Another Week

It's sad. I realize that all my posts lately have been pretty much strictly chickens!!  I guess that's all my life is right now, or all worth photographing at least!

I did clean up some of my garden this week. There's a tree at the north end of my garden which I decided i'm going to plant a bunch of flowers all around it. Like a wildflower patch! And just hope they grow. But i'm feeling doubtful considering it was waist high of weeds last summer...
I started throwing out cow patties out of my garden. Most people Want manure, but I don't! I believe that the manure in my garden last year was too strong, causing death to beans, carrots, onions, peas, etc. I'm secretly hoping that my garden didn't do well last year because it hadn't been touched in Years. Let's hope.
I take my dog for walks everyday and one day this week there was a cow and her calf right where we wanted to go. I know better to let a cow-eager dog get near a cow+it's calf! This particular cow was Pet. You can Pet her. But not when there's a dog involved. We just took a walk a different way.

This is Pet.

Love getting photos of this little munchkin! 

I think they're remembering the head scratches I gave them when they were brand new.

Soak in the sunshine

Myrtle doesn't like pictures. I'm also terrified she's going to fly into my face!

I convinced Jed to make a temporary roost for the chicks. They like it! Each day it seems like more pile on. It's a tad too big for their claws but considering how fast they grow they'll be fine!

And then there's one that sleeps in the feeder.

                

Week on a Ranch

This week spring really came. Nearly all the snow is melted, and I've even spotted some green weeds! Everything is muddy muddy muddy and wet. It's 'supposed' to rain/snow tonight so I can hardly wait to see how mucky it gets. Not. I'm beyond ready for spring and summer. Here, it'll be cold and snowy for a week and then warm for 3 weeks, and then cold again and then warm. So instead of having ONE spring, you get like 3 springs. UGH.

Curious calves

I was walking the other day and slipped on ice which was under a puddle and fell straight to my butt/back. It didn't hurt. However, I came inside to change and realized I stunk EXACTLY like a cow pie. When you live on a ranch, pretty much anywhere you fall, especially in the spring, you are guaranteed to be falling into a puddle of manure/pee and even afterbirths all mixed together. It was gross.

Brought one of the stinkers inside..for like 1 minute

Saturday morning breakfasts are my favourite

Bottle feeding a bum calf! It's mom had twins and she only accepted one. However, a cow lost her calf last night so we'll be grafting this one!

Showing me how it's done-notice Dan the dog?

Ready for sumer!

The Week

This week was fairly fairly cold. Which is fine. Except when you're calving! The calves are wet when they're born so they can freeze so quickly. Their ears are first to freeze and then their feet. We were checking cows almost hourly just to make sure we didn't miss one. If they're born on the hay, they're a little bit better than being born on snow/ice. Once they're born they have to be carried into the shop into a heater for 3-6 hours or so. At one point (at like 11pm, OF COURSE) there was 2 calves in one heater, one in another heater, one that had been in the heater already but wasn't fully dry so he was barricaded by the boiler, and then 2 more in half of the chicken coop! Too many calves. The cows all seemed to wait until the evening to calve.  Between 6pm and midnight there was about 7 calves born! Crazy. We spent the week hauling calves in, and then out, cleaning stalls, pens and shelters, feeding them and then napping when we could! Or Jed at least. He's the master of napping.

Sneaking in a nap...he can sleep ANYWHERE

This little fella nearly froze his ears off so he
got a pair of homemade earmuffs for the time being!

I also got to bottle feed him to give him some energy to nurse

 I checked in on the chicks every chance I could, or whenever I wanted...They're in a box, in their coop in the shop. So they are well protected from wind and cold etc. However, the shop isn't fully insulated and the coop isn't fully done. We threw a space heater in there and moved the other light we had so they could keep warm.
They've grown up so fast...ok, maybe not grown UP, but grown.  I fed them a mashed up boiled egg which they went nuts over! No, that's not cannibalism because no one died for the egg, just so you know!
We also managed to sneak up to Miles City to get Jed's taxes done...it's always 'good' for us to get out, stock up on groceries where it's a little bit cheaper and eat some delicious Mexican food, of course!

Eggs Benedict for supper!

Made rolls one night

Drifted...we don't have that much snow out there :)

Gave the chicks an attachment! 

Trying to tame them