A lurker for over three years coming out!

Hello all,
I have been lurking, learning, drooling, laughing, and crying on this site for three years. I started learning about the different breeds and getting my lists together for when I finally became a chicken mamma. Well in August I became the proud momma to 3 RIR, 3 EE, 3 PR hens and 1 PR rooster.

I am the wife of one of the best hard working men on the planet , mother to 4 boys age 24, 21, 16 and 11, 2 Lhasa Apso lap dogs, 3 bunnies, 6 fish, 1 guinea pig, 7 hens and a goat that thinks she is a dog. I work full time as a Database Manager and full time taxi driver to my two younger boys. Oh I put in two large gardens and can most of our veggies.

We are just beginning to homestead on 30 acres of land with a large pond, a creek running through the south end of the property and a stream going from the top of the north hill into the larger creek at the bottom. I feel so lucky to have this land and want to do the best with it. This spring we are really going to step up the homesteading with the addition of a dairy cow, 2 pigs (1 for the freezer and 1 to breed) at least 2 additional goats and possibly a few sheep. I will order turkey pullets as soon as they are available and geese too.

My chicks have grown over the past three months and were free ranging most of the day and cooped up at night, well I have come out of lurkdom because I lost my roo and two of my favorite hens last night to my own dog of all things. He was never bothered by the chickens at all and never chased them once in all those three months and last evening while I was at the grocery store he played too hard with my babies. I really liked the roo and one of the EE he killed had slate legs so I figured she would have given me some green/blue eggs. So sad to be set back.

I do have 16 more chicks on the way and 6 ducks. They are suppose to arrive the week of Nov 7th. Since I lost my chicks I have stepped up my search for a Great Pyr and found a fantastic breeder that hopes to place a 2 1/2 yr old female and a 6 month old male with me. I am a little leery of jumping in to both dogs and will be checking out my fencing options. I have so much I want to say about these dogs but will do so in another thread. Since I am coming out of lurkdom I may not be able to be shut up now. tee hee

I feel like I know many of you who post often here. I have learned so much by just sitting back and "listening" to you all. Thanks for the wonderful information and opportunity to learn from all your experience.

See ya on the boards.