Things are Improving

Well, after a morning at nine below zero last week, and multiple mornings under ten degrees... we are back in the Land of the Living here. 

It was 24 this morning when I went out to do chores. 

It's been a rough January, friends. 

I lost my beautiful old boy Buddy, a week ago. 

I knew he was failing... Tuesday, he struggled so, but was still eating. 

I found him in a corner with a hen guarding him on Wednesday morning.

He stayed under the light most of Tuesday. 

I reached to stroke him on Wednesday morning, and I believe I saw him take his last breath. 

He was the best boy, had always been a great rooster and took good care of his flocks. 

I set him in the brooder pen for a few minutes before taking him out. 

I would have buried him, but the ground here is frozen still, and I put him in the pasture. 

The next morning, I went out and got him... I could not bear to have him dragged off. 

I disposed of his body another way. 

Wanda has been sleeping in the big hen house all month.  She has food and a water bowl in there, and had a litter box but I soon realized she was just GOING in the floor litter, so as soon as it is reliably warm, that whole house will be raked out and re-bedded.  She is still sleeping in there... she was playing with Bob, last night, who was on the porch just outside the pophole. 

This Wyandotte hen has been broody for three weeks... there are NO eggs under her.  None. 

I have thought about putting some eggs under her, but.... it has been too cold for one thing, and I do not need any more roosters, for another. 

Because, you see.... I have had to separate the two Indio Gigante roosters now. 

Big Bird and Little Bird were fighting... to the death.  Little Bird, here, is about an inch shorter than his brother.  He has a deformed leg, though, and walks with a hitch.  When he was about 8 weeks old, a black snake encircled him and tried to kill him, but I caught it and pulled it off him.  He has walked with a hitch ever since, but walks and can run lopsidedly.  

I let him out of this pen yesterday, and he marched straight across the yard to fight with his brother through the fenceline. 

He is back in the pen. 

And.... he's enjoying the good life.  He sleeps on the feed room side of the hen house, and has his own warming light. 

You can see he likes it. 

I carry him in and out, ditto, his feed and water.  

Still trying to figure out a long term solution, because, you see, I like him a lot. 

Rocket, the bantam Mille Fleur rooster, is the boss of the big hen house now that Buddy is gone. 

I am waiting to see how he and Little Bird react to each other. 

Buster, the Lavender Orpington rooster, is showing signs of the severe cold we have had. 

His comb and wattles have become frostbitten. 

Most of the snow has begun melting, but now we have The Mud. 

I am still getting eggs. 

I am giving away eggs right and left. 

I have had two heated cat beds connected in the barn all winter.

I didn't think anything had ever used them. 

I thought to put a camera out there the other day, and look what I caught. 

It was not 35 degrees, either... it was under 20. 

That heat lamp over the crate .... Mama the cat has laid under it on the top of the crate (Teeny  is there in the picture) or in the straw in the crate for the last two months. 

The barn has been livable, even through the bitter cold we had this month. 

It came at a cost, my electric bill was over 400.00. 

Oh, yes, after two weeks of bitter cold when no one came out... they're baaaacccckkkk. 

I saw one of the biggest I had ever seen the other night on my porch. 

I never, ever let Chico run out the door with his leash on at dusk. 

I was looking back through old pictures the other day, and found this. 

Those are the raised garden beds Keith built, and our hoop house, which he built in 2012. 

You can see even the home built house made our pepper and tomato plants go crazy, and they were planted in wine barrels, buckets and bins with holes punched in them. 

I had Ben take the rectangular beds out about four years ago, they were hard to mow in between, and hard to maintain, believe it or not. 

However... I am going to garden again this year, after giving it up last year. 

I miss it, and.... things are getting so expensive. 

My neighbors Linda and Garry gifted me some green beans and peppers last year that were just wonderful... so... I am going to have a garden plot tilled and hope to gift others with garden produce. 

I have my seeds ordered and bought already, and will get my seed starting setup operational here in another month. 

It's 41 here right now, and to me, it's like a miracle.  I have done so much slipping and sliding on ice in the last three weeks. 

I am carrying my phone constantly in case I fall. 

 I saw in the long range forecast that we may get some snow next weekend.... but the LONG long range forecast is for dry conditions here, and friends, we need rain. 

I am so grateful my well did not freeze up... and I have regular furnace and air conditioning maintenance and I had no problems during the cold snap... and Mid States Propane delivered on one of the coldest days of the year!  I'm just grateful to have gotten through the cold blast in one piece. 

Another picture from years ago... my beautiful Ranger boy laying at the front door with Winny and Windy the goats playing near him.  What wonderful times those were, before Keith got so very sick. 

I can look back on them and smile, though. 

Happy little faces looking in the window. 

It saddens me to think that those wonderful little goats are long gone... this was taken 12 years ago. 

I have sure had a good life here, though... and it makes me glad to think back on all of it. 

Stay warm and safe and healthy. 

 

The Cold January

Paths of ice through the snow.  We had just enough melting for several days, and they refroze and about killed me. 

This one, especially. 

The badly-sited brooder house that I bought last year lays behind the old garage on the property... the original house was on this south end... and next to the barn, because it was cheapest to run the electricity from here.  It is dangerous in bad weather... everything you are looking at is a layer of ice. I spread cat litter on it to try to get some grip.  The back door (where the red bucket is sitting) froze in the worst of the storm last week, and I had to brace the door shut with a fence pole. 

We'll come back to this. 

My guardians have been coming daily. 

Yesterday and today, though, in the bitter cold, they have stayed in their aerie, which I think is down on the treeline near Tonganoxie. 

The starlings finally found my feeders on Saturday. 

They have only been here in small numbers today.  Oddly, I was kind of glad to see them so they could clean up the sunflower seed on the ground. 

It is nine degrees out there right now, and the wind has been blowing all day.  It's awful to be out. 

My girls in the barn are getting through it, thank God. 

That's Mama and Cleo.  

Teeny still sleeps in the straw filled wood stove, even though 

there are two heated cat houses in there. 

I have a heated dog bowl for water. 

This morning, for the first time, I lifted the water fount in the old henhouse, and the lid felt frozen onto it.  Last winter I had fewer birds in there, and I have a deep dog bowl to use if I have to... but... they get so full of debris. 

I have heater bases under all the metal founts. 

We have two more days of this terrible cold to get through, then back to the thirties and forties. 

I'm seeing lots of crows, too. 

I would say about 60% of the snow has melted, but... now we are below freezing for another two days at least.  At least I am not going through 16 inch drifts. 

This happy little dog, Mr. Floofy Ears, aka Chico... has been here exactly one year today.  He was brought here last year on a snowy day with cold temps. 

He has been a blessing to me, even though we keep having to get up and go out at night here lately. 

Bob is still here but wearing on my patience lately. 

(you see the driveway has melted quite a bit) 

My dear old rooster Buddy, in the background standing in the sun here, 

put himself into the little hen house a week ago, and then stayed in there.  He normally was king of the Big Hen House.  He is having trouble walking and getting up the stairs, his feet are missing many toes. Buster, the younger rooster in the foreground, left him alone. 

This morning, he was huddled under the warming light with a couple of older hens in back in the big hen house.  I'm going to drop it down a few inches when I do evening chores. 

Wanda was so glad to get out on Thursday, Friday and Saturday, but she was 

glad to go back in last night.  I think it may be Wednesday, maybe Tuesday, until it's warm enough for everyone to come out again.  

They hate the snow. 

These beautiful birds in the Brooder House, Igor the rooster and the two La Fleche hens, the two Putih Ayam Cemani (white) hens, and the two Bielefelder hens have gone to live with a friend from Fort Leavenworth. 

Negotiating the frozen walkway between the garage and the hen house was increasingly hard, and I took my life in my hands every time I did it in the last two weeks.  I carried my phone religiously, but if I had fallen it might have been hours before I was missed.  I finally realized I was really taking too many chances, and I mentioned to my friend that I had some birds to rehome, and he was interested.  He came Friday to pick them up, and I gave them to him gladly, knowing they would have a good home. 

I miss them dreadfully, remember, I raised them from day old chicks... but it has been a blessing not to have to walk back there.  Igor was one of the best roosters I have ever raised. 

I have some plans for the brooder house, but for now, it sits empty, it's water empty, it's food dish removed, and the lights out... waiting for spring. 

Everyone take care in this weather that is hitting our nation on all sides. 

 

BRRRRR! The Polar Vortex has Returned!

That was the view from my front door last Sunday, January 4. 

The storm started the afternoon of January 3rd. 

That was looking out towards the deck... I had tried to shovel a path, it was too soon. 

At least fourteen inches settled on the deck... I did manage to open a  path... and have used it all week. 

I have paths through the yard, but oh, the drifts were HORRIBLE. 

On Saturday and Sunday, during the worst parts of the blizzard, I went out to refill wild bird feeders and take care of my chickens at least six times each day. It was hard.

That is what my parking area looked like on Monday morning.  As you see, Bullseye went out... looked at the deep snow, said "Ooops" and ran right back inside. 

I managed to open up a tiny path and lo and behold... My neighbor Garry and his brother appeared in a Polaris with a blade!  They scraped a good path down my very, very long drive and over to the old hen house, which made my chores on that side so easy (!) this week. 

(What I forgot to tell you is that the car had no heat or defrost for a week, and the dealer could not get it in.  I had a tarp across the windshield to keep it from icing too badly. 

It was fixed on Friday in Tongie at the garage there, and I have HEAT again. )

Then Garry got out and shoveled enough snow that I could get to the car. 

I am so grateful to them. 

As of today, Sunday the 12th, the chickens have been in ten days.  I did open the door to the covered yard of the brooder house today to see if they wanted to come out in the air... 

the answer was... Uh, NO. 

And...I found possum tracks in the covered area... I think it has been under the hen house.  I may go out there this evening (at 4) and find it in the warm hen house with the chickens. 

This is not to say I have not gotten eggs all week. The rockstar Rhode Island Reds and Indio Gigantes did me proud.  There were actually nine for two days (all nine hens laying), one was in the closet. 

I have given away nine dozen eggs in the last three days. 

I am very, very disappointed in the Columbian Wyandottes, and would not raise them again, I get very few eggs from them. 

Yes, I know it's winter. 

I would gladly add more Rhodies and a few Marans. 

Having said that, I have come to understand that I am not going to be able to use the 

brooder house I bought last year another winter.  

Shoot, I did not know we could not load videos from our phones anymore thru Blogger, or I would show you.  I'll take some pictures out there when I do chores and you will see. 

When I bought the house, I intended to put it near the water pump, and near the large and small hen houses on the west side of the yard.  The cost to trench electricity from the barn came out at 4,000.00, and yes, you read that right.  I said no.  We ended up siting it just south of the garage, and next to the barn on its east side, to bring the electricity over.  Be aware of this if you buy a pre-made, and it is not wired, and keep in mind your costs to connect to electricity. 

There is about two feet of clearance between the garage and the brooder house.  It drifted DEEPLY and I had to shovel it in frigid circumstances.  The door froze and I had to shut it all week with a fencepost braced on the barn, until it thawed yesterday.  There are six hens and a rooster in there, but... I am going to have to re-home them, I think.  They are the hens who get out through the fence almost daily... and... this carrying water in bad weather (and carrying feed) has proven very hard for my seventy four year old bones. 

So. Many. Memes. 

We were indeed, closed, all highways were closed and it was terrible driving. 

I was home five days straight, and finally got out for birdseed and feed. 

My two youngest grands were out of school all week... they were supposed to go back on Friday, but there was freezing rain. 

Precip again Thursday night.  Yes, there were moments of beauty. 

I'm over winter. 

I have spent a fortune on wild bird food, and I'm not kidding. 

I'm embarrassed to admit how much.  I am trying to let them clean up some of the sunflower this afternoon. 

Wanda is living in the big hen house for the time being.  It is 34 out right now, and I would let her out... but I am afraid I could not get her back in. 

Our weather is diving tonight, and we will be up and down all week. 

If we could get a little bit of melting, I would consider letting some of the hens out, but... I don't think it will possible this week. 

The two warming lights in the barn, along with the heater and heated water dish, have kept everyone in there (three cats) safe for the week, better than I expected, in fact.  (That's Mama in the picture) 

I have not been dumping cat food into the bin at night like I usually do, I figure anyone struggling in this weather deserves a meal. 

(possums or raccoons) 

NOT KIDDING. 

And now... the pictures everyone was waiting for...

That is a bird bathing in my heated basin in the yard.  BATHING. 

It was about ten out at the time. 

I managed to dig the basin out two days later.  

I have another fortex of water out there I dump at night. 

I have seen a LOT of these guys, a whole murder, in fact. 

And these guys, who don't come in fair weather because the cats would get them. 

Three have been coming and I bought peanuts for them especially. 

It was sure beautiful, if you were not a little creature trying to survive. 

So many cardinals, and I am not kidding.  Probably seven pair out there one evening... they are always the last at the feeders so I put extra peanuts out for them. 

I just stopped typing long enough to go put more peanuts outside and the squirrels came down out of the maple almost as soon as I did. 

The joke is on me... I am watching one eating right now at the foot of the maple, and he is eating sunflower seed with a pile of peanuts next to him! 

Beauties. 

Stranger Creek valley to the east of me. 

Finches trying to eat during the storm.  They are on the balcony rail outside my window. 

Even the eagles looked cold.  

Saturday, Sunday and Monday, they must have been in their aerie. 

Tuesday, they were back on the comm tower. 

The wind was blowing their feathers. 

Looking opposite directions. 

Click on the pictures to make them bigger. 

And... just so you know... Chico runs up and down the plowed driveway to do his business, dragging his 20 foot long leash and MAMA right behind him.  He is not going to be eagle bait. 

I was standing at my back door, which is in my bedroom, trying to take these pictures with the camera and heavy lens, and freezing to death... I did not get very good ones. 

I love these majestic birds.  They were here this morning, but a friend stopped to get eggs about 2:30, and they were gone.  To see them in the air is to feel your heart in your throat. 

My friend Kim, who lives here in Leavenworth County, and her husband Mark, raise cattle.  They have had a week like me.   

She posted this last night and I laughed my head off.  

My feelings, exactly!

Stay safe out there, friends!  

And those who are in California... my heart goes out to you and yours for your terrible losses. 

I am joking about winter, but I am so very, very blessed, and I know it.