Good Bye, Sweet Blaze.

We had to say good bye to our dear friend Blaze today - Farmer Man's best friend.  We knew it was coming but somehow you're still never quite ready to lose a pet.  He'd been slowing down this past summer and fall; he no longer followed either of us anytime we left the house, he slept more, he ate less.  We knew he didn't hear much anymore and suspected his eyesight was going.  Then, two days ago he just seemed to lose the use of his back legs.  We found we had to hoist up his back legs to get him to walk, he'd stagger outside and just lie down even in frigid weather.  We'd have to go hoist him up again to get him back inside.  He couldn't, um, lift-his-leg to do his business and would just fall down into whatever business he had done.  It was time to say goodbye...he could no longer function as a dog.

Blaze, a Border Collie cross, came to us through our pal Molly.  Almost twelve years ago Molly was a very young lady working for the summer at the Clear Lake trail riding ranch, which also held the Clear Lake/Wasagaming pound.  She had called home to her Mom saying that a lovely dog had come into the pound and was due to be put down and she just couldn't let that happen.  He had obviously been on the run a while and was a mess, but seemed to have a beautiful disposition.  Molly worked on finding him a home and when his time at the pound was up, Mom Nancy supported Molly's call and took the dog out of the pound.  Thank you, ladies!

Molly eventually got in touch with us, knowing that our farm dog Nicky was very elderly.  We had always loved the breed: Jes had always been interested in frisbee sports and a Border Collie would be a great match.  Farmer Man wasn't in town but I went over to Nancy's to meet the dog and fell in love!  I brought him home and Blaze was a bit of a surprise present!  Our vet, Dr. Sherry at Wheat City Vet, estimated he was three to four years old at the time.

It wasn't easy at first!  Blaze wasn't well socialized and we had the big farm dog (a Malamute) and we had little Teddy Bear, the diva.  Blaze also didn't like cats at all and the old farm cat Peanuts had to scratch his face a few times to teach Blaze some respect.  Because I didn't know the dog and was still working on walking him and teaching him simple commands, when I was working in the gardens early on I would tie him up someplace close by.  Soon, he was chewing through the rope to be free to come lie down beside me, where ever I was working.

Blaze really became Farmer Man's dog: Jes was always up-and-out earlier than I was.  Blaze would be with him every minute of the day.  When Farmer Man was working on the tractor, Blaze would find a place in the shade and just watch the tractor go up and down the rows.  At potato planting, when the speed is a little slower, Blaze would follow the tractor, up and down the rows. If the farmer was hoeing, Blaze would be lying someplace close.  He might take some time to go swim in the dug out, smelling bad for a time after, but he was never far for long.

When we acquired Grizzly Bear, Blaze and the puppy developed a special relationship.  I don't know if it was because Grizzly was the youngest, but he would groom Blaze intensely, licking his ears, face and even his teeth!  I wonder if Grizzly will miss him?  Blaze eventually became the most accepting dog, showing no problems with visiting dogs, barn cats, chickens and goats.  Even though he absolutely had Border Collie in him, he never showed any inclination to 'herd' anything, but that's okay.

Blaze was the kind of dog that didn't care about toys or treats - he just wanted love and pats!  Oh, he'd chase a ball or frisbee, sometimes he'd bring it back.  But what he loved most was getting his tummy rubbed and his ears scratched.  He was always a hit when we did farm tours, even with children because he would just lie down, roll over and offer his tummy!

I know we'll just automatically be looking for him for a while; it will be hard to find him 'not there'.  Hopefully, he had a good life and enough love and pats!  And we'll see him again....over the Rainbow Bridge.

Gorgeous January Weather!

Usually in January, we'd have at least a couple feet of snow and we'd be looking forward to temperatures around -25 C. (about -18 F.): really, really cold.  Instead, in this odd year that began with flooding, we have very little snow and yesterday it was melting and dripping!  Global warming?  Once in three-hundred-year weather pattern?  That's a whole other blog post!  This kind of weather is actually bad for perennials, trees and shrubs.  Plants that are hardy for us need their freezing period and snow is our best insulation.  Warm weather with patchy snow cover, inevitably followed by very cold weather, is damaging to root systems and drying for stems and branches!

However, the critters are all enjoying this weather immensely.  Sometimes I feel bad about keeping animals in the winter here.  Heck, sometimes I feel bad about keeping us here in frigid weather!  Wouldn't we all be happier in the warmer climes of southern Ontario or the coast of BC.  But, that's not where we live, so we are really going to enjoy the balmy weather predicted for this week!

Doodles getting some sun.

We took the goats out for a walk yesterday.  A little romp, a chance for them to enjoy some natural food.  Goats love leaves and even like the brown, fallen leaves that are exposed right now.  They nibbled in the tomato field, chowed down in the willow shelter belt and really enjoyed the corn field.  We like to leave a certain amount of plant material in place for the winter: it acts as snow fencing, trapping and keeping the moisture of snow in place.  The added bonus this year is that is provides a little treat for the goats!  The dogs, of course, were with us and got some great exercise.  The house cats, Blondie and baby Doodles, hung out by the front door, sunning.

Busy in the chicken pasture.

The chickens have been basking in the sun and enjoying their natural dirt baths since there is no snow.  Usually this time of year, in extreme cold, they would spend most of the day in the coop with heat lamps on!  We try to supply them baths by providing large cat litter boxes filled with peat, diatomaceous earth and wood ash.  Natural is better, don't you think?  Even the barn cats are getting out for a little sunshine! Love the harmony here at Aagaard Farms - cats and chickens mixing to enjoy the sun.  I sometimes find it unbelievable that the barn cats seem to understand that the chickens are off-limits and everyone seems to get along well.  Well, except Grizzly Bear, who just can't seem to grasp the concept that the barn cats have a place here, too.  We'll keep working on him!  Peace and harmony, that's what we like!

Barn kitties and chickens hangin' out!

Getting to Our Least Favorite Chore

Being on a small farm, you might think our least favorite chore would be cleaning out the goat pen.  Or, perhaps, cleaning out the chicken coop.  It might be hauling half finished compost, or turning the compost pile that is in use.  Perhaps it could be weeding or watering on hot, sultry summer days.  But no, our least favorite chore and the one we procrastinate at is:  grooming our dogs.  Of course, the longer we leave it, the more of a chore it becomes and trimming The Three Bears involves not only fur but sticks, burrs and other unidentifiable stuff!

In a good year we might just ship them off to a groomer and put up with the jokes and incredulous looks.  But, this hasn't been one of those years so we're doing it ourselves.  Thank heavens, in a good year, we invested in a really good set of clippers!  Still, with three little doggies and one set of clippers, this is going to take a few days.  The clippers can only go for so long before they overheat.  Then there's the wiggling, teeth-baring and, finally, snarling that predicts an end to the current session.  The Bears are waaaaaay over due and there are mats to take out carefully, dew claws to watch for and personal aversions each dog has to having certain body parts shaved.

There is an awkward period...

We really should have done this in September but we were still rather busy with Farmers Markets and CSA.  October was Saturday Farmers Markets, trying to finish the potato harvest and curing and storing winter squash and such.  November has been clean-up, close up and chores like winterizing the chicken coop and goat barn.  So, an end of November clipping involves finding the dogs' little sweaters and getting them washed up 'cause there will be some shivering going on!  Blaze the Border Collie will need some attention, too.  He hasn't had a good brushing for a few months which means that a shopping bag of fur will come off of him!  Probably needless to say, the vacuum will be getting almost as much use as the clippers in the next few days.

Meet Doodles!

Doodles and the very hairy Grizzly Bear cuddling
on Farmer Man's lap.

Farmer Man had put his foot down a few years ago:  No more pets.  There was hardly any room in the bed for him between the little doggies and the cats.  But then, we lost Peanuts.  And then, he met Doodles.  Doodles is one of the barn kittens.  From the outset she was friendly, curious and would follow Farmer Man in that galloping, unsteady way that kittens have.  He described her as 'doodling around' the barn.  As the weather has taken a chilly turn the last few weeks, Farmer Man would appear, doing light chores, with the kitten stuffed in the front of his vest.  She would try to follow when he took the dogs for a walk and would end up tucked into his jacket, getting a full tour of the farm.  As we started to try to find the kittens home, to my surprise Farmer Man said that Doodles wasn't available.

Two nights ago, Doodles became a house cat.  Farmer Man brought her into the house and set her down to explore.  It was just kind of assumed she wouldn't be going back out to the barn.  It's a delicate situation with a small pack of doggies and one rather surly house cat, Blondie.  I got the pet carrier and set it up with an old towel for bedding, a small, plastic sandwich box for kitty litter and a small bowl for water.  We showed her to all the dogs and told them to be nice; growling or baring teeth received a correction.  We kept a close eye on her as she wandered and explored; it was all so exciting that she quickly settled in for a nap on Farmer Man's shoulder.

The good thing is the Grizzly Bear seems to have taken to her.  We still supervise every minute, but he really seems to be fascinated in a good way.  He's even given her a few 'kisses' and let her curl up on his back this morning.  If Doodles has been down and wandering, we just look for Grizzly, who seems to never be far behind.  He wants to play, but we admonish him to be gentle because he's so much bigger.  We're hoping they end up good friends.  The rest of the doggies are stand-offish and so far Blondie the cat seems to be afraid of the kitten!  Teddy Bear seems rather put off so far; poor girl started out as an only child and now has to share the attention with a number of other 'friends'!

At bedtime, Doodles is secured in the pet carrier.  When we left Saturday morning to do the Farmers Market, Doodles was secured in the pet carrier.  That will be the way, for a while.  There are hazards in any house, although ours is pretty pet safe!  We also can't completely trust the doggies and Blondie - these are animals and remain unpredictable.  And Doodles is just sooo small right now - and too nice for this crowd!

Kittens Meet the Chickens!

The kittens are scampering in the protection of the greenhouse!

 We've got kittens in the barn, again!  We tried not to, but just really don't have the budget to spay or neuter all of the little colony that has taken up residence in the barn.  I had an appointment at the vet's for the one we call Little Mama, but she disappeared about a week before the appointed day.  When the day came, I couldn't find her so I took one of the friendly males.  About three weeks later Little Mama reappeared, obviously pregnant.  She disappeared again for a number of weeks, then reappeared slimmer.  About two weeks ago, kittens appeared in the barn and not newborn.  She had obviously had a litter someplace, then started carrying them in.  They are, of course, just adorable!

Yesterday, Farmer Man was out working in the back yard on a little patio he's constructing and Little Mama decided a walk was in order.  She's quite bold what with the doggies around, but I guess she assumes Farmer Man and I will protect her.  The kittens and the free-ranging chicks found each other quite interesting.  We actually intervened at one point because we thought the chicks were going to start pecking at the kittens!  The June chicks are almost full grown at this point; quite a contrast in size!  A great adventure for the little kittens, I just hope they don't start free-ranging themselves yet because it's a dangerous world out there!  Anybody looking to add a kitten to their home?

Good Bye, Old Cat.

I'm an old cat and I'll push my food
around with my nose if I want to!

It's a sad day at Aagaard Farms today.  This morning our old cat, Peanuts, passed away.  He was an incredible age of twenty four and the last link to Farmer Man's Dad and Step-Mom.  Peanuts had been declining but up until yesterday he knew when dinner was, knew where his cozy bed was and could get to the water dish.  Yesterday we noticed he seemed very unsteady on his feet and early this morning he could hardly get on his feet.

Peanuts was a beautiful jet black cat.  He was a little unusual in that he had one brown eye and one green eye.  He was an excellent mouser - after we had been on the farm about a year he started to bring home his catches to 'share' with us.  We figure he led an awesome cats' life: he never wore a collar, he was free to roam and chase mice to his heart's content and he always had a good bed, a bowl of food and lots of scratches on his head to come home to.  He was never a snugly cat but he would come and curl up someplace in the room with us on long winter nights.  This past winter, he had taken to sleeping in the bathroom, beside the baseboard heater.  We've grown accustomed to stepping around him when we get out of the shower.  We will probably continue to do so for some time.  Old Peanuts will be missed!

At Least Someone is Enjoying All the Water!

It's becoming a Spring tradition.  Blaze's first swim in the dugout.  I guess the water has to warm to a certain temperature before he'll take a dip because the water has been fully available for a while.  I don't mind this Spring rite of passage because the water is fairly fresh, with none of that green slime that appears in the Summer.  That means Blaze is wet and rather dirty, but he doesn't smell bad!

Kids and Kittens

Things are picking up around Aagaard Farms, as the snow melts and things get warmer.  Our garden plot renters are starting to drop by, to register and to see how the gardens are doing.  Michelle was by to drop off her registration a few days ago; she had her four children in tow.  When asked if they would like to see the kittens in the barn, well, the kids were enthusiastic, to say the least!  Michelle's youngest is only around two, so we had to keep an eye on her.  Michelle's oldest is about six, her second is maybe five; they helped their two younger siblings by holding the kittens.  Much 'ooohing' and 'ahhhing' ensued.  Nothing like kids and kittens!  Of course Rocky started crowing over in his pasture, and our next stop was to see the rooster and The Hens!  Love giving kids a tour of the Farm!

Uh, Oh....We've Got Kittens

When we discovered a colony of feral cats on the property, the whole point of feeding them/caring for them was to get them spayed and neutered.  We know there are too many unwanted cats and dogs, it's a huge issue everywhere and the notion of so many animals being euthanized just breaks my heart.  My thinking was that I could befriend them, and once I could handle them a bit, I could get them to the vet.  If they were quite friendly, I hoped to find them homes.  A little naive, perhaps.  Some of the cats have never become comfortable with me, and now we have kittens.  I feel so bad about this - I could have tried harder and trapped the unfriendly cats.  In making some inquiries, I found that the local rescues, like Funds For Furry Friends, are over-whelmed with cats.  People look for the 'free' kitten ads in the paper, and balk at paying the small fee the rescues require.  The fee includes spaying or neutering and shots, and is really a great value compared to what the people would pay on their own at the vets.  People who get the 'free' kittens quite often don't get them spayed, and more kittens arrive.  It's an unfortunate cycle, and now I've contributed to it.  I feel really bad.  In the meantime, I've never been around kittens, and they are soooo darn cute; even these little guys whose eyes aren't open yet.

Goat Mania Is Setting In

We've been thinking about adding goats to the farm. Making soap and cheese would add year-round income, which would be very good. We've been doing our research, reading some books, searching online. We had a great chance yesterday to get a little more up-close-and-personal. The Manitoba Royal Winter Fair is happening in Brandon, and we saw that the Manitoba Goat Association was doing a presentation. MGA president Bill Paulishyn was manning the booth and giving the presentation. We had an awesome opportunity to ask our questions and get some Manitoba-specific information! You see, very few of the books we've read talk about caring for goats in the extreme cold temperatures of our winters. Great to have some questions answered! Then, we wandered over to the petting zoo - and watched the baby goats! They're so adorable!

Kitties in a Tree

It was, finally, a nice day here. Not snow-melting-nice or anything like that but nice enough that you didn't need to huddle down in the mondo parka with five layers on all body parts. I heard little feet on the roof this afternoon; I went to investigate and found a bunch of Garage Kitties sunning themselves. Bad blogger that I am, I did not have the camera with me. Now, the back of our house is built into the ground and it's quite easy to get on the roof at any time, and very easy right now with all the snow banks around! The Bears spotted the Kitties and a bit of mayhem ensued before I got them back under control. Later this afternoon, I spotted a couple of the Garage Kitties sunning in a slightly safer spot - ten feet up in an old spruce tree!

Love Is In The Air!

Happy Valentine's Day! The Garage Kitties are discovering love, slowly but surely. A few of them will let me pet them - and they just can't seem to get enough. The top photo is Mama and Big Orange getting some attention. The second photo is Beige, coming to greet me; she used to hide in the rafters when I entered the garage. The third picture is Mama, waiting for dinner! The last photo is the biggest surprise: our Blondie and Grizzly Bear hanging out together! Love can work miracles, and a lot of patience doesn't hurt either!

Just For Fun: But Important, Too!

Farmer Man Is A Big Softie!

Farmer Man has given me a bit of hassle about caring for the little wild kitties. He wonders what I'm going to do with them, how much our feed bill is going up and practical stuff like that. He shook his head when the little kitties started showing up in the garage, where Loud Cat already lived. The wild cats must have been following me back to the house, or following my trail and they've decided that the garage is better than the drafty old straw bale chicken coop. Loud Cat seems to have no problem with that, so they've all been hanging out in the rafters together. Makes feeding them soooo much easier. Farmer Man decided, with some really cold weather forecast, that we needed to replace the second, little heat lamp in the chicken coop. I thought the arrangement had worked well last year, but sure - a better heat lamp is always, well, better. Much to my surprise, the second little heater quickly re-appeared - as a warmer bed for the little kittens! Farmer Man has a bigger heart than he likes to let on! And just in time: we woke up yesterday to a morning temperature of minus 32 Celsius, which is about minus 32 Fahrenheit, too. Freak deaky cold; but we had the confidence that everybody in our little domain was warm and cozy!

Feline Feeding Frenzy...

Are you ready? Ready for dinner? You betcha! The little wild cats are getting used to the routine. They're getting a bit more comfortable with me, and don't run away when I arrive. With the weather very chilly, I think they're now spending most of their time in the old straw bale chicken coop, although three of the seven have shown up in the garage - just exploring, I guess. I climb right into the coop to feed them, spreading the food out in five or six different piles to avoid competition and fights. They've come to appreciate fresh water, and just in the last week or so most of them go for a drink right away. The water, of course, freezes solid before the next time I'm in there, but they're drinking a good half of the container before it freezes.

Night time temperatures are already getting down to -20 C (-8 F or so), so I was a little worried about them at night. To give them a more cozy space, I put in some boxes with an entry door on two sides, straw inside on the bottom and piled them with straw on top. I don't know how much they are using them, but they are using them because a couple of the smallest are coming out of the boxes when I arrive with dinner. I've been looking everywhere for some sort of solar-powered solution for water, but there's just nothing that will keep up to our cold temperatures. We're just too far from power to do anything electric. Might be dangerous, too in a straw bale house. So far, the little cats seem to be faring quite well!

Feral Felines Get Friendlier!

I've been feeding some (mostly) young cats for over three weeks now. They're living in our old, temporary chicken coop; it's made of straw bales with a truck cap. See them here. They'll now come running when I call at feeding time! They mostly still keep a wide berth, though. Two, of eight I see regularly, are a little older and they will come right up to me. The younger ones will do circles around me to get to the food. They spook and run off if I so much as sneeze. But, they're getting a bit more comfortable; three of the little ones have been creeping up to sniff at my feet. I put food out in a couple of piles and then sit about three or four feet away. Some have been bold enough to come up within a foot of me to eat from the food container I bring. They are all beautiful little cats, one is a gorgeous tan shade with white feet, two are seemingly twins of orange and white stripes, one is a little grey with a short tail. One of the little ones is a brown and black striped cat with a fluffy mane - so cute! Farmer Man keeps asking what I'm going to do and I can't fully answer. I'd love to tame them all and find them loving homes. Is that possible? I don't know. I hope to, at least, help keep them alive and comfortable through our frigid winter. I'll keep you updated!

A Rescue Mission May Be In Order!

Seems some little feline has had kittens in the old temporary chicken coop. No sign of any momma cat around now, but four young kittens seems to be living in the coop. Farmer Man has spotted them 'ghosting' around this summer, and we finally went looking for them. They seem to live in the coop, and hang around and play in the piles of old machinery and building materials not far away. They are extremely cute but very shy of humans! There is a short-haired blond with an amazing striped tail, looking rather like Loud Cat - a cat who has showed up in our garage on-and-off for a couple of years( hmmmm, maybe Loud Cat is a daddy). There's a short-haired gray and white, a fluffy brown, gray and white striped and an extremely adorable fluffy blond, who does look somewhat like our Blondie, who cannot be the daddy but could be an older brother. It's possible someone dumped the kittens out here - it happens, unfortunately, but we'll never know how they got here.

Thing is, within the next few months we're about to get cold - very, very cold. I worry about the little ones surviving. In the winter here in Manitoba, we can have temperatures of minus 35 Celsius - yes, that's MINUS 35 degrees! That's minus 30 something in Fahrenheit - killing cold no matter what scale you use! As frosty nights have already been happening, Farmer Man dumped a fresh bale of straw into the coop for the kittens to cuddle up in. We were bringing bales of straw for the pigs to burrow into, anyway - so what's one extra? I've started this week to feed and water them every day. I find the short-haired blond will come up to me, the gray will watch from close by and the two fluffy cats will scamper off and watch from far away. I have not tried to handle or pet them in any way yet. I'm just hoping they will get familiar and comfortable with me. I'm hoping eventually to get them so comfortable that I can entice them into a crate and get them over to our vet Dr. Sherry at Wheat City Vet Clinic. If anybody has experience with wild cats I'd appreciate any comments and info! In the meantime, I'll continue to sneak away from our dogs to go visit them everyday!

But, There's Thunder Out There....

Some of the residents of Aagaard Farms just don't like thunder. Some seem oblivious. There's nothing like a ninety pound Border Collie trying to get into your lap! (Good dog, Blaze!) Some, however, deal with it by lots of whining, following around Farmer Man, and eventually, hiding.....

Little Finch! Let Me Help!

I heard a small commotion in the sunroom. With small dogs and cats living in this house, you get a little 'tuned in' to disturbances. I go to the sunroom, and see Blondie the Cat in full-on hunt mode: crouched low to the ground, tail very slowly swishing, eyes seemingly intent but somewhat glazed over (rather like The Hens when they are laying!). Blondie pounces, and for a moment I see a flutter of little wings! I leap into action and swat the cat and a little wee yellow finch starts fluttering wildly around the glass room! Now, did Blondie bring the little bird in, or did he find his way through the cat door? No one will ever know for sure. But Blondie's on the move again, so I grab him and throw him in the bathroom, then close the drapes on the sunroom door to try to contain the little birdie. The camera is sitting on the table, so I grab it, like a good blogger should! Didn't close the door firmly enough, 'cause Blondie's back in a moment, pushing past me. The poor little bird is just frantic! I grab Blondie again, and put him in the office, door firmly closed this time. The little bird has followed us out through the curtains and heads for the living room, where there are large patio doors. Now The Bears want to know what's going on and they start nosing around. The little bird finally settles on the floor, beside the TV in the mess of wires and cables under the legs of a plant stand. Talking softly and gently, I reach in and she let me pick her up with out much fuss. Perhaps she was tired, or perhaps she knew I was trying to help. Anyway, a short walk through the patio doors and I set her down on the wall around the patio and she flew off in a heart beat. Then I let a rather miffed Blondie out of the office, and things returned to normal here at Aagaard Farms.

New Look: Summer 2010

Don't know if it is the latest fashion, but The Bears have a new look for Summer 2010. It's a little over-due, but it's hard to get into a groomer in Brandon; they are the busiest people around here (after the Tim Horton's coffee people, probably). It would have been nice to have The Bears this short before tick season started, but that is how it goes! They look (and smell) gooooood right now! Next on the agenda: Blaze for a summer strip-down and bath. Blaze, who loves swimming in the dugout, smells really baaaaad right now - so we can hardly wait for his appointment next week! We may even have to have an intervention bath before his appointment.