Just An Update

I'm sorry I've been AWOL except a couple fast posts.

My male Pembrooke Corgi, Murphy, has been in a major crisis. It was looking like he was going to need VERY EXPENSIVE emergency surgery, which I can't afford. I had a very hard time with the first couple of days with it looking like I'd have to put him down. The vet was VERY HELPFUL. But, he's improving so far and it looks like it's going to be a maintaince "program" now. He evidentally passed a "stone" which was a bloody mess and extremely painful. He got nasty sick too which didn't help. Where there is "a stone", there are more "stones". He wasn't eating or drinking either so couldn't be given anything for pain. He took the antibiotic shots very well also.

Fortunately, he LOVES his crate and is very good about spending time in it. So he chose to be there which was a lot of help and made it so he didn't have the stress some dogs do who never learn to be crated. He has only had to deal with the being sick and in severe pain. I'm very pro-crate for just this type of situation. It's also a great way for dogs to have privacy and a chance to relax with a treat without feeling the other dogs will try to sneak the treat. It's great if a dog is food aggressive, and Murphy is. Murphy also eats in his crate and it works well for him as he's very slow at eating and just nibbles on his food for hours. So if he's out of his crate and his food isn't gone, his crate is shut so the other 3 can't go in and steal his food or treats.

It also pays to be able to give shots and have livestock med supplies on hand. This crisis had to occur during a storm and I couldn't get out . Fortunately I had a selection (think $$$$) of antibiotics for the vet to choose from for using on Murphy. They are injectible though so he had to have them via shots.

Anyway, the good news is, he IS improving and not going to have to be put down. He'll be going to the vet this week to see what the next steps need to be to avoid this in the future. I already have a pretty good idea, but still want to discuss the future with the vet because I don't know everything! I highly suspect that much of this is because of a change in dog food due to our feed store closing and having to go to a different one. It's been the right amount of time that urinary stones could develop and become a problem.

Other than that, it finally got warmer out today and I was able to fill the stock tank and freshen up buckets out to the barn and pens. It was also warm enough out that a skunk had to leave it's calling card during the night. With getting up with Murphy wanting outside we unfortunately had to be made aware of that. PHEW and YUCK!

I'm really enjoying the little Bantams so far. They are quite calm so it's easy to pick them up and they all "gather around" to see what I've brought them and watch me feed and water them. I usually take a few minutes to hold one and talk with them. They are responding to my voice too. I've added my little blue Bantam Cochin I had to the group and she seemed to like moving back to the trailer to be with them.

The goats are doing well and I've done another check on all of them. With it being winter, they are hairy little beasties and they hide early udder development pretty well. I'm noticing teats that are "filling out" and firming up so they aren't just hanging and slack. Most all of them are at a very similiar point of development and it's looking like most will kid at the expected short time frame. Most are getting pretty wide. Mo'Nique didn't kid last year but definitely will this year. I've told the "poor dear" that she might be mostly Boer, but she has to be a milk goat now. The same with Macey. It's also time to get some foot trimming done. I'm a bit behind on that and it shows.

Bobbi is healed from her spaying and has her stitches out. She sure didn't appreciate getting them snipped for removal! She was very angry and said so!

Time to call it a night and wish you all a good week!

An Interesting Spin

I usually try to avoid the political controversies as I hate the arguing, lies and hatred/biasis' involved. However, this is an interesting spin on a topic that ads some perspective to the issues! So I'm breaking my rule of no politics on my blog. I'm not going to tell you how you should think, believe or vote as it's your right to have your own opinion without being harrassed and such over it! I just think it's interesting to read this view and you can ignore it, ponder on it, etc. What ever suits you is what you get to believe or do! I just find this an interesting concept!

The owner of the Phoenix Suns basketball team, Robert Sarver, opposes AZ's new immigration laws.

Arizona 's Governor, Jan Brewer, released the following statement in response to Sarver's criticism of the new law:

"What if the owners of the Suns discovered that hordes of people were sneaking into games without paying?

What if they had a good idea who the gate-crashers are, but the ushers and security personnel were not allowed to ask these folks to produce their ticket stubs, thus non-paying attendees couldn't be ejected.

Furthermore, what if Suns' ownership was expected to provide those who sneaked in with complimentary eats and drink? And what if, on those days when a gate-crasher became ill or injured, the Suns had to provide free medical care and shelter?"
- Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer

That all being, I hope you have a wonderful weekend!

Car Safety

FINALLY! It's been acknowledged. And, by a MAN who wrote the article too! The quote comes from Josh Max, AOL correspondent for autos in an article titled, "Riding in Cars With Boys or Girls"!

"Are you better off in a car with a male or female behind the wheel? The answer: It depends more on the person in question, but on the whole you're better off with the female."

It went on to reference other articles saying the same and even saying it's 3x safer due to men being quicker to be honking, gesturing, etc.

And now we know..... What WE already knew!

Weather!

We got probably 6" of snow yesterday. SOME of it was pretty coming down in huge blobs the size of tennis balls. It accumulated quickly. Then the temp warmed up 2 degrees and turned it to sleet and then rain. We now have ICE! Fortunately we haven't lost our electricity and I'm very happy about that! The rain has compacted the snow and fruze a layer over the top. The dogs can walk on it and I fall through losing my balance. No school, no traffic on the road.... just ICE. Now it's snowing heavily again but this is a fine snow and it's windy so it will drift.

Two days ago it was 54 out and today 21! I'm READY for Spring! Let's get to it!

The New Bantams

I finally got some not so good pics of the new Cochin bantams. I couldn't get a pic of the Favorelle Bantams to turn out yet.

First up is the little roo, Finn, who is a mix breed. This trio was referred to as "Finn and his merry woman". I can see why as he is GLUED to them! He's going to be the roo-sitter for the chicks I'll be hatching. The 2 girls are the mottled Cochin bantams and sisters/littermates. They are cute and cuddly!!! They have no trouble with being picked up and held. Those who say one falls in love with Bantam Cochins are right! It only took them one time picking them up to hold and talk too. I'm hooked!

Below is the mottle Cochin roo who the 2 girls are supposed to be paired with! The girls want to go with Finn and he wants to go with the Favorelle bantams! The 4 in these 2 pics aren't staying where I put them.

Another pic of the larger mottled pullet.

Below are the pair of white bantam Cochins. The pullet needs a bit better type and the roo has good type. I hope he can fix the chicks! I'll work on improving this. I hope to find a couple more pullets/hens that are white.

That's them! I'll work on getting them situated better and then some better pics of the Favorelles. The Fav's are also feather-legged so they do look somewhat a like but the Cochins have a different "tail set" and are more fluffled in the rear.

I can't wait to start incubating their eggs. First I need the eggs though! Isn't there some saying about not counting one's eggs before they are hatched???

Farm Name

I've needed a better farm name for some time. I'm no longer breeding Quarter Horses (and showing) so the old name I used is no longer "useful".

I need a name that reflects the farm (homestead) as a whole and not just 1 species or activity.

I want a name that can be used if I sell some chicks or kids. It needs to be useable to sell goat milk soap, eggs, and who knows what. I need something that if I were to rent a table at the farm market to sell soaps, garden produce, and who knows what, that it's useable. I need something that if someday I wanted to have a "legit business" that it can be used.

I don't want something someone else is using or has been used, etc. I want something that won't be used by someone else.

It's even hard to decide wether to use "farm", "acres", or what ever. Much of what I'd thought of up to now I've forgotten in 10 minutes or at least by the next day. If one can't remember their own name for 24 hours, it must not be do-able, right?

Today while driving hubby and I were discussing it. It's one of those deals where I was doing almost all the talking as we've had this discussion numerous times over the last year! Anyway, I asked him what he thought of Menagerie as part of the name. He'd had the stroke so this is a word he's not accustomed to using and it was a mouthful so to speak. He kept saying "menaginary".

So what do you think here? Is "Menaginary Farm" a good one? Using "farm" instead of acres or such indicates there are critters here which is good for the chicks, eggs and goat kids part.

This one keeps rattling around in my head so much that I can't say menagerie right now without saying it slowly and emphasing the syllables! I wanted something easy enough to spell and that I was debating. However to write it down, it's actually pretty easy to spell and read. It looks odd to read for a just a second but saying it while reading it makes sense. It's not something that would be often mispronounced. Hubby can say it and he keeps on saying it too. I think he's rather proud of coming up with a "word" and a potential name.

Menaginary Farm also would allow for a whimsical type logo and I definitely fit the whimsical "style"!

Drop me a comment, please, and let me know what you think! I need some input.

Value of a Potential Blog

Is there value of a blog that has to do with reproduction for goats and photos of aborted kids presented in an educational manner?

I took pics of the deceased, aborted quads. I decided to not post them here as they are graphic and very sad. But, sometimes that type of thing has value when it's used educationally.

There is a website for mini horses which presents the same type of issues and is very helpful due to it's educational presentation. So I wonder if "goatdom" has a need.

What do you think?

Another Loss!

DARN! DARN! DARN!

DARN IT ALL!

June Bug, who is one of my VERY SWEET Nigerian Dwarf (ND) does had just miscarried. This was her first pregnancy and she aborted QUADS!!! They are preemies and all most likely born dead or died at the time of aborting. They had no hair at all and I didn't expect any kidding until the middle of March. So they are about 4 weeks premature. They were quite good sized for quads and the size I would expect living quads to be born at term. Guesstimating, the 2 larger were about 1 1/2 pounds and the 2 smaller 1# - comparing to the weight of a pound of butter. There were 3 bucklings and 1 doeling. The doeling shared a sac with a buckling. The other 2 had their own sac. They were fully developed with their tiny hooves, girl and boy parts, etc, just premature. She's not bagged up so won't need milked.

And to think my girl had QUADS cooking in that big belly. I'd just had a "visit" with her close up, hands on the other day to tell her how big her belly is and checked for udder development, etc. She was JUST starting to get a bit of an udder. I had to feel it through all the hair as it was so small and under developed.

What a bummer! It's especially disappointing as I lost a ND doeling from Nipper.

Goat & Chicken Feed

YIKES! Prices have just SKYROCKETED! My feed store had been biting the bullet for a few months and hadn't said anything. They have had to raise the price and the goat feed has gone up over $2/50# bag. Along with that, the sunflower seeds are no longer included! The reason is corn prices have escalated again and there is now a huge demand for corn. The other is that corn is being bought by other countries and China and Russia had BAD growing seasons last year and are buying up as much as they can. Chicken feed as also gone up, but I feed more to my goats and a mix that helps them balance their physical needs and either milk production or a developing pregnancy.

The chicken scratch was cheaper than the goat feed so I got it for the poultry. The problem there is I have goats with the poultry so that it discourages hawks, owls, etc from preying on my chickens. I'll have to start making a soy meal mash for the poultry to up the protein for the layers. I have to come up with a way to keep the goats out of it though.

Now I'm wondering how much chick starter and grower is going to have shot up! I think I used about 8 bags of starter last year with incubating.

I went and got stocked up a bit on feed today as we have gotten some warmer days the last couple days and will have for about a week. We're going to have a couple 50 degree days that the night temps will stay above freezing. So the snow is melting fast and that means the frost line will warm too and we will change seasons to MUD season. Then I can't drive to the barn to unload feed. So today is "do it all" day and get my van back to the house on the drive and "firma terra". Mud season is hard on getting to and from the barn at best. I have to buy it and have a load so when we have some nippy nights I can drive out in the morning before the ground thaws back to mud and unload it quick. Sometimes I end up with filling a couple of buckets and carrying out a day's feed.

I sure could have done without the extra grain expense! I paid more last time I was there too and thought that would be the increase! NOT SO. Not good!

I need a productive money tree that is hardy in zone 5 and 6!

Happy Valentine's Day

It's been a busy busy day. I'm sorry I'm late in posting this! I hope you all had some special time with those you love!

The Mean Girls

I have some hens that I'm not happy with - now dubbed as the "mean girls". They are bullies! They are the poultry version of a girl gang!

They are mean to the other hens and they are EATING EGGS!!!!! Yesterday I only got 2 eggs AGAIN! Egg count should be going up and not down! I guess it pays to keep count by the day for a weekly report!

Hens who were happy in the pen in the barn are no longer happy there and have learned to escape (fly). I now have chickens all over the barn! Most of the "mean girls" are the black sex links I got at TSC to try them out. The other 3 are Americaunas. I would have Americaunas again, as I think this is just a learned thing from them. But the black sex links have been mean from the day I got them at TSC as new chicks!

They have sealed their fate. It's time for an add to sell them. I have 1 Americauna who is half Cochin who doesn't join in and she can stay. There is a really pretty sex link that I might keep a while and see if she settles down or remains a mean girl.

I wish I could do graphics. I'd make a red circle with the bar and have a hen and the label "mean girls" in it! NO MEAN GIRLS!

Shame on them!

The New Arrivals!

They're here! They're here! I have the new Bantam chickens! The roads were finally supposed to be good enough to head North to get them. What a pretty day to go too! It got up to 32* and was sunny on the way North. It cooled down some and got a heavy cloud cover for the trip home but that was fine.

I now have a trio of mottled Cochins, a pair of white Cochins, 2 pairs of black Favorelles, and a tiny blue Bantam roo who is probably half Favorelle and half d'uccle. I'm going to use the little roo to baby sit chicks if he's gentle enough with them. He had a harem of hens he was caring for so hopefully he can help the chicks to learn the ropes once they are out of the brooders.

I'm going to put my little blue Cochin hen with the mottleds. I'm hoping to have some eggs from them to hatch and to sell or trade soon.

I'll try to get pics of them soon too. They are in the horse trailer in quarantine at the moment.

The Big S

Today is spay day. Bobbi's at the vet getting her kitty "giblets" removed and a rabies shot.

The poor girl has been coming in heat for 6 days, out of heat 4 days and right back in. So it was time to get the job done. She was NOT happy getting put in the kitty carrier and complained loudly. Hubbys says she "cusses like a long-shoreman". And she sure was telling me her opinion of the crate and trip to town. She didn't know what to make of being somewhere strange when I took her out of the carrier!

She also has a "gifted" birthday of March 10th for her records. We didn't know when she was born but March would be pretty accurate I think. I'm sure she could care less, but one does need a record of age and health. It's hard to believe she's almost a year old!

Hubby's little princess is now a queen... a sterile queen!

Rough Winter

It's sure been a rough winter here. We haven't gotten the annual average snowfall yet but we've been below normal in temps all winter. Winter is rough on livestock too. Mine all have shelter and wind protection. I can't control the temps though, nor accidents.

Sadly, I've had another loss. A week or so ago I lost my silver laced Cochin roo. There was a pic of him and his hen in the post. They were by the kiddy picnic table and appeared to be deep in conversation. I've now lost the hen. (See: http://viewtoponder.blogspot.com/2011/01/sadly-another-loss.html )

I found "henny" not feeling well and someone had been pecking on her as she had some peck marks on both sides of her head and one on her comb. There was a bit of blood and some smeared on her neck feathers. I brought her into the house to see if I could pull her trough it. She wasn't sneezing, wheezing or coughing. She didn't show being egg bound, and I did suspect she was dehydrated and cold. Her crop was full enough and not hard. So I treated her for dehydration and a crop impaction along with adding antibiotics as directed by the gal I see on a chicken list who has a LOT of experience and knowledge. "Henny" seemed to be improving and opened on eye, seemed more alert and I was hopeful. Alas, she took a quick turn for the worse last night and died. I hope it was easier on her than being outside as it's bitterly cold again.

I really liked this sweet little hen and she always came near when I was doing chores. She was very calm, gentle and cooperative - no flightyness or meanness at all. She was the type of hen I liked and want to have. What a BUMMER to have lost the pair.

It now leaves me with the silver laced Bantam Cochin pullet. I hope I can get my hands on some more silver laced Cochins or eggs this Spring.

Bummer! I'm so tired of Winter and ready for some warmer temps. Supposedly we will get up to the low 30's next week. I'm READY! I think the critters will be too.

Sunday Silence

( Fuzzy, helping me at the computer.)

RIP Nipper

It's with a broken heart and tears in my eyes that make seeing difficult that I unwillingly say good bye to my ND buck, Nipper. Nipper had an accident yesterday that cost him his life and cost me the loss of a very cheerful fellow who didn't have a mean bone in his body. I GREATLY enjoyed him and had expected to have him for a long life, not a mere 2 years.

I took the above pic a couple weeks ago. He was sharing some hay with Claire (Alpine doe) and standing like that to eat off the ground! Those are some wicked scurs but he NEVER uses them on anyone except another young buck and yet never in a mean manner. He was disbudded 3x and still had scurs.

This was from this last Fall after spending some quality time with a few of the does. He was worn out and looked like he was ready for a cigarette, after the deed was done, out back behind the barn!

This was from early Winter. He was jumping a gate and going out to browse with Summer at her round bale, hay buffet.

It's time to go do some chores and it's not going to be easy. I hope my tears don't freeze to my cheeks and freeze my tear-filled eyes. Loss is never easy, but this will be one of the harder ones. He was my chore-time buddy and cheerful, entertaining barn assistant.

Another This & That Post

THIS is what 2 feet of snow looks like!

PHEW! We got through the blizzard without losing our electricity. The wind was horrendous and kept pounding on the end of the house. That's not normal at all and was rather disconcerting every time it happened. It was a weird storm! We were getting hit with the winds and end of the snow storm out of Canada and the one out of the midwest/WSW came in over it dropping snow that came down is a massive swirl. It showed on the weather on the news and I don't recall seeing 2 storms from different directions like that. It sure does give one a science lesson on wind currents and how diverese they can be! It drifted at the front and back of the house quite deeply. I can't really tell how much we got because of the drifts. In the lower spots it was still over my boots which are 10" boots. So we definitely got about a foot and maybe more. West of us got 20" and East and North got 13 - 16". I didn't catch the amounts for South of us but would think they were closer to the 20". We have an adult foster care a few houses from us so the owner had to drive his tractor to the highway (1 1/4-1 1/2 miles) so an ambulance could get in and followed them back out. So that's finally over! Now we get a few "sub-artic" type days with the highs in the single digits at best. Then what will the weather/news come up with next for our seasonal entertainment?

I do believe I'm going to miss my vet appt. tomorrow! It may be best anyway because I have a doggy in heat, 1 coming in and the 2 squabbly boys! We're not doing any pups so I don't need the shenanigans to deal with and try to keep them separate elsewhere! Here in the house I have the crates, gates and schedule all organized. Bobbi should still be able to go get her kitty girly parts tended to on the 11th.

The rascally ground hog at the zoo near here saw his shadow this afternoon as the sun peeked through. What's with that? Getting some sun peek through during a blizzard! Not to mention thunder and lightening? BUMMER! Ole PPhil in PA didn't see his. I'd gladly take the early Spring. Does that mean we need to get the local groundhog officially documentated as a fraud?

Two days of storms and my hard working hens didn't let it phase them at all. I got 8 eggs yesterday and again today. I didn't expect to see more than a couple, if that today! What dedicated works those girls are! The girls laying are definitely not slackers being they didn't even take of a weather day when all the schools, the courts, the county, state offices, GM and colleges closed! Does that mean we should be hiring and electing hens to fill the jobs? At least they get their job done!

The 3 goats who have been in the outside pen (with shelter) were very happy to have been put in the barn over night. I'll keep them in for a couple days until we through the bitterly cold nights. They seem to enjoy going in side to butt heads and spar with the other goats. The 2 does don't like being with the 2 older Alpine does though so this time they are with the 2 younger Alpines and the ND's. It seems to be going well. There's head butting and bickering over who's going to eat hay in what spot and eat from which grain bucket which is normal and not a major issue. The ND's seem content to move away and watch the antics while staying out of it. Bandit was put with the 2 older Alpines and Nipper. That also worked well other than a goat "table" was tipped and a large dog shipping crate flipped and on the wrong end of the pen. I think that was more from Bandit flying around and trying to impress everyone with his gymnastic routines and abilities. It's much more fun to leap into the air from a perch than off the ground. I probably should be amazed he wasn't at the top of the ladder with a few hens! They have the old rickety wooden ladder for their roost. It gives them a roost but also adds to the room to get out of the way of each other. The turkeys really like the height of the ladder and hanging out on it even in the day time. It makes them happy so.... it is what it is and adds to their enjoyment.

I guess with 30 states dealing with this snow storm and the Eastern states dealing with a surplus of snow it probably wouldn't help to put a sign by the road offering free snow. Craigslist probably wouldn't do the removal job either. I guess I'm just plain stuck with it and stuck in it!

A Chicken Must-See

I saw a link to a daily newsletter and website with CHICKENS! It started with emails of their "city chickens" to a daughter and more and more people wanted included so it became a newsletter with a daily chicken picture. You can enter and vote on captions for the pics too! The captions are all work-place captions and FUN!

This is really AWESOME! So please go take a look and report back and let me know what you think! I know I'm not crazy so you can confirm that for me! It never hurts to have support.

It never hurts to have a daily laugh either! If you know someone who is having a hard time, maybe they'd like to check it out too!

I'll now have a daily pohto in my email of a few lovely chickens at work! I've gone back through the December and January pics and now need to go to the archives and go back to June - November. It's a PRIORITY!

I also want a couple of those "office buildings"! I love those "cubicles" too!

Ok, ok! I know you're wanting the link. Go here and go soon! You don't want to miss another day! http://www.workdaychickenpictures.com