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maystoneFinally! A spring day. Full-on sunshine, warmish temperatures. Mud up to our butts. Yeah!
I've been going out to the barn with Dar to do the morning feedings all week. Now that the snow is receding it's easier footing for me, so I've been able to trot along. We've been getting the young alpacas used to wearing halters. Alpacas do not love wearing halters. No, they do not. Adama and Hannibal have worn them before, but this was a first for both Delilah and Valentino. They all did pretty well, I must say. Catching them to actually put the halters on them requires a bit of dodging and weaving on everyone's part, but it's been OK. I mean if you don't count Dar getting knocked to the ground or thrown against a wall every now and then. Or me smashing my fingers somehow. At least the alpacas seem no worse for the wear.
I spent a lot of time outside in the sun today. I wore sunscreen and a hat; hopefully that was good enough to avoid a major flare. Dar was out there for hours and hours and hours, working way too hard and she completely overdid it. Completely. (And yes, I know you're reading this.) Scared the crap out of Q and me when it all came crashing down on her around 4PM. But she seemed to be better after resting and getting something to eat, so I'm cautiously optimistic that she'll be OK tomorrow.
Q was like a crazy farm woman today :) Wrangling alpacas, throwing them to the ground and sitting on them (no lie! just ask her), hauling, feeding, and looking very stylish in her high-fashion tan farm boots with roses and skulls on them. The boys (Sparky and Valentino) weren't quite sure what to make of her. It was the boots that threw them off. That and the fact that she wasn't wearing a scarf and a big poofy winter cap.
We thought that with all the sun and the warmth Satine would give up that cria, but no. It was one weird disturbance after another, and Satine does not hold with weird disturbances. We had cats and dogs and runaway horses and neighbors with noisy ATVs. Everything but a clown parade, I swear.
I let Mao out into the back yard while we were working in the barn. Gertie spied him walking around right by the house - 250 feet away - and started alarming like a freakin' wolf pack was at the gate. That got everyone else all freaked out. I went back to put Mao inside, and it turned out that Gertie's braying was scaring the crap out of him! Poor kitty was a wreck by the time I got to him. Gertie's seen Mao a lot closer than that, but it's been a long winter and I think she just forgot who he was.
Then our friend's daughter, Taryn, came over to help with Jester the horse. She's very good with him, but her better judgment kind of abandoned her today, because she took him for a little stroll using just a lead and no harness, and she lost control of him. Jester took off for our neighbors' yard. Carol (our neighbor) and I had just finished visiting across the fence line, congratulating each other for having survived the winter; she had her Golden Retrievers with her which, again, not such a happy occurrence as far as the alapcas are concerned. Add to that one humongous horse at a pretty good trot, and you have yourself some chaos. Q took off with an apple in hand to help lure him back, Taryn was on him from the opposite direction, Carol was trying not panic, and poor Jester really only wanted to munch on the green grass that he'd spotted in her yard. The only grass around, I might add. Eventually they got him back in his own paddock. but Taryn zigged when she should have zagged and got a hoof to the thigh. It wasn't Jester's fault, but she's going to be sore as hell tomorrow anyway.
I had to go back inside by that time, so I missed the great alpaca toenail trimming event, but Q or Dar will be able to tell you all about it. Hannibal, Adama, Delilah, and Valentino got pedicures in preparation for their appearance in the show ring next weekend. And I had to miss out on the fun.
I'm going to miss out on everything tomorrow,too, if I don't get some damn sleep. Here I go.
I've been going out to the barn with Dar to do the morning feedings all week. Now that the snow is receding it's easier footing for me, so I've been able to trot along. We've been getting the young alpacas used to wearing halters. Alpacas do not love wearing halters. No, they do not. Adama and Hannibal have worn them before, but this was a first for both Delilah and Valentino. They all did pretty well, I must say. Catching them to actually put the halters on them requires a bit of dodging and weaving on everyone's part, but it's been OK. I mean if you don't count Dar getting knocked to the ground or thrown against a wall every now and then. Or me smashing my fingers somehow. At least the alpacas seem no worse for the wear.
I spent a lot of time outside in the sun today. I wore sunscreen and a hat; hopefully that was good enough to avoid a major flare. Dar was out there for hours and hours and hours, working way too hard and she completely overdid it. Completely. (And yes, I know you're reading this.) Scared the crap out of Q and me when it all came crashing down on her around 4PM. But she seemed to be better after resting and getting something to eat, so I'm cautiously optimistic that she'll be OK tomorrow.
Q was like a crazy farm woman today :) Wrangling alpacas, throwing them to the ground and sitting on them (no lie! just ask her), hauling, feeding, and looking very stylish in her high-fashion tan farm boots with roses and skulls on them. The boys (Sparky and Valentino) weren't quite sure what to make of her. It was the boots that threw them off. That and the fact that she wasn't wearing a scarf and a big poofy winter cap.
We thought that with all the sun and the warmth Satine would give up that cria, but no. It was one weird disturbance after another, and Satine does not hold with weird disturbances. We had cats and dogs and runaway horses and neighbors with noisy ATVs. Everything but a clown parade, I swear.
I let Mao out into the back yard while we were working in the barn. Gertie spied him walking around right by the house - 250 feet away - and started alarming like a freakin' wolf pack was at the gate. That got everyone else all freaked out. I went back to put Mao inside, and it turned out that Gertie's braying was scaring the crap out of him! Poor kitty was a wreck by the time I got to him. Gertie's seen Mao a lot closer than that, but it's been a long winter and I think she just forgot who he was.
Then our friend's daughter, Taryn, came over to help with Jester the horse. She's very good with him, but her better judgment kind of abandoned her today, because she took him for a little stroll using just a lead and no harness, and she lost control of him. Jester took off for our neighbors' yard. Carol (our neighbor) and I had just finished visiting across the fence line, congratulating each other for having survived the winter; she had her Golden Retrievers with her which, again, not such a happy occurrence as far as the alapcas are concerned. Add to that one humongous horse at a pretty good trot, and you have yourself some chaos. Q took off with an apple in hand to help lure him back, Taryn was on him from the opposite direction, Carol was trying not panic, and poor Jester really only wanted to munch on the green grass that he'd spotted in her yard. The only grass around, I might add. Eventually they got him back in his own paddock. but Taryn zigged when she should have zagged and got a hoof to the thigh. It wasn't Jester's fault, but she's going to be sore as hell tomorrow anyway.
I had to go back inside by that time, so I missed the great alpaca toenail trimming event, but Q or Dar will be able to tell you all about it. Hannibal, Adama, Delilah, and Valentino got pedicures in preparation for their appearance in the show ring next weekend. And I had to miss out on the fun.
I'm going to miss out on everything tomorrow,too, if I don't get some damn sleep. Here I go.
