It's been a trying week. I quit giving Goo the antibiotic a couple of days ago. The lump is clearly a tumor that's growing quite fast, so there is no need to force medicine down his throat and upset both of us. The tumor breaks opens and bleeds, so Dinah keeps licking it. Goo doesn't seem to mind that, so it must not be too painful.
I will give him the best life I can for as long as I can -- including canned food and soft treats.
I was hoping my sister would come up to give me a hand with a few projects, but she's too busy until next week. At least the ridiculous heat (it was 95 yesterday!!) should be over by then. I spent much of yesterday trying to keep cool water out for the chickens and giving them chilled grapes. Many were still panting.
Only two -- the Sapphire Splashes -- are clever enough to cool themselves off by standing in the ducks' water tank. That is, when the geese aren't bathing in the drinking water and sending it flying out of the tank as they smack their wings into it. So rude!!
The potting bench project has taken a back seat to cleaning out the garden. The hard-neck garlic I ordered will probably arrive this week, and I bought some of the materials I need to build a protective "cage" over and around the strawberry bed. Of course, for what I'm spending, I could buy bushels of organic berries at the farmers market. I have not planted the lettuce or spinach as I intended.
Anna came out Friday and we did Round 2 of dusting for mites. I again cleaned out and sprayed coops before she arrived.
I panicked last night when Lavinia didn't coop up when I called (okay, I ALWAYS panic when everyone doesn't come in for dinner). I checked all the places where the girls like to dig themselves into the dirt to clean and cool off. I looked in coops and among the tall catmint that grows with abandon. I finally spotted her (which should be easy because she is a dazzling Silver-Laced Wyandotte) curled into a ball with her face up against the coop in the Taj Ma-Coop's run.
Clearly, the older hens had been after poor Lavinia, who is a member of the youngest "flock." I think it's the only time in her life that she's been happy to have me carry her anywhere. Once I checked her over for injury, I popped her back into her own run and she had dinner with her girls.
I learned a couple of (easy but necessary) things yesterday. One was how to reconnect the lift rod when you accidentally pull it out of the bathroom faucet. Two was how to remove the clogged spray arms in the dishwasher, which hasn't been doing a great job of cleaning lately.
Jim, in describing your sister, you could have been talking about me. My driving is okay, but my sense of direction is terrible. In the days before my phone could correct me, I would often be sure I knew where I was going, only to end up somewhere else. And, late, at that.
Lisa, how's Trixie doing? And, how much bigger is she? They grow so fast!
Today, I am going to an auction where I hope to buy a Worx cart like the one that someone (not me) ran over in the driveway a few years ago. I'm charging camping fans to help keep the chickens cooler while I'm gone. The heat should break after tomorrow.
