Farm News 09-18-05
Sunday morning, after chores
Microdot Grows
Microdot, this year's total Golden Sebright bantam chick crop, continues to grow. He's about two inches tall now and completely secure in his belief that he is invulnerable. Usually, about four out of five bantam chicks make it to adulthood, probably through audacity and possibly divine intervention. Microdot runs around under the goat's feet, skitters out just beyond the pecking reach of the ganders, and goes about his business, which is eating enough to fuel all that activity and also grow a tiny bit.
Trusty Captures Second Opossum
That fine dog found a possum under the barn floor. It was a major undertaking but we finally got it out. This one was a young female, definitely not the sort of animal one wants living in the barn.
Turkeys Behaving Badly, by Teresa Carman
After reading that a male turkey may respond aggressively to what a person is wearing, I quickly forgot it and went about my business. (Quickly forgetting things becomes easier every year.) Then, several weeks ago, as my husband and I were preparing to leave for town, I ran out to check the water and feed one last time. As I was topping off one of the water containers the older birds all started ripping into one another, several attacking another, some attacking the attackers, and hens joining in also. I started to pull some of the attacking birds off and then it dawned on me that I had on a red cotton dress and dashed to the house. No one attacked me but, for the birds, it was complete mayhem. After several minutes I peeked around the corner and checked the birds and everyone was calm again.
Then several days ago while I was gone my hubby thought he'd surprise me by finishing a project for me in the turkey house. When I got home he told me what he had done and expressed surprise that the birds were attacking each other, much the way that they had done with me previous. The birds are normally very calm. I asked him what color of shirt he was wearing and he told me red. My dress was a bright rose red and his shirt was more of a muted maroon red.
I definitely am not painting the new turkey house barn red! (red is my favorite color.) I will also watch my wardrobe when I go to do chores. I have Regal Red Turkeys but apparently their feather coloring isn't the right shade to cause aggression.
This story was submitted by Teresa Carman, who raises Regal Red turkeys, a very rare breed, in Arizona. If you are interested in raising Regal Reds, or in helping preserve rare turkey breeds, Teresa's email address is RegalRedGal@Yahoo.com. I have altered the story to where Teresa might not recognize it, but, well, read the disclaimer at the bottom.
Epizootic Rages Through Rabbitry
There aren't many rabbits left in the rabbitry. What appears to be Listeriosis, a disease caused by a micro-organism called Listeria, has been killing rabbits daily. So far, Fluffy and Rosie, two of the original rabbits, are okay. Four of the young rabbits died this week. I'm assuming that the old buck I got from Calvin was the source of the disease.
My current plan is to wash and scrub the empty cages with soapy water, then rinse, then spray it with a bleach solution. The manure under the cages is still usable for fertilizer and I don't want to over-contaminate it with bleach.
New Publication
I am starting a new email newsletter, One More Year. The assumption driving this newsletter is that your computer can give you one more year before you enter a nursing home. One More Year at home. To subscribe, click on this link: Subscribe to One More Year. If you have early macular degeneration, or diabetes, or hypertension, for cryin' out loud subscribe now. Don't plan on learning to use a computer to help you survive after you're blind or have had a stroke.
E-mail Subscribers: To subscribe, unsubscribe, contribute stories, complain or send a gift subscription, send an email to FarmNews@GeezerNet.com . The editor reserves the right to steal ideas submitted, rewrite submissions, and sign false names to them whenever it strikes his fancy to do so.
Microdot Grows
Microdot, this year's total Golden Sebright bantam chick crop, continues to grow. He's about two inches tall now and completely secure in his belief that he is invulnerable. Usually, about four out of five bantam chicks make it to adulthood, probably through audacity and possibly divine intervention. Microdot runs around under the goat's feet, skitters out just beyond the pecking reach of the ganders, and goes about his business, which is eating enough to fuel all that activity and also grow a tiny bit.
Trusty Captures Second Opossum
That fine dog found a possum under the barn floor. It was a major undertaking but we finally got it out. This one was a young female, definitely not the sort of animal one wants living in the barn.
Turkeys Behaving Badly, by Teresa Carman
After reading that a male turkey may respond aggressively to what a person is wearing, I quickly forgot it and went about my business. (Quickly forgetting things becomes easier every year.) Then, several weeks ago, as my husband and I were preparing to leave for town, I ran out to check the water and feed one last time. As I was topping off one of the water containers the older birds all started ripping into one another, several attacking another, some attacking the attackers, and hens joining in also. I started to pull some of the attacking birds off and then it dawned on me that I had on a red cotton dress and dashed to the house. No one attacked me but, for the birds, it was complete mayhem. After several minutes I peeked around the corner and checked the birds and everyone was calm again.
Then several days ago while I was gone my hubby thought he'd surprise me by finishing a project for me in the turkey house. When I got home he told me what he had done and expressed surprise that the birds were attacking each other, much the way that they had done with me previous. The birds are normally very calm. I asked him what color of shirt he was wearing and he told me red. My dress was a bright rose red and his shirt was more of a muted maroon red.
I definitely am not painting the new turkey house barn red! (red is my favorite color.) I will also watch my wardrobe when I go to do chores. I have Regal Red Turkeys but apparently their feather coloring isn't the right shade to cause aggression.
This story was submitted by Teresa Carman, who raises Regal Red turkeys, a very rare breed, in Arizona. If you are interested in raising Regal Reds, or in helping preserve rare turkey breeds, Teresa's email address is RegalRedGal@Yahoo.com. I have altered the story to where Teresa might not recognize it, but, well, read the disclaimer at the bottom.
Epizootic Rages Through Rabbitry
There aren't many rabbits left in the rabbitry. What appears to be Listeriosis, a disease caused by a micro-organism called Listeria, has been killing rabbits daily. So far, Fluffy and Rosie, two of the original rabbits, are okay. Four of the young rabbits died this week. I'm assuming that the old buck I got from Calvin was the source of the disease.
My current plan is to wash and scrub the empty cages with soapy water, then rinse, then spray it with a bleach solution. The manure under the cages is still usable for fertilizer and I don't want to over-contaminate it with bleach.
New Publication
I am starting a new email newsletter, One More Year. The assumption driving this newsletter is that your computer can give you one more year before you enter a nursing home. One More Year at home. To subscribe, click on this link: Subscribe to One More Year. If you have early macular degeneration, or diabetes, or hypertension, for cryin' out loud subscribe now. Don't plan on learning to use a computer to help you survive after you're blind or have had a stroke.
E-mail Subscribers: To subscribe, unsubscribe, contribute stories, complain or send a gift subscription, send an email to FarmNews@GeezerNet.com . The editor reserves the right to steal ideas submitted, rewrite submissions, and sign false names to them whenever it strikes his fancy to do so.
posted by The Geezer at 10:09 AM
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