black yarn curled on the floor. When I approached the yarn, it started to slither away! It was a baby snake—black with a white ring around its neck. I had no idea what kind it was, but it was only about four inches long and the diameter of, yes, a piece of yarn, so there was no need to panic. I called Hubby and he came down with a cup and scooped it up. Cavan was so excited. Upon research, we found out it was a Northern Ringneck, a completely harmless and beneficial snake to have around, so Cavan carried the cup out to the garden so Fred, as she named him, could "find his family" amongst the marigolds.

Some people, I'm sure, would have flipped out finding a snake in their bedroom, but a) I am not scared of snakes, especially ones smaller than the earthworms in my garden, and b) Cavan will react as I react, so I didn't want to instill fear in her. She is so curious about everything—I want to encourage that, not squash it, as some people would have done to the snake.

Finally, Cavan now has three butterflies as pets. She got a butterfly garden from a friend—a kit that includes baby caterpillars, caterpillar food, and a butterfly habitat. You watch the caterpillars grow, build their chrysalis, and then hatch as butterflies. Then you feed them for however long you want to keep them and then release them outside. The whole process takes about three weeks, and Cavan's caterpillars hatched a few days ago. We have been feeding them watermelon. The only problem with keeping butterflies is that our cat occasionally swats at them, causing the habitat to take a tumble. I have a feeling that the butterflies will earn their freedom very soon.