02x03 - Butterflies and Baby Bunnies/Every Meow and Again

[bunniefuu]

Hey, everyone-- it's me, Molly!

♪ Molly of Denali ♪

Let's go!

♪ She's Molly of Denali ♪

(laughing): Whooo!

♪ By plane or sled or snowshoe ♪

♪ She is ready to explore ♪

♪ From Kaktovik down to Juneau ♪

♪ Always wanting to learn more ♪

Yeah!

♪ Together with her best friend Tooey ♪

♪ Always by her side ♪

And Trini!

♪ Discovering the outdoors ♪

♪ On adventures day and night ♪

♪ Come along with Molly ♪

♪ Molly ♪

♪ Through fields of fireweed ♪

♪ Come along with Molly ♪

♪ Molly ♪

♪ From tundra to the sea ♪

Mahsi'choo-- let's go!

♪ Molly of Denali ♪ Yeah!

♪ She's Molly of Denali ♪

♪ Come on ♪ ♪ Let's go! ♪

♪ Molly of Denali ♪

♪ She's Molly of Denali ♪

MOLLY: "Butterflies and Bunny Babies."

(phone chirps) Hey, everyone!

It's me, Molly.

And me, Trini!

And today, we are going to show you

our brand-new butterfly garden!

We learned about butterflies in school,

and how they're important pollinators,

which means they help plants produce fruit

and seeds. But...

Butterflies are losing their, uh...

What's that word?

Habitat?

Yeah, that!

The place where they live.

So we're making a habitat for them.

We planted a whole bunch of plants

that butterflies love.

Like yarrow, and lupine, and asters, and clover.

Ooh, ooh!

Show them the fence!

Oh, yeah, we had to put a really...

Really...

Really! Really!

...super-strong fence around everything, because...

Hares!

We call them gguh in Koyukon.

They're kind of like rabbits, and they eat everything.

Don't worry, flowers.

(quietly): We'll protect you.

So we'll let you know when the butterflies come.

Bye for now, everyone!

Nenahaal'yaa! (phone chirps)

Okay, butterflies, the garden's ready!

Come on down and get your... (Suki growling)

Huh?

Do you hear that?

(Suki whining)

Suki!

Don't dig in our garden!

There aren't any bones, I promise.

(whimpering)

(screams)

Did Suki cough up a big hairball?!

It's not a hairball,

it's a hare, Trini-- a baby gguh.

And look...

There are others!

TRINI: Aww!

Suki must have dug this one out of its nest.

(whimpering)

I know, you didn't know any better.

But why are they here?

We built a fence.

I don't know.

Somehow, a mama got in and had babies.

Don't touch!

I heard that if you touch them, their mama won't come back.

Oh...

We should go, then.

How soon will she get here?

The mama?

(hawk crying)

Please don't tell me

that hawks eat baby gguh.

Don't even think about it, Mr. Hawk!

I don't think we should leave them alone.

I know!

Listen, you stay and guard the gguh,

and I'll find someone who knows what to do.

Hurry, Molly!

Run!

(hawk crying)

♪ ♪

(panting): Dad?

Dad!

(echoing): Dad!

DAD: Down here, Molly-doodle.

We found four baby gguh, and can't touch them

because there's a hawk that wants to eat them,

so what do we do?

Hmm...

I don't know much about baby gguh.

Maybe you should give Auntie Midge a call.

Right!

(ringing out)

(telephone ringing) MIDGE: Oh!

♪ The wide open valley with a snow-capped mountain ♪

♪ Is calling to me ♪

♪ Calling to me ♪

(groaning)

Who else can I call?

TRINI: Molly!

Did you find someone?

The hawk is coming back!

Shoo! Shoo! (hawk crying)

I'm trying, but not having any luck.

(grunting) (hawk crying)

Hurry, Molly!

I can't be a hawk shoo-er all day.

(sighs)

Come on, Luka.

It's medicine.

It's good for you.

(cellphone ringing)

Hello?

Oh, hey, Molly.

(straining): I'd help, but I'm trying to give Luka... his medicine.

TOOEY: Try Dr. Begaye.

She's a vet, and also a wildlife rehabilitator.

A wildlife rehabilitator?

What's that?

That's someone who knows what to do when you find a wild animal.

I'll text you the number.

(gasps): Luka!

No! My phone!

Tooey?

(hawk crying) Are you still there?

(phone chirps)

Oh, phew.

Thanks, Tooey, if you can hear me.

(cellphone ringing)

Hello?

Of course I remember you, Molly.

What's going on?

So, there are the babies,

and we think that's their nest.

DR. BEGAYE: You got it exactly right.

Those are baby hares.

Your dog probably snuffled that one out of its nest.

Is it true you can't touch a wild baby

or its mom won't come back?

That's not true, actually.

You can put that one back in the nest.

(hawk crying, children gasp)

Do hawks eat baby gguh?

It sure looks like it wants to.

They do.

And though hawks need food, too, that baby was disturbed,

so it's okay to put it back.

The babies should be safe in their nest.

♪ ♪

TRINI: There you go, little bunny.

Once it's in, you can cover the babies with the nest fluff.

This stuff, you mean?

MOLLY: What's it for?

It's fur from the mama.

She uses it to cover the nest and hide it from predators.

Mmm, this one looks hungry.

Should we give it some milk, just in case?

DR. BEGAYE: No, their mama will be back soon.

How often does she feed them?

A hare typically feeds her babies

three to four times a day.

♪ ♪

But why doesn't she stay and guard them?

Why does she go away?

Excellent question.

Some animals have to leave in order to eat.

A mama can't feed her babies if she's hungry.

What if she doesn't come back, though?

How would we know?

I have an idea.

If we put some twigs like this over the fluff,

mama will have to move them out of the way.

That way, we can tell if she came back.

That's a great solution, Molly.

You can check the nest tomorrow to see.

Enaa'basee', Dr. Begaye, and ahehee.

Thanks for letting us ask a million questions.

No problem.

Asking questions helps you learn and know what to do.

Hagoonee!

(phone chirps) We did it!

Now we can relax and let nature do its thing.

(bird squawking)

(groaning and gasping)

(sighs): I can't sleep!

I mean, what if the mama tried to come back but she got lost?

(whimpers) And went to the wrong garden?

(whimpers) The babies might be starving!

(whimpers) I'm calling Trini!

But not at : in the morning.

Time to go check on some bunnies.

♪ ♪

Shh! (quietly): Molly.

(cries out)

It's just me, Trini!

Whew!

What are you doing here?

I couldn't sleep, so I decided to check on the babies.

I brought my dad.

(chuckling)

Yeah, so did I.

(yawning)

(softly): Hey.

♪ ♪

Dad squad.

TRINI: I'm kind of scared to look.

Me, too.

♪ ♪

MOLLY (gasps): The twigs have been moved!

That means the mama came back!

Yes! Aww...

Should we look under the fluff just to make sure?

I don't think mama needs our help anymore.

But we will keep an eye on them.

For sure.

(phone chirps)

This is bunny update number-- what is it?

Ten, I think.

The gguh are hopping now.

It's amazing how fast they grow.

We found the hole where the mama got in.

MOLLY: But we're leaving it there

because she's still feeding her babies.

Her super-cute babies!

(phone chirps)

Bunny update number .

What are they doing now, Molly?

Eating flowers.

(giggling)

The butterfly garden is officially a bunny hutch now.

(computer chirps) Bunny update number .

These are some pictures

we took yesterday.

And you can see that the gguh are almost full-size now.

Molly! Come!

What's happening? What?!

Our bunnies! They're running away!

We have to stop them!

How'd they get out?

The hole!

Come back, gguh!

This is your home now!

♪ ♪

(sighs)

Actually, the garden isn't their home.

Out there is their home.

Molly, we watched them, we cared about them,

we vlogged about them.

I made hats for their little heads.

I know.

But they're wild animals, Trini.

They have to be free.

♪ ♪

(sniffing)

For weeks, all I did was think about gguh.

Gguh, gguh, gguh.

Now the gguhs are gone,

and they didn't even wave goodbye.

(gasps)

Shh.

(quietly): What is it?

(quietly): There's a butterfly on your shoulder.

Whoa!

It found our garden.

♪ ♪

If we fix up the garden

and plant even more flowers,

I bet tons of them will make this their home.

♪ ♪

Give us two days, butterfly!

Then you can come back and bring all your friends!

Hey, everyone!

Molly here to answer your questions about life in Alaska.

Gilbert from Fort Hall, Idaho, writes, "I love to eat clams.

Do you have them in Alaska?"

My friends can show you.

♪ ♪

ALL: Hi, Molly!

We're in Juneau, Alaska.

This is Tlingit land.

CHILD: Whoa, look at that!

CHILD: Whoa!

♪ ♪

This is all my family.

We're going clam digging right now.

Clam digging!

CHILD: We find clams by looking inside the water

and finding bubbles that are coming up from the ground.

Heads up!

The bubbles show us where the clams are.

We dig where the bubbles are.

(indistinct chatter)

We're having so much fun!

I see it! Right there, right there!

You see those bubbles?

♪ ♪

WOMAN: You got one! You got one!

♪ ♪

CHILD: No way!

We got one!

♪ ♪

CHILD: We finally have enough.

♪ ♪

CHILD: Once we bring the clams home, we cook 'em and eat 'em.

CHILD: First, we clean the clam.

Then we boil it.

♪ ♪

CHILD: And now we are taking them out of the shell.

♪ ♪

Mm!

CHILD: I like to eat clams.

Yummy!

It's good. It's good.

ALL: Bye, Molly!

Mahsi'choo!

Thanks for asking, and see you next time!

"Every Meow and Again."

♪ ♪

Wow!

We picked enough rhubarb to last us for weeks!

We can make rhubarb pie!

Rhubarb jam!

Rhubarb jelly!

Rhubarb jam jelly.

Wait, has anybody invented that yet?

(gasps)

Tooey! Stop!

(skidding)

Look!

By the raspberry bush.

Oh, good idea.

We can make rhubarb raspberry jam jelly.

No, there's something in front of it.

See?

Oh, yeah!

It's kind of... furry.

(both gasp)

♪ ♪

(meows)

MOLLY: Wow.

What a big cat!

(meowing poorly)

That's how you say hello in cat.

Uh-huh. Right.

I've never seen

that cat before.

Do you recognize it?

Uh-uh.

Hey, little kitty.

You sure are pretty.

You shouldn't pet it.

It might have fleas.

One time, Luka got fleas.

Mom had to bathe her and me with a special shampoo.

I'm itchy just thinking about it.

(meowing)

I wonder where it came from.

You think we should do something to help it?

(cat meowing) Mmm...

I think we can leave it.

It looks pretty happy.

We'll come back later to check on you.

And then we can pick some of those raspberries!

Oh, and make raspberry rhubarb jam jelly pie!

See you soon.

(meowing poorly)

That's "we'll be back" in cat.

Really? Oh, yeah.

I speak fluent cat.

♪ ♪

TOOEY: Mmm... Mmm. Mmm. Mmm.

Mm, these fish patties are so good.

You want more?

Yes, please.

MOM: Is something wrong, Molly?

I was thinking about this cute cat we saw.

I'd never seen it before.

Yeah!

It was gray and big like this!

And had a white patch under its chin.

Hmm...

That doesn't sound familiar to me, either.

It might be a stray.

What's a stray?

An animal that doesn't have a home and someone to feed it,

so it finds food and shelter on its own.

Did it have a collar?

Uh... I don't remember seeing one.

Me, neither.

Can we bring it some food?

Sure.

All life is precious.

I think we have a can of cat food in the storage room.

Mahsi'choo, Mom!

Mmm, mmm!

I could eat this every day.

♪ ♪

Here, kitty, kitty, kitty!

We've got food for you!

Hmm...

Where'd it go?

Let me try this toy.

Mouse always comes running when he hears the bell. (bell tinkling)

(meowing poorly, bell tinkling)

Huh?

I guess she left.

(sighs): I hope she's okay.

How do you know it's a she?

I just do.

(cat meowing)

(bell tinkling) She's back!

See?

Do I know cats or what?

Hey, look.

She has a flea collar.

Ugh! Don't say that word!

Who's a good kitty? (purring)

Oh, what is it, girl?

(Tooey shudders)

TOOEY: Whoa!

Nice jump!

Aww...

She's all curled up.

(purring)

(phone camera clicks)

Wow, she really seems to like it in there.

Hmm...

I don't want to disturb her...

Well, I guess this means I'll just have to take her home.

I wonder what your mom will say.

No, we can't keep her, Molly.

But you said she was a stray.

She doesn't have a home.

That was before you noticed she had a flea collar.

She must belong to someone.

(whining)

(barks)

(whining)

(chuckling): Plus, I don't think Suki wants a new roommate.

I guess you're right.

It's not fair to Suki.

I'll just have to find out who she belongs to.

Now, how can I do that?

Huh?

"Have you seen these keys?

"If so, please contact the Denali Trading Post.

Mahsi'choo, Grace."

That's it!

I'll make a flyer like this!

Someone's bound to recognize her.

Good thinking. (barks)

♪ ♪

(cat hisses, Suki yelps)

♪ ♪

Okay, read it to me.

"Missing cat found.

"Do you know this cat?

Please call the Denali Trading Post."

Think we need anything else?

Nah, it's perfect.

Then let's put them up all over Qyah.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

(cat hisses, Suki barks)

(whines)

(sighs)

Jam... jelly...

Rhubarb jam jelly!

Mmm!

Want some?

No, thanks.

(groaning): Why isn't anyone calling?

It's been two whole days.

Did you write our number on the flyer?

Oh, I may have forgotten that.

Nope, no number.

I think I could improve this flyer a little.

Good idea!

You can't see the cat very well in this photo

because it's curled up. TOOEY: That's true.

She kinda looks like a furry gray pillow.

I think I have some better pictures.

How about this one?

MOM: Much better!

You can even see that distinctive white patch

under the chin.

Maybe we can add a description of the cat, as well.

Hmm...

It looks like an adult Maine co*n.

We had one when I was growing up.

"Gray adult Maine co*n cat

with white patch under chin."

Oh!

We can also write down where we found it.

"Found near raspberry bushes

by the lake."

And I'll make sure to write the number this time.

♪ ♪

You've really improved this flyer, Molly.

MOLLY: Now people will have all the info they need

to call about the cat.

Let's type it up and add the new photo.

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

It's been a whole week and not one call.

Yeah.

I really thought this new flyer would do the trick.

(sighs)

I guess it's time to take the flyer down.

Poor little kitty.

You mean poor Suki.

(Suki whining, door opens, bell chiming)

Hi!

I got a call that someone found my keys and left them here.

Oh, hi, Grace!

We saw your flyer.

I thought putting it up was a long sh*t.

(chuckling): But I guess it worked.

MOLLY: My mom said she left your keys in here.

Oh!

Are these them? Bingo!

Baasee'!

Wait.

Is this the cat that's on the porch?

Yeah!

We found her by the raspberry bushes near the lake.

We've been looking for her owner ever since.

I thought I recognized her,

but no, it can't be...

(gasps): It is!

I saw that cat

two years ago in Fairbanks!

What? No way!

Yup, I'm sure of it.

"A Maine co*n with a white patch under the chin,"

just like your description.

My friend got her that flea collar.

But how did she get all the way here?

That's over miles away.

Maybe she tried to catch a giant king salmon near Fairbanks,

and rode it all the way here!

♪ ♪

Really? It could happen.

So she didn't live in a home as a pet?

Nah.

As far as I know, that cat has never belonged to anyone.

Well,

if she doesn't belong to anyone,

maybe she can belong to everyone.

Auntie Midge, will you do the honors?

By the powers vested in me,

I declare this cat the official cat of Qyah.

(cheers and applause)

Yeah! TOOEY: Yeah!

Yes! Woo-hoo!

Qyah's official cat doesn't have a name yet.

What should we call her?

Well, you always tell me all life is precious.

Maybe we should call her Precious.

How does that sound?

(purring)

(meows)

That means "I approve."

(laughter, cheering)

♪ ♪

♪ ♪