Friday, July 19, 2013

OK, I want answeres...I wanna know...who.....

Opened the gates of HELL!?? WOW Has it been hot!! Temps in the upper 90s, humidity almost matching...real feel in the triple digits! This weather has been a nightmare on the animals. I have been working almost non stop trying to keep them alive in this heat...constant watering...fans..and every time I walk out to do a welfare check, praying I don't find one of our critters ....giving up the ghost. So far we have lost 3 of our meaties. GRRRRRRR THIS upsets me because I have put time and effort into raising meat for our freezer, only to lose it to the heat. On the plus side...the Guinea hogs like chicken. So, not a total waste...but I am not raising these chickens to feed the hogs! It is TOO HOT to even TRY to butcher chickens. Whew! Today we are supposed to get a few showers....and I believe I heard the weatherman say...temps n the 80's! Woohoo, I think I love our weatherman. So, last week..we had a kitten that had been injured...and she needed to be taken to the vet to have her little leg amputated. I named this little barn kitten... Little Foot.
She really is a sweet little girl...so sad for her. However, she didn't let it get her down. Too bad we as humans can't be more like the animals. The day of her surgery..she was still purring..hobbling up to me and cuddling...and when I picked her up she had the same upbeat attitude. What a sweetie! I was able to find her a great home after surgery....where she will be an inside spoiled baby girl. I am so happy for her. She deserves the best! The day I went to pick her up....I was gone most of the day. The vet we use is just over an hour away. Once I returned home...as I pulled in the drive, I noticed a little black "something" in the pasture with our 2 dairy goats. Now, I know they are NOT pregnant....so I brought the kitten inside to get her settled...and on the doorstep is a note...
Oh boy! I ran out to the barn...and yep, they did!! SOMEONE left this little guy in the pasture. LUCKY for me...they can't tell a Billy from a whether...and they were wrong. He is a whether! YAY....at least I didn't have to worry about "that"
I was concerned however, that he might be ill...or have worms...and could make my dairy girls sick. I had to wait until the hubby got home to get him in the barn, and corner him....I needed to do a good check over. We only chased him around the little goat cabin about 10 times before we FINALLY got him to run into the barn...GOTCHA CORNERED! HAHA! I was finally able to get my hands on him, and throw a collar on him. He looks good! Eyes are clear...gums, clear...good weight....just needs his little feet trimmed. So I am thinking now...I have to put up another small "paddock" for "drop offs" to ensure diseases are not spread. *sigh* Better safe than sorry tho.....right? So we have named this little guy...Moomoo. Once the weather breaks I will tackle the job of trimming his hooves...and finding him a forever home. I am thankful they didn't toss him in with my billy goat, Fred. I know Fred would have put a hurt on him. Speaking of "hurt" This heat is taking a toll on the animals. One of our blue butt pigs went down. She would not eat...just laid around and looked miserable. I was certain she was a gonner. I tried to get her to eat a hot dog bun with jelly...nope..she looked away. Now I KNOW she was sick. I offered her fresh warm goats milk...nope. :( All I could do was keep water on her..and hope for the best.Getting her medicated was a chore...I had to put the meds in a syringe and force it in her mouth. After about 3 days...she was up and looking for food! YAY! Yesterday when I went out, she greeted me with a "bark" and she ran up to the fence to greet me. Whew! That was close. Farm life can be so challenging some days. Today I will replant green beans..the first crop I planted is struggling to put out beans. :( Hoping now that the weather is cooling down a bit I can at least get some new beans started and will have a good crop. So, another day on the farm...it is HOT HOT HOT...I am headed out to run water hoses again...all day.

2 comments:

  1. We use misters to help keep the animals cool. It makes a nice difference here. But then we have dry heat, so I don't know how well it would work for you.
    There have been many a time that the second bathroom would be loaded up with bunnies and chickens that were melting in the outside heat. I don't know where I would put a pig though! lol

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  2. Part of the problem here right now is the humidity! Whew! in the 80% range. I think I am growing GILLS!

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