Category Archives: Dog

3 dogs who rule the ferret

Back To Normal? HA!

Now that I’m feeling almost ‘normal’….my animals have decided to be themselves again and show me just how ‘normal’ it is around here. So far…today…. Bouncer chased one of the baby chicks, it ran to the trees where both mama hens were sitting with the other peepers. Both chickens FLEW out of those bushes and went after Bouncer, wings flapping, loudly squawking! Bouncer ran the other way and they FOLLOWED him attacking! Dillon the stupid goat, worked the fence to get himself on the other side where Stormy our boy Llama was and got himself stuck there. He trotted back & forth BAAAAAING trying to get back to where our mountain goat was. I went over, lifted the fence up as far as I could with my back and right leg, to let him come back to his side of the pasture. I looked like a weight lifter! He stood there staring at me, so I took my left arm, went under as far as I could, grabbed his collar, trying to force him under and back over to me! He gets half way under and does his famous stiff front legs out, digging into the grass trick, letting me know that ‘he aint going nowhere’! It looks like me and the goat are playing Twister! Right at that moment, a young mom with her little girl drive up, get out, asking me from afar if I have eggs for sale! Do I look like I can go check?? After threats, grunting and pulling, he gets on his side of the field and runs to Sierra. The black mama hen and her 7 fluffy chicks found their way outside the fence in the farthest back pasture, staring at me trying to get back inside, I can’t get at them, I need Super Farmer to help me, so there they stand, the 8 of them, lined up along the fence, clucking to get back in!!
After about an hours rest, LeAnna, Isaac and I, decided to do some Goodwill shopping. She accidently left the gate open and I just happened to look up to see Lincoln across the street in our neighbors yard, munching away at their bushes. Sammie is in the driveway a few steps from joining him! I yell at LeAnna, “HELP ME”! We run out to where the escapees are, they look up, spot us running toward them which makes them take off galloping down the street! Now, I have a truck coming towards them and a car coming up behind us, both vehicles stopped to let the circus perform. We are running as we zig zag with outstretched arms., I tell her, “herd them back my way’!!. LeAnna isn’t familiar with farm talk, she looks at me funny, so I say,, “bring them back my way”…she then looks at me bewildered! I yell, ‘just help them to come back towards our yard”, she understands and starts to herd those animals. I run in front of the bushes to keep Lincoln from going around them and back into the street. The lady in the stopped car, has her window down. I smile as I say running past her, “never a dull moment”! Her mouth is open and she stares with an amused, yet concerned look at this crazy lady running down the street behind two llamas with her arms frantically waving as another young woman with an ‘oh no’ look, follows in a nice dress and shoes!! Lincoln sprints through the open gate and I tell LeAnna, ‘just wait, Sammie will follow’…he did. We both grab for the gate, slamming it behind both animals that are now running to the back yard as the others join them. Stormy is watching all the excitement which makes him agitated cause the boys are a few feet away from him enjoying some freedom. He screeches out his alarm call as he runs along the fence trying to find a way over it so he can fight!
When I came back home, my chairs were knocked over from the donkey, they forced my bird feeders off their stands, eating ALL the birdseed, pushed over Isaac pup tent which is now laying in a heap, the trash can was on its side again and the goats ate my flowers. Yep, back to “NORMAL”.
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An Alpaca chasing what?

I need to strap a camera around my neck every time I go outside.  My animals never fail to amuse or surprise me! Lincoln our Alpaca was munching away in the back yard with Sammy one of the lamas. I decided to let my two Chihuahua’s out in the back with me while I fed the bunnies and chased the ducks back into their own pen.  Out of the corner of my eye, I  could see a blurry movement of a large brown animal, head bent low to the ground chasing a tiny tan thing. I looked up and what crazy sight did I see on this bright sunny day?  An Alpaca chasing the smallest animal on the farm, Chippie my 5lb Chihuahua! They ran from the very back of the yard all the way up to the door where I was standing.  Chippie yelping in fear as Lincoln tried to head butt him all the way to the house! Oh where was my camera? I quickly grabbed Chippie who wiggled  under my shirt as I scolded Lincoln (with a suppressed smile) about how we don’t chase our family members. Lincoln blinked at me with disappointment in his huge soft eyes, he  turned  around trotting back to where Sammy was feasting on the fresh spring grass! I coaxed Chippie out  from under my shirt, examined his shivering little body, then winked at him…he was not amused. So far on the farm I have seen out of place images such as…cats chasing goats, horses chasing chickens, bunnies chasing ducks, llamas chasing dogs and Dunkay the donkey chasing his tail!

Ahhhhh yes, the sounds of the New Year on the farm! My rooster who started a good 20-30 minutes early was right on cue at the stroke of midnight! He let it out his celebration crow loud and strong, following within seconds, were the neighbors across the street with their left over 4th of July fireworks!  My dogs jumped up and started barking at all the outside party sounds as the famous lighted ball dropped in front of a million people dancing in the streets of New York City blasting from the TV. I’m shocked the goats weren’t staring at the house bleating out the ‘BAAAAAA feed me’ song they’ve been perfecting for months!

Winter

Ah the joy of winter…lots of snow with high winds that make the below freezing weather feel like the North Pole on a warm day! Then there is the morn, afternoon and evening ritual. I put on my pink Carhart jacket with matching pants, hat and gloves, pink rubber boots that go up to my knees with the little brown horse’s on them, a scarf to wrap around my face 4 times and a prayer on my lips. I fight my way to the barn as the biting wind slams tiny ice particles onto my exposed face I couldn’t cover. On the way to the barn I repeat to myself, “I love these animals, they are worth the effort, it’s good exercise”. I then proceed to push a horse or a donkey (usually both) away from the barn door so I can get in without slipping on the ice. My favorite word is now being heard by all…”NO” or “stop it”.  The animals are now circling the feed bag, some grunting, some stomping and a few nips at each other! Then there is little ol  me, in the middle trying to formulate an escape plan in case they go to war. I hand out food rations which is never enough, I sneak to the hay bale before Dunkay gets there and throw little piles of hay everywhere so they all think they have their own food that nobody else can see! I let out a huge sigh of relief because I just survived another feeding. Now it’s time for the chickens and the black bunny who lives with them, helping to keep the eggs warm. And the ducks? They are in the yard quacking making hundreds of snow trails from the back porch to their shelter waiting for me to fight my way to them,unhappy because I didn’t feed them first.