Next Generation

The White Mob grown up (at least partially grown), and 2 of the 6 Rhode Island Red chicks I purchased from a neighbor. These Rhodies are as friendly and calm as the whites are standoffish and roamers. It's a fun combination. I usually see a group of the white boys under the trees at the far edge of the "bird area." They mock fight, then one decides to make a run for the sheep shelter. The others flap their wings, assess the danger, then run after the first. Once to the area of relative safety, they strut and scratch and peck.

Mamma Goose

My Toulouse Goose finally made a proper nest instead of laying eggs across the field for the ravens to eat. I had visions of doubling my flock size (I currently have 3 geese). When I finally caught her off the nest I checked, and there is 1 egg, neatly covered in down and then sticks. Well, better one than none, but not the gaggle I had in mind.

Muscovies

The 3 ducklings I bought from my neighbor. It didn't take them long to find every drop of water in the area.

Momma Hen

Another hen good at hiding her eggs. Once chicks appear I try to get the family caged as protection against the many ravens who frequent the farm. A couple hens have eluded me, and are so far successfully protecting their chicks.

I love the ferocity of hens. This one is moments away from attacking me.

Peachicks!

My Peahen made her nest in the woods, well hidden from predators as well as from me. One morning I saw her in tall grass, surrounded by the rest of the Pea-flock. On my way to work, I wasn't able to explore - but that night she quietly walked her brood into the kennel with the young chickens.

The funny looking grey and yellow blob on her back is the duckling hatched out by a hen. After 2 weeks the hen started roosting in the trees again, and I have to herd the duckling down from under the tree into the pen. She seems to have taken to the Peahen - she is climbing onto her back.


Here's the duckling with Momma hen. The black and white rooster (Old English Game Fowl bantam) is guarding. Roosters take on the roll of chick protection once the hens abandon them. It's wonderful to see the big guys (or sometimes little guys) digging up grubs for youngsters.

Turkey Wars

Shortly after I got my turkeys, I got off on the wrong foot with the tom. One morning I wandered out to admire and feed them, and was confronted by a puffed-up strutting male. I was surprised. Yesterday he was a gentle, compliant bird, and today he's in attack mode. Then I noticed the very blue head with the very red throat. Looked down at my red bathroom and fuzzy blue slippers.

From that day I've been the Rival, no matter what I wear. The fact that my farm clogs are green-blue doesn't help, I'm sure. Mr. Tom puffs up, gobbles and booms, strutting back and forth, attacking should a body part reach his side of the fence.

As I walk towards the fence, Mr. Tom leaves the shady shelter and heads my way. He doesn't even notice the cat sprawled in the dirt.

His interest is all in me. I'm big, I'm bad, and I'm blue.

Small Treasures

Turkeys!

Yesterday I brought home a pair of Black Spanish turkeys. I released them into a pen so they could adjust to their new home. The peafowl immediately came to investigate. The young male is getting ready to display to the new girl in the neighborhood.

Charlie also wanted to meet the new residents. The tom isn't so sure about the big white dog. The pair settled in quickly, and spent the night in the tree just outside the pen, with one of the young peacocks.

This morning the pair are happily exploring their new home, the safe confines of the pen left behind. Tom is displaying and gobbling, unaware that some of his beautiful tail feathers were broken in transit.

The American Rare Breeds Conservancy http://www.albc-usa.org/ has Blacks on their "Watch" list. Heritage breeds are smaller, more flavorfull, and have less breast meat than commercial turkeys. They are also more independent and raise their own young.

Springtime

Spring in the Northwest weaves a tapestry of greens and grays, using white as an accent. The connifers are the base tone, a rich dark green background for the hardwoods. Waves of new leaves of every color green imaginable twist in the wind. Many shrubs and trees exhibit their delicate white flowers. The normally shy dogwood proudly displays large plates of white along its limbs.

If you can drag your eyes up above the depths of green, the sky is an ever changing pattern of grays, whites and pale blue. This is still the rainy season, and clouds dominate the sky. Sometimes they are only a streak of wispy white or pillows of fluffy grey, but often in the over-exhuberance of the season, all types of clouds convene, making their own beautiful tapestry in the sky.

Chicks Growing Up

All my chicks look and act like their leghorn father. They are independent, active, and not interested in people. Here two have joined the hen who is incubating duck eggs. They climbed into the nest with her last night. Today they are back in the building. It's just too dangerous for small chicks outside when ravens fly by regularly.

Swallows

The swallows have returned! It must be spring. I was on my way to feed the critters when I heard chattering from above. I turned to see the beautiful acrobatic flight of a happy tree swallow. Hopefully many will set up housekeeping here and help reduce the fly and mosquito populations. Besides, they are so wonderful to watch and hear.

Light the Way

The Elderberries are in full bloom. Their greenish-white blossoms look like candles, and they brighten the edges of the woods where they proliferate. These beautiful trees are one of the first to re-establish the woods after clearing, and I greatly appreciate their beautiful presence alongside my lane.

New Chicks

The "other orange hen" diligently sat her nest and hatched out 11 lovely yellow chicks! They are 4 days old. Today's the first day I've let them all out of the crate loose in the kennel. Everyone had a great time. Mom flies against the side of the kennel screaming whenever the dogs walk by. The dogs, of course, think this is a lot of fun *sigh*. It will be interesting to see what colors the chicks turn out to be. I bought the hens from a local farmer - no specific breed. They joined my Leghorn and Old English Game Fowl roosters. We'll see!

Birds!

The birds are returning - a sure sign of spring. I saw a mature Bald Eagle flying overhead here, and the next morning one was on a collision course with a field mouse the other side of the freeway near Olympia - flew directly overhead. They are so very large.

Smaller birds line the trees and sing their hearts out. The song sparrow who lives near my bird building has returned and is serenading.

I love spring.

The End of a Beautiful Day

Ursa suddenly stood up and started barking. She HAD to go outside. When I opened the door I could hear the coyotes singing. So close. They sounded like they were in the lane. Ursa, in full bark, joined Charlie and Jesse in a rush down the hill. By the time we all reached the hay shed the coyotes had been intimidated and slunk silently off. Ursa wagged her 12-year-old tail and showed obvious pride in being a vital part of this organization.

I stood petting the goats, enjoying the warm evening of this beautiful day while counting sheep. I felt a presence, and turned to watch a large owl glide silently down to the nearby tree. He sat still except for his head, which he turned quickly back and forth, no doubt looking for the chipmunks Jesse and Charlie delight in chasing under things. After a few moments he looked straight into my eyes, then started searching for food again. I walked toward him and he silently flew into the woods. I looked toward the kennel where a hen sits on a dozen eggs, glad they will hatch into a protected space.

Sheep and geese all accounted for, coyotes and owls gone elsewhere to hunt, the dogs and I headed back up the hill.

Nightsky Dogs at Work

The Double-Headed Guarding Machine at Nightsky, Snohomish, Washington.
Sampson and Molly guard their charges.
Photo by Linda Anderson of Nightsky.

Lost and Seen

My orange hen disappeared a couple weeks ago. The other orange hen has started sitting on the nest in the supposed hen enclosure (they only use the nest; the chickens all insist on sleeping in the trees), so I've been hoping the lost hen also decided to raise a family. I keep looking for her nest. I've searched the woods and all the covered areas I can think of. No hen.

I'd pretty much given up hope on my hen. Then this morning as I was driving down to pick up seed I saw an orange hen scratching around with the others. Since the one is locked in the enclosure, I was pretty sure this was the lost hen. With a sense of excitement I continued on and picked up my seed.

By the time I got back all hens had disappeared. They reappeared like magic when I started scattering food for them - all except the orange one. I checked the enclosure nest, and was heartily pecked by the disgruntled mother-to-be. So I did see my lost hen.

Another search of the woods has turned up nothing. At least I know she's hiding out there somewhere...

Lost and Found

I work at home on Mondays, so it seemed like a good time to get my new kitty accustomed to the house outside of her room-of-seclusion. I put the dogs out and brought Squeek to the computer desk. She explored the area and finally curled up next to the power supply on a shelf under the desk.

Later I decided to bring in my new TV. This meant the front door was open for a significant time as I maneuvered the large and heavy beast from the car to the house. When I got it all set up, I returned to see how Squeek was doing.

She wasn't. I couldn't find her anywhere. I searched the house, then brought the dogs in to search. I sat quietly to see if I could feel her cat essence. Nada. I feared she'd decided to explore the great outdoors. After significant outdoor searching I still came up without a cat. Several times during the night I went out to call and search for her.

In the morning I was heading out to the kitchen, thinking about how I'd look for my cat, when suddenly 3 dogs headed for the closet. I followed, and found my adorable new kitty stretching and offering a small meow. I'm sure the dogs and I had looked there before, but Squeek is obviously a master of the "I am not here" state of being.

My feeling of well being at having not lost a cat lasted until I came home from work. Ursa was not there to greet me. This is very unusual, so I hurried inside to change shoes and grab a flashlight. I searched the area around the house first, thinking her arthritis may be acting up. From there I started down the hill along the fence, searching the hillside and woods as I went down and around the sheep fields. I figured she must be in the flat area by the outbuildings, but was careful to make sure she hadn't gotten stuck somewhere along the way.

But she wasn't by the outbuildings. As I searched the woods coming up the other side of the hill I started wondering how a person can lose a 120 pound dog. I looked behind the dog yard, getting really worried. As I headed by the house I shone the flashlight towards the porch...and the 120 pound dog standing on it, wagging her tail, waiting to be let in.

"Can't you BARK?" I asked, as I gave her a huge hug. I've no idea where she was, or how I missed her. But I was very glad to see her there.

Every Dog Needs a Job

I have a Border Collie with enough physical issues that it's hard to find work for her, and, being a Border Collie, work is important. She is very creative, and is pretty good at finding work for herself.

It is difficult to know when a Pyr or other LGD needs to go outside or come inside. They usually stand at the door silently, looking intently out or in. We are supposed to know, sometimes from another room, that they wish to leave or come in.

Put together a Border Collie and a task that needs doing and something interesting usually happens.

Hannah has taken on the job of butler. While she can't (fortunately) actually open the door, she stands by it and makes enough noise to let me know there is someone who wants that door open. She then excitedly greets incomers, and gets lots of praise for being so helpful.

Hannah has become so good at this that she sometimes alerts before the dog makes it to the porch. I'm not sure how she knows everyone's intentions, but then she is a Border Collie.

No Fighting!

I have 3 free-range geese. They have decided that the safest place to spend the night is in front of my house. The house is at the high point of the property, but I don't think the geese enjoy the view. Charlie the Pyr, however, does. This is where he hangs out while he's listening and looking for threats, in between fence patrols. The other night there was a confusion of noise outside that got my inside dogs riled up. I went to check it out.

At first glance it looked like Charlie was attacking two of the geese.

At second glance it was obvious that the geese were fighting, and Charlie was trying to break up the fight.

The geese had each other by the wing where it attaches to the body, as male geese are wont to do. Charlie was trying to grab something to break them up, but the only "things" handy were goose necks, which he seems to realize are pretty fragile. He would back off, woof at them, and wade in again.

I think this is Charlie's version of "No fighting in MY house!"