Help Help H E L P!

This morning after I had let the dogs out and let the chickens out and everything was going smoothly. I was reading the paper, watching the news, drinking coffee; you know, the relaxation stuff. I looked out the window and saw the horses coming into the pasture. Okay. So every now and then I glance up and look out the window. I noticed Poppet kept looking toward the house. I thought maybe something was out there after my chickens, so I go out the back door and I hear Sissy's little squeaky voice.

I had set a trap last night to catch a opossum, if any was out there. I bait the trap with cat food. Poor little Sissy is always hungry. So, see what happens. After I found her, I wouldn't let her out

because I wanted to go back and get my camera. Needless to say, she didn't think that was a very good idea. After I opened the cage, she immediately backed out.

She is just pacing around, wagging her tail, barking and panting. I am sure she was going "whew!"

After we get back in the house, she runs and gets in the little bed, still panting. "That was really close"

Chili on the Hunt

I hate you mieces to pieces. I am sure this is not the correct spelling, but you get the idea, right? These are pictures I took at the barn Wednesday. Chili is in the stall with the hay. I feel quite sure she is looking for mice. She has caught one before. Oscar is really good at catching mice also, but he was looking for cats. If the cats wouldn't run, the game would be over.

Chili is down in the hole between the bales. In the last picture, you can't see her there either, but she is in the hole that goes to the right. She had a lot of fun hunting. She doesn't always go with me to feed the horses; it was a pretty day, so why not.

Out at the Barn

I took some pictures of the inside of the barn while feeding the horses today. This barn is really, really old. My father didn't know how old it is, and he would have be ninety-two this year. You see OLD, right? I'm standing at the back of the barn; the first picture is stalls where the cows were fed and milked. That very first stall is where I tried to milk a cow when I was just a little girl. That cow kicked the fool out of me and that was it.

The stalls on the right are for storage and stuff. The first two have a floor that is about two feet off the ground.

Sissy is standing at the back gate and to the left is Poppet's stall, where she happens to be eating right now. I am using my IPhone or the horses would be stampeding me right now.

I went around to the outside door to get this picture of Poppet eating. The sun is shining on me so the picture is not real good.

Now that we're through, time to get a little water.




This is Poppet's stall; the bin on the right is for hay, but on pretty nights I take their hay out behind the barn. Suki's stall is like this on the other side. I'll get pictures of the loft another time.

Time to eat our hay and call it a night.

New Bed for Sissy

Let me see, which bed do I like the best.

Sunday Johnny, my brother, decided that maybe the dog bed he had was bigger than Chili's little fru-fru bed. I think that is debatable.
She does seem to like the little bed, though.

She decided to lay on the cool floor for awhile. She is well insulated; not only with hair, but she is pretty porky also.

That is why we have to cool off on the floor.

Foggy

The fog is rolling in.

Poppet and Suki are just grazing along; that is until they say my camera flash go off. I don't know if you can tell, but they are definitely cued in on me.

It got worse, but I couldn't get another shot; just too dark.

Chicken Surprise

See the large one with the red wings; I named her Norma when I got her in November. I believe Norma is actually a Norman. This was suppose to be a pullet; but judging by IT'S size I would guess not. It's large and got the curly tail feathers. However, if it is a Norman, I'm not sure he knows it. I have never seen it try to mate with a hen nor does it crow. This chicken should be about six or seven months old. I just don't get it, but neither does it.

This is my little baby. She was a week old last Wednesday. I think I took this picture on Friday. She is growing and somehow surviving from all she has been through. Oscar almost got the mom one day last week. I was not happy with Oscar.

Eggs and golf balls. I think I ended up with seven eggs this day. They use these three nest and two in the shed. I got eight eggs today, but that was because I got only three yesterday. Could have been because they were afraid of the strange dogs; another story.

Wordless Wednesday

More Snow Pictures

Since this happens only once every five or six years, I have to make the best of it. Remember the one little Biddie. Well, I open the shed, where the mom and baby had spent the night, and went to open the hen house. I heard a lot of squawking and when I looked back the hen and flown across the snow to reach the dry area under the pine tree. She just left the baby.

It peeped for a second or two and then started running to the hen.
The hen took only a few steps to meet the Biddie. Then they got back under the pine tree.

The other chickens didn't like the snow either. They would just walk from dry area to dry area as best they could.

Skylar loved it. Duh, Border Collie. And Taz, the little black poodle, loved it.

Chili did alright with it also. She would scoot around and sniff and see what all was going on.



Taz likes to run; wide open. He is just zipping along and his ears are straight up.

This is one of my favorite pictures of the horses. They are doing their best to find the grass.

This is up at my brothers pond. I did enjoy the snow. Most of it was melted by Friday night. But there again, we didn't loose power and still enjoyed the snow sites.

The Ice Age

Cute, huh. I tried several times trying to get a picture of a Cardinal at the feeder. Every time I would go out, it would fly off. Finally, I caught it. Isn't it pretty? When enlarged, it almost looks fake because it is so bright.

This vehicle came into my view right at the wrong time.

Poppet and Suki were frisky and spooked this morning, also. Every little sound and they would take off running. I couldn't even get them to come get an apple. And they REALLY like apples. It was a fun morning.

One Baby Chick

The sad news is that there was two. Today she came out with two. I had been gone and when I got back she was outside with the babies under her. I ran in after the camera. I don't know exactly what happened, but when I got back out she was chasing another chicken off. I only saw one baby. After looking, I found the other one. I think she had run over it and killed it while chasing away a dog or another chicken. I could have just cried.

But we (she and I) have one left. She better do a better job with this one. It's black with a little white dot on the top of it's head.

Isn't it the cutest little bitty thing.

I get so nervous watching her because I'm afraid she is going to hurt it or let another chicken hurt it. What to do?

The barred rock, the black and white one right next to her, is really the mother. She laid two eggs in the nest that mother hen had been setting on. Surrogate, right?

First Spring Flowers

They are just beginning to bloom. These narcissus flowers. These are the little bitty ones with a powerful smell. Only a few so far. Of course, while I am concentrating on taking the picture of the flowers, did I notice the stuff on the table. No. That is part of blooms from my lime tree. I had to bring it in so it would not freeze. This will be the last year that I can bring it in. Thankfully, it is beginning to grow. Anyway, back to the flowers.
Hopefully, there will be more. It is going to be really cold the rest of the week with possible snow Thursday night and Friday. That is okay, it will not be as cold as it was before. TWELVE degrees. After all, this is Louisiana.