WHO is Out There?

Last night we were trying to get through the rest of a TV show episode we were streaming on Hulu before bedtime when I heard our ducks quacking outside. I paused the TV for a better listen. Sure enough, Aslan, who was inside (downstairs), also heard them and let out one of his barks alerting us that he knew something was up outside that should probably be investigated.

Usually, it's a clear sign there is a potential predator in the vicinity when all your ducks stand up like bowling pins!

Sam let Aslan outside while looking around the surrounding area with the spot light, but she couldn't see any other signs of unwelcome visitors. Lately, we've had coyotes making an appearance on our property, so that is currently our usual first guess.

The air also had a particular eeriness about it. Earlier in the day the skies had finally cleared up from the smokey wildfire apocalyptic haze we had been experiencing for the last week or more. Now suddenly, this evening, thick smoke had rolled back in again with the winds. I considered the ducks could just be feeling a bit edgy by the strange weather patterns. 

After Sam came back in and I heard the ducks still announcing their general unsettlement, I grabbed the light and tried to peer out the window myself. I spotted something perched on the fence down below, several feet from the ducks' enclosure. "It's an owl!" I exclaimed, with a hint of excitement in my voice. I grabbed my phone and hurried down to the front porch, hoping I could get close enough to capture it on (digital) film before my presence might scare it off. 

For the most part owls likely aren't a real predatory threat for most of our animals. They are probably more interested in mice, rats, moles, etc. Our youngest (i.e. smallest) birds aren't yet free ranging unattended outside their enclosure. Currently everyone was locked up securely for the night, anyway. I didn't envision an owl taking the time to try its hand at breaking and entering. However, this doesn't mean the ducks themselves didn't have a right to feel a bit agitated and uncertain about this silent nighttime visitor. 

Here are a few photos I was able to snap. It looks like it was a Barred Owl (determined after I later Googled it). I was so enamored by the absolute and exquisite beauty of this creature. I believe some of that perceived beauty is likely enhanced by the certain mystique that comes from often remaining hidden from human sight under cover of night. 

I am so pleased the photos turned out in spite of being taken at night, in the dark! (Taken with the Google Pixel 2 for anyone who may be wondering...) I was also able to capture some video so that you'll be able to witness some of the owl's actual movement. Be sure to watch for the part where it flies over to land on another portion of the fence if you'd like to see it in flight. Otherwise, just watching the head turns and bobs and tilts is both adorable and awesome. 

Finally, here are a couple of shots I captured of the moon above our woods on this smokey, windy night:

Just another night here at Pure Amusement Farm -- where there is always something going on!

Duck...Duck....GOOSE!

We can usually find one of our buff orpington chickens, Daffodil, running loose all around our property. We try to keep the chickens contained to a certain portion of the yard so they don't destroy all of our plants up by the house. However, Daffy is a little on the small side in comparison to our other hens, so she is still light enough to fly out over the fence and roam freely whenever she wants--in the backyard, the front yard, the horse pen, the side pasture....pretty much everywhere. No wonder she stays so trim! 

Daffodil by the cedars

Daffodil helping with yard work 

Daffy and Jax by the wood pile

Daffy trying to blend in with the ducklings

Daffy checking out the new chicks, with Aslan supervising

For the most part, Daffodil finds enough to keep herself occupied without wreaking havoc in our gardens, so we enjoy letting her run free. She is a friendly but independent spirit. While she's out and about she often tries to dine with our ducks. We couldn't figure out why they always seem to back away and run off whenever our sweet Daffy unassumingly strolls up and invites herself to breakfast. 

Hey guys, wait for me!

Now, here's a short (10 seconds) video I captured this past week of Daffy trying to pal around with her duck mates. Be sure to turn up the volume and you'll hear my surprise when I discover our sweet little Daffy may not be as innocent as we thought! 

Saturday Night Llama Fever

This week our two llamas, Lomi and Paisley, were sheared. Since it's late in the season, we discussed with the shearer what kind of cut they should get in order to not leave them too cold as we begin to approach fall/winter. She suggested leaving some of the fiber on their legs, so that it will add some extra warmth when they are laying down.

Camelids typically fold their legs up underneath their body when they lie down (called cushing). Here's an example:

Look Ma, no legs! 

So, essentially, leaving the fiber on their legs provides a nice wool blanket of sorts to curl up with.

Lomi and Paisley are suri llamas, which means they have a type of fiber that hangs down in free-flowing locks from their body. So, after being sheared, Lomi looked like he was sporting some super-cool bell bottoms.

Look at that flair when he walks:

In fact, we found it a bit reminiscent of John Travolta, circa 1977. Check out this video clip -- and don't forget to turn your volume up!

Denali the Welcome Wagon

No matter how long I'm gone, I can always count on Denali to keep watch for my return. After a long work day, it's heartwarming to see her little face in the front window as I drive up the driveway.

She then keeps her eyes on me as I'm getting out of the car and watches for me to head to the front porch. This photo was taken last December, when it gets dark VERY early.

I always feel like...Denali's watching me...

She watches until she sees me start to head up the front porch steps--which is her cue to then jump over to wait for me at the top of the inside stairwell.

Here's a clip from this past Friday, as I'm coming up the stairs to her welcome home greeting.

Casper the Friendly Ghost Cat

When we first brought Casper home, she was just a few months old and predominantly feral. She escaped into the brush in our backyard and we would catch sightings of her as she regularly crept out from behind the wood pile to watch what was going on from a safe distance.

She got the nickname Casper because she was like a little ghost hiding behind the wood pile, who would sometimes make a visual appearance. A friendly ghost cat.

As Jax got big enough to start spending some time outside, he became the lure that encouraged Casper to start venturing further out in to the open yard and up closer to the house.

Jax and Casper both came from the same place, so maybe Casper recognized her baby cousin. In any case, her curiosity or intrigue eventually gave her enough confidence to come in for a closer look. And even as much as Jax sometimes torments her, she is the sweetest thing who never bites or scratches. (Unless you count when she grabs your hand back because she is not quite ready for you to stop petting her: "More, please!")

Here's a photo of baby Jax and Casper playing in the front yard with their chicken gang. We always have to be very careful because Casper especially likes to hide in the underside of vehicles. Here she is examining the wheel well for a possible hideout source.

For many months Casper picked the John Deere mower as her safe spot (Aslan was much smaller then!). Jax would sometimes join her--the two are definitely quite bonded!

Somewhat ironically, once we finally got Casper indoors, she quickly became a homebody. Jax is practically bursting at the seams to get outside every moment of the day.  Casper, on the other hand, LOVES her safe warm place in the house and is quite content to have most of her needs met there. 

She is not strictly an indoor cat, but also enjoys some time outdoors. The other day I caught her checking out the new ducklings while they were sunbathing in the pool. I think she's completely mesmerized by them! 

I also snapped a little video of her watching them. If you watch to the end you'll notice her typical shyness as she suddenly recognizes she's being observed.

Casper and Jax have remarkably different personalities, but their bond is inseparable. It is so heartwarming to see. ❤️

Aslan to the Eagle: Not on MY Watch!

Although bald eagles are without question a strikingly majestic and beautiful bird, they are also a very real predatory threat to many of our residents. Ducks, chickens, our cats...even some of our dogs are unsafe left unattended outdoors! That is why we got Aslan. Our Livestock Guardian Dog, Azzie, has proven his life-saving skills on more than several occasions!

Just this morning one of our security cameras alerted me that an eagle had just swooped in and landed in our tall oak trees that overlook the chicken and duck pens. What a relief to see Aslan immediately burst into the scene from the side yard! Barking and barking and barking and barking! He made it clear the eagle needed to take a hike.

Here's the footage:

If you have the sound turned on you might hear the cacophony of barking dogs, hollering ducks and chickens, and even our inside parrots calling out. Everyone finds it quite unsettling when an eagle is on the premises!

I edited out the middle stretch of Aslan's relentless barking. Here's the end of the footage when Aslan finally convinced the eagle his efforts were going to be futile and he might as well move along:

Good boy, Azzie! Good boy! (He LOVES to hear what a good boy he is!!)

A Guardian Meets his New Charges.

Now that our little magpie ducklings are getting bigger we are trying to get them some more time outside in the sun. Vitamin D is healthy for everyone!

During yesterday's field trip excursion to the backyard pool, we also let Aslan out to meet his newest little charges. We had him on a leash just to be on the safe side, since we weren't entirely sure how he might react to them. I'm so proud to report he did GREAT!! Although we are still a little cautious until he proves himself...he seems to be quite enamored with the baby ducks and eager to keep watch over them. We are elated, because we can definitely use an extra babysitter around here!

Here are some video clips and photos from yesterday's introduction. After some pool time fun, we then put them in a clean tub in the sun so they could preen and dry off before going back inside.

Baby poultry are A LOT of work, but the cuteness factor sure helps make it all worthwhile!! 

Aslan the Working Dog -- Some Glamour Shots

This year we decided to try to enter Aslan's photos in a contest for inclusion in the National Anatolian Shepherd Rescue Network's (NASRN) 2019 Calendar. Here are some of the photos I selected for submission:

We'll  be sure to post an update if Aslan makes it into the calendar! You can see a sample of last year's calendar at this link. Proceeds for the calendar are used by this nonprofit organization to help support the rescue of Anatolian Shepherd Dogs and mixes from possible euthanasia in animal shelters.

Aslan is a livestock guardian dog -- a mix of two Turkish breeds with a long history of protecting livestock: Anatolian Shepherd and Akbash. Here's a little bit of history about the Anatolian Shepherd, and some history about the Akbash breed. Also, here is a cool Jack Hanna/David Letterman video clip that includes an Anatolian Shepherd Dog (ASD). In Namibia there is a Livestock Guardian Dog Program being used in conservation efforts to protect cheetahs. In this clip the ASD and cheetah have been raised together so they can be used for educational efforts to help get the word out about this important program. In the wild, the ASD's are used by farmers to protect their livestock FROM the cheetah and other predators. These efforts help to preserve the cheetah because it helps them to better coexist with humans as they are not killed for threatening flocks and herds.

It has been pretty amazing watching the genetics at work in Aslan as we raised him from a puppy. He always notices when something is out of place or something new has entered the "territory" and has to check it out (inanimate objects included!). He grows accustomed to things he deems not to be a threat (for example the wild ducks usually get a "pass" unless there seems to be some distress signal), but keeps his eyes to the sky to chase off the larger herons and eagles that may enter the airspace. He has also treed and chased off a racoon (that was fun at 2am in the morning in our pajamas!), and cornered a young possum in our yard.

Aslan is a great guardian dog, especially now as he approaches his 2nd birthday and is maturing from some of his earlier puppy antics. He also makes a pretty fantastic guard dog for the entire property (us included!), as we don't have to worry about anyone trying to break in our gate with him standing at the helm. Don't let the glamour photos fool you--what a ferocious sounding bark he has when he means business!

She Stuck a Feather in Her Cap and Called it Meriwether

We currently have 7 ducklings and 6 chicks growing up in our bathroom -- each in two separate Sterilite bins. The tub-o-chicks is in the bathtub, where we can shut the sliding door to keep them from flying all over the bathroom. (Especially important now that they are starting to grow out their feathers.) The ducklings tub is sitting right next to the tub. Magpies can't really fly, so they are much easier to contain.

Yesterday evening I was crouched down tending to our magpie ducklings when I looked up just in time to see one of our white-crested polish chicks fly straight up out of the bathtub to land directly on my head. "Well, this is a first!" I thought to myself. It was Meriwether, of course--our chief poultry explorer. Luckily, I happened to have my phone in my back pocket and was able to slowly reach for it and snap a photo to help document Meriwether's first flight to my noggin.

I say "first" flight, because it happened again this morning! When I opened the slider to peek in on the chicks and check on their food and water supply, Meriwether looked up and our eyes locked for one split second before my head once again became a helipad for Polish Airways. "This is going to be a very strange relationship," I laughed to myself. But I love it! I did have one small request: "Please don't poop on my head!" 

So, this afternoon, I tried to have the film rolling just in case it happened again. Sure enough, Meriwether took flight once again--but at least this time my head was spared. 

Just Another Day at the Ranch

Here's another flashback to one of our favorite home videos I made using the Quik App by GoPro. (We don't actually have a GoPro...though if we did I'm sure we could get some even more amazing footage!)

This video features Baloo, our rescue horse, Aslan, our livestock guardian dog, and special appearances by Zippy, Patches, and Leon....the three magpie ducklings we hatched last year (along with several other duck "extras" in the background). Grab some popcorn, make sure your sound is turned up, and enjoy the show!