That Blows

Feb 25th - Our ranch was hit with 50+ mph wind.  And I'm not talking wind of that speed for an hour.  This was ALL day.  It was really scary.  I have never EVER experienced wind like this.  Not only was it loud and made me and the kids feel like we were blowing away to OZ, it also did quite a bit of damage.  

For us - the windy day meant a loss of 7 of our trees.  6 of them were dead anyway (remember our fun drought from a couple summers ago?)  But 1 oak was as green as it could be.  It was really sad to see them falling.  Loud - and sad.

JL came home early from work so we could move the boat out into the middle of the driveway away from any potential falling trees.  We also parked his truck in the middle of our front lawn for the same reason.  It was quite a day.  

As I mentioned, 6 of these trees were marked to be cut down because they were dead anyway.

Alas, our trampoline was struck down.  Luckily, it didn't put a hole in the black top - just the net.  We are still able to use it.

JL cut up the trees and harvested the wood for our smoker/fireplace.  But the branches and twigs met another fate...

We all enjoy watching a bonfire!

April 2 - This spring has been unusual.  In our 12 yrs here, we have never had a spring like this.  We've been abnormally cool!  It's been wonderful!!  And we have been getting some rain!  Not lots of rain (we are still behind and technically still considered to be in a drought) but every drop is precious and we enjoy it anyway!

On this particular day - a big storm blew over and dumped over 2 inches on our place in just about 3 hrs!

A big Loss

I'm really sad to announce that my Daughter's beautiful tabby cat, Beauty, has died.  :-(  

I've had the cats living outside exclusively since I found out I was pregnant back in January.  They took to it really well.  Mostly they would prowl around the property and hunt up a few insects here and there.  It's only been recently that Beauty has become somewhat of an explorer.

She often times will cross the fence to the neighbor's place shortly after breakfast and not return until shortly before dinner.  But she's always within ear shot of my voice.

The other day, I found her hiding out under the front rose bushes.  A big fat rabbit was in her clutches.  She had somehow caught and killed the poor thing.  She spent a great deal of that morning dining on her kill.  Ick.  I remember thinking at the time that this could cause problems and bring her to hunt more and further away.

Well, she went missing over the weekend just as October was starting.  We didn't see her for 3 days.  I'd call to her each night at dinner time, but she was no where to be seen.  Our other cat, Shooter, rarely will ever leave the yard.  Occasionally if he tags along with Beauty, he'll cross the fence for a short time, but he always comes back.  Most of the time, you can find him laying on our patio chairs.  But Beaut - she's always enjoyed her outings.

Unfortunately, something happened to her on this most recent adventure.  She did return home, but she was in bad shape when we finally saw her again.  Last Tuesday morning I decided to walk the fence line calling for her just in case she was close but couldn't remember how to get home.  About 2 hours later (while we were planting the garden) she showed up by the chicken coops!  She was covered in burs and we could tell she'd been without food or water for days.

I picked her up and brought her right over to the house.  Gave her some fresh water, some milk and a fresh dish of food.  She'd have none of it.  She was very lethargic and wouldn't hardly open her eyes.  My dear sweet Isabel was there, worrying about her and offering her sweet suggestions to help Beauty feel better.  And yet, she knew just like I did, that Beauty was probably not going to make it.  And you know, when Beauty died just a day later, Isabel took the news way better than I did!

Seeing these pictures and remembering how much Izzy loved that cat - my heart breaks.  Up until Shooter and Beauty I'd never had a cat.  I'm not sure if they are all like this - but our two were exceptional!  Both of them tolerated the abundant love my kids would dish out to them.  Heck, Beauty use to meow outside of Isabel's door at night just so we'd open it up and allow her to sleep on the bed with her girl.

We will miss you Beauty.  You were a great cat.

Heatwave

The end of June on the ranch was brutal.  A nice big high pressure system parked itself over our state for about 3 weeks.  Bringing with it temperatures in the high high 90's to low 100's.  The heat indexes were soaring to the 110 ranges.  It was awful.  Especially for one pregnant girl that I know.

But I wasn't the only one dying from the heat*.  So were our chickens.  Literally.

Yup.  I'm sad to report that 3 of our 4 baby chickens that we raised up from infancy died during a week span.  It was tragic!  Of all the chickens to die - I would have much rather have had the old girls kick the bucket!  They are not very reliable and only lay maybe an egg every 4 to 5 days.  But the babies were regular little gals.  Each giving us an egg a day.  Beautiful olive green and tan eggs.

But, as most of this stuff goes, this was a really good learning experience for us.  Apparently, chickens regulate their body temperature through their feet.  Our theory went something like this:


-  Why are the old chickens surviving while the young chickens are dying?


-  Why are the old chickens constantly kicking their water bucket over?  Don't they know they need to leave that thing alone so they don't thirst to death?


-  Why is the older chickens' water pan constantly dry but the babies don't seem to be drinking as often?

Come to find out, the older chickens were smart enough to kick their water over so they could STAND in the cool water/mud all day.  Meanwhile, the baby chickens were standing on the hot, dry ground soaking up a ton of heat.  They were still drinking, don't get me wrong, but it wasn't enough to cool their body down.

So how did we stop the death and destruction and save that last remaining baby chick?  We put a few pans of water in the coop.  That's it.  Something for the birds to STAND in all day. 


Information we could have used 5 weeks ago!

For now, the plan is to wait until fall and replace the young girls with 6 month to 9 month old chickens.  Some that are regular layers and can immediately start to produce again for us.  I'd love to raise up some more chicks, but it takes 6 months for the eggs to start, plus, I'm going to be a tad busy come fall time.


*The loss coupled with the extreme heat was too much for me to handle, and I found myself needing an escape.  But that's another story.

Micro Mini Eggs

About a month ago, the strangest thing happened in the chicken coop.  JL retrieved an egg that was the half a normal size.  We really didn't think that much about it.  The weather has been heating up (like, rapidly!) and we figured the chicken was just stressed.

Until about 2 days later when JL pulled out an egg that was about a forth the size of a normal egg!  It looked like one of those craft eggs you can purchase at the store to make fake bird nests and what not.  I hardly believed he got it from our coop until he pulled a second micro mini the very next day!

At this point, we were alarmed.  So I consulted a few webpages only to find out micro eggs are actually quite normal.  They happen occasionally during a chicken's life.  It took a few days, but eventually, everything returned to normal.

In other chicken news.  We recently lost one of the baby chicks that we raised up.  Little Lee died randomly a couple Sundays back.  As near as we can figure - the heat got him.  :-(  I wouldn't have minded so much had it been one of the older chickens.  They are spotty with their laying and eat us out of house and home.  The babies, in contrast, eat little and produce each day.  It was a loss.

In Memory

I've learned a lot in these last 5 months living on our ranch. The biggest lesson: water is the MOST important resource. The most painful lesson: dogs and fowl don't mix.

Fergus, our 11 yr old Malamute (make that 11 yr old ARTHRITIC Malamute) tends to find his youth when the weather cools off. It's cute, really. He gets his spring back to his step, he takes off running after deer with Pancho, he even howls with the coyotes in the evening.

But one of the things he also does is kill things. Mainly, anything that he can catch. Remember the armadillo's? That was this past spring, when the mornings were still nice a cool. Well, fast-forward through the WORST summer on record, one that included 90 days of 100+ temperatures!, to the first cold morning in a LONG, LONG time.

The family and I are inside cooking a feast of a breakfast. I step out onto the back deck to throw out some trash when I notice Quack alone at the pool. Now, our ducks are NEVER alone. The two of them are inseparable! They have become like a little clique around here lately, whispering and quacking their judgements on us :) So, I thought it was weird that Quack would be alone. I walked to the edge of the deck and noticed that Click had been mauled and was laying dead not 20 ft. from Quack.

I ran into the house (thinking the coyotes had visited us) to tell JL to get the shovel and a bag. We all stepped outside to inspect the situation when who should show up? A malamute with a mouth full of white feathers!!! ARG! Dang dog! He was quite pleased with himself. As if to say "look what I caught!!" Like it's a feat to catch a poor, flight-less duck that can only waddle and quack in defense! Still - Fergus was happy.

The rest of us took it pretty well. James' response "Well Mom, things like this happen when you live on a ranch." Izzy's response "Well, too bad for Click." Wyat's response "duck!" :)

What's worse than a cold morning with death? A second cold morning with death. Sure enough, the very next morning..... I lay in bed listening to Cogburn crow. In the distance I can hear Quack doing his quack thing. Not 2 minutes later, Fergus who was laying on the deck takes off running. I knew immediately what was about to happen! :( JL confirmed it, not 10 minutes later.

So, we are a duck-less ranch now. It's sad. I hate to lose any animal. Especially in a sense-less, and somewhat violent way. Poor things.

We've decided - no more fowl until Fergus dies. He's just too much of a predator! He's always been this way - I just underestimated him due to his age and crippled legs. But, he can still bring his A-game when he wants to.

In tribute to two silly ducks: We'll miss you!

This Isn't a Joke

How does something like this happen?
We get the thunder, the lightning, the clouds and impressive show. We just don't get the RAIN!
So we are forced to continue to do this.
And this.
JL and I walked the property a few weekends ago. We counted 42 trees (cedar elm) that we have lost. These are trees that we are 90% sure are dead. Our arborist told us not to cut them down until we make sure they don't come back this spring, but looking at them, I'm pretty sure they won't come back. That's 42! As in FOUR TWO! :(

This drought has been a big learning experience for us. I just hope the end is coming soon, because the few remaining elms we have left won't survive a dry winter.

In Memory

I am sad to report this morning that we have lost one of our adult hens. Serafina was found dead this morning in the red-mini coop. :(

When the flock went to bed, they were all happy and healthy. Near as I can tell, it was the heat that got her. The last two nights have been unusually warm around here, and this particular morning was muggy beyond muggy. Our guess is she either got smothered in the coop by the others on accident, or she simply couldn't take the heat.

I'm concerned about disease, but we cleaned the coop and found no traces as far as I could tell. We're going to keep a close eye on things though because if disease is the case, the whole flock could be in danger.

In the meantime, we are sad to lose Serafina. She was one of Izzy's hen's and the biggest one at that. She will be missed.

The Quiet

Have you ever owned a clock that chimed? Or a coo coo clock? You know how you sorta get use to the noise? After awhile, you stop hearing the chimes or the ticking? It just sorta blends into the background? You know it's there and sometimes you hear it, but for the most part it is just part of the soundtrack that makes up the house. But, if you have to take the clock in to get fixed and that noise stops, you miss it almost instantly and the house seems strangely quiet?

That's how our ranch is without our rooster. Quiet. Annoyingly still.

The silly little one-off that was part of our crew is missing and his absence is disturbing my calm. It wasn't a unique sight to see the five of us humans going about our chores outside only to be stalked around by a midget rooster. JL would wash the boat - Eckerd was near pretending to peck around for bugs. Me and the kids would be playing outside - Eck would be there kicking up mulch and cooing happily over whatever he found.

Can you mourn a rooster? I guess so. If he's become part of the family. Which, no doubt, ours clearly was.

In Memory

It is a sad day here on the Clover. We have lost our beloved Eckerd the Fathers' Day Rooster. :( He was tragically killed last night by Pancho (our Golden Retriever).

Turns out letting a bunch of kids chase a rooster around while a happy dogs plays along can end badly. While the humans went inside to eat dinner, the game apparently never stopped for Pancho. Eckerd took safety in his coop, only to be cornered by my big, goofy dog.

And it's weird because Eckerd thought he was a dog! Him and my two k-9's were best buds the last few weeks. They even slept side by side - each in their own wallows! I guess Pancho just got way too excited by the chase and couldn't help himself. :(

I am surprised at how sad I am by this event. Eckerd was just a bird! But he really wasn't. He was the first fun animal we bought to start our ranch! He was the first real farm animal that actually DID something. He kinda sorta represented what JL and I have been dreaming about for the past few years.

Eckerd was a huge part of our lives. He was always around us, he had the silliest personality, and he was just generally friendly. I hate to think of him leaving us so suddenly and unnecessarily.

Most of all I think Eckerd dying was just a cruel reminder of how fragile life really is. Just yesterday he was scratching in our mulch and crowing happily. How quickly things can change.



But, there will be others. And I'm afraid they will have to come quickly. I need something to fill this hole.