Peeks the Goat Herding Peacock

I am happy to report that our peacock, Peeks, is secretly a genius. Maybe it hasn't been a secret, but we've been too stupid to notice until a few weeks ago. He has always tried to fight with the goats by antagonizing them through the fence, and at times he has flown around chasing them -- both behaviors which piss us off since he's acting like a bully. However, we recently observed that when the goats and Sheepy are out and about, Peeks doesn't just randomly chase them... he herds them.

That's right, our peacock is like the piglet in Babe. I first recognized the behavior when I realized that Peeks was bunching the goats together then chasing them away from the chicken hens. I don't know if he thinks he's protecting his harem (yes, he's always trying to woo the chickens by shaking his fanned out tail feathers), his territory, or is helping us, but there is certainly a method to his madness.

While we don't have an exact video of him rounding up and moving out with the goats, here's a glimpse of how he works:

And here's Tumnus coming to say hi!

Hi Tum Tum!

And here is Sparrow's eye.

And here is Sparrow decorated for the Memorial Day Parade.

And here are two marvelous dogs I met at the festival following the parade.


I'm glad Michelle Obama is promoting the idea of growing your own produce in a little backyard garden. If everyone did that, not only would America be healthier, but people would be saving money. Here's just a glimpse of our chard harvest from a few weeks back. It made a delicious side dish and is full of blood-building goodness.


And here is a very strange video. While sitting out on the deck, petting Comanche and Black, Black became very... friendly with Cheech. See for yourself.

Black has been losing weight and slowing down for nearly a decade now, but this past week or so he's been less annoying than usual and has been spending a lot of his time curled up and napping. I know that he's 16 and has lived a long, good life, but I really hope that he isn't preparing to leave us yet. Life without that black communist would be terrible.

Mackenzie's Momma -- Poor Chee Chee! I love the dejected groan he emits at the end of the clip. And I totally understand not wanting to get rid of a special blanket. Years ago, I tried to stuff mine in a ziplock then put it in the garage, but felt guilty and pulled it out, so now I have a dusty old rag of a baby blanket hidden away in my room. I don't know what I'll ever do with it, but for now it can stick around!

the other amanda -- Let me know when you get the chance to watch it! I know you'll enjoy Keller's scenes. ;)

Spring Cleaning... Animal Style

These pictures are from a week or so ago because my camera recently fell and caught the "lens error" disease. I don't know if it's worth the money it will cost to send it in for repair or if I should just buy a new one, but in the meantime, I have no camera. I'll either have to steal pictures from my sis or post about old stuff.

Anyway, here are some pictures of Toot and Chee getting their baths and spring trims in an attempt to stop them from picking up pickers in their fur. Chee Chee has already had several burrow into his skin. :(

Teyla doesn't know what's about to happen...

Cheech senses that something's up...

Getting much of his fluff shaved off

Poor Toot being "tortured"

Drying off

Recovering. The poor thing was so distraught that when I'd give her a bone, she'd hold it in her mouth for a while then start to chew.

As a lab/retriever, Cheech doesn't mind getting wet as much as Toot does

Beautiful toesies

Slowly recovering from the trauma. But at least her white fur was white again!

The grass is now turning yellow, despite our May rains, but just a week or two ago, it was greener and the goats and Sheepy were out enjoying it. Alex tries to get them out a few times a week, just for a change of scenery, but they're always happy to go back into their safe pen.

Tumnus

Patch poses

Orangie. Don't let her innocent appearance fool you. She and Batilda Jr. escape the chicken run every day and waltz around the property like they own the place, digging up everything. What's worse, we get fly predators in the mail and sprinkle their eggs/flies on fresh horse poop because the predators eat the fly larvae and keep down the fly population. It's a natural way to control pests. But Orangie keeps coming along and eating the fly predators. I had a battle with her the other day and even Houdini helped me by blocking her off from reaching the poop. Then he got bored. Orangie won.

Sheepy
Yes, she's fat and needs a shearing

Peaceful for the moment. The goats and Sheepy tend to pick fights while grazing.

Like this. Cora is about to butt Sheepy!

Cora's hackles are still up!

Beautiful Patch (Cora's daughter and Tumnus' niece who is older than him)

Run, Tummy, run!



Yum
Tumnus in technicolor!


Beautiful Cora. You can see why she was a grand champion like her momma, Banana!

Houdini and Sparrow now have access to Mickey's stall. Houdini spent a lot of time bucking and prancing about with excitement, then bit everything (he's never lived in a wooden structure). The novelty has since worn off, but sometimes when Sparrow is in the stall and he can't see her, he whinnies and bolts, looking for her. I worry it's because after Mickey died, Dini often stared at his stall (he couldn't see inside), waiting for him to come out. But he never did. During these anxious bouts, Houdini skids to a halt a few centimeters from the door. A true quarter horse. And a total momma's boy.

Houdini looks like a hippo!

The vet came out yesterday to give Houdini and Sparrow their vaccinations and she said that they were both healthy. Sparrow is getting up there in age and has bad arthritis, but she loves to compete. The vet gave us some new medication to try, but was amazed at how sound she was despite her age and injuries. I think it's because of her spirit. She is a horse in the same make of Ruffian. She wouldn't show pain until it incapacitated her.

Houdini had a bad bout of sand colic when he was one or two. He rolled so much that his colon flipped over. He almost died and had to get emergency surgery and stay in a horse hospital for 2 weeks. Ever since, he has been terrified of vets and women in hats. So having the vet visit is always an ordeal that involves much kicking and thrashing.

Dini checks out the smoothness of a trash can lid

Yesterday, Sparrow was sedated a little so that her vaccinations would be more comfortable. Houdini was snacking on grass hay at the time, but while the vet was showing my mom how to inject her new medicine into her neck, Houdini noticed something was up and started smacking Sparrow with his head, trying to get her to react. Since she was sedated, she didn't. Worried, he trotted into the next stall and nickered as he touched her nose with his.

She barely responded and he began to grow anxious. Of course, by then it was his turn, so all the vet had to do was enter the stall with him for Houdini to become a firefoot. Luckily, the vet handed my mom the sedative then backed off, and while I held Sparrow nearby (in an attempt to keep him calm) , my mom quickly gave him the injection. After 15 minutes, his head and lips were hanging, the poor goof. The rest of his exam went well, and while I was worried he was fat, the vet scored him at a 5 (with 10 being obese) and said she couldn't hear any sand in his gut. That's a great relief given how big his tummy is and that we live in the sand and he's a fricking vacuum cleaner.

Mackenzie's Momma -- Your neighbor's dog sounds so cute! I should've guessed that you guys would also be the hangout for loose animals in the area. ;) And oh no! Yes, you must e-mail me the story. Do I need to beat someone up for you?

Baby Tumnus

Isn't he just the most adorable little guy??? He was bottle-fed because his momma, sweet Banana, died shortly after giving birth.

A picture of Tumnus when he was a baby, for Mackenzie's Momma. I'll write more soon, but for now, I'm enjoying an early spring day with blossom breath in the air and poems in my heart.