Crazy Animals (some new ones, too)!
Lots of craziness goin' on at Michelle's Menagerie... :B
First up, some of the blooming flowers...
Shasta Daisy spiral...
Sunflower...
Another sunflower...
The other evening I opened the front door to let the breeze in, and this little dove was sitting on our stoop! I was able to crawl up to the door on my stomach to take a pic...
But that wasn't the only surprise that evening! While I was getting a pic of the dove, the first quail clutch I've seen this year wandered by! They look to be several weeks old, so their parents have been doing a good job of keeping them hidden. :)
*sigh* Ohhhh, chickens. Silly, silly chickens. I've had a couple girls that keep going broody and stay that way for many weeks at a time. I actually don't mind not getting eggs -I'm not a slave driver, after all- but it's hard on them (they only get up to poop and eat once a day) and the hogging of the nestboxes annoys the other girls. And they're really grouchy, it's like chicken PMS. :P Anyway, aside from putting them in a pen that's off the ground (the air under them discourages broodiness) because I don't want to, or letting them hatch eggs, I decided to try giving Feets (the worst broody) some chicks. And it worked! It's supposed to work best with day-old chicks, but these were a few weeks old and they took to each other after the first night. So now Feets is a "mama" to two Easter Eggers and a guineafowl -the "redheaded step-child" of the bunch. :P
Here they are, settling in for the evening -the two EEs in front, and the guinea tucked in the back...
I also caved and let Nutmeg (another chronically-broody hen) have an egg. It's one of Rosemary's, and honestly I have no clue if it's even fertile. I plan to candle it one of these evenings to see if there's any progress or if it's rotten -should probably do that soon, lol, don't need any exploding eggs. But IF it's fertile and Nutmeg has done a good job, it should hatch sometime around the 1st. If it doesn't work I don't know what I'll do! D:
How about some always-a-good-time goat pics?
Here's Cisco, checking out the camera for edibles...
And here are the Three Amigos -Frito, Cisco, and Pancho...
These boys are just great, always whining for treats (grape leaves and rose branches are favorites) and climbing all over their yard toys. Fun, fun, fun. :3
Here they are doing their Billygoats Gruff routine...
And here they are with their new yardmate, tentatively called Mr. P -the peacock! Yes, we have a peacock! He's actually more of a rescue than an adoption, as he was a stray and not getting the care he needed at the shelter. He's a yearling (or so), and I hope he settles in okay. In fact, in just a day he looks a lot better, but he still paces the fence a lot. I'm looking into finding a mate (or friend) for him, as that seems like it might be beneficial.
ANYWAY, here's a bit of him with with goats...
That's it for animal craziness now. Oh, aside from Mr.Poo dropping his collar into an interdimensional portal -seriously, where did he lose it?!
In other news, Flight of the Conchords is much fun. :B
P.S. Anyone wanna go see Rachel Brice at Amnesia on August 17th? Maybe check out the Chihuly exhibition at the DeYoung beforehand? Kinda lame that the Brice show is a Sunday, but... I really want to check out both of those shows, and I'm not sure Ian would be too into the bellydancing. Well, he probably would *rolls eyes*, but the music isn't a draw for him. Actually, her troupe, The Indigo, is doing a show at the Fillmore in September...
Meh, we'll see.
First up, some of the blooming flowers...
Shasta Daisy spiral...
Sunflower...
Another sunflower...
The other evening I opened the front door to let the breeze in, and this little dove was sitting on our stoop! I was able to crawl up to the door on my stomach to take a pic...
But that wasn't the only surprise that evening! While I was getting a pic of the dove, the first quail clutch I've seen this year wandered by! They look to be several weeks old, so their parents have been doing a good job of keeping them hidden. :)
*sigh* Ohhhh, chickens. Silly, silly chickens. I've had a couple girls that keep going broody and stay that way for many weeks at a time. I actually don't mind not getting eggs -I'm not a slave driver, after all- but it's hard on them (they only get up to poop and eat once a day) and the hogging of the nestboxes annoys the other girls. And they're really grouchy, it's like chicken PMS. :P Anyway, aside from putting them in a pen that's off the ground (the air under them discourages broodiness) because I don't want to, or letting them hatch eggs, I decided to try giving Feets (the worst broody) some chicks. And it worked! It's supposed to work best with day-old chicks, but these were a few weeks old and they took to each other after the first night. So now Feets is a "mama" to two Easter Eggers and a guineafowl -the "redheaded step-child" of the bunch. :P
Here they are, settling in for the evening -the two EEs in front, and the guinea tucked in the back...
I also caved and let Nutmeg (another chronically-broody hen) have an egg. It's one of Rosemary's, and honestly I have no clue if it's even fertile. I plan to candle it one of these evenings to see if there's any progress or if it's rotten -should probably do that soon, lol, don't need any exploding eggs. But IF it's fertile and Nutmeg has done a good job, it should hatch sometime around the 1st. If it doesn't work I don't know what I'll do! D:
How about some always-a-good-time goat pics?
Here's Cisco, checking out the camera for edibles...
And here are the Three Amigos -Frito, Cisco, and Pancho...
These boys are just great, always whining for treats (grape leaves and rose branches are favorites) and climbing all over their yard toys. Fun, fun, fun. :3
Here they are doing their Billygoats Gruff routine...
Click to viewAnd here they are with their new yardmate, tentatively called Mr. P -the peacock! Yes, we have a peacock! He's actually more of a rescue than an adoption, as he was a stray and not getting the care he needed at the shelter. He's a yearling (or so), and I hope he settles in okay. In fact, in just a day he looks a lot better, but he still paces the fence a lot. I'm looking into finding a mate (or friend) for him, as that seems like it might be beneficial.
ANYWAY, here's a bit of him with with goats...
That's it for animal craziness now. Oh, aside from Mr.Poo dropping his collar into an interdimensional portal -seriously, where did he lose it?!
In other news, Flight of the Conchords is much fun. :B
P.S. Anyone wanna go see Rachel Brice at Amnesia on August 17th? Maybe check out the Chihuly exhibition at the DeYoung beforehand? Kinda lame that the Brice show is a Sunday, but... I really want to check out both of those shows, and I'm not sure Ian would be too into the bellydancing. Well, he probably would *rolls eyes*, but the music isn't a draw for him. Actually, her troupe, The Indigo, is doing a show at the Fillmore in September...
Meh, we'll see.