Ragdollcatlady's Just a Little Patch of Weeds Farm journal

[Four Winds Ranch]

Thankfully, I don't have anything to disbud!!!
That is one thing I have never done, growing up, my Dad always did that with the cattle!

 

[ragdollcatlady]

Yeah, I think that is the worst part of having goats so far. I don't like to do it so I want to get good at it, therefore reducing the times I have to redo it and keeping it fast and effective.

We are getting ready for the fair. Jane, Reese and Stinkerbelle are going so they all got shaved up and except for Reese, since she already has hers, they got tattooed. Since I had the kit out, I did Nellie and Spell too. But then poor Nellie would not let me pick her up this evening. Normally I have to shove her off my lap 5 or 6 times a night.

Tomorrow we have to wash everybody, chickens and pigeons too, and cage them all so they will be ready for Wed morning.

We threw water bottles in the freezer for us and the birds, rounded up leashes and show collars, leg bands for chickens, walking sticks (I decorated them with sparkles and a charm just for fun.)

Oh yeah, Jane tried to rip my ring finger off the other day. Well, OK, not really, but she almost succeeded anyway. I was trying to grab her collar, but only my ring finger went through. She bolted and my finger was sprained, strained, something. I felt the pain in my arm several inches down. I didn't think too much of it til I was in the house later and my finger started to swell up. My poor DS almost panicked watching me try and get my ring off as my finger was changing colors like a chameleon. Luckily for me, I still had lard in the fridge from Wilbur. It worked like a charm. Then I went to wrap my hand to stabilize the finger for a little while, but DH had taken all the ace bandages out if the first aid kit some time ago. I didn't replace them, because he kept taking the new ones I put in there. He would use them to wrap his ankles while exercising...fine, but they are reusable. The whole point in keeping a new one in the kit is so you have a clean one for injuries right? I had to go buy one for my hand. Today the muscles are pretty sore. I guess Jane is taking her revenge for shaving her naked, tattooing her against her will and most grievously.....shaving off her beard! I guess I can sympathize, .....well sorta cause I don't have any tattoos.....or a beard.....and I think I would prefer to be clothesless in this hundred degree weather anyways....bu t well if she is mad about all that....she can blame DD for wanting t o take her to the fair... not my fault I say!

 

[ragdollcatlady]

First day of the fair went well. DD got second in poultry showmanship with her OEGB Queen Elizabeth (Elizabeth got 5th). Weird Altitude ( Faverolle ), JJ (faverolle/cochin), Hannibal (showgirl) won second in their classes. Chubbs (call drake) won 1st, Reuasseau and Bullpup (pigeons) won 1st and Skittles (pigeon) won 2nd. Soren didn't place (silkie) because of her color. She is a blue partridge so IDK. Our meatpen chicks were DQ'd because they were underweight too. But we don't have the heart to confine them to keep them from exercising so much.....sooooo.....DD and I just shrug it off. I love that we as a family all value quality of life over the prospect of money. Don't get me wrong, the last time my kids sold meat pens, they each sold for $200.00 a pen. Crazy cool! We will eat these birds, but when they are older. They are the only meat birds that are up and walking around. I do feel good about that. When she was bathing them DD asked me if they were tall for meat birds. They aren't, but they can stand and that makes them look taller.

We got 2 lavender Muscovy ducklings from Janice. I have wanted to get some from her for a while. Our muscovy girls were setting on eggs, but they were all rotten, so we stuck these 2 under Ferdie....

Jane, Reese and Stinkerbelle are sad to be at the fair, but they are mostly together so they are OK. They show on Friday.

 

[ragdollcatlady]

Back from the fair! PHEW! Long week.

We had a good time. DD was not able to show her goats because they are registered to both of us. The answer I got was that it is a state rule that animals must be registered only in the kids name. When I asked how that went with regular california law that minors can't enter into legally binding agreements like buying and selling property, I got a shrug of the shoulders and just "the state made the rule". So how do they prove unregistered animals only belong to a kid? I was concerned, not with being able to sell animals through the fair, but with selling animals on the open market. I would not be interested in buying an animal from a kid myself, as all the parent has to do is say, " oh they didn't have the authority" and the deal is undone. Especially for animals that are several hundred dollars. So ultimately, she didn't show her goats and wasn't able to do showmanship with them either.

She only got 2nd in poultry! I couldn't believe it as she has cleaned up in that class for years, even when it was her 3 brothers giving her a run for her money. So no Round Robins or any other competitions, but I got to judge the egg contest and the human crowing contest since DD wasn't competing in either of those. I wish there was a cutest competitor ribbon! One of the littlest kids competing in the crowing contest was just Tiniest little crow ever! He is only maybe 3 I think? He has a twin too and they are the gentlest and sweetest little things! Soooo helpful too. Earlier in the year, these two heard me telling my big kids things to do to clean up after the farm day presentations and they were right there, carrying buckets and moving animals....everything I was asking they were on it!

JJ our favorite rooster died! Not at the fair, he came home fine, but when we turned him loose in the yard, Amelia went after him. She is our resident turkey. I think she forgot him and saw him as an intruder. I saw her giving him a little bit of a rough time, but nothing too bad. I thought they would settle down by sundown which was only about an hour away and then in the morning , they should have been OK again. We went back to the fair so DD and her girlfriend could hang out a little and I got a call from my boys that JJ had been beat up really bad and was a bloody mess. We got home just as he was passing. I held him for a while and DD held him and cried for a long while. DS dug a hole but DD buried him herself. We have had him for years. I can't even explain how hard this is. I know it isn't any consolation, but I offered to put JJs mom Stinkyweed in with Altitude and hatch some babies so she can have a little bit of JJ in the next generation of chicks.

We did get to shake hands with a monkey! That was fun. You give him a dollar, he puts it in his pocket, then you hold out your hand and he puts his little monkey hand on yours to shake! That was the last thing we did at the fair. That was a fun way to end it.

 

[ragdollcatlady]

Today I went to add some roosting bars to our chicken house but the cordless drill doesn't have enough power/juice to do it. So that project is stalled for now. I am also taking out the bottom of the top "room" and turning it into a poop board. I plan on adding hinges and latches so I can just open it, shovel out the muck and close her up again. Found latches in the workshop, but I still need to get hinges.

Buck Naked was loose today. He broke his cable totally in two! The Nigerian boys are starting to get fragrant already.... I like to love on them, but my clothes don't care for that as much when they are in the stinky stage.

I posted Popcorn and BreaBurnadette on craigslist. I wish I could keep them but I want to try and keep the other 2 girls so I guess someone has to go. I did have a person email about Burnadette, a reference from someone we have meet through 4H. She has the prettiest face and the stripes on her face are nice and sharp. Poor Georgia. I let her have nights off so I can bottle fed in the mornings. Then she goes in with the babies and eats her fill while they get a few nibbles from her, but after a minute or two she lays down. I think they get too rough, fighting over 2 teats. So when I take her out, I milk her, put it in the bottle and offer it again. Popcorn and Tasha take the bottle first thing in the morning. After I milk Georgia out, Popcorn, Tasha and Burnadette take it. I guess they figure that if they are still hungry now, I am the only open milk bar at the moment.

Today while filling water buckets, I saw Georgia laying down in the shade watching her kids. They were trouncing around and playing. At one point they all started looking around and came running to me. I think they got lost and couldn't find Mom. She didn't respond to their crying but was still watching them as they climbed all over me, wanting to know where their other mama was. They were very sad when I told them she went shoe shopping with their milk money and wouldn't be home til dinner time. I said she left them a message to go find their own lunch and be sure to eat their veggies.

I am getting some really cool colors out of my lavender pen of silkies. I have some that are hatching with faint partridge stripes, but they are looking sort of pastel,some look a little reddish or like they might have a little bit of buff......

One of the lavender muscovies fell in the pond and drowned!

We came home with 4 blue slate turkey babies from the fair. They are doing good.

We don't have Nutsy anymore. Noone even asked about the dogs when I posted them on CL. I had contacted a rescue that my neighbor said was a friend of theirs, but she never got back to me. We finally went to the park with a sign that said free dog. A lady stopped and sounded mad, asking why we were giving our dog away. I told her it wasn't our dog, that a friend had rescued it from the road and we were trying to find him a home. She asked why we didn't take it animal control. I said because they are a high kill shelter. She insisted they weren't.....OK. When I filled out the job application for there I was informed that they were....but I didn't say that. She took him anyways. He was starting to be a problem. The last straw was when he chewed on my wooden microwave cart. The straw after the last straw, was when he chewed the decoration off my fancy upcycled dog bed, the one I showed BYH on here a few months ago. He was a great dog for someone that wanted a dog and was willing to make accommodations for one. We already have one "Charlie" and noone deserves to have 2 of them in any one lifetime! (Charlie is my husbands dog that is the absolute worst dog ever!)

Alas....Leaky is still here. Sir Leaks-a-lot is just too darn cute He is starting to lick toes and he poked me in the calf of my leg to say hi on a couple different occasions. He was trying to get me to play this morning and Beaux was getting jealous, telling him to stop. He is getting a little less shy with us and acting more like a puppy. He is still verrrrry Piddly...with a capital P! But he tries to get outside when he can. The little squirt is growing on me.

 

[ragdollcatlady]

I could use some prayers.... I am not working right now.

They tried to move me to the men's house but I can't do it. I had helped out there in the past and it was detrimental to my safety and health. I let the management and owner know my reasons and the answer was basically, take it or leave it...... So I put it in the lords hands. I am ready. But I could still use some prayers if anyone is so inclined. And thanks if you are.

Goats are mostly OK but I am really worried about Raviolianna. She seems to be weak in the back legs....I am worried it might be meningeal worm. I don't have snails or deer, but she came beautiful mountainous country......I gave her BoSe to be sure it wasn't that. She is absolutely stunning otherwise. She is sleek and shiney..... I used up all the ivermectin I had, on her and I am giving her Valbazen right now. Not having an income really stinks right about now.

Andy is down in his weight, but it is super hot. He does come out and I see him eating, but the boys seem to be wasting more hay than they are eating right now. Jax had a major peeface when I went to say hi to them today

I have silkie babies coming out of my ears right now.....

We had an August sort of day today....hot humid and stormy my kind of day! I love the fresh air!

My best friend invited me to go with to a group breakfast outing on Friday to finally meet her other friends. She has had to find others to hang out with since I have been so busy the last few years. Not working does have a few perks i guess, like breakfast with friends and finally getting to sleep at night! I haven't gotten this much sleep in 3 1/2 years because I have been working graveyard.

I did see that a local vet is looking for a receptionist so I plan on going in tomorrow to apply. Wish me luck!

 

[jodief100]

We will be thinking of you and hope for the best.

 

[Four Winds Ranch]

Prayers are sent! Hope everything works out well for you!!!
Heres to Raviolianna being just fine!!
Good luck at the local vet's today!!!!

 

[elevan]

 

[ragdollcatlady]

Thanks for the hugs and prayers!

I couldn't get the caljobs resume maker to work so I used a template from another website. I think it looks decent even though I have been out of my field for awhile. (It took me a couple hours though, even just filling in the spaces ) I left my most recent job off the resume since it had nothing to do with the veterinary field, but it is listed on the application, so I can elaborate if they want. I was a trainer for all the new graveyard shifts, so that should show something right?

I used to be a Registered Veterinary Technician, but gave up my license when we moved here. I was the only person here for my kids the first few years until DH found a job closer to us. Before that he was commuting home for 2 days a week and staying with his mom the rest of the time. I couldn't commit to working in a vet clinic if I got a call that one of my kids broke a bone or had some other emergency, without other family nearby to help out. I was home with the kids for several years and it didn't make sense to keep my license current when it didn't look like I would be using it anytime soon.

I would love to get back into the animal field.

I will turn the application in tomorrow.