The animals arriving. . .
I tried waiting for the fence until I got a dog but could not stand it. In September, the family dog of 14 years had to be put down and I was miserable. She was mainly my dog and so, with the weight of everything in my life, I needed a companion. During Christmas college break, my older daughter and I went to the SPCA and chose a black/white tuxedo female dog Friday, December 9th. The dog could not come home with us until she got fixed, which was then set up for the coming Monday. We picked the dog up from the shelter and took her home. This poor dog did not know us, nor trust us and had just been cut open and fixed. I am amazed she never hurt us. I named this dog Baffle--special meaning for me. She has become my guardian and is extremely protective--30 pounds of fury if needed.
Baffle her first night in her new home.
Well, I had also wanted a cat. I had my old cat with me but she was literally on her last legs. I received an email regarding needing volunteers to care for feral cats that were going to need 10 days of care while recovering from being spayed/neutered. The county had gotten money to trap the feral cats at the fairgrounds and needed people to care for them. And the cats could be adopted if someone wanted one. I told the people I would help care and if there was a female black/white tuxedo cat, she was mine for a pet, no matter what. Lo and behold there was--I became the new owner of a feral cat.
Now for any who have heard the term feral and think stray--THINK again. A feral cat is not a stray cat. Two main characteristics distinguish them. A stray cat is a cat who is not too far gone from liking man in the sense it wants to be with humans. A feral likes humans only for what it might get from them and is not really wanting to be near them. (And no, it is not because the animal is a cat.) The other trait is ferals are quiet--they must be in order to survive. Regular cats/strays will 'talk' to humans as they do this to interact with us. I named my new cat, Pinch as her name has a special meaning for me as well. This was January.
In February, a friend found a puppy and asked me to come see it. I said no. She begged me to. So I went to look at the puppy--a black/white tuxedo female puppy. Guess what I did? I took her. She was 6 weeks old at the time. Her name became Addi meaning Additionally or Additional as I did not plan on a second dog and so did not have a name in mind.
In March, I bought chickens from Tractor Supply. I had been working on the chicken coop/run and so I knew it was getting time to get my chicks. I wanted Australorps and TS had them. I was allowed to choose my own--I chose 5 boys and only one girl. This was only discovered weeks later as the boys started to show their differences. I live in the city limits so can only have girls and supposedly only 4 at that. However, I was not daunted as I had mail ordered 10 chicks that were guaranteed to be girls. How cool it was to go to the post office and collect my box of day old chicks. Wild.
Here are the TS chicks in a tub in my formal room. I could close the door and so I thought I would be fine. I am allergic to birds. The birds eventually had to go outside to the garage. After their true feathers came in, I moved them outside to the chicken area. (Pictures in another post as I will show the development of the coop/area.)
Thus the farm in May had 2 dogs, one cat and 16 chickens. I was off to a good start, perhaps too good?
Well, I had also wanted a cat. I had my old cat with me but she was literally on her last legs. I received an email regarding needing volunteers to care for feral cats that were going to need 10 days of care while recovering from being spayed/neutered. The county had gotten money to trap the feral cats at the fairgrounds and needed people to care for them. And the cats could be adopted if someone wanted one. I told the people I would help care and if there was a female black/white tuxedo cat, she was mine for a pet, no matter what. Lo and behold there was--I became the new owner of a feral cat.
Now for any who have heard the term feral and think stray--THINK again. A feral cat is not a stray cat. Two main characteristics distinguish them. A stray cat is a cat who is not too far gone from liking man in the sense it wants to be with humans. A feral likes humans only for what it might get from them and is not really wanting to be near them. (And no, it is not because the animal is a cat.) The other trait is ferals are quiet--they must be in order to survive. Regular cats/strays will 'talk' to humans as they do this to interact with us. I named my new cat, Pinch as her name has a special meaning for me as well. This was January.
In February, a friend found a puppy and asked me to come see it. I said no. She begged me to. So I went to look at the puppy--a black/white tuxedo female puppy. Guess what I did? I took her. She was 6 weeks old at the time. Her name became Addi meaning Additionally or Additional as I did not plan on a second dog and so did not have a name in mind.
In March, I bought chickens from Tractor Supply. I had been working on the chicken coop/run and so I knew it was getting time to get my chicks. I wanted Australorps and TS had them. I was allowed to choose my own--I chose 5 boys and only one girl. This was only discovered weeks later as the boys started to show their differences. I live in the city limits so can only have girls and supposedly only 4 at that. However, I was not daunted as I had mail ordered 10 chicks that were guaranteed to be girls. How cool it was to go to the post office and collect my box of day old chicks. Wild.
Here I am with my box of chicks. Below are the chicks in a dog crate in the garage--An FYI, the little buggers fit through the bars and will escape. However, they freak out when they are separated from their sisters so, funny how they then start to really cheep. I had learned to count to 10 every time I checked the baby birds.
Thus the farm in May had 2 dogs, one cat and 16 chickens. I was off to a good start, perhaps too good?
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