By the way...

I'm going on a trip today.

In preparation for this trip, here at Critter Farm....

I built a small cage, separate from my main chicken flock, to keep wandering Honey safe while I'm gone:

She hates it :

and looks at me mournfully when I walk by to check on her:

The donkeys got their feet trimmed. Chester was feeling especially helpful that day and assisted Justin, my farrier, while he worked on Beau's feet:

And speaking of Beau, would you just look at my boy! Gone are the days of sedation, bags of bribery carrots, and me standing by his side for comfort during his trims. He is such a star:

The chickens got a pre-trip treat of overripe tomato, apricot and raspberries:

And had fresh hay spread in their run:

My girl, Skippy, seems to be now fully recovered from whatever was ailing her a few weeks ago, and is laying about five eggs a week again. Impressive for a 3 1/2 year old hen:

The goats got a pedicure:

Pete and Reggie fought over who got to go first:

Pete won:

Then it was Reggie's turn:

I do get nervous when I leave the farm for any length of time. So, I always ask the animals to pitch in and do their part to keep things running smoothly.

Kai and Chester promised to stay vigilant while on cougar-watch:

Clyde told me he'd keep an eye on Honey whenever she was "out and about":

And George said he'd keep an eye on overall farm management. He's helpful like that:

Guess where I'm going?

Color me happy.

If I lose my way to the barn...

Or to the side porch (and my garden flip flops)...

Or if I need to quickly determine where Honey is spending her days:

And having her afternoon siestas:

All I have to do is follow the trail of feathers she has started leaving behind:



Poor girl.

Virtually every step she takes results in feathers flinging themselves from her body:

The annual molting that chickens go through around this time each year is such a strange thing. It seems bizarre and extreme, but it doesn't seem to phase them much.

Yesterday afternoon, I went to the garage to fill the dog food container. Five minutes later, I came back to a trail of feathers leading up to my front door and Honey, looking quite cozy, on the porch mat:

The funny thing is, with as many feathers as she has lost, she still doesn't look nearly as bad as some of my other hens. Spongebob, for instance, who is also a Buff Orpington like Honey, has completely lost her tail feathers:

And Thumper...

Well, poor Thumper is just a mess:

At the rate Honey's going, though...

She may be naked before too much longer:

But I'm sure getting some cool pictures:

I hope she knows how much I appreciate her efforts.

Cougar sighting -and- my day in 9 pictures

"Danni? Frank saw a cougar tonight," my neighbor said to me on the phone last night.

Frank is my neighbor's son, an avid hunter, who knows his animals. He spotted the cougar on the edge of our property line.

We've never had one so close. We thought our biggest threat was from coyotes and raccoons.

Do you know the rules about cougars?

Here are the "Guidelines for Living with Cougars": (as taken from the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife webpage):

If you live in cougar country:
•Learn your neighborhood. Be aware of any wildlife corridors or places where deer or elk concentrate.
•Walk pets during the day and keep them on a leash.
•Keep pets indoors at dawn and dusk. Shelter them for the night.
•Feed pets indoors.
•Don't leave food and garbage outside.
•Use animal-proof garbage cans if necessary.
•Remove heavy brush from near the house and play areas.
•Install motion-activated light outdoors along walkways and driveways.
•Be more cautious at dawn and dusk when cougars are most active.
•Do not feed any wildlife. By attracting other wildlife, you may attract a cougar.
•Keep areas around bird feeders clean.
•Deer-proof your garden and yard with nets, lights, fencing.
•Fence and shelter livestock. Move them to sheds or barns at night.

Needless to say, we locked the chickens up tight (as we do every night) in their Fort Knox of a chicken coop, Honey chicken was securely-secured in her dog crate on the side porch, and the goat boys, Pete and Reggie, were shut into their goat house (they complained bitterly about this).

After much deliberation, the donkeys and Kai llama were left in their pasture because of something a friend of mine mentioned to me: my barn is not secure. It has open cut outs for the windows and the door to the inside is a gate rather than anything that closes in a solid fashion. My friend, Linda, told me that "it is better to have them free to stomp or chase a predator than be trapped in an enclosure that a cougar might be able to get into with them." Hard to argue with that.

But I worried. All night. Jim had his shotgun loaded and under the bed. We left a window in our bedroom open. You know, so we could hear stuff. Thankfully, there was nothing to hear. All was quiet and well. And all animals were just fine this morning.

Frank says the cougars are just "passing through" this time of year....but that their "visit" could last seven to ten days. Ugh.

My day today was a little anticlimactic after last night, but this is how it went.

Roxy and I packed up and headed out:

I had lunch with my bestie from middle school:

Roxy loves Melissa almost as much as I do:

We then attended my sweet niece's soccer game. She's the cutie in the neon goalie shirt:

Roxy and my mom's dog, Wolfi, teamed up and gave a feisty terrier the evil eye(s):

My handsome nephew finally smiled for my camera:

My other gorgeous nephew delighted in being the boss of Roxy for a few minutes:

I later participated in a meeting where consensus was reached. (How awesome is it when this happens?!):

I got back to the farm and realized how happy it makes me to be here:

And then I promptly locked everyone up again so they'd be safe from the cougar.

The End.

October, so far

Here are just a few amazing things I've seen this month...

A spider with the most incredible long legs:

My donkey, Chester, giving a Critter Farm visitor the biggest face kiss I've ever seen:

Roxy, my farm pup, trying really hard to relax knowing that George the Unpredictable is lying right behind her:

My barn, all ready for the wet season(s), fully stocked with 1 ton (50 bags) of stall bedding (there was a great sale at my local farm store, yay!):

A naughty donkey, momentarily losing his mind and forgetting that, on Critter Farm, we try to be kind to everyone:

What an empty stall bedding bag looks like crammed full with three years worth of hay baling twine:

And how pretty it looks in a recycling bin:

Catching Clyde, mid-descent, in his jump from the bird bath:

My beautiful llama, Kai:

And we're only half way through the month!