I’m adding a new feature on my blog. Every Wednesday, I’ll upload a video from the farm.
This week’s pick is of this awesome bunny (who let me pet him!!! I think!) and his crush on one of the many gorgeous cats on the farm.
Category Archives: winslow farm
Less bugs, more love
Monday on the farm was lovely. The temperature was a bit on the colder side but sunny enough that it made up for it and there weren’t any mosquitos. A few weeks ago, during that week of incredibly warm weather, the mosquitos were buzzing around and without bugspray, I ended up staying for a shorter period of time. Similarly, if it’s too cold, I tend to jet pretty quickly, as well.
This week, I lingered. When I arrived, Lunar and Spirit were hanging out with Stormy and Cloud in the upper pen. I really like when they’re up there already because it means that I get to spend a few minutes petting them instead of diving right into the feeding. In between head scratches, Lunar hauled off and chased the pheasant away as I cheered her on. If I were fast enough, I would have caught it on my camera. It’s an awesome sight watching this huge animal stomping after a small bird, who is actively fleeing in terror. I’d feel bad for him, except he continues to stalk and try to attack me. Get him, Lunar!!!
After my snugglefest with Gully…
I passed the girls. Indifferent as always!
Watched these bunnies for a while. Pretty sure it’s a mating dance. So cute.
Then I heard this especially vocal duck. He sat there yelling at another duck across the way. I missed the part where he splashed his little feet in the puddle, but couldn’t resist posting his loud calls. (One of these days, I’m going to remember to film horizontally!)
Aaaaaand then he ran over. Watch carefully as his squat little body makes it all the way around. While the actual reunion was blocked, his journey makes the video worthwhile.
In the meantime, this goose was busy bathing.
I rounded off my visit with some doggy time. I love how focused she gets! “Throw it now, please,” said Pandy.
What’s going on in that little brain, Athena?
Last week, as my ears filled with sounds of happy munching, Athena walked out of the barn and slowly made her way across to the gate until she stopped in front of it. She stood there for a few minutes looking off in the distance at what I was assuming was the sheep house in safe side. I convinced her to come back and eat, but a little while later she did the same thing. I don’t know if it’s because love is in the air, but I’m pretty sure she wanted to spend some time with a specific somebody. Maybe it’s Cotton! They’d be so cute together.
Here’s a brief video of her journey:
Filed under athena, behavior, sheep, videos, winslow farm
Treats!!!
I brought horse treats with me to the barn today. They’re called Uncle Jimmy’s Squeezy Buns! How cute is THAT?
Lunar wanted them so much that she was kicking the door and stretching her neck as far over as she possibly could. Gully, Athena, Spirit and she all got some in their food. I made sure that Lunar’s were soaked with her grain, and I don’t think I’ve ever seen her this impatient about getting her dinner. She LOVED them when I (finally!) gave them to her. Gully gobbled them down, Athena ate some and saved some for later and I have no idea about Spirit, since he was cranky. But all in all, it was a success. I am going to bring them treats every week and am so excited about it! Ahhh, the little things.
Later, I was chatting on the phone and Gully decided I wasn’t paying enough attention to him, so he bit my hand! And then he pulled my hair! Really hard!! Thanks a lot, dude. :p
Can’t wait until next week!
Little Cubby
I didn’t get a chance to take a photo of Mr. Cubby this week, but he’s the small black dog that’s made it into a few posts in the past. I’ll seek him out for a photo op next time if he’s out and about.
I arrived at the farm and spotted a lost Cubby moving in slow circles around Claudius the swan’s area. His coat had unvelcroed itself from around his belly and was flapping helplessly around his neck. I called to him but he didn’t respond. It was only then that I realized that I hadn’t seen him for a while. As I got closer, I continued calling to him but he didn’t respond until I was almost upon him. He looked up at my face and I noticed that one of his eye sockets was closed shut. His face is entirely black and I almost missed this detail. It seems that the poor old man had lost an eye recently, in addition to the fact that his other eye looked pretty blind and he’d become very hard of hearing.
I gently put his coat back on and he leaned in for pets from me. I chatted with Deb about it when I found her and she confirmed the eye removal, the hearing loss, and that the remaining sight was limited. I love that she keeps him going and that she spared some of the farm’s money to keep him alive and comfortable.
When any animal reaches old age, there are tough decisions that go into determining the end of their life. It is rare that an animal is given the opportunity to parish by natural causes. With over 300 animals at the farm, Deb has many more of these decisions to make than anyone else I personally know. Since he obviously spends most of his time in Deb’s cozy house, I’m not worried about his infrequent challenging adventures outside. And while Cubby’s life might not continue much longer, I’m happy that he has such a caring and wonderful person looking out for him until then.
Here’s to you, little Cubby! I’ll put your coat back on whenever you need me to and cheer you on as you slowly continue exploring your world.
Filed under dogs, winslow farm
Lesson Learned
On a typical day, one of the kids brings Spirit and Lunar up to the barn and I either help get them into the barn or they bring them all the way to their pens. No matter what though, Gulliver and Athena do not get their food before the horses have arrived. Today, everyone was super busy around the farm and Gulliver and Athena were waiting for me. After a while, I realized that the horses probably weren’t coming any time soon, so I fed my waiting buddies. They were just standing there staring at me, after all.
Once I gave them their grain, I realized that the doors to the barn wouldn’t shut all the way due to frost heaves. I discovered this when the alpaca ladies came around looking to steal Athena’s food. Outwitting them, I put up an impromptu gate made of a rake and a broom that formed an “x” across the remaining opening. They recognized this as a “do not enter” sign and gave up easily.
Unfortunately, it didn’t occur to me until too late that I’d left Athena defenseless against Spirit and Lunar, who’d soon be coming. Even more unfortunate, because she was in a hurry, the girl who brought them up let them run through the gate and shut it behind them. This left the task of getting them into the barn a solo project. I’ve mentioned before that both Spirit and Lunar, although they react differently, are food aggressive. I panicked and tried to close the doors more, which only made a tighter hole for them to get into. It was one they could definitely enter but without the room to turn around properly could not as easily exit. I did my best to get them out of the space but when one would vacate, the other would enter. Poor Athena was trapped in a corner with no escape. Rest assured, they didn’t touch her.
My outcome wasn’t as lucky. After I finally got Spirit out of the space, I tried to shoe him on to get him to go around the barn by tapping his butt with my hand. He countered by tapping my ribs with his back leg. Yes, I am totally fine. It was only a warning kick that barely made contact. But it reminded me, immediately, just how small I am compared to him and just how much I take that for granted. I was very lucky that he didn’t kick me for real.
Somehow, without touching either of them, I managed to get first Lunar and, once she was locked up tight, Spirit, to go by Athena through the barn. Neither of them stopped again for her food which felt miraculous.
I don’t know if Gulliver could tell that I was upset, but he was extra cuddly with me tonight. I left the farm happy and ready for next week, a serious lesson under my belt.
Wow, how time flies!
I can’t believe that my last post was on November 21st! It feels like 14 million things have happened since then. Although, realistically, it’s kind of amazing to me how consistent it is there each week. My duties pretty much stay the same, with an added blanket or an extra scoop of grain mixed in. Gulliver continues to be one of the most amazing beings I can imagine and cuddling with him is excellent every single time. That’s really no excuse not to write though, so I’m going to sit here eating gummy bears and try to fill in lost time.
One Monday, I spent a while walking around the corral with Lunar, my arm slung over her back. I’m not sure how adequately I can describe how cool that was.
The pheasant has continued to plague me. He is such a jerk! On the same day as the walk with Lunar, he made the mistake of trying to attack me with her at my side. She stomped after him with such force, neighing loudly, that it even scared me! Score!
A few weeks ago, I went down to the barn to collect Gulliver and there is a maze of gates to get through on the way back. He was so impatient that he didn’t wait for me to open one of the gates all the way and he got stuck. It took a while to stop laughing before I could free him.
Opie, the little piggy who spends most of her time snoring under a blanket, was out and about while on my way to collect Gulliver. I squatted down to say hello to her. She had food all over her snout and she kindly shared some with my knee. It was just about one of the cutest things I’ve ever seen. I scratched her head for a while and then continued on my mission.
Right about when the cold weather was kicking in for the season, I was given the task again to put on the horse coats. A little out of practice, Spirit’s snort of derision after I finally got his on said it all. Oh well, practice makes perfect, right?
Another day, I walked passed the regular gaggle of roosters (you thought I’d say “geese”, didn’t you? Nope. They just wait until I’m walking through and try to eat my coat). Standing among them was one of the peacocks. I don’t know why it was such a “wow” moment for me but it caught me off guard. There he was, going about his business, just hanging out, and yet he’s fluorescent blue. So normal and out of place at the same time. Majestic. I thought, “Yup. I get to spend time at a place where walking by a peacock is just a regular Monday. Awesome.”
Recently, Spirit and Cloud (the mule) have fallen in love. Hard core – don’t ever leave me – I’ll just scream on the top of my lungs until I see you again – love. When one of the kids brings Spirit up to the barn, blood curdling cries of anguish can be heard down by the lower barn as Cloud pierces the air with her mournful song. And no matter how much food and comfort I try to give him, Spirit yells at me for a solid five minutes in between bites of his dinner. Cloud has even been known to use her powers by breaking down fences to get to him. Now that’s Love.
Speaking of love, here are some videos of my friends being awesome:
Athena Beans!
Today I had a Wheaton College student training with me in the barn. We got to talking about Athena and I mentioned that I gave up on trying to pet her a long time ago. I went into Gully’s pen a bit later for our weekly smoosh fest and she stayed outside with Athena. I watched as she reached down and petted her on the head. ???
I waited until she left and went out to Athena. There was a lot of ego riding on this for me. If she moved away, I’d be crushed. Tentatively, I reached my hand out and patted her on the head. No movement. Astonished, I buried my hand in her vast depths of fluff. She is SO soft!! I started petting her nose and went as far as scratching behinds her ears. Not a single motion to get up and leave passed through her. I have attained petting status!!!
Now that my original Winslow goal has been accomplished, I can’t wait to focus on her more. I’m also excited to discover what my new goal will be. Petting the alpacas, maybe?
Filed under athena, behavior, sheep, winslow farm
Best Buddies?
Today when I went in for my weekly lovefest, I found Niko in Gulliver’s pen. I pet her for a while as Gully finished eating and then he turned around to face us. Niko was on my lap and Gully reached down and took a bite of her hair. As she cried out in pain, I said, “No, Gulliver! We don’t chew on our friends!”
For a while we sat there and I doled out the pets to both of them. I took a few flash photos and Gully protested by jumping off of the landing and stood outside the pen staring at me. Was I ever happy when he came back over (with significant pleading on my part, of course) and leaned his head back in the mix.
Oh, Mondays, how I love you.
Flash!
“No, thank you.”
PS ~ Sometimes Gully makes purring noises. I know, right?
Filed under behavior, cats, goats, gulliver, humor, photography, winslow farm
Gulliver fell asleep while I pet him today.
It was awesome.
He also put his head on my lap and later he tucked it into my shoulder. Both these actions were new, too. The way he usually cuddles is by leaning into my hand and resting his forehead on my arm.
But really, it all goes back to that final nod of his head, sending him into a short but happy slumber.
Filed under goats, gulliver, winslow farm
Minding the Minis 