Peekaboo, I see you, Harley, in your big box.
Harley snoozing in his big house. There are seven dogs at The Fat Ewe Farm, all of them livestock guardians except Robbie, the border collie, who is the herder. The pups are 6 months old now and refuse to stay with the sheep. They do not mind taking their afternoon naps with the sheep and they basically grew up in the sheep pen, but now they are bigger, they can climb over the fence to be with the pack and they do. Having a pack of six livestock guardian dogs can be challenging. I must be the alpha in their eyes and so far there has never been a question about it. Once in a while the dogs have challenged me, but I scream and yell at them and flip them over on their backs and hold them down at the throat, or at least did when they were younger. Now, I do not have to.
The dogs are housed in dog city for the winter, but they do not avail themselves of the houses offered unless they want privacy or it is very cold and snowy, as in a blizzard. In minus 20 weather, they park themselves on some hay somewhere and pay attention to what goes on. During the day, they may sneak into a house to sleep uninterrupted by the day to day activity on the farm. They have a house they prefer, though if it is occupied, they will choose another without incident. The two largest houses are made from the big 1000 liter plastic tanks that are encased by an aluminum cage. I had the bars unscrewed and the inside plastic removed, then I cut a hole in it about the size of Harley and Ofcharka, filled it with ten inches of dry straw and put some more straw on the roof. Then the roof has a plastic sheet on top to keep the straw from blowing away in strong winds and to provide a little more warmth. There is a sheet of plywood in front of the openings as well, which blocks the direct wind from blowing inside the houses. There are two small plastic barrel houses turned on their sides. Little Jenna could easily fit in one, or Robbie, if he is not dragging anything along with himself, but usually he is. The other barrel has been adopted by the cats, and it has a covering of hay over it for insulation. When more snow comes, the blanket of white will further insulate the houses. Mike and Joe, the pups, have their own houses in the sheep pen, however; if they are not going to stay there, I will have to remove them to the yard. First, though, I will try giving them the option of easily returning home. Perhaps once they know they can go in and out on their own, they will be more apt to return to the sheep. In the photo, dog city is in progress. It can get very cold here in the north of Canada. Robbie is not built to sleep outside in winter, but the other dogs are. They just need a good shelter in case of bad weather and the option to be able to use it if they please. In the summer dog city is a row of wooden houses with lots of open spaces and dirt floors, just to keep them out of the sun and rain. In the area, the neighbours report coyotes, bears, foxes, and other predators and problems with deer, but I do not see nor hear any of these. That is the what the dogs are for and I am grateful they do a good job keeping predators at bay. For that and so much more, I give them deluxe accommodations at the Fat Ewe Farm.
The dogs are housed in dog city for the winter, but they do not avail themselves of the houses offered unless they want privacy or it is very cold and snowy, as in a blizzard. In minus 20 weather, they park themselves on some hay somewhere and pay attention to what goes on. During the day, they may sneak into a house to sleep uninterrupted by the day to day activity on the farm. They have a house they prefer, though if it is occupied, they will choose another without incident. The two largest houses are made from the big 1000 liter plastic tanks that are encased by an aluminum cage. I had the bars unscrewed and the inside plastic removed, then I cut a hole in it about the size of Harley and Ofcharka, filled it with ten inches of dry straw and put some more straw on the roof. Then the roof has a plastic sheet on top to keep the straw from blowing away in strong winds and to provide a little more warmth. There is a sheet of plywood in front of the openings as well, which blocks the direct wind from blowing inside the houses. There are two small plastic barrel houses turned on their sides. Little Jenna could easily fit in one, or Robbie, if he is not dragging anything along with himself, but usually he is. The other barrel has been adopted by the cats, and it has a covering of hay over it for insulation. When more snow comes, the blanket of white will further insulate the houses. Mike and Joe, the pups, have their own houses in the sheep pen, however; if they are not going to stay there, I will have to remove them to the yard. First, though, I will try giving them the option of easily returning home. Perhaps once they know they can go in and out on their own, they will be more apt to return to the sheep. In the photo, dog city is in progress. It can get very cold here in the north of Canada. Robbie is not built to sleep outside in winter, but the other dogs are. They just need a good shelter in case of bad weather and the option to be able to use it if they please. In the summer dog city is a row of wooden houses with lots of open spaces and dirt floors, just to keep them out of the sun and rain. In the area, the neighbours report coyotes, bears, foxes, and other predators and problems with deer, but I do not see nor hear any of these. That is the what the dogs are for and I am grateful they do a good job keeping predators at bay. For that and so much more, I give them deluxe accommodations at the Fat Ewe Farm.
In progress housing for the dogs and cats.
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