Fisher Attack

If you don't know what a fisher is - well, it's in the weasel family but more like a wolverine. Nasty creatures, big teeth! They really don't have any natural predators except for humans.... and my big white dawgs! In the wee hours of this morning, under cover of darkness, one of these viscous creatures decided it wanted to dine on a superb chicken dinner at the Davis cafe. We free range the broiler chickens on the lawn and they're just about ready to process. So I suppose the thought of a 7 or 8 lb. meaty bird was just what this fisher had in mind. We close the gate at the house end of the driveway and leave Gabriel, our big male Pyr, out in the yard for their protection. Libby, who is only 4 months old, was in the front pasture with the does (female goats) and Remi, our female, was in the lower pasture with the bucks (male goats). Libby was the first to raise the alarm as the fisher stealthed its way down the driveway. Gabe rushed to the gate yelling "YOU! SHALL! NOT! PASS!" Remi came flying around the back of the pond to join Gabe, or as close as she could get at that gate. We did not lose one bird! The fisher obviously decided we charge too much for a chicken dinner and went to a cheaper diner. Libby, even as young as she is, has the makings of a fabulous guardian. She's got a big dog bark already, and she doesn't tolerate any nonsense from the local wildlife. I heard both Remi and Gabriel telling her, "Well done, Grasshopper!" 

"Well done,Grasshopper!"

"OK, OK, you did good kid. Now go away!"

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Making Friends

It's been quite a while since I've posted. A lot has happened recently and I hardly know where to begin. 

Let's see - in February I had the 2nd surgery on my right foot to fuse the big toe joint that got crushed about 4 years ago when a 4x8 sheet of plywood fell on it from about 3' up. Ouch! Spent about 2 weeks on the couch with my foot up, then had a walking boot for 3 months. Meanwhile, all the grandkids moved out. Talon was sold to a vacation farm place in PA. Apparently city folk will actually pay to muck stalls and milk goats. Who knew? They also bought the saddle that I'd had made for him. The round pen was sold a few weeks ago, then last week the horse trailer was sold. A few weeks back someone came to buy 1 goat and ended up with 5 goats and 4 pigs. So - we're down 3 grandkids, 1 horse and saddle, 5 goats, 4 pigs, 1 horse trailer, 1 round pen and, oh yes, we sold our van today. Now I've got to list a treeless saddle and pad, and a few miscellaneous horsey type things, on Ebay. I'm also selling a few ADGA registered Nubian does if anyone's interested.

We did, however, buy an LGD puppy known as a Colorado Mountain Dog, which is kind of a cross of Great Pyrenees and Anatolian Shepherd. She's 8 weeks old and about the cutest thing this side of a baby panda. Introducing Libby, short for Liberty Bell: 

She's not old enough to be with the goats yet because she has to get over the jumping/biting stage and get big enough so she can fend off butting goat mamas. But she's sectioned off in a place where she can see them but can't get to them, or them to her. There's quite a bit of curiosity at the gate.

"Want to play? Oh, come on, I won't nip much!"

"Hey, what's going on in here?"

Gabriel has been the one to accept her first, allowing her to sleep with him and eat alongside. It's tough for a pup to become one of the pack. Remi, on the other hand, thinks she's about as annoying as a giant gnat! It's going to take a while before Remi gives her stamp of approval, but I'll bet they'll be playing before the end of the month.

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Kids, kids and more kids

This year's crop of kids is growing by leaps and bounds. They're 3 weeks old this weekend and they're about 3 times as big. Cuteness, cuteness and more cuteness. We had 6 kids from 3 does, and another 2 does due sometime in June. The secret in life is to find something that brings you joy. When I look out the window in the morning and see them all jumping, bouncing around, and climbing on everything, it starts my day with a chuckle. They run and run and run, just because they're happy to be alive.

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