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.

Where'd The Soil Go?

A Spring storm, forecasting up to 10 cm of snow (about 4 inches).  It is heavy, sticky stuff and should melt quite quickly.  But the enthusiasm of finding bare soil yesterday has been, well, quenched.  And have we got some messy Bears!

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!

Enjoying A Nice Day!

We've been quite a pair of hermits; with temperatures hovering around -40 C (with the windchill) we've been snuggling up to the wood stove with the seed catalogues. Well, today, we finally got out and about for a while. Temperatures rose steadily to a balmy -2 C, with a windchill of just -12 C (about 8 F). The dogs were well over due for a good walk, and fun was had by all! A nice stroll down our gravel road, a little snow swimming for those little dogs that thought they could run over the fields and snow drifts. Even The Hens and Rocky ventured out for a while!

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.

More Aftermath.....

The effects of the weekends' storm are still being felt! All things considered, we were very fortunate here at Aagaard Farms. Parts of Manitoba experienced flooding, road wash-outs and large trees down on cars and buildings. The biggest thing here, of late, is Farmer Man has had to use the tractor twice to pull out renters who tried to drive down to their garden plots. It kind of falls under the category 'what were they thinking', but who am I to say anything? I made an appointment for a meeting right after dropping The Bears off at the groomers. Went into my meeting with paw prints on my trousers! Both the gardeners who got stuck are new renters this year, and they may not have realized they were driving into the lowest part of the land, right beside the dugout, where all the water drains......Now, a picnic table is across the road, to keep any one else from trying to make the drive for the next couple of days!

Hangin' with The Bears

This time of year, there is lots of action at Aagaard Farms. We have our largest group of garden renters ever this year, Vartan and Natalia are coming by to help out, Farmer Man is in the field, back to the chicken coop and out to the barn. Friends and neighbors come and go, stopping for a visit, organizing this or that! It all makes for some busy little Bears! The dogs love this time of year: lots of visitors after a hermit-like existence all winter, gophers and magpies to chase, traffic to bark at, sunshine to bask in. Teddy, Panda and Grizzly are busy, busy, busy! Sometimes, even a doggie just needs a break!

The Neighbors Come A-Calling!

Out to check the chicken coop last night - too early and too light to actually tuck The Hens into bed. Just checking and having a stroll around. Just past the coop, what do we see but some of the neighbors! There are plenty of deer around these parts, but they don't come too close, and we don't often see them this early in the evening. I think having dogs (even though The Bears only come up to a deer's ankles) and the barking and scents seem to keep the deer away from the house. Now, if Blaze had been with us, instead of reclining on the front driveway, he could have had big fun and an awesome work-out!

Just Chillin'...

A lazy day at Aagaard Farms; not too warm, not too sunny and nothing pressing to do.  No rabbits to chase, the horses in the field below are not in sight, nothing much to bark about.  So The Bears, Grizzly Bear and Panda Bear anyway, are just relaxing.  Teddy Bear, the Diva Bear, is out guarding the perimeter; well, she's actually lying outside in the little bit of sunshine!

Spring 2010

Every girl likes a new look for the new season, right?  Well, you may have seen a post about Teddy Bear, about a week ago.  She doesn't look like that anymore.........She's back to being quite the lady.

Caution! Bear on Duty!

Proceed at your own risk!! Vicious Bear on duty! Yes, that's Teddy Bear, the Diva Dog of Aagaard Farms! She was our first dog; we had her before we moved to Brandon, and yes, she's a little spoiled. But, she does take her duties very seriously, and spends much time, especially at night, sitting on the driveway barking a warning to the world! She's actually a little better at it than the farm dog, Blaze (don't tell Blaze I said that....), who would rather be lying at Farmer Man's feet. Although she's slowing down a bit, and on medication for arthritis, she's still the one in charge here! Squirrels, magpies - watch out!

The Pigs Have Arrived!

Well, like everything else this year: they're late but they're here!! Farmer Boy's Berkshire pigs have arrived. Farmer Boy really had his heart set on Berkshire's, sort of the Cadillac of swine. It's what the great chefs all want, don't ya know? It almost didn't happen - we'd set up a purchase which fell through at the last minute because a poor sow got hit by lightening. A bit of a scramble, but Farmer Boy found some more that someone was willing to sell at this late date. Cost a little more than we had planned, including an hour drive there and back to get them, but that's okay! They seem to be settling in very nicely to their new pen tonight. Hard to say how they will feel about Rocky the rooster going off early in the morning!

Farmer Boy had to improvise, again, with pallets. We needed to cage them for the trip home but only have one large dog crate. They're new home is also fenced with pallets, for now. Last year we raised two pigs; this year we have nine because other people are interested in us raising one for them. And that's The Three Bears checking out the truck - they know something new is on board!