Livestock Guard Dog

Hi! I'm Kai, and I'm the future LGD at Lazy Dog Ranch!

Part of the flock that I'll be in charge of protecting:

Oliver and I'll are close in size, at least for a few more weeks!

Tucker is this huge black bear! Wonder if I'll ever be as big as him?

Then there's Sierra. I was pretty bummed when I discovered she didn't have milk. She tolerates me more than the boys but we've got a connection ~ we're both white!

If I can get a good running start maybe I can FLY!

I'm showing how I can stand watch too!

Then again, I may just decide that staying inside isn't so bad after all....

I like kisses...

My new family!

 I think I'm gonna be happy here!

Squishy face with my new mama!

(Wonder how long it'll be before she can't hold me and do this anymore. It's so embarrassing...)

Growing pains

Coop activity is at a high these days with the guineas almost full grown and practicing their future guard duties. Frequent alarm calls are the norm these days and it's becoming more and more apparent we have a lot of girls. I'm hoping we have at least one boy! I thought we heard one a few weeks back but the girls are known to mimic the boys...  The male's call is a single syllable, "ki-ki-ki", and the female's a double syllable, "buck-wheat, buck-wheat". Over, and over, and over, and over again. When the males sense danger they start their call and the females will join in unison mimicking it and they proceed to provide a very loud alarm. You can't miss it. They'll likely be your initial welcome to the ranch because you "don't belong" ;) As for now they just like making noise. In January they'll be allowed to experience life beyond the coop. It'll be interesting to watch as they explore and learn their new surroundings.

When the keets were only a couple of days old.

One of them right after they moved to the coop at about 8 weeks of age.
(They were actually rather cute at this point but this one is just plain goofy looking in this photo.)

Guineas have really pretty feathers but their heads are bald - a reason I seriously hesitated to get them. Ours have lost their head feathers they had as keets and have started developing their 'helmets' - a rather stark contrast to their feathers. The neck feathers are a nice iridescent purple that I'll attempt to get a photo of one of these days when the light is just right.

I'm keeping an eye on you...

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Now for chicken updates...

Due to my paranoia the girls are allowed out on sunny days anytime we're outside. They're much happier free ranging around their yard in search of bugs, seeds, and whatever else they find. They'll be ecstatic to return to a normal routine once the guineas join them. And, I'll feel better because they will have added protection from the hawk. The itty bittys have joined the coop crowd, although they haven't figured out where to roost yet.... They get to join the girls most days as well. 

Not there first time out foraging but this was their first time to hang with the girls without wire to protect them from the inevitable establishment of their pecking order.

The itty bittys are about grown and developing beautiful fluffy curly frizzle feathers. 

Lucy, Carol, and Phyllis will not be providing us with adorable little bitty eggs... 

However, Lou, Carl, and Phil will be providing added security to the yard. Normally we'd have to re-home these guys but they have been raised together and there's not a hen (their size) in the equation to give them a reason to fight. Not that the boys don't dance around and spar once in a while. Hopes are they'll just do what roosters do ~ act as flock security and alarm clocks. 

Once upon a time the little bittys, Phyllis, Lucy, and Carol grew up to become...

Phil, Lou, and Carl!

Quietly discussing how they can escape back into the yard.

Phil pretending to sleep on his back.

Apparently this is Phil's best side...

Lou foraging in the grass.

A close up of little Lou's big eyes.

Carl is Rachel's favorite. He's got very bright alert eyes and is very sweet.

It was time to add more siding to the coop since the weather started cooling off and we had some rain. Here's the promised photo of the completed coop as well as a close up of the sign.

I'm looking forward to early February because we'll be adding to the flock and raising chicks is fun!!

Sadly, before I got this posted we lost Carl and this sweet handsome boy will be missed.... 

Needless to say, I'm very leery of letting them out before the guineas are ready now. I'm hoping they're good at their jobs...

Happenings of the past month

Getting sick really throws one off one's game, especially me! The stomach flu hit us and after about 3 weeks we're all finally healthy again. That meant catching up and getting back to a regular schedule. Daylight savings happened which always throws off my sleep and morning routine. I'm a mess! I've got so many things to share! Rather than overloading you with blog posts I'll spread them out over the next few days/weeks. In this post I'll just point out a few things that have happened (not necessarily in order). Let's go back to the end of October....

Our first ever trip to Canton for Trade Days was rainy and cool so it was actually a nice time to be there. Didn't get to see much outdoors but hit everything inside. I'm not really a shopper unless I am looking for something. I was. A very specific something. So, after maneuvering around slowly browsing Christmas shoppers, overflowing carts, and an abundance of scooters all day long we drove home in pouring down rain with a truck bed loaded with my finds:

Once these are transformed I'll let you know, promise. As for me, I don't see Canton anytime in my future, but I never say never because I just might need something very specific again.

Then we lost Lillie Mae. She was almost three years old and her feathers were coming in beautifully after this year's molt. It was rather difficult to lose one of our original girls but it wasn't the first and won't be the last. Finding her was the hardest part. I'm looking at the bright side though... yes, there is one ~ she wasn't laying many eggs anymore due to age and health issues. If you're not producing on the ranch you're just another mouth to feed and an unnecessary expense. That may sound harsh but it's reality. No, the dogs have nothing to fear.... yet ;)
As for Henrietta and Reba, they are cooped up most of the time with the guineas for now. Good thing it's a roomy coop! I've researched protection from red tail hawks. One of the feeders has been moved close to the yard to attract crows. They may chase off the hawks. Once the guardian guineas are ready for free ranging and we've added various other things to deter them everybody will be super happy again. Honestly, I don't think they're all that put out and it's only for a little while longer.

The new run in was delivered and built on one of my roughest days. Not that Rachel was feeling any better but she met the guys at 6:20 in the morning to show them where to build it. Due to a miscommunication what was supposed to be tan with brown roof and trim turned out all brown. S'okay, we got a 5% discount for the inconvenience. Now the boys have somewhere to go when it's raining (like this weekend) and if we ever need to separate somebody for any reason we can do so with panels that we have lying around. Yes, we have a barn but it's more of a hay barn and on the other side of the property. We'll eventually use it for cattle and maybe a hog or two. This is just for the boys in the boy's pasture.

Troy staying dry from the rain. Happy is probably behind him out of sight and Pi in the stall on the other side.

We have multiple huge slash piles from when they cut the pines out back we're thinking of shredding them into mulch rather than burning them. Being outside city limits we sometimes burn our trash. After moving the firewood to a more accessible spot and out of view we decided to burn the remaining pieces that had started to rot and fallen branches in the yard. Gave us a good excuse to make s'mores :) Had to make sure Merlin didn't attempt to pick up burning sticks!

I discovered some cool fungus out under the trees....

• Somewhere along the way Hazel was released from her transitional quarters. I'll update you on this sweet cat in her own post. 
• It has rained somewhere in the vicinity of 25", give or take, this autumn so it's like a swamp around here. But, hey, the grass is green and the pond overfloweth! 
• Rachel has killed 4 mice found in the coop. The guineas didn't have access to that side at the time or they should've taken care of them. 
• Feral hogs have found the second feeder near the bottoms out back. I see smoked hog in our future! You may contact me if you're interested in one of your own. We have plenty! Three bucks and several does also visit it regularly. The does visit the one up close. No venison will be harvested from Lazy Dog Ranch. They are for visual pleasure only.
• More trash and junk has been discovered (rolling my eyes over the ridiculous things that were dumped in the most random places) that'll eventually be hauled off.
• At some point the farrier came by and entertained us with stories of hog hunting while getting the boy's hooves in shape. 
• I learned what part of the house is powered by the generator after some strong winds blew through. We can cook, watch TV, and stay connected to the internet but showers have to be taken by candlelight... Very romantic!
• My room is no longer in boxes. Not that it's done and ready for me to make anything yet, like Christmas cards, sorry....
• We dined at the local winery and it was delicious! A really nice treat tucked away in the middle of nowhere that's just down the road.
• Sierra discovered ticks in her regular beyond her border security checks ~ UGH, I DO NOT LIKE TICKS!!! She does seem to wander less outside the property and for shorter periods of time these days and I'm very happy about that. Have to keep an eye on Merlin so he doesn't follow her. I can't have them traveling 4 miles away that takes me 10 miles to get to. That was nerve racking!

It's good to be back!