A Lovely Story

Okay, I was going to embed this video, but, frankly, I don't think I know HOW!

Here is the link to it, if I can't get it to embed. 

http://www.wimp.com/gooseman/ 

 It is about a 3 minute video with a remarkable story about a goose who has befriended a retired man in Los Angeles.  It is truly incredible. 

The thing is, Keith and I have seen this same thing happen here at Calamity Acres, so believe every bit of it. 

Here are some pictures that show the partnership we had here between pony and goose about five years ago... the pony is Beau, and the goose, Samantha. 

That was our tiny little pond that was filled in two years ago. 

She would groom him constantly when he stopped, whether eating or just laying in the pasture. 

Somewhere I have a picture of her picking straw from his mane while he was taking a siesta one day. 

They even ate together. 

Beau was about 32 in this picture. 

Sadly, we lost Samantha and her companion Tim to a predator.  Tim went first, then Samantha bonded with Beau.  I noticed Samantha walking oddly one morning, but over the course of the next few days, she valiantly followed her Beau around.  Then I found her dead one morning, picked her up to look at her more closely, and found she had been injured under her wing and it had become infected... I could not see the injury from the outside of her.  It was very sad to lose her, and we had marveled for weeks at this friendship. 

I hope you have time to watch the short film above.. it is truly worth it.  Animals are amazing! 

That's it for today from the snowbound Calamity Acres, where Mary Ann cannot get up her own driveway because it is such a mess! 

A Look Back

I have been looking back through some old pictures these last few days, and thought I would share some with you while I wait to replace my camera.

Here is Mama Llama, borrowed from my friend Joani, with the young cria Tony, now our stalwart guardian.

As you see, Tony was quite a little guy when he came here to live.  We borrowed him and his mother when we lost one of our geese to the coyotes.  That was the last one lost!

Mama trained Tony and Inca well, and her red cria, Yankee, whom we lost when he was gelded.

We were sorry to see her go home to Joani. 

Here are three of our happy ducks.  They gave us huge eggs, and were content to wander around the pasture.  They were so glad when we got the pond, the pond that would not hold because of the limestone ledge.  For a while they were able to swim and enjoy it.  I miss having ducks and geese.  I DON'T miss breaking ice in their fortexes all winter.

Here is Samantha, and her pony, Beau.  Something did get at Sam, and she suffered terribly while I tried everything to heal her wounds.  We don't know if it was a possum or what, but it hurt her.  She was inseparable from Beau, and groomed him constantly.  She was also a very gentle goose. Beau actually had a decent body weight here, a year before his death.

And lastly, here's the Nickster.  We lost Nickie a year later to a virus that the doctor could never discern... he had had all of his shots.  He loved being on the farm, the way he had loved being at the first Calamity Acres.  What a good boy he was! 

It doesn't make me sad to see these old friends, but happy to remember how we loved them and what pleasure they provided as we watched and interacted with them. 

I wanted to tell everyone tonight to be careful opening up Shabby

Blogs.. I run a firewall constantly and it warned me twice when I tried to open it a few days ago that there was Malware attached.  I don't know how to reach the blog owner to let them know, but am afraid to go there, though they have so many goodies for blogs.

Samantha, the Beautiful Goose

She was truly a beautiful goose. Probably not a purebred African since she came from the home of a person who does not separate her geese, but runs them all together, but to us she was a beautiful girl, and very tame. She loved her pony, Beau, and would often follow him around when the other goose (Timmy) and the ducks were busy at the pond or feeding in the pasture grass. She preferred to eat with Beau at his bowl, and they could often be found laying together.

When she was a little gosling, Donald, our demented call duck drake, chased her hard one day and ran her into the henyard fence, hurting her head and making it bleed. I despaired then, and thought we had lost our little gosling, but she held on and regained her strength. She and Timmy throve on the chicken feed and pasture grasses. They were overjoyed to find the little pond and began swimming on it with the ducks, and Tim began to look out for little Donald and his girls.

In time, we lost Tim to the coyotes, but Sammy went onto her nest and protected her eggs against all comers. We could not see how they could be fertile, but she believed it in her heart. We think, we guess, that that is how she became grievously injured two weeks ago, by some creature that came upon her in the high pasture grass and slashed at her. A raccoon? We have not seen any and don't know. Her wounds were too much, though, and last Sunday before church I found her, gone in the horseyard where she spent so many happy hours with Beau and Lacey.

On Saturday we had to put down a small chick of Dovey's, and have watched it's two siblings closely. They seem healthy, but are also both cockerels, so must be found homes for because we have too many as it is. We must keep Baby Rambo, who grows strong and brave in his dog pen with his mama and his two sisters. It is too early to determine what the five Silkie babies are.... but we cannot keep any more roosters than Rambo's last son. Someone here around us will get a ready-made farmer's yard package of cockerels and pullets to start them out on chicken-keeping in a few months.

In the meantime, we miss Sammy, and her honk. She spoke to me daily when I did chores, and I miss her conversations, honks to my comments to her. The Toulouse are nice geese, but Sammy had personality and was a pet, who is much mourned.

A Worry for the Weekend

Four days ago, I noticed Samantha, our beautiful African goose that we brought here a tiny gosling, standing quietly in one of the doghouses in the henyard. She didn't honk as she always does to me, but stood there oddly, bent over. Hurrying through chores before work, I spoke to her as I went by, but did not bend to look at her. It was not until the next day that I realized there was a nasty place on her right front breast. The feathers were hanging oddly, and she was still silent. I watched her walk under the little henhouse and hold her neck very, very still. I realized there was a wound there. Another day went by, and husband was out of town. I did not want to stress her out by chasing her, but realized something bad was going on. Last night he came home and kindly came out before changing to see what was going on with our lovely girl. As he picked her up he made a low-voiced comment.... look..... she had maggots in a wound that something had caused across her breast. I know she has not (maybe cannot) laid down in 4 days now, but she seems able to walk a little and also to drink a little and keep her bill clean. We soaked the wound with iodine and this morning, checking it, found all the maggots gone. There is a bad smell.... it scares me.... but we did not put her down because we want to give her a fighting chance. I see her now out in the horseyard with the other geese... and see that she is still holding her head oddly. My heart goes out to her... we will not let her suffer long, but we want to see if she can heal this terrible wound that we think a raccoon or possum made on her. Living in the country is sometimes not easy, we have had to put down injured birds and animals numerous times since moving here, but Sammy, if it happens, will get an honorable burial by Rambo and my bench at the pond, where she and Timmy and the ducks were so happy.

Yes, She DOES get Under the Pony!

Besides walking back and forth under Beau's belly,
Sammy also grooms his mane for him!

Hey! Scat! Don't go near MY DUCKS!!!!

Is Samantha following them, or is she CHASING THEM OUT!!!

It's Melting!

Well, despite the fact that we didn't get over 20 degrees today, the snow of yestermorn is beginning to melt a little. The outdoor animals had a hard day in the cold though, that was helped a little by the fact the sun shone. For the second day in a row, the chickens stayed in the chicken house, even with the pophole open, because they are smart birds and didn't see any reason to go out and troop through the snow. We loaded them up on feed and scratch and they did fine, to the tune of 8 eggs for us!

Even though it appears your blogger thinks only about her animals, it's not true. I have become a magazine addict, fueled by the fact that I work in the marketing department of an international corporation which advertises in many magazines. We get complimentary copies of most of those, and I have become a magazine hoarder. I force myself to recycle once a month, to try to keep the numbers down so that husband doesn't groan when I come in the door. I subscribe to a fair number, as well, and am lamenting the fact that two of my favorites, Mary Englebreit's Home Companion, and Country Home, have ceased to publish as of last month and this. They were little bits of beauty in this farm home which needs so much work done on it, and inspiration. The last issue of Country Home, in fact, was a very beautiful "keeper". As Susan Branch says on her website... what's next, Country Living? Say it ain't so!

I watched "Finding Neverland" last night after getting everything finished for the day. I am not a Johnny Depp fan, but I have always been a Peter Pan fan since a little child. I sobbed my way through the end of the movie, and then sat down after church this morning to find out the true facts of the J.M. Barrie/Peter Pan story. It was very interesting, and much literary license had been taken by the movie makers but in all, I think it was a good movie and made me appreciate Johnny Depp more than I ever have before. Would I go see his next movie? Ummmm no... but I might watch it on tv some Saturday night.

And what would ending the weekend be without more Pony/Gander pictures?

New Best Friends

New Best Friends
Originally uploaded by ksredhead

The temps went from teens at the beginning of the week to 67 today, Saturday, the last day of January. The horses had a great day, and the ducks/geese/chickens were all happy to be out in the sun.

Sammy gets straw off Beau

Sammy gets straw off Beau
Originally uploaded by ksredhead

Here is the remarkable symbiosis between pony and gander - Beau spent fifteen minutes picking straw, etc. off Beau's coat.

Sammy protects Beau and Lacey

Sammy protects Beau and Lacey
Originally uploaded by ksredhead

Sammy cleans Beau

Sammy cleans Beau
Originally uploaded by ksredhead

Sammy and Beau

The pasture pals

Beau and Sammy