It must be a difficult life for a cat at the Fat Ewe Farm with 7 dogs. Competing for food is not an option. The dogs devour what they want and don't give the cats a second thought. If I give the dogs food and tell them it is for another dog, they wait their turn politely, but if they have to wait for the cats, it is never going to happen. The cats always want some of the treats the dogs get, and I try to toss them a morsel, though chances are the dogs will get it first and the cat may only get a whig of what it missed. 
Leona and her kitten, who is quite wild and not interested in being picked up or petted, hang around at treat time, just in case they may get a taste. Leona was trying to climb in the box tonight, hoping that if she was there, I am supposing she thought she had a better chance of tasting the treat at least. The kitten, who is female, but hasn't got a name yet, just hides. I think she understands that with those dogs, there is just no chance. The dogs don't hurt the cats, but really have little regard for them. 
The farm cats are present to catch mice, not something which I see them doing very often. Smokey, the one who had a litter in the spring and lost all the kittens, likely to the fox, but now has another litter hidden somewhere, is a good mouser. She only comes for food when she is lazy, and otherwise feeds herself and likely her babies. I have no idea where they even are now, and they will be totally wild without any human contact. That is not good because I won't have much luck catching them to give away the males. Inbreeding in cats is not pleasant. Six toes or even ten, missing limbs and worse can result. 

Anyhow, the cats are not in for much when the dogs are about and that is pretty much always. I can just hear Ofcharka saying, "Not the cats! My food!"

I have a servant's heart. It seems most of my life, I have been caring for some one and I do enjoy that. One of the aspects of the Inn that gives me great joy is cooking for my guests. Cooking is easy for me, similar to any design oriented art. Ever since I was able, I derived great pleasure from making and serving food to guests. As a young girl, my mother would ask me to make lunch or bake for her friends and I thought it was a great honour. 

So, now at the Inn, I am so pleased to be able to bake and cook for my guests and to serve them and please them. I very much enjoy coming up with concoctions for their dinners, special appetizers, soups and salads and of course amazing desserts, too. But, for me, it all must be made from scratch. I do not open a can of anything, nor a package. The food is fresh and even condiments such as salad dressing and barbecue sauce are home made. Mayonaise, mustard and soups, even cream is whipped fresh for the from scratch Belgian waffles - everything is clean eating! 

I try to use organic food whenever possible. The meat comes from the farm for the most part, except the bison, which is a local grass fed product. I did manage to grow some vegetables this year and next year's gardens will hopefully produce more. There is a crock of home made sauerkraut in the making, picked eggs in the fridge, pumpkin muffins in the freezer and home made organic sour dough buns ready to eat up. 

The guests who have eaten at the Inn have given me excellent feedback and all but two comments have been excellent. The other two were "good". I know I cannot please everyone, but I strive to. If I had a chance to ask the folks who left the 'good' comments, I would ask them how to change that to excellent and I would attempt to do it. 

It is my pleasure to serve my guests and make the food from scratch with love. These old arthritic loving hands have a desire to please and to serve and my heart is of that ilk as well. After all, love is what the world is all about, isn't it?

The ducks are mating and some of the young ones are beginning to lay eggs. One poor girl got an egg stuck and was running around with a prolapsed vent and the egg stuck in it. I caught her with the net, carefully broke a bit of the shell I could grasp, removed the contents and then I was able to grasp the shell and remove it from the vent. The prolapse corrected itself, thank goodness. I did not relish the idea of tucking it back in. Poor duck. 

But the thing is, the ducks are mating. The chickens have week old young ones and there is one hen still to hatch her clutch. This has not happened on the farm previously. Usually, after July, the duck egg production has dropped off to nothing by the end of August and only started again in the spring. The ducks did not mate after July either. No hens had babies after July either, so this year is very unusual. Do the animals know something we do not? Will the summer extend for some time yet, time enough for the chicks to grow their feathers so they can be protected in the winter cold? I believe the summer will go on for a while yet and although it is cooler, it will not be winter, at least not for a while. 

This is good, as there are projects that require completing before the snow flies and more time helps the farmer not feel too rushed. Let's hope the animals know what is to come and that is a pleasant long fall. 

My son wrote this explanation for a friend who did not understand something….

I found it very touching and think you might too. It is also rather special, because until he was an adult, my son could not write anything much at all that made sense. 

I guess you didn't like the post about skinning a goat, it was meant for my mother. 


She raises goats ,sheep, cows and birds. She raises them for other things then meat, meat is an ugly byproduct! There is a reason i sent her that post ! 

I wanted to tell you a story. 

 It's spring time on a farm and all the animals are having their "kids" (a kid is a baby goat, but there are lambs and chicks and so on, too) . One morning the farmer walks out to a goat pen to find a new born baby lamb barely able to stand, all by it self crying, cold and alone . The farmer lovingly pics up the baby holds it tight and says "It's OK little one, i'll take care of you" . With the baby held tight the farmer goes to make the baby a bottle of milk because the farmer knows that the mother has abandoned it . As the farmer feeds the little one it looks up into her eyes as if to thank her, for with out the farmers kind loving hold on the baby it surely would have died. Days pass each day the farmer lovingly picks up the baby to love it, to feed it . A week has gone by now, the baby cries like a real baby when it sees the farmer, almost as if its calling out "mom". The farmer has now decided to give this little one a name, as the farmer walks to the pen that day she speaks the name, the little one cries as if to say i like it. Another 4 weeks this goes on, every day the farmer goes to the little lamb to feed it, love it. Only some thing has changed, when the farmer is almost at the pen she calls the little lamb's name out, the baby cant see her but knows the farmers loving voice calling its name so it comes running. A few more days pass and the farmer sexes the goat, its a little boy! The farmer smiles. Only the farmers feeling of joy quickly turns to sorrow, the farmer knows that the baby she has raised since the second it joined her world wold have to leave her farm. All the females the farmer has are related to the little lamb so he cant stay as a stud. a few months go buy and she posts her loved little baby on a farmer classified site hoping to sell him as a breeding stud because he is a perfect guy, well tempered and loving. Still the farmer goes to the baby who is now turning into a beautiful young ram, calling his name the little ram runs to her. A few more months go buy, there has been no reply to the ad the farmer has re posted a few times. The farmer posts a new ad this time with pictures of her beautiful little ram, no reply. Then a few days later she gets a reply a man calls wanting the little ram for meat, the farmer politely say's "this is a breeding ram not meant for meat" and hangs up the phone . A few more weeks go buy it is winter now and the farmer cant afford to keep the little ram. The farmer posts another add "Free beautiful little ram to loving home". Still every day the framer goes to the little ram calling his name, even though the little ram is doing ram things he comes running with loving cries, the farmer smiles. A few more weeks go buy, something is starting to trouble the farmer it is a feeling that she has dreaded since she found out the little ram was a boy. Once again the farmer post an add this time with pictures and a description of how the little ram is very kind and loving, he would even make a good pet. Now the farmer is doing everything in her power to find a new home for her loving little baby ram. The feeling that the farmer had is now getting stronger, she now cant afford to take care of him any more! Every day she calls his name with a little more love, hugs him a little bit longer, but the farmers eyes start to tear during the hug she now knows the fate that awaits him. The farmer goes to the house to call her cousin to do this dreaded thing, he replies " i will be there tomorrow afternoon,right" . The framer lays down to bed that night but doesn't get much sleep, she cant stop thinking of how she has failed her little baby ram. The baby boy she had held when he was cold, feed when he was hungry, loved when there was no one to love him! As the farmer wakes that dreaded day she feels very heavy (it`s her heart, its breaking). She makes a stop st the grain bin, that`s the little rams favorite thing. As shes walking to the pen she can barely call his name, hes already there waiting for her. The farmer feeds the little ram his last meal and gives him the longest hug she has every given him, the hole time having the thought of failure running threw her mind. She tells she little ram that she loves him and turns around to walk away but has a hard time because she is crying! The afternoon has arrived along with the farmers cousin. The farmer cant bare to separate the little ram from the other rams , she asks her son to. The farmers son has separated the little ram from the others, Now the farmers cousin binds the little rams legs and loads his gun. The farmer reaches for the little rams head and says ``i love you little one``The little ram sheds a tear. She cant bare to see this dreaded thing happen, she turns her back and hears the loud crack of the rifle. The farmer closes her eyes and tears pour out as she remembers him running to her crying `mom`` and the thankful look when she first fed him! The farmers son sees her pain and hugs her realizing that she just lost something she loved with all her heart! The farmer looks at her son with tears in her eyes and says ` i loved him`` ! The little boy's name was Johnny ... Meat is some thing that happens on a farm but it is not easy, the quicker you cant get the meat in the freezer the easy it is one the farmer!

I have had a hard time with the Nubian baby goats. They were wormed with Valbazen, which did not work and then with a triple dose of Ivermectin drench, which only worked marginally. The two wormers are of a different class, one being the 'white' wormers and the other being the 'mectin' class. Neither were effective. So I sent away for Molly's herbal wormer program. The program consists of two parts, a once in two month wormer with wormwood and a maintenance wormer for in-between, once a week. No, this is not an inexpensive alternative to chemical womers, which are very expensive too, but look at the photo. While the chemical wormers barely had any effect on the worms and the anemia resulting from a high worm load caused death, the herbal wormer caused an immediate expulsion of worms visible in the stool. The wormer does not work like a chemical wormer, killing the worms, but rather it causes the host to be inhospitable and the worms expel themselves. Then it is up to the chickens to find the worms in the stool and pick through and eat them up so the cycle does not perpetuate itself. Ideally, after worming the animals should be moved to clean ground, and a new pen entirely, but in my world, there are only so many pens and so many shelters and that is not a reality. The best I can offer is a good barn cleaning, which did happen, and since the temperatures are so mild right now, the barn is closed until needed. The goats do have a three sided shelter filled with clean bedding, so they are not left without a home. 

Along with the herbal wormer, I included a lot of granulated garlic. This also helps to encourage the worms to get out of town. To make the powder palatable and edible, I mixed it with the granulated garlic and sugar beet pulp covered with molasses. The sweet pulp encourage the goats and sheep to eat up all the wormer and I even sprinkled a few oats in the mix, just to encourage the more reluctant ones. Ideallly, each individual animal should be fed a proper dosage and that works well with only a few animals, but there are 50 sheep and 20 goats, so it is not easily done. 

I am extremely pleased with the result of the herbal wormer. The treatment needs to happen for three days and then then the second formula happens once a week for the other 7 weeks. Diligence will be the key factor in eradicating the worms. Molly's herbal wormer is a patented formula, so the ingredients are not available. I think any number of worming herbs ground to a powder and mixed together will produce a similar result. For now, I ordered a ten month supply with the intent of getting rid of the worms in the sheep and goats. The other animals can use this program too, but getting dogs to eat it might not be so easy. I did give some to the chickens, however; they were not interested in it. It is there if they would like it though. I might add it to the oyster shell, which they consume in copious quantities to encourage them to eat it. 

Worm resistance is a growing problem for ruminants and their keepers. Years ago, there were no chemical wormers and the misuse of them, routinely worming twice a year wether the animals required it or not, and under dosing causes the worms to become resistant and then the chemicals no longer work. This is what happened with the Nubians. My own animals have been on a different herbal program which was working for this farm. The Nubians were stressed and the adult does were already anemic when they arrived, so I suspect the problem was brought to the farm. For every problem there is a solution. I strongly encourage farmers to investigate herbs for the eradication of worms. Resistance is not a problem then and the animals are not subjected to chemicals which stay in the meat and milk. 

It is a universal problem. Natural is the only way to make it disappear, but constant diligence is the key. I see it work firsthand and encourage all to give it a try. 

Mike and Joe came to the farm in the summer of 2013 at the age of 5 weeks, early yes, because their mother was fatally hit by a car the night before. The pups were eating hard food and drinking water and the vet said they would be fine on their own. It was a good decision to get two, for they kept each other company and were not lonely. 
Mike was the shy one from the onset. He still gets beat up by the other dogs, who think he is not part of the pack, but the dog that lives with the sheep. Joe does not stay with the sheep, though he does go there to eat and sleep quite often. As of late, Mike has been staying with the sheep almost full time, which is why he was brought to the farm in the first place. Joe was supposed to as well, but he will not. 

The pups went through a bad puppy stage using one lamb in particular as a chew toy and her ears will never be the same. Fortunately that is all the harm they did. Livestock guardian pups should not be trusted fully with lambs until they are two. At this point, I do trust Mike and watch Joe, who can be swayed by another dog. Robbie, the border collie, can and does lead Joe to do bad things. Joe is just a big galoomphing pup who follows, while Mike thinks and stays on his own. I love them both, but have a special soft spot for Mike. He is such a sweet gentle dog and just wants to be loved when I am around. He will go home when I tell him to, which is super. The pups will be another year in training before they are fully trusted as sheep and lamb guardians. They are good dogs!

Eunice is last year's Cotswold ewe. There was a ewe lamb born this year too. 43Y and Walter have only produced these female ewe lambs. This year Eunice will be bred, but obviously not to Walter and I have no other Cotswold ram. There is a choice of rams, Jacob, which will produce an interesting fleece, but a small lamb, because Jacobs are small sheep. Dorset is another option. Dominique is a squat, healthy, heavy little fellow and would produce a fat lamb with lots of meat, but the wool might not be so soft. The last option is the Blue Faced Leicester ram. He would produce a good sized lamb with very interesting fleece, but he is for sale. If he does not sell prior to breeding in December, he is the first choice. 

Eunice's little sister will not be ready to breed this fall. Cotswold sheep are slow to mature, though they are large sheep when fully grown. They do require a whole year prior to breeding to ensure that they have reached their potential. The Cotswold's have proved to be friendly sheep, with large gentle eyes and very lovely curly wool. Their wool is not like a regular sheep's thick coat and they do need a little more protection from the cold in our harsh winters. Cotswold wool is sometimes referred to as poor man's mohair because of the tight curls. 

It will be interesting to see what Eunice produces. She is a sweet girl, like her dad, who seems to offer his easy going disposition to the lambs. Walter cannot be used on much of the flock because he has sired some of them, but he is worth keeping and I am so glad I made the effort to see him through his illness in the last year. He is a good breeder and a is gentle with the ladies too. I would recommend Cotswold sheep for a small holder. They do take a full year to mature but provide a large clean carcass and exceptional wool. I have two for sale that are not related if you are interested. 

The driveway to the farm is approximately 750 feet long and curves ever so slightly, but just enough to make the highway invisible. It is right outside the driveway and borders the west side of the quarter. Some days, when the wind comes from the west or north west, the noise of the heavy trucks rolling by is tremendous, yet on the days when the wind blows the sound away, it is tranquil and quiet. 

The early fall is a beautiful time to take this road home. This day was warm, even hot, with temperatures in the high 20's. This is very warm for this time of the year. There has been too little precipitation for the past month and dust is starting to cover the surfaces of stationary objects, blowing up in small clouds as the breeze tosses the particles around. The slope at the Inn is still green and I have left the gate open so the ducks and chickens can still get some green grass to eat. They are almost finished their moult and have slowed down on their food now, resting in the arms of the sunshine and sleeping the tranquil afternoons away. 

A visitor stopped with a friend the other day and told me she felt the peace of the farm come into her feet and through her body the moment she stepped out of her vehicle. It can be a peaceful place, but it can be chaotic too, especially during the spring when babies are coming all at once. Today, it was one of the quiet days and I took the opportunity to go to town for some sustenance. Guests are arriving at the Inn for the rest of the week, two different groups, so groceries are always in order. 

It was when I returned and opened the gate that I stood looking back at the driveway I had just come down and thought about the road home. The farm does not yet feel like home. Maybe too many years (50) in the city and only three on the farm have not engrained home in my bones yet. I do love the animals and the beautiful forest on the farm. The road home….hmmm. I will one day think that I am sure. I know that I am blessed to be here and each day, I am grateful to the Creator for the bounty and glory bestowed upon me here. Home. 

Whomever said chickens are intelligent, needs to study them more. The coop was moved maybe 50 feet from its previous location, and within 25 feet of the favourite tree. The chickens, sure enough, had to be carried to it at night. That was yesterday, an evening spent catching 30 or so chickens and carrying them physically to the coop. The door was closed unit this morning, so they had to stay there, maybe even look outside to notice what is nearby, like the barn, the biggest structure on the property, just a few feet outside their door, looming over their little house. Nope. 

I finally did it! That is, I synchronized the iPad and iMac so photos are shared. That did take a long time, first to yet again invent a new apple id and password, then to figure out how to share, even though the iPad was plugged in to the iMac, and finally to upload the photos. Done!
The fellow I am horse trading (actually goat trading) for labour and his dad put two coops up on straw bales this year. It will be better for the removal of the coops in spring because there is at least a foot of straw and manure on the floor in the coops by then, if not more. This way, a couple of fence posts can be slipped under the coop on the bales and the coops should roll off without dragging the mess. What was happening too was that the manure was rotting the base of the coop, so that will be avoided this year too. The next step is to get the insulated tarps out and cover the coops to the ground including the bales they are sitting on. The summer tarps can be left in place. 
The thing is that the chickens did not know where to find their coop though, so they had to be caught one by one and carried to the coop at its new location, only maybe 50 feet from the wood pile and tree they hang out in all day. Once the tarps are on, a few livestock panels will form the enclosure, which will then be covered with chicken wire to keep the birds from slipping through the holes in the panels, and the winter camp, aka Winter Chicken Town (for ducks, geese and guineas too) is ready. The waterfowl tend to sleep on the floor of the 16 foot coop and a few chickens remain in it all winter, but most move into the pink insulated coop and the half plywood model. The other one is just a day house, not for nights at all, as it will not be covered with an insulated tarp and not warm enough for living in. Feeding and watering takes place outside though, which helps cut down humidity and mice in the coops. Some of the chickens got their wings clipped tonight to prevent them from roosting in the trees, which they were plucked out of to put in the coop. They won't have much choice except to go back to the coop, since they can no longer fly up to the tree. The feathers will grow back by spring, though, but by then, they will like the coop and stay there voluntarily. There is still the bantam and one chick to catch and the broody hens with their young ones, but I didn't know where they were sleeping tonight. 
Chicken Town is almost ready for winter!