Farm Flock: follow along with *all* the birds in our flock
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bug_n_flock
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- Jan 2, 2018
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- Parrots
- B&G Macaw, Galah, 5 cockatiels, 50 billion and a half budgies. We breed and do rescue. Too many to list each individual's name and age etc, but they are each individuals and loved dearly.
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All went well with the hurricane. It mostly petered out by the time it hit us, and just dumped a bunch of rain on us. Robin and Fish are doing well, Fish is more reserved than Robin. Robin is ALWAYS getting into trouble. ALWAYS. Pestering us, pestering Fish, doing something he shouldn't be, whatever. LMAO Fish tolerates him well enough but mostly wants to do his own thing. He is friendly enough with us and the other birds but isn't an overly outgoing individual. More of an introvert 
I am convinced Freedom understands WAY more English than most people would give her credit for. She is also a TOTAL weirdo. The other day she spouted some garbled something or other that sounded like "fried rat", so I asked her, "Did you just say something about a fried rat?!" And she belched loudly. Well then. She laughs at jokes before we do, she makes commentary on the things going on around her. I genuinely don't understand the phrase "bird brain"
The turkeys are well, growing bigger and bigger. Mr. Horse-with-no-name is great, Mr. Butts is still a jealous baby. Kitties and doggies are well. We are mostly getting ready for winter, and thinking about our options for getting out of this mobile home which is more and more showing us that is has an expiration date. My grandmother's estate is being dissolved this month, and depending on how much I inheirit(I know this is misspelled) we are thinking about buying a new mobile home, building a house(probably not time for this option right now considering the state of the mobile home), or buying a small second property nearby with a house already on it. There are a few listings in this county for under 50K, I'm sure we could find something acceptable that we can afford(depending on how much she left for me of course). If we went with that option, we would buy the house with 2 things in mind: starting a family soon, and eventually my mom maybe moving there for her senior years.
We are still mostly staying home, as one does in 2020. Have been playing a lot of video games in our spare time. Alex is just about through his current bag of Harrisons, and we will try to switch him to TOPS, and we will order adult lifetime for his next bag of harrisons. Does harrisons make a senior formula? He is just absurdly fat and as cute as it is, that can't be healthy for an over 18 year old cockatiel.
Hima is acting like her legs are starting to bother her, so we are starting to look at options for joint support and such. Once Covid allows, we will be getting her over to our vet for their opinions and such. My cousin is working for an emergency vet that has a bird vet, and she does not think metacam would be wise due to the issues of organ stress with long term use. She is in favor of trying CBD for Hima, but I have some reservations and want more info and our vet's opinion before trying anything other than ginger and hot peppers and such. So for now just firey budgie kisses.
Hima is such a delight. And proves naysayers wrong. She is a non handfed hen who has never bitten anyone ever. Total sassy sweetheart. <3 Such a special bird. :07:
I can't really think of too much else that is going on right now, but I will really try to be on here more often. I miss you guys when I am not on here!
I am convinced Freedom understands WAY more English than most people would give her credit for. She is also a TOTAL weirdo. The other day she spouted some garbled something or other that sounded like "fried rat", so I asked her, "Did you just say something about a fried rat?!" And she belched loudly. Well then.
She laughs at jokes before we do, she makes commentary on the things going on around her. I genuinely don't understand the phrase "bird brain"The turkeys are well, growing bigger and bigger. Mr. Horse-with-no-name is great, Mr. Butts is still a jealous baby. Kitties and doggies are well. We are mostly getting ready for winter, and thinking about our options for getting out of this mobile home which is more and more showing us that is has an expiration date. My grandmother's estate is being dissolved this month, and depending on how much I inheirit(I know this is misspelled) we are thinking about buying a new mobile home, building a house(probably not time for this option right now considering the state of the mobile home), or buying a small second property nearby with a house already on it. There are a few listings in this county for under 50K, I'm sure we could find something acceptable that we can afford(depending on how much she left for me of course). If we went with that option, we would buy the house with 2 things in mind: starting a family soon, and eventually my mom maybe moving there for her senior years.
We are still mostly staying home, as one does in 2020. Have been playing a lot of video games in our spare time. Alex is just about through his current bag of Harrisons, and we will try to switch him to TOPS, and we will order adult lifetime for his next bag of harrisons. Does harrisons make a senior formula? He is just absurdly fat and as cute as it is, that can't be healthy for an over 18 year old cockatiel.
Hima is acting like her legs are starting to bother her, so we are starting to look at options for joint support and such. Once Covid allows, we will be getting her over to our vet for their opinions and such. My cousin is working for an emergency vet that has a bird vet, and she does not think metacam would be wise due to the issues of organ stress with long term use. She is in favor of trying CBD for Hima, but I have some reservations and want more info and our vet's opinion before trying anything other than ginger and hot peppers and such. So for now just firey budgie kisses.
Hima is such a delight. And proves naysayers wrong. She is a non handfed hen who has never bitten anyone ever. Total sassy sweetheart. <3 Such a special bird. :07:
I can't really think of too much else that is going on right now, but I will really try to be on here more often. I miss you guys when I am not on here!
OP
bug_n_flock
Well-known member
- Jan 2, 2018
- 1,373
- 208
- Parrots
- B&G Macaw, Galah, 5 cockatiels, 50 billion and a half budgies. We breed and do rescue. Too many to list each individual's name and age etc, but they are each individuals and loved dearly.
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- #123
Oh, and the babies' covid results came back negative!!!! Rhinovirus and the older one had a bad ear infection. SUCH good news!
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bug_n_flock
Well-known member
- Jan 2, 2018
- 1,373
- 208
- Parrots
- B&G Macaw, Galah, 5 cockatiels, 50 billion and a half budgies. We breed and do rescue. Too many to list each individual's name and age etc, but they are each individuals and loved dearly.
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These naughty equines! They have been breaking out of their pens more and more lately! We are currently rained in, but hoping to be able to get out tomorrow or Wednesday(more heavy rain coming Thursday) and get some fencing supplies to repair the paddock and keep the buggers home! Today they are out but staying home. Yesterday they got out and decided to take a walkabout in the forest. With the creek high right now they really can't get too far, but it was unsettling to not be able to find them at first(they weren't far though, just in an area we didn't look right away).
Hopefully all this rain doesn't soak into their feet and/or give them rain rot. Butters had an issue with rain rot a couple years ago, but we still have some of the sulferized horse shampoo for treating it. A new thing on the list of what we are looking for in a second property: 2-5 acres so we can put a small arena and a stable in. We want the equines not to be living here with us living elsewhere. Horses get stolen. Plus a stable would give us a nice solidly dry place to confine them during the soggy months of the year(of course they would be coming to the farm proper daily with us so would get plenty of excersize).
Once we have a house built and move back here leaving that house open for my Mom to live in, she could get a horse if she wanted, or we would be able to bring the equines to visit her there(she loves horses).
Hopefully all this rain doesn't soak into their feet and/or give them rain rot. Butters had an issue with rain rot a couple years ago, but we still have some of the sulferized horse shampoo for treating it. A new thing on the list of what we are looking for in a second property: 2-5 acres so we can put a small arena and a stable in. We want the equines not to be living here with us living elsewhere. Horses get stolen. Plus a stable would give us a nice solidly dry place to confine them during the soggy months of the year(of course they would be coming to the farm proper daily with us so would get plenty of excersize).
Once we have a house built and move back here leaving that house open for my Mom to live in, she could get a horse if she wanted, or we would be able to bring the equines to visit her there(she loves horses).
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Equines, break-outs and walkabouts! Yup, SOP (standard operating processors)!
The rain has either been to the North of us or the South. The Waterfalls in Upper Michigan have been in full Spring volume all Summer! We have had several friends traveling up there and they say it sensational!
The rain has either been to the North of us or the South. The Waterfalls in Upper Michigan have been in full Spring volume all Summer! We have had several friends traveling up there and they say it sensational!
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bug_n_flock
Well-known member
- Jan 2, 2018
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- Parrots
- B&G Macaw, Galah, 5 cockatiels, 50 billion and a half budgies. We breed and do rescue. Too many to list each individual's name and age etc, but they are each individuals and loved dearly.
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LMAO until we get to the feed shop we have effectively given up- We just let them out now! Lock them back up at sunset, but during the day we let them have their freedom. I mean, they will take their freedom anyway, and this way it means fewer fence mendings. Hopefully tomorrow we can get to the shop, but for now the bridge is still underwater.
Lock them back up at sunset, but during the day we let them have their freedom. I mean, they will take their freedom anyway, and this way it means fewer fence mendings. Hopefully tomorrow we can get to the shop, but for now the bridge is still underwater.
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bug_n_flock
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- Jan 2, 2018
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- Parrots
- B&G Macaw, Galah, 5 cockatiels, 50 billion and a half budgies. We breed and do rescue. Too many to list each individual's name and age etc, but they are each individuals and loved dearly.
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- #128
Oh my goodness! You guys have never seen a single photo of Robin or Little Fish! Well, here ya go! Robin is the Lutino, Fishy is the green.
I may make a second post with more baby photos! A very generous person has made it possible for me to post so many photos now! If they give me permission to do so, I will embarass them by name and thank them publicly.
I may make a second post with more baby photos! A very generous person has made it possible for me to post so many photos now!
If they give me permission to do so, I will embarass them by name and thank them publicly. Attachments
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bug_n_flock
Well-known member
- Jan 2, 2018
- 1,373
- 208
- Parrots
- B&G Macaw, Galah, 5 cockatiels, 50 billion and a half budgies. We breed and do rescue. Too many to list each individual's name and age etc, but they are each individuals and loved dearly.
- Thread Starter
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- #129
AmyMyBlueFront
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- Apr 14, 2015
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- Amy a Blue Front 'Zon
Jonesy a Goffins 'Too who had to be rehomed :-(
And a Normal Grey Cockatiel named BB who came home with me on 5/20/2016.
Loving your updates and photo's Ms Bug!
Jim
Jim
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RIP Gandalf and Big Bird, you are missed.
Awesome update, glad things are going well overall. Love the pics, thanks for posting!!
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bug_n_flock
Well-known member
- Jan 2, 2018
- 1,373
- 208
- Parrots
- B&G Macaw, Galah, 5 cockatiels, 50 billion and a half budgies. We breed and do rescue. Too many to list each individual's name and age etc, but they are each individuals and loved dearly.
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- #133
So my aunt gave all the heirs more information about how much we are getting. My grandmother left a decent amount behind for us, but split between 7 grandkids it isn't enough to where hubbs and I feel comfortable buying a second property and home and all that at this time. Things are just too uncertain right now. So we are basically planning to overhaul our current mobile home in stages. First step is to clean out the back bedroom, which we have been using as storage and dog parking spaces(LOL Rico and Chance have their sleeping crates in there). Fionna the kitty is going to be transitioned back to being an outdoor kitty(she was outdoors before we adopted her and seems to want to go outside). Hubbs has been working on cleaning out the back bedroom because we have had 2 very unwelcome guests take up residence in the house this summer: lots and lots of spiders, and mildew on some of the fabrics due to high heat and humidity. I am not a fan of spiders in the slightest.
The plan is to move the bird room into the back bedroom(about 2x the size of the current bird room) before it starts to get cold enough to where we want to run the wood stove. Freedom will be moving into the new and improved birdroom for the winter(her cage in the living room is WAY too close to the stove). Once all the birds are out of the current bird room we are going to assess if we want to rip up the carpets(most likely), replace the window(also very likely), check the insulation, make sure there is no mold in the walls, and update the wiring. Once that is done we will move our bed in there and move the rest of our bedroom furniture out and start on our bedroom. That is going to be a big project. The carpet definitely has to go, the master bathroom needs to completely be redone, the 2 person tub in the middle of the bedroom has to go(we use it to store canned goods and cake mixes currently, since the idea of a romantic 2 person tub in the master bedroom of a used mobile home from the 80's is sorta... gross.). The two windows currently in need removed and replaced. The drywall on that side of the room is kaput squishy and moldy(the a/c was leaking worse than we realized), some flooring needs to be replaced, some plumbing needs to be fixed, other plumbing needs to be installed, and the wiring needs redone. Oh, and the skylight leaks if it rains hard enough, so that needs resealing and potentially a section of the roof replaced there. A few other odds and ends but that is the bulk of what the master bedroom needs... we are hoping to have the 2nd bathroom rigged up with running water by this winter, and can then get mini versions of many household appliances(we still don't trust the electric enough to have normal appliances)... an RV size washing machine, a tabletop dishwasher, and a small tankless water heater so we can take hot baths and showers. Next year no more window unit A/C's. We are going to get the portable type that just need to run a tube for vent air(shouldn't have leaky windows then). We need to rip up the carpet in the main area of the house too... all in all, there is a whole lot that needs to be done to make this mobile home to the standard where we would feel safe having a baby here, but considering everything going on right now, that is probably our most prudent move. Oh and there is more to build and fix here than just what I listed! We have five dogs and no fenced yard! That means every day we need to walk all 5 each and every time they just need to use a tree! And most of the dogs can't be trusted around the chickens so just letting them out on their own isn't an option! Heccin doggos! Good thing they are cute.
All said, we have to update the wiring in the whole house, the insulation needs replaced, much of the carpettings gotta go, we need to put in underskirting, gutters, a porch, a fenced yard, plumbing, windows..... it is going to be a LOT, but probably the cheapest option and will give us a lot of building experience to use on other structures.
On the emotional side, it is overwhelming. But what is telling is that prior to learning numbers I had started to feel like, "ho-hum, I guess we can move more around people and make it work, we will still have this place and will move back one day..." etc etc etc, and when I found out the numbers I instantly felt... relief? Maybe? :57: I guess what that means is I don't have any desire to move elsewhere, more "civilized", I just want some basic quality of life improvements.... hot water(ideally from a tap), a dishwasher, a washing machine, a proper stove/oven(this will have to wait until we have someone drill a gas line from the main that goes thru the neighbor's field)... a fenced yard and a lovely porch.... an outdoor space that is somewhat removed from the barnyard or wilderness... and access needs to be improved. There is a family history of needing birthing interventions, so I can't be in a position where I am 9 months pregnant and we are rained in or something. My brother and I were emergency c sections, and both of my cousin's babies were c sections... I don't know the birth details for other children in the family, but it is definitely something to be aware of. We also want to have trash pickup because we are really, really bad at sticking to a schedule for driving to the dump. Lmao, if we can get garbage pickup at the main road, that would be wonderful. It is available, but we don't have road frontage... maybe we can buy or rent a few dozen square feet of land at the road from our neighbor... set up trash pickup and maybe put in a mailbox..... :57: We would need to drive the trash to the curb at first(it's at least a good 1/4 mile from our property line), but I have dreams of teaching Mr. Butters to pull a buggy with the trash cans in down to the curb. What a fun chore to give to the mini donkey!
Speaking of "fun chores": bucket laundry! Lmao. Ok, so not so very fun. In hot weather I will grant it is not the most unpleasant of chores to do, but you still are bending over a bucket and fighting with wet soapy dirty clothes and ugh. Plus all the time it needs to waste just sitting there letting the detergent and dirt soak in and out.... I don't know why it never occured to me that most of the world doesn't have a washing machine and that there *had* to be a better way.. First world bias, I suppose. Anyway, turns out Ebay is *full* of wonderful products geared towards those living in parts of the world where electric washers just aren't around. So I ordered a cool looking contraption that is supposed to speed up the process and really make it more water effecient. It is like a big toilet plunger with a slightly different design that is supposed to suck water and detergent thru the clothes and really get the crud out from within the weave of the fabric. Sounds promising. Cannot wait for it to get here, and I may order a few other really clever looking designs. Japan doesn't have a lot of laundry appliances in unit apparently. There are some interesting semi-auto designs too. Really worth looking at even if you have access to a washer/dryer system. If for no other reason it is just educational and cool to know about.
So, so much to do. But we are refocused on doing it.
I am eagerly planning what birds I want to breed once we have moved the bird room. I am thinking of breeding a couple of the Trollman budgies... the spangles. They are big for trollman budgies so I think they would be fine as breeder birds. Of course they would be paired with birds from the original flock.
As I type this I have Robin on my right shoulder, Hima on my chest(Robin keeps climbing down to pester her) and Mr. Fish on my head, quite pleased with himself. Life is good. Busy, but good. Annnd as I have been editing, Robin climbed up there too.
The plan is to move the bird room into the back bedroom(about 2x the size of the current bird room) before it starts to get cold enough to where we want to run the wood stove. Freedom will be moving into the new and improved birdroom for the winter(her cage in the living room is WAY too close to the stove). Once all the birds are out of the current bird room we are going to assess if we want to rip up the carpets(most likely), replace the window(also very likely), check the insulation, make sure there is no mold in the walls, and update the wiring. Once that is done we will move our bed in there and move the rest of our bedroom furniture out and start on our bedroom. That is going to be a big project. The carpet definitely has to go, the master bathroom needs to completely be redone, the 2 person tub in the middle of the bedroom has to go(we use it to store canned goods and cake mixes currently, since the idea of a romantic 2 person tub in the master bedroom of a used mobile home from the 80's is sorta... gross.). The two windows currently in need removed and replaced. The drywall on that side of the room is kaput squishy and moldy(the a/c was leaking worse than we realized), some flooring needs to be replaced, some plumbing needs to be fixed, other plumbing needs to be installed, and the wiring needs redone. Oh, and the skylight leaks if it rains hard enough, so that needs resealing and potentially a section of the roof replaced there. A few other odds and ends but that is the bulk of what the master bedroom needs... we are hoping to have the 2nd bathroom rigged up with running water by this winter, and can then get mini versions of many household appliances(we still don't trust the electric enough to have normal appliances)... an RV size washing machine, a tabletop dishwasher, and a small tankless water heater so we can take hot baths and showers. Next year no more window unit A/C's. We are going to get the portable type that just need to run a tube for vent air(shouldn't have leaky windows then). We need to rip up the carpet in the main area of the house too... all in all, there is a whole lot that needs to be done to make this mobile home to the standard where we would feel safe having a baby here, but considering everything going on right now, that is probably our most prudent move. Oh and there is more to build and fix here than just what I listed! We have five dogs and no fenced yard! That means every day we need to walk all 5 each and every time they just need to use a tree! And most of the dogs can't be trusted around the chickens so just letting them out on their own isn't an option! Heccin doggos! Good thing they are cute.
All said, we have to update the wiring in the whole house, the insulation needs replaced, much of the carpettings gotta go, we need to put in underskirting, gutters, a porch, a fenced yard, plumbing, windows..... it is going to be a LOT, but probably the cheapest option and will give us a lot of building experience to use on other structures.
On the emotional side, it is overwhelming. But what is telling is that prior to learning numbers I had started to feel like, "ho-hum, I guess we can move more around people and make it work, we will still have this place and will move back one day..." etc etc etc, and when I found out the numbers I instantly felt... relief? Maybe? :57: I guess what that means is I don't have any desire to move elsewhere, more "civilized", I just want some basic quality of life improvements.... hot water(ideally from a tap), a dishwasher, a washing machine, a proper stove/oven(this will have to wait until we have someone drill a gas line from the main that goes thru the neighbor's field)... a fenced yard and a lovely porch.... an outdoor space that is somewhat removed from the barnyard or wilderness... and access needs to be improved. There is a family history of needing birthing interventions, so I can't be in a position where I am 9 months pregnant and we are rained in or something. My brother and I were emergency c sections, and both of my cousin's babies were c sections... I don't know the birth details for other children in the family, but it is definitely something to be aware of. We also want to have trash pickup because we are really, really bad at sticking to a schedule for driving to the dump. Lmao, if we can get garbage pickup at the main road, that would be wonderful. It is available, but we don't have road frontage... maybe we can buy or rent a few dozen square feet of land at the road from our neighbor... set up trash pickup and maybe put in a mailbox..... :57: We would need to drive the trash to the curb at first(it's at least a good 1/4 mile from our property line), but I have dreams of teaching Mr. Butters to pull a buggy with the trash cans in down to the curb. What a fun chore to give to the mini donkey!
Speaking of "fun chores": bucket laundry! Lmao. Ok, so not so very fun. In hot weather I will grant it is not the most unpleasant of chores to do, but you still are bending over a bucket and fighting with wet soapy dirty clothes and ugh. Plus all the time it needs to waste just sitting there letting the detergent and dirt soak in and out.... I don't know why it never occured to me that most of the world doesn't have a washing machine and that there *had* to be a better way..
First world bias, I suppose. Anyway, turns out Ebay is *full* of wonderful products geared towards those living in parts of the world where electric washers just aren't around. So I ordered a cool looking contraption that is supposed to speed up the process and really make it more water effecient. It is like a big toilet plunger with a slightly different design that is supposed to suck water and detergent thru the clothes and really get the crud out from within the weave of the fabric. Sounds promising. Cannot wait for it to get here, and I may order a few other really clever looking designs. Japan doesn't have a lot of laundry appliances in unit apparently. There are some interesting semi-auto designs too. Really worth looking at even if you have access to a washer/dryer system. If for no other reason it is just educational and cool to know about. So, so much to do. But we are refocused on doing it.
I am eagerly planning what birds I want to breed once we have moved the bird room. I am thinking of breeding a couple of the Trollman budgies... the spangles. They are big for trollman budgies so I think they would be fine as breeder birds. Of course they would be paired with birds from the original flock.
As I type this I have Robin on my right shoulder, Hima on my chest(Robin keeps climbing down to pester her) and Mr. Fish on my head, quite pleased with himself.
Life is good. Busy, but good. Annnd as I have been editing, Robin climbed up there too.
OP
bug_n_flock
Well-known member
- Jan 2, 2018
- 1,373
- 208
- Parrots
- B&G Macaw, Galah, 5 cockatiels, 50 billion and a half budgies. We breed and do rescue. Too many to list each individual's name and age etc, but they are each individuals and loved dearly.
- Thread Starter
- Thread starter
- #135
Hmm, we are starting to have a few issues with our colt. He is pushing boundries and chased after one of the dogs the other day. We are going to start working more with training and stuff and also get him castrated. A lot of places online seem to suggest turning out a young horse with other horses to help them learn manners and their place in the world..... we don't have other horses, and he has started to bully Butters. Would it be a bad idea to have him cut and then wait for hormones to settle down, and then see about maybe pasture boarding him somewhere local with other horses for a month or two(and maybe have a trainer work with him a little)? Or do y'all think that we would be able to teach him better manners than he has now without another horse to help the lessons?
Hubbs is feeling nervous around the horse, as he has very little experience with horses and doesn't know what to do when he starts getting too pushy and high energy.
At any rate, we need to start working with him more, as he is turning into a punk just being a "pasture pet". We have the horse penned up again, but Butters we are just letting be loose. When we walk the dogs we slip a halter on Mr. Butts and tie him(donkeys naturally HATE canines), and then just untie him when we have the dogs back inside. Butters is just *such* a good boy, and the horse acting up just highlights how wonderful Mr. Butts behaves. In the spring you can't turn your back on him, but the rest of the year is is just fine and trustworthy. Wonderful behavior for an intact jack. The horse has lost his testicle priviliges, though... LOL
Lately we have been feeding them a mix of rabbit pellets and sweet feed in addition to their grazing and mineral salt. Hay is hard to find again, but they both look AMAZING on the rabbit pellets. I am impressed with how good they are doing on it. LOL vets do like to say rabbits are just little horses... well, the opposite is pretty true too it turns out!
Do you guys have any book or video suggestions for learning about training colts?
Hubbs is feeling nervous around the horse, as he has very little experience with horses and doesn't know what to do when he starts getting too pushy and high energy.
At any rate, we need to start working with him more, as he is turning into a punk just being a "pasture pet". We have the horse penned up again, but Butters we are just letting be loose. When we walk the dogs we slip a halter on Mr. Butts and tie him(donkeys naturally HATE canines), and then just untie him when we have the dogs back inside. Butters is just *such* a good boy, and the horse acting up just highlights how wonderful Mr. Butts behaves. In the spring you can't turn your back on him, but the rest of the year is is just fine and trustworthy. Wonderful behavior for an intact jack. The horse has lost his testicle priviliges, though...
LOLLately we have been feeding them a mix of rabbit pellets and sweet feed in addition to their grazing and mineral salt. Hay is hard to find again, but they both look AMAZING on the rabbit pellets. I am impressed with how good they are doing on it. LOL vets do like to say rabbits are just little horses... well, the opposite is pretty true too it turns out!
Do you guys have any book or video suggestions for learning about training colts?
OP
bug_n_flock
Well-known member
- Jan 2, 2018
- 1,373
- 208
- Parrots
- B&G Macaw, Galah, 5 cockatiels, 50 billion and a half budgies. We breed and do rescue. Too many to list each individual's name and age etc, but they are each individuals and loved dearly.
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- #136
Ok, well. I joined a forum to get advice on the horse's training. And advice did I sure get...
We will have the colt gelded as soon as is practical and will call a vet this week to start working it out. We need to do it in a covid safe manner(the other forum does not seem to be taking it very seriously). We are going to start looking for a trainer, but one who is as covid safe as possible. A 30 day "boot camp" with a trainer and other horses wouldn't be good enough and they suggest we also work in person with a trainer so that we will ourselves be trained. The other big takeaway was that 30 days with other horses wouldn't be enough and we really ought to bring home an older gelding to keep the colt in line and also keep him company. They think that while having Butters is great, the colt would really benefit more from having an adult horse around to show him the way of the world.
Fair enough. We are going to expand the pasture and revise our barn plans and then start to look for the right horse. They advise one who has a dominant attitude to other horses, but is well trained and respectful of humans. Not in a rush to bring a horse home and have it be the wrong one. It will not be for at least a few months that we bring another hose home, more realistically it will be summertime at least. We may or may not still send the colt to a "boot camp" in the meantime where he could spend time in a herd and get some time in with a trainer, but then that leaves Butters alone. Which, I suppose he would be alright since we are around, but maybe we ought also to consider getting him a same-size companion too. There is a lot to think about and we aren't rushing into anything. Taking our time and thinking about our options.
We will have the colt gelded as soon as is practical and will call a vet this week to start working it out. We need to do it in a covid safe manner(the other forum does not seem to be taking it very seriously). We are going to start looking for a trainer, but one who is as covid safe as possible. A 30 day "boot camp" with a trainer and other horses wouldn't be good enough and they suggest we also work in person with a trainer so that we will ourselves be trained. The other big takeaway was that 30 days with other horses wouldn't be enough and we really ought to bring home an older gelding to keep the colt in line and also keep him company. They think that while having Butters is great, the colt would really benefit more from having an adult horse around to show him the way of the world.
Fair enough. We are going to expand the pasture and revise our barn plans and then start to look for the right horse. They advise one who has a dominant attitude to other horses, but is well trained and respectful of humans. Not in a rush to bring a horse home and have it be the wrong one. It will not be for at least a few months that we bring another hose home, more realistically it will be summertime at least. We may or may not still send the colt to a "boot camp" in the meantime where he could spend time in a herd and get some time in with a trainer, but then that leaves Butters alone. Which, I suppose he would be alright since we are around, but maybe we ought also to consider getting him a same-size companion too. There is a lot to think about and we aren't rushing into anything. Taking our time and thinking about our options.
OP
bug_n_flock
Well-known member
- Jan 2, 2018
- 1,373
- 208
- Parrots
- B&G Macaw, Galah, 5 cockatiels, 50 billion and a half budgies. We breed and do rescue. Too many to list each individual's name and age etc, but they are each individuals and loved dearly.
- Thread Starter
- Thread starter
- #137
So we have not yet gotten an appointment to have the horse castrated. There has been a heck of a lot going on. My cousin's youngest is very very sick again. Last week he stopped breathing and turned blue twice... he has RSV and is not handling it well. Pneumonia and fevers of 102. The last 36 hours he seems to have turned a corner and his fever spikes are farther apart. Round the clock breathing treatmemts, which are set to continue for the next week and a half or so. His spirits are high though, so that is good. He is only 17 months old.
On the home front we have been working on fencing above all else. We had a power company worker break down a section of our fence to come change out the meter without giving us any notice.. no letter, no pjone call, no note on the gate, no knock on the door. If Butters were a less friendly jack that guy could have gotten hurt and we would have been responsible! Plus Butters could have run off!! We found the guy when he was in the middle of changing out the meter..... right outside of our bedroom window. We had been taking a nap and then suddenly unmasked stranger right outaide our bedroom window less than 6 ft from us. Frankly he is lucky we didn't shoot first ask questions later. Reported the power company to the state's covid noncompliance thing. Who knows if it will do any good. We are not behind on any bills or anything like that, and the guy ignored no trespassing signs and signs warning about dogs and loose livestock. He also was covered in tattoos and while that is not itself damning of someone's character, he gave off plenty of bad vibes.... the guy straight up looked like he had been released from prison last week and had a drug problem. Grrrrr! Thabkfully it has been long enough after the incident that I do not think he exposed us to covid, tho our county is in the red currently. Scary stuff.
We have named the horse! His name is Professor Chaos! Or Chaos for short. We have implemented a few training and husbandry tips from that other forum, and he is no longer pushing boundries. At all. Being such a good boy again and that is wonderful. Butters is still loose and still just a total love bug.
We have fancy mice now! Got 17 of them from a gal off of craigslist. She was more than happy to wear a mask and be respectful of social distancing. Even thanked us when we said in the email that we take it seriously due to being in a higher risk catagory. The mice are very sweet, gentle animals and we are very glad to have them. I just hate the smell of boy mice tho. Even in a freshly cleaned cage the whole room they are in smells like boy mice. Ick. Oh well, such is life if you want to breed mice... you need the stinky boys! The rats are also doing well, I am right now playing with a litter of 9 I pulled off the mom earlier tonight. They are old enough to wean, and mom has had a little trouble keeping weight on.
All the budgies are doing well. We had a scare a few days ago when, while moving the cage with Fishy, Robin, et al, the bottom of the cage fell out and the terrified birds scattered. Robin, Daddy Puff, and Little Fish were easy enough to scoop up and return home, but momma Sunny got herself lost in the closet and I had to get her out. A lot of dust in the closet, and she is not a tame bird. It didn't take very long at all to get her back home, but she was very stressed and poofed up for a day or two. She is back to normal now. I need to vaccuum in the closet too is the lesson here I think. It is storage, and the door usually shut tight. For whatever reason it had been slightly ajar during this (mis)adventure.
Alex now gets 2 senior bird nutriberries each morning, instead of avicakes. I actually think he likes his balls more than he liked his squares. And I think they are working-- he is much faster when climbing around and has fewer hesitent steps. He just goes for it!
We are still having issues with those darn neighbor dogs. Looking into thermal sights, as they seem to be flashlight shy and usually come at night. The coyotes have been very very vocal lately too and have been in our valley for at least a week now.
One of our geese is having issues with her legs. We have her confined to the barn and are trying a few things to help her. We don't want to put her down unless we have to. She seems unable or unwilling to put weight on her feet. We do not think it is bumble.. her feet are not swollen at all, but we did put her thru a course of ammox just to be sure. It did not seem to help her.
Lets see what else what else.... Fionna the kitty is outside now. She has claimed under the mobile home as her castle, and has decreed that Jellybean is not allowed under there any more.
We may be flip-flopping on buying a second property. The estimate my Aunt gave me turned out to be 20K less than what I am actually inheriting... we are still considering our options carefully.
I am sure there is more going on, but I can't think of it currently. Lol I will write more another time.
On the home front we have been working on fencing above all else. We had a power company worker break down a section of our fence to come change out the meter without giving us any notice.. no letter, no pjone call, no note on the gate, no knock on the door. If Butters were a less friendly jack that guy could have gotten hurt and we would have been responsible! Plus Butters could have run off!! We found the guy when he was in the middle of changing out the meter..... right outside of our bedroom window. We had been taking a nap and then suddenly unmasked stranger right outaide our bedroom window less than 6 ft from us. Frankly he is lucky we didn't shoot first ask questions later. Reported the power company to the state's covid noncompliance thing. Who knows if it will do any good. We are not behind on any bills or anything like that, and the guy ignored no trespassing signs and signs warning about dogs and loose livestock. He also was covered in tattoos and while that is not itself damning of someone's character, he gave off plenty of bad vibes.... the guy straight up looked like he had been released from prison last week and had a drug problem. Grrrrr! Thabkfully it has been long enough after the incident that I do not think he exposed us to covid, tho our county is in the red currently. Scary stuff.
We have named the horse! His name is Professor Chaos! Or Chaos for short. We have implemented a few training and husbandry tips from that other forum, and he is no longer pushing boundries. At all. Being such a good boy again and that is wonderful. Butters is still loose and still just a total love bug.
We have fancy mice now! Got 17 of them from a gal off of craigslist. She was more than happy to wear a mask and be respectful of social distancing. Even thanked us when we said in the email that we take it seriously due to being in a higher risk catagory. The mice are very sweet, gentle animals and we are very glad to have them. I just hate the smell of boy mice tho. Even in a freshly cleaned cage the whole room they are in smells like boy mice. Ick. Oh well, such is life if you want to breed mice... you need the stinky boys! The rats are also doing well, I am right now playing with a litter of 9 I pulled off the mom earlier tonight. They are old enough to wean, and mom has had a little trouble keeping weight on.
All the budgies are doing well. We had a scare a few days ago when, while moving the cage with Fishy, Robin, et al, the bottom of the cage fell out and the terrified birds scattered. Robin, Daddy Puff, and Little Fish were easy enough to scoop up and return home, but momma Sunny got herself lost in the closet and I had to get her out. A lot of dust in the closet, and she is not a tame bird. It didn't take very long at all to get her back home, but she was very stressed and poofed up for a day or two. She is back to normal now. I need to vaccuum in the closet too is the lesson here I think. It is storage, and the door usually shut tight. For whatever reason it had been slightly ajar during this (mis)adventure.
Alex now gets 2 senior bird nutriberries each morning, instead of avicakes. I actually think he likes his balls more than he liked his squares. And I think they are working-- he is much faster when climbing around and has fewer hesitent steps. He just goes for it!
We are still having issues with those darn neighbor dogs. Looking into thermal sights, as they seem to be flashlight shy and usually come at night. The coyotes have been very very vocal lately too and have been in our valley for at least a week now.
One of our geese is having issues with her legs. We have her confined to the barn and are trying a few things to help her. We don't want to put her down unless we have to. She seems unable or unwilling to put weight on her feet. We do not think it is bumble.. her feet are not swollen at all, but we did put her thru a course of ammox just to be sure. It did not seem to help her.
Lets see what else what else.... Fionna the kitty is outside now. She has claimed under the mobile home as her castle, and has decreed that Jellybean is not allowed under there any more.
We may be flip-flopping on buying a second property. The estimate my Aunt gave me turned out to be 20K less than what I am actually inheriting... we are still considering our options carefully.
I am sure there is more going on, but I can't think of it currently. Lol I will write more another time.
Squeekmouse
Well-known member
Squeek!! Squeek I tell you! Squeek!
Love the updates! As they stirs memories of the past -- both good and bad... But more good than bad. Not sure, which are easier to train, Power Company Linemen or Horses? But both tend to make a mess regardless of what they are doing.
Cheers Good Friend!
Cheers Good Friend!
