That’s Not a Piece of Wood!!!

[cypher]

So, we had an interesting shop experience this weekend. My mother-in-law went out to the shop to cut a tree post shorter on the chop saw. She fired it up and went to make her cut, when she looked down and was very surprised to see a 5-foot albino python staring back at her. Now we live in the Central Valley of California and not exactly albino python territory so something was a little off. Turns out the python belonged to our neighbor and she had been missing for 2 weeks. No harm no foul. Snake was returned but my mother-in-law will not be back in the shop for a while.


For those of you who may not know what an Albino Python looks like, try having this slither out from under your chop saw.

 

[David Somers]

You may have inadvertantly hit on an excellant way to keep unwanted folks out of your shop. The only disadvantage I can see might be local laws on the keeping of exotic pets, and the need to have a handy supply of mice and rats!

 

[Bill Boehme]

I am somewhat impressed by the neatness of your shop, but what impressed me the most was that you have somehow convinced the shaving from your lathe to all fall neatly into the little box sitting underneath it. My shavings are not so well behaved and I find that they are scattered all over and around the lathe along with some draped over me.

This leads me to suspect that pythons like neat shops. There won't be any pythons in my shop.

Bill

 

[Ed_McDonnell]

One of the advantages to being located in South Florida is that we seldom find pythons in the shop. The alligators pretty much keep them out.

Ed

 

[Mark Mandell]

I am somewhat impressed by the neatness of your shop, but what impressed me the most was that you have somehow convinced the shaving from your lathe to all fall neatly into the little box sitting underneath it. My shavings are not so well behaved and I find that they are scattered all over and around the lathe along with some draped over me.

This leads me to suspect that pythons like neat shops. There won't be any pythons in my shop.

Bill

Yeah, well snakes may not be a problem, but you better watch out for those Pumas! I hear those Texas Pumas especially like to hide in messy shops, and it won't be nice if you find a puma under your chopsaw. Snakes are generally pretty slow movers, but you gotta know that pumas are really fast so you might not even find a puma in your shop before it finds you. You also want to be careful if you plan to clean up your shop because pumas are very territorial so you could really get it PO'd which would naturally make things worse because then you'd have a PO'd PUMA in your shop.

Best pay it safe like Cypher and send your mother-in-law in to do a little reorganizing . . . .

m 😉

 

[Bill Boehme]

........You also want to be careful if you plan to clean up your shop because pumas are very territorial so you could really get it PO'd which would naturally make things worse .........

And, to make matters worse, when the chips are down (groan), my trustworthy bud (pictured above) might just side with his cuz'n. (What you mean "we" kemo sabe?)

Bill

 

[tdrice]

Pythons and chop saws don't mix

My, that could have been a messy cut! 😀

 

[Richard Baker]

My little puma (similarly pictured above) loves to go into the shop, but only because it leads to the other 2/3 of the barn where she can hunt the mice and albino pythons.

 

[Walt]

I'v got a Boxer and Poodle. The poodle makes all the noise while the Boxer sneaks up on you.

Walt

 

[underdog]

Ok..I've got attack spiders, wasps, and scorpions in my shop... So ya best not mess wiff my stuff!

I'll prolly get flamed for this, but, I tell the neighbors dogs to shut up when they bark at me, and cuss the neighbors cats when they leave presents in my garden and scratch marks on my hood.... :mad:

But I know y'alls pets aren't that bad mannered, yes? 🙄

 

[Mark Mandell]

A Different Tack

Ok..I've got attack spiders, wasps, and scorpions in my shop... So ya best not mess wiff my stuff!

I'll prolly get flamed for this, but, I tell the neighbors dogs to shut up when they bark at me, and cuss the neighbors cats when they leave presents in my garden and scratch marks on my hood.... :mad:

But I know y'alls pets aren't that bad mannered, yes? 🙄

Actually, my 2 attack cats don't take kindly to strangers until they are formally introduced. They've only turned their tails down at one person; an HVAC guy who came in and professed he didn't like cats. He didn't get the job, but it was because his quote was $2,000 higher than everybody else. Either the cats were right on or he didn't want the job after all, but I still saved $2G's. 😀

I'd suggest a bag of treats for each "group." Substituted for the yelling and cussing, a "friendly" voice and a biscuit or three will most likely take care of your problem. Just make sure to check with your neighbor about anything their pooch can't stomach. Both animals respond to hostility in much the ways you describe.

Spray a bit of repellant on your vehicle every once in a while and those cats'll find another high perch from which to watch the world go by and stalk the chipmonks that are digging up and eating your bulbs.

m

 

[woodwish]

Actually my shop is my only pet-free zone except for my attack spiders. I thought about killing the spiders but the chips in the webs really are rather pretty. We have 6 indoor cats, 2 spoiled big dogs that are my daughters (only outside long enough to take care of business), half a dozen or so of my wife's dang noisy birds, 2 hampsters, and I think a turtle but I don't ever really check in the rec room. The neighbors have some yappy beagle and about a dozen cats (but at least my daughter's dogs keep them out of the yard). Can't even think of the last homecooked meal without some fur in it.

Occasionally my daughter's lab comes in the shop but won't stay long. I may have a lot of sawdust but at least there is no furballs drifting around the shop! :cool2:

 

[underdog]

Don't get me wrong. It's not that I don't like dogs and cats.

I had dog when I was a kid, and was pretty torn up when he got run over by a wood truck. He'd gotten pretty deaf, and when that truck roared to life he just kept on sleeping under that rear tire. Poor old fella. He knew that was the end, and Dad couldn't let him suffer... I sure missed him when I came home from college....

I just don't like being barked at or being menaced in my own yard. And I don't like the cats yowling and fighting in the middle of the night, and I especially don't like gardening when I come up with a handful of... well you know...
And muddy pawprints and scratches on a freshly washed and waxed car does wonders for my disposition. 🙄

And of course the difficulty in making friends with the dog on one side is that the neighbor and I haven't really been on speaking terms since he has let his yard fill up with dumptrucks, skid trucks, pickups, cars, tractors, backhoe, tar tank, lawnmowers, trash... I'm not kidding about the plural either, and that's just the front yard.... Well you know.... I just don't wanna think about that anymore. And making friends with that particular dog might just be a trial I don't wanna deal with. And this neighbor has been known to make light of the fact that his dogs tend to charge folks... (At that point he had a White Terrier and a Dachshund, so it wasn't a big deal. Now he has a Chow mix that has usually been afraid of his own shadow, but he charged me the other day when I went out to get the paper.)

And do I really want to encourage the dog to come over by giving him treats? I'd like to see less of him not more.... Am I right? Or just thinking all wrong?

On the other side, I get along fine with the neighbor. She has several dogs, and doesn't hesitate to take care of the dogs when they cause problems. She has them all penned up also so that's not such a problem.

But who knows who owns all the darn cats? That spray sounds like a good idea...

 

[Mark Mandell]

Jim,

A junkyard dog, eh? It's not an issue of making friends, but rather of taking yourself off the "list" of potential invaders of his "territory" even though you're on your side of The Line. Give him his due, he's protecting his master's stuff. The charge is a challenge to say "stay back, this is mine!" A dog treat removes the perceived threat after a number of episodes. Responding with "ShutUP!!" is actually a verbal "charge" of your own, and simply reinforces the dog's perception of you. Don't approach him; simply pitch the treat over in his general area but not at him which is also an aggresive signal.

Feral and unrestrained cats can be a problem. There is also a repellant spray for your garden. After a while, they'll most likely simply avoid your place.

If the above doesn't work and your area has a leash law, you can always have animal control pick him up after you've warned the neighbor. I had an incurable one next to me like that and finally called the cops. Officer came out and damn near shot the mutt when it charged him. Neighbor decided to take notice and came out just in time. Told the cop the "leash broke." Cop told him if it happened again he'd be shopping for a new dog. Dog was kept in the house thereafter unless at the end of the owner's arm, and I got a note of apology from the guy.