Chicks, Farrier, Fruit and an Equine Visitor

 

(Warning: Long post. Visit the potty and grab snacks first)

This is a ‘catch-up’ post. Please forgive me if I’ve not stopped by your blog in a while. I have been trying to read everyone’s posts, but I’ve not been as good about leaving comments because they take so much time and I’m sure lacking that commodity these days.

Hey! I thought summer was supposed to be laid back and relaxed…as in “The Lazy Days of Summer”???!

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The chicks are 6 weeks old today, so figured it was time for an update.

They are inside the coop with the rest of the flock, but are being kept in a quarantine mini-coop, with their Foster Mama, Mrs Cotton, who hatched out Sid’s baby, Pat Benatar.

Good thing that Pat is also a boy’s name, because it seems that this chick is going to be a rooster

I’ve compared photos of Sid Vicious as a chick and the resemblance holds true. The spiky doo is a trait of the Polish rooster, while the Polish hen will have more of a bouffant doo.

Well, out of 4 fertile eggs that we’ve allowed Mrs. Cotton to hatch out, only one has been a hen. Another reason Sid Vicious must go. He seems to create mostly males, and we don’t need anymore roosters like him around here. Why do the good lookin’ ones have to turn bad?

 

Anyway, Liza Minelli, the Black Star pullet is doing great. We like her pretty black and gold coloring.

She has a curious and calm personality so far.

And Matilda, the Buff Orpington pullet is growing like a weed. A pretty weed to be sure, but she’s a big girl already.

Because Mrs. Cotton is a low senioritychicken in the flock and will get her feathers flattened by some of my older and larger hens if she tries to act tough and protect her chicks, I’ll keep them all in the quarantine pen until the chicks are bigger and can be safely and easily integrated into the flock. They are already basically part of the flock since the only thing separating them is a wall of chicken wire.

Sadly, Pat Benatar will be given away soon, as we just don’t want anymore roosters. Mr. Cotton has been a well behaved, polite rooster, so he’ll stay, but no more roosters are permitted to call Laughing Orca Ranch their home.

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Good news. Even after those late snows and hail, and a serious lack of rain all Spring and early summer, our fruit trees have decided to give us fruit, albeit not as much as last Summer/Fall, but we’ll still have plenty for our family, just none to sell or share.

The peach tree has decided to only produce fruit on one side. And the branches on that side are already starting to sag to the ground with the weight of all the peaches. It’s weird how not even one fruit is growing on the other side of the tree, though. My opinion is that side of the tree receives the most wind and bad weather, while the other side is protected by the house.

 

The Granny Smith apple tree is producing a good amount of apples this year, too. But still not as many as last year.

 

But the Red Delicious Apple Tree is definitely making up for the low harvest it gave us last year. We only picked maybe 15-20 apples off the entire tree. I think we have at least double that amount this year, though. My mouth just waters thinking of biting into a fresh, cripsy, sweet apple, and a juicy, sweet peach in a few months!

 

 

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I had my farrier, Scott Trinka come out to give Apache a trim yesterday. Apache was a good girl as always.

It’s only been about 5-6 weeks since her last trim and her feet haven’t grown all that much, but I wanted her trimmed now to smooth out any rough edges, and give her enough time to toughen up after her trim. The reason why? Well, in just a couple weeks I’ll be taking Apache up to Northern New Mexico for our first-ever Horse Camping trip! I’m so excited! Long before I bought my first horse a few years ago, I dreamed of camping out with my horse and riding all day long, exploring beautiful places that would take too long to reach only by foot.

Anyway her feet, besides being very dry because of our lack of rain here, are looking pretty good and are ready for trail riding.

Have I mentioned how much I like my farrier, Scott Trnka? He’s been my farrier now for 3 years and he’s knowledgeable, easy to talk to, willing to answer any questions and offers advice and helpful tips, too. He does a great job with barefoot trims for me and never takes too much off the foot, so the horse isn’t sore. And he only charges me $30. But it’s no surprise he’s so good, because his family has been blacksmiths and farriers for a long time.

In fact, his brother, Craig Trnka is a Certified Journeyman Farrier and has been the President of the American Farrier's Association as well as won many Championship Farrier and Blacksmith Competitions. He’s also been a qualified judge for the World Blacksmith Competitions around the country, including the recent Hammers and Hooves event that was held near my home, that I had to miss due to participating in the ACTHA CTR.

(I think Scott thought I was nuts for wanting to take his picture. He’s such a modest guy, I’m sure he was thinking, “I’m not famous, why would you want my photo?)

 

 

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So…….we have had an equine visitor staying at our place for over a week now.

 

Do you know who it is?

She’s got a very big butt. Built like two mountains with a canyon down the middle, and a back as broad as a sofa. (I could probably use a spoon to scoop the dust out of the divet created by those two large butt humps)

 

 

For those of you who followed my blog back in February, you might remember this horse.

 

She was the third horse I rode, after being injured by Baby Doll and getting back up on her back after Christmas to move forward and past my fears. But this horse was after the sweet, steady-eddy Rosie, to regain my confidence and get more riding experience.

I rode this mare out on the snow covered trails with my Snowy Mountain Cowgirl Club friends. (By the way, that experience and the post, too, was very beneficial and an important part of my journey coming back into horses after my injuries and surgery)

Do you remember this horse now?

It’s a…….!!!!!!!

 

Well, I don’t know what it is yet……..but I do know it’s a little baby chick!

But I’m going to refer to this chick as a She because that’s what I want her to be. Isn’t she adorable??

This little fuzzy chick was born sometime between Sunday night and Monday morning. I was rather surprised because about two weeks ago during our hail and snow storm, Mrs. Cotton, my Japanese Silky hen had left the eggs and when I touched them they felt cold. But I moved them back underneath her just in case and she did remain brooding them. I think the other hens just chased her off those eggs, since she is rather low in seniority in my flock (but not with me, though. She’s my broody hen and has already hatched out 3 chicks last year. I can pretty much count on her to go broody every 6 months or so).

I ended up taking her out of the chicken house nest boxes and making a separate broody box for her using a cage and a cardboard box, so she and her eggs could have some peace, quiet and safety. Just like the last time, she seemed very content to have this space made just for her. Mrs. Cotton is a very sweet hen.

 

I’m not entirely sure what mix of breeds this little chick is yet. I only gave Mrs. Cotton 3 eggs to sit and this the only egg that hatched out.

But all three were tiny white or cream colored eggs laid by either my Silky hen Mrs. Cotton or my poufy headed, Buff-laced Polish hen, Phyllis Diller.

Or maybe even by the little hen, named Ebony that was hatched out by Mrs. Cotton last October. Ebony is a black and gold Polish and Ameraucana mix.

And of course, here’s the Daddy, Sid Vicious. Such a handsome devil, eh?

 She sure has some pretty color right now, though.

I wish the other two eggs would have hatched so she’d have some siblings to keep her company, but, between Mrs. Cotton, me, and Jenna this little chick will receive lots of care and attention.

(My daughter’s farm girl hands would need some manicure work before she could work as a hand model. heehee!)

Wishful Thinking

 

               A few days ago I was hopeful.

It was sunny and warm, temperatures into the upper 70’s. My peach blossoms seemed to be recovering well from last week’s hail and ice storm.

      

       Even buzzing bees stopped by to pay them a visit.

I had been enjoying the fresh air and cheerful bird songs by keeping my window open, even at night. The nights were still cool with temperatures down into the 40’s and 50’s, but I was cozy tucked underneath my down comforter. I sleep better that way even though some people would say it’s too cold and want to close the window and turn on the heat.

Yesterday a huge storm raged all day and night with sustained winds of 40-50 mph and gusts up to 67 mph. Wind like that can be very unsettling. Quite a few times I felt my bed vibrating and realized the wind was slamming so hard into our house that it was making our walls shake.

The skies steadily got darker and when I woke up this morning, I was greeted with this.

 

Last night when I went in to gather eggs from my chickens I found their plexiglass window had been blown out and broken into too many pieces to salvage. So I found an old poster frame, removed the plexiglass, and cut a piece to replace inside the chicken house window. I decided to use some duck tape to keep it from being blown out again, because the winds were still raging. This morning when I went to check on and feed my flock, I found that the window survived the night.

 

 

 

That flowering tree inside their coop is a Red Delicious Apple Tree. It had just started blooming in the last two days. Ironically, I was thinking of taking some macro photos of some of the blooms yesterday, but figured I’d wait until today after the winds died down.

Too bad because now the poor blooms have probably went into shock.

I wonder if some of the buds might not bloom at all. But at least I got my macro shots. sigh.

When I was feeding the chickens (inside their house, of course) I noticed that my broody hen, Mrs. Cotton had decided to sit on the fake wooden egg, inside the other nest, instead of the three Polish and Silky eggs I gave her two weeks ago.

    The eggs were cold. So much for Springtime chicks.

Ranchman John is in Philadelphia starting a new job and will be there for several months. So, I’m on my own again in taking care of things around the ranch and with my kidlets. I guess it was wishful thinking that our weather would be better, so that I wouldn’t have to hike up to the barn over icy, muddy, snowy and slippery ground.

I learned my lesson the last time I slipped and fell and hurt my knee when it snowed last month. This time I wore my knee brace and used my trekking poles as support and leverage. I probably looked silly with my heavy coat, gloves, tuque, and snow boots pulling myself up the hill with what appeared to be ski poles. Oh well, if it keeps me from falling again, that’s fine with me.

          The trek up to the barn looked long and cold.

  

I didn’t lock Apache up in her stall last night because I prefer to let my horse decide where she wants to spend her time. I like giving my horse the freedom to move around and be where she's most comfortable. The two paddocks and pasture that Apache has access to both have evergreen tree wind blocks and shade, as well as access to the barn 24/7. But she seems to prefer the outside over being in the barn. Apache mostly just eats in her stall and sometimes goes in to escape the wind. She doesn’t like to be penned up and becomes fidgety and antsy inside. She did look happy to see me this morning, though, and trotted right up to me, nickering. So sweet.

 

 

Apache wasn’t so sure what to think of my trekking poles at first.

 

 

 

                                  But I had carrots.

                                                                                 

                                                                                   “Feed Me”

Frustratingly, because of the crazy gusting wind, a lot of snow still made it into the barn. With their thick fleece, the llamas aren’t bothered by the snow at all.

Cataleya says, “Got cookies?” (She looks like a frosted mini-wheat, don’t you think?)

I suppose it was wishful thinking hoping that the arrival of our Barn Swallows meant Spring was finally here. The pair that is building this mud nest, on our ceiling outlet, might be thinking of moving to a warmer climate soon.

(I think it’s neat to see our chicken’s feathers up there along with llama fiber and Apache’s tail and mane hair)

Most folks who don’t have horses or other livestock can’t understand the appeal of just hanging out in a barn listening to the animals munch their hay. It’s almost zen-like listening to their rhythmic chewing. I was particularly satisfied watching and listening to Apache this morning sloppily, slurping her grain mash with gusto.

But I still don’t think she appreciated me locking her up in her stall and pen.

And I know she can’t be too happy with our never-ending winter.

I suppose it was just wishful thinking, believing that winter was finally over.

Goodbye Boys

 

My poor hens have been dealing with way too much attention from our two young roosters that were hatched out by Mrs. Cotton, our Japanese Silkie, 6 months ago. She also hatched out one little black hen, too. I felt bad for my girls, seeing how those two young bucks would ravage a hen, what seemed like every 15-20 minutes. The poor girls couldn’t even sleep or eat without looking over their shoulder. And sometimes the two of them would tag-team on a hen too.

In comparison, Sid Vicious and Mr. Cotton are almost 2 years old now and have matured enough to not have the same strong urges they had when they were younger. If they get a little hen-love a couple times a day, they are more than content.

In addition, these two young roosters were adding to the noise levels exponentially through their beginning efforts at cock-a-doodle- doo’ing.  

So, these two amorous young studs had to go. And I had to find them new homes.

 

I posted ads for free roosters on Freecycle and Craigs List and the next day a lady and her daughter came to pick up one rooster to watch over their flock because their previous rooster had died.

One gone, one to go.

But just 2 days later, a lady and her husband stopped by to pick up the last rooster. Their flock was without a rooster and they enjoy different breeds of chickens, so they were looking forward to having a flashy rooster to add to their flock.

So, now we are back to having just two roosters again and coop life is much calmer and things are back to normal…………….

    

and my girls can relax now. 

Eight Inches and Counting………

 

That big winter storm hit Central and Eastern New Mexico late last night and it’s expected to hang around dumping more snow, wind and blizzard-like conditions on our area until Friday morning. Already we’ve got 8” of snow now, but the weather reports say we could get up to a foot of snow by tomorrow.

It’s funny. When I was a kid growing up in Maryland and California, when it snowed I couldn’t wait to get outside and play in it. I still can’t. I do love snow.

(And yes, quite often I wear my jammies to go outside. The animals don’t care and neither do my neighbors. My family and I live in our comfie jammies while we’re at home. Don’t you?)

But after the 4th or 5th snow, my kids seem rather unimpressed with snow and it’s all I can do to push them outside to play in all it’s fluffy whiteness. My twinling sons, especially, just stand inside at the windows and doors and wave at me.

Jenna still likes to play in the snow, but she finds the whole ordeal of getting bundled up in warm winter clothes unbearable and can’t wait to tear all those cumbersome thick layers off the second she steps inside.

Me, on the other hand, I like to dress in layers. The more the better, so I can stay outside as long as possible, and if I get too warm I can peel off layers  until I’m comfortable.

Another aspect I like of being outside in the cold, is that going back inside is made all the more sweeter. I love to come back inside the warm house and make a cup of hot tea or cocoa, pull on my flannel jammies and sit in front of the fireplace or crawl into bed and get all comfie.

How about you? Do you enjoy the snow? Do you like to be play in the white stuff or just be outside taking a walk in a winter wonderland?

(The little grove of trees behind our house)

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Working Man?

Did anyone notice the fun song on my playlist “Hey Ho Away We Go”?

This section relates to those lyrics: Some of y’all have asked if Ranchman John has found a new job yet. Well…………Yes and No. He’s been on several interviews, taken a few Entry Tests, and all results have been positive. Everyone wants to hire him, but they don’t have anything ‘right now’. sigh.

( Project 365 )

He’s been unemployed for 3 weeks now and it can get very discouraging. We’re hanging in there, though. We’re living off some of our savings and through my blog I’ve made a little money, too. I’ve sold some of my photos and I’ve received payments from a few companies that advertise on my blog. So, it’s pretty awesome that my blog has become more than just a place to journal my thoughts and adventures and to share photos of our ranch. But it would be really great if Ranchman John could get hired soon. Positive thoughts and prayers are always welcome.

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A couple blogger friends brought it to my attention that I’ve not posted about my chickens for a while. And I realized that was true. I’ve not felt much like posting about them because not long after I posted about Annie, the Ameracauna hen, being sick and weak from a late molting, she finally succumbed and took her last breath. She will be missed.

( Project 365 )

And with all the snow we’ve been getting, the chickens don’t want to come outside and play. The other day I tried to take photos of them while they were outside, but our snow was starting to melt and their coop was a big, mucky, sloshy, muddy mess. I kept slipping around and was afraid I might fall so I gave up on the photo session.

But today I did manage to take some photos, albeit inside the chicken house. I tried shoveling the snow away several times to clear an area for them to come outside. I even spread some chicken scratch on the ground, but within 15-20 minutes the snow was falling so heavy that the area was completely covered again. And the chickens were too smart to fall for the chicken scratch bribery and refused to step foot outside.

They insisted on being fed inside.

I did manage to take some photos of Sid Vicious for all you adoring Sid fans.

 

He doesn’t take after his moniker at all. When it snows or is windy or cold outside that handsome fella stays inside. He’s kind of a wimp actually. When his ladies go outside into the bad weather, he just stands at the door and peeks out every so often to check on them.

I also took some photos of Sid’s kids.

They are 18 weeks old now, and it’s obvious now that we have two roosters and one hen. The roosters have such handsome feathering and take after their Dad.

The hen is a beautiful ebony color with blue/green iridescent feathering and a few gold accents.

She will be staying here on Laughing Orca Ranch, but at least one of the roosters will have to go to a new coop. Anyone want a handsome Polish/Ameracauna roo to add some flash to your flock?

Oh. And Mrs. Cotton has gone broody yet again.

I swear, that’s all that little hen ever thinks about is hatching out babies.

It’s too cold for me to let her have any eggs to hatch out right now. Plus I’m only getting about 4-6 eggs a day and we are using them all. She’ll have to wait until Spring. Poor thing.

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Dobbie is enjoying the snow very much, even though it must be quite a struggle having to leap out of it’s depths.

She can only exert herself for short amounts of time and be out in the cold, before she is asking to go back inside again.

But it’s fun to see her run and play in the snow, when I’m pretty sure that for the first two years of her life in a Puppy Mill she had never even seen snow at all.

Well, that’s all I’ve got for today. Anyone want to take a gander at how many inches of snow we’ll wake up to here tomorrow morning?

This is a great time of year to get cozy with a good book, so I’ll pick a winner, on Saturday, from the correct answers and send you this funny book, “Shoveling Smoke”.