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Category: Animals

  • Snakes and more snakes

    There was a small rat snake in the coop tonight — no more than 9 inches long.  It was light brown with dark brown blotches outlined in black.  I was looking at it when I heard the familiar sound of a tail rattling against the metal siding.  I didn’t see anything inside the coop, so…

  • Just Desserts?

    I went to gather eggs tonight and there was only one in the box.  And it was a real egg.  I had put 2 fake eggs in the box to encourage the hens to lay there and both of those fake eggs are mia. I hope it wasn’t Sadie.  And if it was her, I hope…

  • Chickens

    Fuck. I found a dead Cochin pullet in the run just now.  It looked like it had been pecked to death. What do I do now?  It wasn’t one of the other pullets that killed it.  It was one of the adult chickens.  Was it one of the roosters?  Was it one of the hens?…

  • Misadventures with Goats

    Last summer I got the idea in my head that it would be a good idea to get some goats.  I could put them in the vacant chicken housing, they would eat the weeds and all would be right with the world. I found someone who was selling 3 dwarf goats so I loaded my…

  • Genesis 2:19

    I think I have misunderstood that verse.  When I was a kid I thought it meant that Adam named this animal “cow” and that animal “dog” and the next “cat”. But that lacks poetry and a deeper meaning.  God intended Man to be the namer of animals, true, but not in the manner I thought. …

  • Solstice 2014

    Well fuck. Where to begin?  I’ll start with the moment and work backwards. I took the truck to run some errands.  Fifteen miles later I looked at the gauges and the oil pressure gauge was between the “n” of “normal” and the low mark.  As I watched, it continued to move towards the L.  I…

  • Thoughts on Livestock

    I decided to not get the peafowl or guineas this year.  I couldn’t afford them. and I had nowhere to put them. But next year!  I’m going to get the space set up for them now. Maybe convert the shed into a coop.

  • Thoughts on Ibsen

    It’s like Ibsen’s personality was split and shared among the 3 dogs I currently have. Scotty has Ibsen’s loyalty. Sadie has Ibsen’s playfulness and friendliness. Jasmine has Ibsen’s companion-ness.

  • Snakes in the Chicken Pen

    I just found the fourth fifth snake in the chicken pen tonight.  Hard to tell how long it was because it was coiled up in one of the nest boxes, but I’d guess around 2 feet.  I’m not sure what species of snake.  It was a dark olivish green with black blotches.  The belly was…

  • Saturday, August 17, 2013 ev

    After I let the dogs out this morning, I glanced through the kitchen window and saw something large and white on the other side of the backyard fence. I didn’t have my glasses on so I couldn’t see it clearly, but it looked like a large white bird. At first I thought that Bill or…