Lots of updates!

I now have a working computer and a new monitor, so I will try to do a long blog with lots of updates - months worth!

I went out to the back field to visit at the barn, and decided to plop down with my camera for a while. I got some close up pictures of the goats and sheep and will try to share some here. There on the left is Hamilton, aka Ham or Hammie. He is doing his best profile for me and I just love this picture.

He let me get one from the other side, that's him below and you can see that he is a very special goatie boy.


When I went to the field none of the animals were around , but soon the two tom turkeys came to see what was going on. They wanted to see if I had food, no doubt! At the time, the two boys got along very well. Now, we have to separate them and I hate it. They were such buds at first. I have learned to dive into a turkey fight and snatch one of the boys off to the seclusion pen ( solitary confinement) really fast with out getting scratched, bruised or having my eye blacked as a result of a "wing whap". Turkey wings hurt!

After the toms came and went, the rest of the troupe came over to investigate, but they never stay for long. Somehow, I think the toms let them know there is no food to be had. But Nancy, the bourbon red hen always has a few words for me and I need to get a video of her chatting with me. It is one of the cutest things to see and hear, she is always so sweet and ernest when she is feeling chatty!

Pretty soon the goats and sheep come to investigate and then the real fun starts. My little guys never disappoint me and always find a way to make me laugh!

When I first got the shetland boys, Andy and Barney, from Tammy , they were not really tame. Now, they are the first little hooligans to come running, and Andy has climbed into my lap to sleep at times! I love my shetland boys. Here is a very, very close picture that I tried to take when they were running over to see me. I was afraid they wouldn't stop until they were in my lap so I held my hand out to try to get them to slow down. Barney was mostly out of the frame but you can see Andy's look of determination to get to "Mama" first!

Timber was not far behind and when he arrived he settled down one side of my leg, and Barney plopped in my lap. Andy was out of the frame here, but he is never far from his brother.

The goats are along side, alternately grazing and trying to chew my hair off. I try to tell myself that they are not making any kind of personal statement about my hair coloring expertise - but I am sometimes tempted to write the folks at L'oreal to let them know that "Light Ash Blond" looks like "Hay" to some folks!

Last, but hardly least, is Logan, my first bottle baby boy. He is such a calm sweet sheep. His hogget fleece was very chocolate coloured, like Timber's is now. But as you can see, he has lightened up to a pale moorit. Timber will also be morrit, but I don't think he will be as light as his uncle Logan.
That is Timber's fleece over there on the right. It is already much longer and I think he will have some primo spinning fiber at spring shearing.

That's it for now. I'll be back soon.

Clifford The Big Red Dog

Don't Weep for Me

Do not stand at my grave and weep.
I am not there, I do not sleep.
I am a thousand winds that blow.
I am the diamond glints on snow.
I am the sun on ripened grain.
I am the gentle autumn rain.
When you awake in the morning hush,
I am the swift uplifting rush
of quiet birds in circled flight,
I am the stars that shine at night.
Do not stand at my grave and cry,
I am not there, I did not die.

Clifford the Big Red Dog left this earth last evening. He was a grand old guy who deserved better than he got. He is no longer in pain and I am sure he was met at the bridge by his former owner who preceded him in death and who loved him dearly.

I wish I could have done better for him.

I'm BAAAACK!

Computer woes have kept me cyber-silent for weeks. My screen is doing a flashy thing ( like a strobe) that is making it almost impossible to use. Collin, the computer wizard, is coming to have a look at it tomorrow, so, hopefully things will get better soon!

In the meantime I can now log on with Fire Fox and Explorer. So far, it hasn't made much difference except late at night when apparently I can type at least this much with out the strobe effect kicking in.

I have to tell you about Oscar and the great flea invasion. My good friend Lisa was on her way to my house one evening when she saw a dog limping along "the new highway", a big four-lane replacement for the little two-lane state road that we live on. She pulled over and was able to get him in her car. His collar had just "fallen off of him". (It had been unhooked and was caught in his fur for a while then fall off just as Lisa pulled over.) The collar had tags. Lisa scooped up the tired thirsty scared dog and pulled in my driveway.

A little detective work, a few twilight zone-ish phone calls and a really odd home visit resulted in the discovery that Oscar was in a really, really bad home and needed a place to settle. He had been dumped from a truck when Lisa came upon him. So, ( you just know what I am going to say - right?) he came here to be fostered for adoption.

Oscar had fleas. Millions of fleas. Fleas on his fleas. He got a flea bath, was neutered, waited a day and then Frontlined. By now, all the dogs in the house have a flea or two, so they all got Frontlined as well.) Then, Oscar got a home! YAY!!! Then, he came back because: HE STILL HAD FLEAS.

Hmmmm. Oscar got Capstar. The fleas died, but eggs were still there. Oscar got Frontlined (again). Every rug in the house got washed. All the bedding, (people and dog) got washed. Diatomaceous Earth was purchased and worked into mattresses, couches, chairs, the one nice unwashable wool rug, any cracks in the wooden floors, under baseboards. Well, you get the picture.

And, finally, Oscar is finally flea free. His adopters won't be taking him back, but that's OK. Oscar is a really easy going guy. He is completely housebroken and gets on well with kids, cats and other dogs. He loves to snuggle and is learning how to play with toys. Oscar loves to play with Moses and the big dogs. Most of the day my big black dogs are running and tumbling all over "the middle field". Thanks for coming along and helping to wear out the big boys, Oscar. You can stay as long as you need to.

There's a Breath of Fall in the Air!

Fall is slowly making its way to Missouri, and it's bringing some odd things in it's pockets! Yesterday when Eddie locked up the barn for the night he didn't look to see who was where, since the chickens and turkeys usually go to their respective houses. The chickens have a bolt hole that we just close for the night, shoving a concrete block in place to keep it shut. the turkeys are in horse stalls with wire tops.

This morning when I opened the big door to the chicken house, I found one very distressed turkey hen! Poor Nancy got locked up on the wrong side for the night. I can't imagine how she got in there, as she won't fit through the bolt hole, and it is hard to imagine not noticing a full grown turkey hen strutting through the big door along side of you. But that is what must've happened.

Then to top it off, over on the Turkey side, I found Henry, the big cinnamon and white roo who has taken over "roo duty" for the two "orphaned" Serama hens . That leaves poor Sirkhan the White Sultan roo with no hens to call his own and a big potential roo fight in the offing. Hopefully we will have peace till spring when I might be able to track down a few extra hens to keep the peace.

Fall chores are pressing now, the big center section of the barn needs to be mucked out one more time before winter deep littering starts and I am still working on getting straw and hay in and put up, and it's really late for hay! It is hard to get someone to deliver just the twenty or so bales that we need for the winter, and the ten or so bales of straw extra don't seem to make much difference to the folks doing the delivery! ( psst! I need a little trailer!)

Another thing that this early fall brought with it was my first ever sinus infection. I didn't know what I had cooking up there in my widdle head, so I think I let it go to long. Sheesh - what a mess. It is clearing up now with antibiotics and the good help of the voodoo doc, but for a day or so there I was ready to tell Eddie to dig my hole!

Woody and the Voodoo Doctor

I wanted to share with everyone that Woody had some very serious "lookers" yesterday. This is a great big deal because he has been with us for about a year, with no serious potential adoptors. I really like this family and hope they decide on Woody, but of course will be happy with what ever dog they pick because they are getting a dog from rescue. Some lucky dog ( maybe Woody!)is getting a great new home. A new home with the "voodoo" Doctor.

I have been looking for that exact sort of Doc for several years now, and even though a visit is probably not in the budget - I am going to make it fit in there because she ( the doc) does muscle testing ( I think the $20 word for it is applied kinesthesiology) and also some other techniques that have gotten me pain relief in the past. I go to sleep every night on a loveseat with a ton of pillows in order to be able to doze off for a while and I am hoping that better rest will make me less sluggish and maybe even get me back on the bike. Maybe improve my memory, to? OK maybe that is expecting to much even for a Voodoo doc!

Keep your fingers crossed for Woody!

Good News, a Big Mess and New Resolutions

That is just part of the big mess over there in the corner. There are fleeces ( unwashed in the bag - eeeek!), stash, stash, more fleeces and, oh yeah, more stash. I have a whole room upstairs that looks like this, and a bathroom closet as well. My stash runneth over. So, the resolution is to make a list, clearly visible on the dry erase boards in the kitchen of several things to accomplish each week. It was going to be things to accomplish everyday - but hey, I am taking this whole productivity surge slowly at first - I don't want to sprain something! The next thing getting posted is: Wash Fleeces. Then: Stash Management! If an organised person is reading this wants to help me get organised, I can pay you in - you guessed it - stash!

The good news is that some stuff seems to be a little more settled down here. The barn is getting back to "normal" after the series of terror attacks. The hens are once again laying eggs. The Turkey hens are probably finished with egg laying for the fall and winter and I for one think they deserve a rest. Timber is settling in and crying for his mama a little less. The new black boys, Barney and Andy, are getting more and more friendly. In fact, they are asking for head scratches and nuzzling for feed - so that is some big time progress. The boys are the softest fleeces ever and I really want to shear them now - but I don't trust the weather, darn it!

I had some time to enjoy my little farmlett this weekend and found this little guy lost in the garage.

I was happy to relocate him to a friendlier environment, but he was so cute, I had to get a picture of him first. While I was on the front porch scouting a safe place for Mr. Snail, I saw this pretty thing.

Yep - that is a moth. On my screen door to the living room wherein we have: The Big Mess pictured up there at the top of the page. The Big Mess contains unwashed wool and other tasty forms of wool that moths love to eat. See? I really need help with my stash, and right quick, before that moth and all of her pretty friends come in and have a winters feast! I wish the color came through a little better, the dots on her wings are a really pretty bright blue.

I also got to see a Norwegian Fjord Horse just yesterday. My daughter is riding him in her therapuetic horsemanship and boy howdy is he a cutie patootie! I hope she likes him and continues to ride him this session so I can see him again. When the job situation picks up around here - riding lessons will be back on my "to do" list!

For now, I am off to a good nights sleep.

Misery Makes a Decision

This has been a crazy time and I couldn't write about it as happening fast, and making me too sad to write about it.

Petie Pie was the start of it all. The little stinker got into the barn by body slamming the door hard enough to bend the inside lock while I was in the barn. I caught him, but not before a few unsuccessful and very painful dirt dives and also not before he killed a beautiful Cochin Rooster.

After that I wanted him to be placed in another foster home - but no one had room so we changed the locks on the barn door and figured the barn pets were safe. But they were not. Several days later, Petie and another dog dug under the barnyard fence and killed four chickens and a turkey.

Petie went to another home. The other dog with him was placed in an adoptive home and I hoped things would settle down at Dogrush. And, for a few days, things did settle. I had time to decide/realise that I have way to much on my plate here. Fostering is wearing me out and making me bitter, where it once made me happy and seemed to give purpose to my life. SO: (big announcement here) Dogrush Ranch is closing it's doors to foster dogs. Returns, of course will always be welcome back and we will still have the dogs that we dog sit for, so I imagine that it will take a while for the dog population to decline here. But decline it will.

Then Cammie died. I can't tell you how headspinningly blindsided I was. I had an idea that he was feeling poorly, but he went out to the field with his buddies for three days in a row, then just didn't seem hungry at night. Well, he wasn't hungry because he was bloated and full of fluid. He had bladder stones and couldn't pee. This went on until he died.

Here is the worst part. It is a HORRIBLE way to die, and he never made a peep. The vet told me that usually sheep cry and scream and kick at their stomachs and are just miserable when this happens. In fact, after the necropsy ( I HAD to know what happened,) the vet seemed really upset with me b/c ( I think) he thought I let my beautiful sheepie boy suffer until he died. But, I didn't know and Cam didn't let on.

So, life goes on here at Dogrush, with (hopefully soon) fewer dogs and no more death for a while. I am not afraid of death, but I really have a hard time with causing it - even if only through ignorance or lack of experience or just plain making a mistake.

There is a lot of happy stuff to write about but I will save it for tomorrow - PROMISE!

Finally!

Well, over the last ten days or so, I have had two goals: To get Maude groomed and to get a new blog up. I am just getting around to the second one, and darn-it, I am going to cheer like heck for getting this done!

We lost another Rooster to the heat. It was a Barred Rock cross and I think the stress of the heat and the mean guineas was just to much for the poor ole guy. I felt so bad for the nesting hen he was next to, though. There he was, keeled over and stiff as a board and there she was, in her nest, trying to lay her egg like a good girl with a dead roo next to her.

The sheep and goats are hanging tough and the few days of milder weather that we had gave them a chance to frolic a bit and leap on and off their spool toys. Little Timber got the handle to a plastic trigger sprayer stuck in his mouth, kind of like the spit sucker thing that the dentist hangs in your mough while he is working on your teeth. Poor little guy, couldn't get the handle off his lower teeth and when I found him there was blood and spit every where! He seemed to be doing better until he got an abcess under his lower jaw. Now the vet has me all freaked about CL(don't use the link if you have a weak stomach). But I am just sure the abcess is from the trigger that cut his mouth. But to I take a chance and move him to the barn?

Cam, pictured above, had a great day today. Poor Cam has a very bad rep around here for head butting Eddie and others. It was particularily scary when he went after a small boy who was visiting and knocked him down. But now Cam seems to have settled down and he was very polite to some barn visitors today.

The current fiber project is blending Cam's second fleece with Gabe's very white Mohair and making rolags to spin when the weather cools. And right there on your left is a picture of my big boy Gabriel, who looks caramel colored, but has a lovely white fleece after it is washed and carded for spinning.
I managed to get through today in spite of a broken sump pump in the basement and a broken car on a gas station parking lot. Fortunately, I was meeting Erin Seely, who supplies Wendell with his raw diet and she and her DH waited with me until my DH arrived to fetch me back home. Fingers crossed that the car can be repaired with in our budget!

Heres hoping that you all have a great weekend.

Everybody Wants to Be My Baby

Things can be a little crazy around a household with lots of rescued dogs and a lamb living in the bathroom. I know I already explained that little Timber is in the house because of his health issues, and that he will go to the barn as soon as he is safely able to. Lambs don't belong in the house, and now we have a lamb who thinks that people and dogs are his flock. Dogs can be the death of sheep and I would be more comfortable if Timber were afraid of mine. Instead, he tries to play with them, often head butting one of the smaller dogs and then leaping and twirling away, inviting them to a chase. Very dangerous, indeed.

Winston, the French Bulldog shown in the header photo resting his big head on Tulip, thinks he should be a bottle baby, too. Winston sticks close by Timber and never tries to hurt him - unless there is a bottle of lamb replacement formula in the picture. Then all bets are off an it becomes a real challenge to feed Timber with out having Winston grab the nipple and begin nursing! In this picture my friend, Lisa is in the Kitchen attempting to feed Timber with Winston trying to butt in.

When we were trying to transition Tim to the barn a few weeks ago, I fed him up there and Logan, a big Shetland Rambouillet cross from the same flock as Timber must have remembered his bottle baby days and insisted on trying to nurse from Timber's bottle. I wish I would have been able to take a picture of great big Logan trying to get anything out of that little red pritchard nipple.

I am off to an adoption event as this is our double event weekend. Wish me luck!

GRRRRRRRR

In the name of keeping this blog "entertaining" I am not going to post much this evening. I came home from my regular friday night with my mother and daughter to find Baby Timber in the bathroom crying at the top of his lungs. It is HOT in the house - again - and my -ahem- DH was sitting at the Kitchen table eating cornflakes and doing nothing. I asked, "Has he had a bottle tonight?" and received this reply: "Nah, he has been in there crying all night - I don't have time to mess with him."

Do you think he even HEARD WTF he said?

Baby T has been fed and has his 20 lb belly band changed. He was given fresh water, and creep feed. Then I went up to the barn to start the overdue night chores up there.

So, this shepherdess is going to shower and go to bed. I will have a happier post for tomorrow.

There is a Lamb Stuck in My Bathroom!

This is Timber. He is stuck in my bathroom. Not stuck as in: we can't open the door - nope we just can't get him up to the barn. It's a long story...

Timber was born the first week of May and his shepherdess was not sure he was getting enough milk from his mom. The shepherdess was leaving town and so little Timber became a "bottle baby" and the shepherd took over the feedings. That's where I came in. The shepherdess let me know that she had a Shetland/Rambouillet cross bottle baby for me if I wanted to take him. Uh, do I want a baby lamb...let me see now... cute , soft cuddly bottle baby tap, tap, tapping around my bathroom and kitchen in tiny diapers....what do you think I said?

So, you know. He was in the bathroom being bottle fed, and cuddled a lot. He was doing great. Then summer hit and we ( ok, not me but he) decided that we could weather the heat with no AC. We think little Tim couldn't handle the sudden change because he became ill. Very ill. Scary ill. Time to call the vet in a blind panic. We did antibiotics, probiotics and vitamin shots. I can't even remember what all we did. It took weeks to get little Tim back on track and we still don't know exactly what happened.

But Timber got better, started growing and spending time outside. He was eating all of the blossoms off of the plants in the vegetable garden, so we were anxious to get him out of the back yard and up to the barn.

We were starting the transition up to the barn, being VERY CAREFUL to not have him up there in the heat of the day. We made a little pen for him so the other sheep and goats couldn't beat him up. We made arrangements to get two little 16 week old black shetland wethers so Timber would have babies his size making the transition at the same time.

Then he came up lame, and sick, with a fever... back to the vet. (Now this shepherdess is totally freaking out and wondering what the heck I was doing wrong!) Turns out that with anitbiotics the fever went away but the limp got worse. Back to the vet and insist on xrays. Timber had a broken toe on his left front leg. Yep, Lambs have toes! Who knew?

I am going to skip the scary part where the vet talked about sending Timber to the University for surgery to the tune of THOUSANDS of dollars, and maybe not being able to do anything at all for him. I am also going to skip the part about how we ( the vet, me, a bunch of vet techs) spent a whole afternoon trying to glue a "block" to his foot so he could walk without putting pressure on his toe. Nothing worked and I took my limping lambie pie home.

The next day my absolutely brilliant friend, Lisa, got in touch with her farrier and together they hatched a plan to glue the "block" to Timber's foot. The next Saturday I met Lisa and her farrier at the barn and presto whammo - the block was glued with some magic brown stuff and it is stuck tight! After a few days of practice little Tim is tap, tap, tapping around my house again in a "belly band" because believe me, you might be able to get lipstick on a pig, but you sure can't get diapers on a lamb his size!

So that is why there is a Lamb stuck in my bathroom until: the toe heals, the vet can splint the opposite leg,* and the weather is a little less brutal so he can move to the barn. Where the two adorable black and silver shetland cutie pie sheepie boys are settling in nicely.

Whew! See? It was a long story.

I have LOTS more to tell you, but it can wait till tomorrow.

*Timber's opposite leg is growing crooked because of all of the pressure on it so he has Angular Limb Disorder in that leg now.

Whattaweek!

This has been such a busy week. First off, the golden retriever mix in my last post is safely settled in rescue. YAY!

Harley, a little black dog that I thought was a pot bellied pig ( for just a second, but still...) when I saw him in the pound, got adopted on Saturday.

My DH who has been out of work this entire year got a job and started on Monday. It might only be for six weeks, but hey, there will be money coming in! I am working really hard to keep up with everything that needs to be done around here - how did I ever do it when he was gone all day every day? Well, I guess I will just have to relearn the new/old schedule, eh?

I am sure this is news to no one, but this heat is killing animals. We lost two chickens to the heat, the latest casualty was Annabelle my little mixed chicken, and the oldest of the flock. I was so sad to see her go. Eddie buried her in the front yard by the hydrangeas. That's Miss Anabelle in the picture.

Moses, the skinny dog gained 17 pounds in two weeks and is just starting to look less scary. Our vet vaccinated him yesterday and he was posted on the St. Louis Senior Dog Project petfinder page here . Moses is a really affectionate dog who love to stay close to his peeps!

And, last but not least, Keesha came to our house to stay. Keesha was an abuse case and her wounds have still not healed. I am waiting to see how much I can tell you about her. I will post pictures tomorrow - they are not easy to look at though. I Promise pictures tomorrow.

Rusty, and Why I Won't Be Able to Sleep Again Tonight

Rusty, pictured here, was in an email forwarded to me tonight by a friend who will just not stop sending me these emails, no matter how hard I beg. Rusty is living in a mud floor kennel with no roof or shade in heat that is killing people and animals every day. He is a very desirable golden retriever mix, three and a half years old and just as cute as a bug's ear - don't you think? Rusty's owner has decided he doesn't want his dog any more and so he is going to shoot him.

So how, you might ask, did I find out about this? Well, because a local rescuer is trying to find a place for Rusty to go before his lovin' owner shoots him. In this day and age, when we are all connected, an email from a rescuer in rural Missouri can reach virtually all of the rescue groups in the state, and beyond, in less than a day. And we are all full. Every group that I know of, is full of dogs that are not being adopted out. These same groups are worried about how to pay the vet bills, to boot.

Do you know of anyone who could love a sweet golden dog, even if only for a few weeks, while we find a spot for him? Puleeeese? Someone out there must have extra space even a kennel with shelter and access to air-conditioning would be so much better for this boy.

I do have another reason for not sleeping tonight. My baby Timber, the little Bottle fed Lamb that is living in my bathroom is sick. He is showing some of the same symptoms as an Angora goat that I recently lost. Keep your fingers crossed for him won't you?

Hopefully the next blog entry will be a happier one.

New Beginnings

Today was a day for the record books. At the adoption event, Huck, the yellow lab who was in the car accident with his foster mom, got a new home. And not just any new home, but a home with another rescue person who will provide lots of updates about this super dog.

Another foster dog of ours, Jack also got a new home with his very own boy. Every dog doesn't need a boy, but Jack seemed to like this boy a lot, so I am hoping it works out.

Moses, the starved dog off of the city streets started eating yesterday and met Logan the big sheep today. That's the two of them saying, "hello" over there on the left.

My friend, Lisa came over tonight to help shear Logan. It was a very untimely shearing as he is not due till spring, but I may start shearing twice a year as I just don't see how he would make it through this very hot summer with out a hair cut. I will try to get a picture of the naked Logan for the next post. I think he looks wonderful and cool, but the other sheep are not so sure! The wool that I kept will go into the wash water tomorrow. I think it will be "mine all mine" as it is somewhat shorter that can be expected and well, that makes it mine, right?

Baby. it's hot out there!

I know this is a boring, bland, "duh" kinda statement, but geezle peet, it is so hot! I am worried about the guys up at the barn. My metal barn doesn't make it easy to keep the animals cool. Fortunately most of them know that the shady corner buy the turkey abode is the the coolest spot, but baby Timber is just transitioning from my bathroom to the barn - in the hottest weather we've had in a long long time!

I took the picture to the left of Cam and Hammie a few weeks ago when it was cooler and everyone, including me, enjoyed playing and lounging in the barnyard at twilight. Now, I sort of dread going up there, afraid of finding that one of my barnyard babies has succumbed to the heat.

Well, it may take me weeks longer to get Baby Timber transferred to the barn and I have say, that is not really a hardship for me as I always hate to see them go. I wonder how my friend Sandy does it at her at her place? Sandy is a way cool animal friendly fiber farmer and you can visit her here.

If you are interested in Animal Friendly handspun, shoot me an email or a comment and I will get in touch to see if I have what you are looking for!

I Think God is Laughing at Me!

Maybe the trick to getting a break is to just not ask for one. Eddie left for welding class this morning and returned an hour later with the thinnest dog I have ever seen. Really, see for yourself - that's him over there on the left. The first words out of my mouth when I saw him were, "HOLY MOSES"! So the name stuck and now residing at our house is yet another dog that needs a permanent home.


I guess the prayer for a break must have sounded like rank whining and we all know what happens to whiners. So, from now on I am going to stop mumbling about how tired I am and just get down to business.


To that effect we took poor ole Moses up to see Dr. Laura today and she said he is to thin to even vaccinate. I think that might be a first as well. I have had dogs that were to thin for surgery, but to thin to vaccinate? Yep that's a first. And not one for anyone to be proud of either.


It was no surprise that the skinny fella had worms: hooks, whips and tapes. We have stuff to get rid of all of those and will try to put enough weight on him so that he can be vaccinated. It will be fun to see him fill out and learn to be a dog.

I wonder what he will look like when we get him all fattened up? I can't even venture a guess as to his breed, how about you?

Good News, Bad News

Whew. Whatta Weekend.

Yesterday's adoption event was good in that: Rudy found a new home. I took him to his new home today, and I believe it is a good adoption, to good folks.

Unfortunately, I got word last night that one of our volunteers was killed in a car accident on her way home from yesterdays adoption event. Joyce was a wife, retired school teacher, a twin sister, a mom, a grandmother, and a foster mom to Huck, a big orphaned yellow Labrador Retriever. She was also a very kind lady. Most who knew her would call her one of God's Angels on Earth. She will be missed.

Her foster dog, Huck, was in the car with her when it rolled, and was miraculously unhurt. My eternal thanks go out to the un-named animal control officer who was at the gate when I arrived and broke the rules to release Huck to me. Huck is here and is shaken, but seems to be ok. He is calming down, little by little, and will have a visit to our vet tomorrow for the little scrape that was on his eyelid and just to make sure that he is really ok.

So, what does this mean? Do I get a break or not? Everytime I place a dog, it seems like God goes out of his way to place another at my doorstep. Really, God, I need a break. Let's cool it on the dogs for a while.

Kati

Adoption Day Wishes

Rudy, a big black dog who was dropped off at our place, might get a new home today. The family that wants to meet him is coming to visit with him at the Saturday adoption event. That's Today!

The application looks good and there will be time for a home visit since I can just go from the adoption event. This will be a short post because I promised to be on time (a rarity for me) and I still have to gather paperwork and load the car.

Please keep your fingers and paws crossed for Rudy who deserves a home and some peeps to call his own.

Waiting for the Ball

I rescue dogs. Well, WE rescue dogs. My family is always asking me, "how many dogs do you have there now?" The answer is always the same, "A lot." In the spring, when we are out playing ball with the dogs it's lots of fun to get all of the "ball chasers" together. In the spring, when they are all tracking mud in the house...not so much.

We have been rescueing for 15 (plus or minus) years and I would love to take a break. Some of our older dogs need us to be there for them full time and it is hard with a house full of rescues. We have farm animals needing attention, too. Yep, I'm looking forward to a break!

I think I will have to wait a little longer for my break than the dogs in the picture had to wait for Eddie to bat the ball to them.

On a completely different subject, I learned something new today. Horses are afraid of sheep. I think that is only true if they have never seen a sheep before, but the horse people I saw today were adamant that horses don't like sheep. I found this out when I brought Timber, our baby Shetland/Rambouillet cross lamb to my daughter's therapeutic horsemanship lesson. I had Timber on a harness and leash and caused one of the horses to balk. Also, after I left and went to the bacd of the barn, out of sight of the horses, none of the horses would approach the mounting block. It was a huge faux pas.

And now, I am off to put the chickens and Turkeys to bed.

The First Time

So, this is my very first blog post. Sitting down to write brought to mind other "firsts" and I thought I would share a picture of the first garden here. Jefferson County soil is all clay and rock, but the farmer who built this house also owned river bottom land somewhere and he brought in bottom land soil by the truck load. The result is that some of the garden was really easy to work, and some places had to be "dug" with a mallet and crowbar!

The garden looks much different, now. An experiment with using chickens to cultivate the weeds went south when I added a pair of adolescent turklets who rapidly scratched the soil to expose plant roots. In fact, my whole Turkey experiment had been a learning -uh- curve, but more on that later.

More "firsts" include sheep, goats, chickens, turkeys and small dogs. That's right, the confirmed large dog people now have little dogs running around the place as well.

Drop by the blog every now and again and I'll tell you all about it!