Jest Another Day in Pear-A-Dice - Higgins Rat Ranch Conservation Farm in Alberta

[scottcaddy]

Gotta love them can't break' rubber horse tubs.
Scott

 

[CanuckBock]

Gotta love them can't break' rubber horse tubs.
Scott

We have such a variety of sizes of rubber tubs here and with no equines, so it makes me laugh you call them "horse" tubs. Nyuck nyuck!

Duck, goose, chook, dog, sheep, goat, llama, pheasant, swan, ruddy, turkey, heck even some pond plants dunked in a rubber tub...everything but the horse of course!


So Em celebrated her six month B-day on the tenth in fine style!

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I gave her a crystal goblet...

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Formed overnight in one of the dog bowls

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Which she loved...

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and Lacy gave her lotsa 1/2 a year old birthday bumps

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and thumpin's...

Ems all for this...BRING IT ON LACE-A-LOT!​

They played a fav game of PEEKABOO!

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And Emmy tried to take advantage of the day being HERS to steal ice lumps from Lacy...

"Ah come on...Gimme all the ice!," says Emmy..."NOPE!," says Lacy​

And I clicked lotsa pics...trying to capture that perfect 6 month old treasurable image...of perfection, eh!

How about this one...??

Hyena backed ACD​

Or this one...????

"Whoopsy...where did my EARS GO??"
<<can't blame Lacy...she's minding her own bee's wax in the background>>

OK>>>seriously this one is how I wanna remember Emmy on her half a year old birthday...

Emmy Lou at six months of age
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Mighten not be as amusing as some of the others I clicked on the tenth but an image of a pretty princess...

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There's a time and place for silly and a time and place for pristine and purdy! Hatch dazes are for pretty.

Doggone & Chicken UP!

Tara Lee Higgins
Higgins Rat Ranch Conservation Farm, Alberta, Canada

 

[Teila]

Hey Tara

I am sorry to read that you and Rick have been under the weather

I have this image of your driving a petri dish with rows of tiny little germs, fighting with each other and throwing things around, earphones on listening to music etc

While one school of thought is that if you are sick, to your bed you must go, I can honestly say that I have never spent a day in bed due to illness; I have, however, been ill at times over the years.

Like you, I have feathered, four legged and finned friends that depend on me to rise and shine and get at it.

It is not in my nature to lay in bed and even after surgery, I am getting ‘told off’ for trying to do too much when I should be resting.

Just me, but I think getting up, doing what you can, frequent rests and spending time with your little loved ones and smiling is much better for the spirits than laying in bed.

Yeah, it may take us that bit longer to heal physically but I am also a great believer in the power of positive thinking and the show must go on! [Albeit it at 16rpm instead of 33rpm

]

We are a bit like our feathered friends, show no weakness. If I ever spend the day in bed you can be guaranteed it will be something pretty darn serious.

Anyways, hang in there, lots of positive thoughts and get well soon

That ‘no ears’ pic of Emmy is adorable! Love the six month birthday pose-pic also .. definitely a pretty princess.

 

[CanuckBock]

Hey Tara

I am sorry to read that you and Rick have been under the weather

I have this image of your driving a petri dish with rows of tiny little germs, fighting with each other and throwing things around, earphones on listening to music etc

While one school of thought is that if you are sick, to your bed you must go, I can honestly say that I have never spent a day in bed due to illness; I have, however, been ill at times over the years.

Like you, I have feathered, four legged and finned friends that depend on me to rise and shine and get at it.

It is not in my nature to lay in bed and even after surgery, I am getting ‘told off’ for trying to do too much when I should be resting.

Just me, but I think getting up, doing what you can, frequent rests and spending time with your little loved ones and smiling is much better for the spirits than laying in bed.

Yeah, it may take us that bit longer to heal physically but I am also a great believer in the power of positive thinking and the show must go on! [Albeit it at 16rpm instead of 33rpm

]

We are a bit like our feathered friends, show no weakness. If I ever spend the day in bed you can be guaranteed it will be something pretty darn serious.

Anyways, hang in there, lots of positive thoughts and get well soon

That ‘no ears’ pic of Emmy is adorable! Love the six month birthday pose-pic also .. definitely a pretty princess.

I have seen over the years where the bus boredom gets replaced with the glow of their devices. I recall when I rode the bus, I had my face plastered to the window watching for wildlife and enjoying the scenery passing by. Now I see more kids plugged in but not my call on what entertains them, now is it?

The bus kids are good...been enough years now so we pretty much know what to expect of each other and I love the kids...they are never the issue past being vessels of illness simply based on the poor judgement skills of the parents in sending them to school when contagious and spreading the misery. That is a parental decision, not the kid's choice. I truly have an excellent group of kids that comply to my way of bussing...no bullying of any sort, nice happy calm joyous ride to and from school/home. We all have to go to school at certain ages and my vision is because you have to go by law, you find sanctuary on my bus for that purpose. The younger ones get to enjoy the generosity of Rick who provides the funds to buy the little gifts we distribute for occasions like Halloween, Christmas and Easter, etc and I truly care about the kids' wellbeing and happiness. You can't fake concern and the kids know I am only worried about their well beings.

The older students get to enjoy a ride without being hassled by the more energetic excitable younger ones...so there are no throwing things or fighting. Heaven help them I catch someone being mean to another one. I have rules where there is "no touching" each other because I don't like horseplay and that in itself can lead to injury never mind how bullying someone can slip in next. Pretty stern but fair I figure. Kids know I have ways to make them pay...there is always the "penalty" seat up front open and waiting to instill compliance into someone who figures nasty is nice. Interesting how having a cause and affect system makes all of them just settle in to have a happy joyous ride. The kids want someone in charge enforcing the rules and when they know there are consequences, then they can just go about be kids. You are only young once and lots of miserable things I endured can be avoided if someone chooses to keep things proper. Hate me as a driver that follows the rules...can't knock you for that, eh.


Yes, agree with you that my own definition of being ILL is when you do have to spend time during the day in bed.

The Monday I realized this was more than some "cold" and strep throat was the cause...I drove my morning run, came home to feed the dogs breaky, potty them and then straight to bed I went. I have NEVER done that in my adult life EVER...I slept thru the phone ringing (bus calls about what kids were not on that afternoon) and everything be danged...I was unavailable because I was right out of it. Twas a gorgeous lovely day out and I missed it. I slept 4.5 hours in a delirium; cold sweats and my throat was so bad I could not swallow my own saliva...yeh, thar was Mrs. Higgins--DROOLING! Lovely piece of work I thought...lovely indeed!

Finally awoke, potty dogs, do the necessary chores I could manage in the time left and off to drive the afternoon bus run (after retrieving the messages on our machine...thank heavens for answering devices or I would have been unreachable). That to me was being ill and why Rick was able to convince me to book a doctor's appointment to find out what the scoop was. I never sleep in the daytime. Even when I got pig flu from the bus a few years ago, I never slept like that...only resting sitting on feed buckets between pens--up and at her...rest and back in the game I was. Never zonked out like that for 4.5 hours in the day time; not ever! Been ugly on a stick and for FAR too long I figure.

I do agree that it takes longer to recover from even a mild flu or cold because we don't shut down but when we accepted the responsibility for dependents, it was until death do us part, eh! Theirs or our own I guess.

We only ever manage a day trip or so...have to be home for the critters 365 days a year but that is the whole point of the place. Home is home and where the heart is at. It only seems tedious when one has to decline invitations to go some place...I don't want to be any place else on the Planet...we're good. Explaining that some holiday away is never going to be a good sort of holiday...more a death sentence of pondering how the animals are keeping. No thanks; home body.


Still limping along...this one cold is the one that is going pneumonia on most persons. Filthy wretched things floating about this year. Again today, heard another person recounting that a lady is in the hospital with the strep and in her case, her eyes became infected. It is one nasty nasty illness that one and I ponder how many are aware of how this one is over the top than the more usual infections. Sigh.


I am so very happy we can't share our germs on these forums. Good gack so glad. Thanks for the well wishes and I do hope with the snow showing up and the lower temperatures, the petri-dish will become thoroughly disinfected by a proper decent winter. I get how milder winters might be seen to be good but to counter...this has not been a fall or winter I will look back upon fondly...might have been mild but I don't remember much past two months of illness...one after the other after the other. Shouting "Uncle, already!" It could have been worse with tons of snow needing to be wrangled...but knowing it could be worse, well yeh...always be uglier.

Nov 10 2015​

The photo of Emmy with no ears happened when she got up...she was doing her laying on her side there taunting Lacy to bite her..."Hey Lace...exposed belly...have a chomp!" and Lacy was more interested in playing with some toys than belly chomps. When Em rolled to get up, the momentum was fast enough to have her ears disappear. I figured the look on Em's face is quite adorable!

Photos taken this morning...

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We got maybe 5 cms or two inches tops. And proper Alberta snows...not Coast snow. Alberta snow is dry like sand and ever so easy to sweep off as it is granular. Love Alberta snows. Wet humid Coast snow sucks.

Classic puppy dance in the snow rituals...captured in still form.

"Are we gonna do this?"



"Yeh...hold on a second..."



"OK, good to go..."​

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First you BOW to each other...whilst rehydrating for the test of endurance...

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Then you stand side by each, measuring each other up...

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Then the snow waltz begins in earnest...

The excited rompings...grins of joy, yelps of excitement...sparkles of fun to be had!



The love you this much choke hold...



The act like a pony romp & prancing stance



Roar like lions while pouncing on each other--look sorta like a pair of vampires??



A pause now for rehydration and then...



The stalker dog stance which then invites...



The charging ATTACKer



Followed up by the classic "king of the castle" pose leering at yer opponent from up on high!! ​

And never far off, the silliest of all...the I am so joyous I could just BURST running thru the snows
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And after the snow waltz routine...what is next...inside to have a well earned breakfast, a potty and then a nappy nap for puppy wups.

Winter white has arrived and embellished the morning routine even more so...with dancing...dancing with the dogs, eh! Hard to feel ill & sorry for oneself with dancing added to yer world.

Doggone & Chicken UP!

Tara Lee Higgins
Higgins Rat Ranch Conservation Farm, Alberta, Canada

 

[drumstick diva]

I'm guessing puppers are not interested in fetching a ball until they are retirement age - too boring. Like old ladies and their bingo games.

 

[drumstick diva]

Just reminiscing about how little it took to make Fixins happy-

 

[scottcaddy]

Thank You Tara, I enjoyed the Snow dance!!
Scott

 

[CanuckBock]

I'm guessing puppers are not interested in fetching a ball until they are retirement age - too boring. Like old ladies and their bingo games.

Girls are interested in retrieving all sorts of dog toys. Photos of that are rarely captured simply because the operator of the said camera is involved in the play time of tossing the toys. Not sure lugging around my camera AND tossing toys is a grand concept. You know us oldsters...toss toy/toss camera...we can be rather forgetful at times!

In the morn, it is usually where I let the dog to dog playtime happen...the girls get to do the puppy together routine and dogs play together in ways no human with dogs ever are able. Being that they are only six months old...the antics of the two girls are marvelous AND why I posted the snow waltz. Brilliantly entertaining, yes?

I get to sit in the lawn chair and witness the fun...remember to click and then post some of it here.

Nov 16 2015​

Now on the evening of the 16th...I did get to click pics because Rick was throwing the floppy for them.

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Now often we stand opposite each other and he throws the floppy and then it is my turn to throw...keep those gals on their tippy toes, eh.

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Camera operation is not a good idea with the wet snow (coast snow fell on the sixteenth) but I wanted pics of the girls enjoying the snow.

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My fav kick it ball for the girls right now is a large tennis like one...do keep in mind, whatever is tossed likely ends up buried in the snow and a floppy is black and easy to locate over something like a tennis ball.

Just reminiscing about how little it took to make Fixins happy-

I'll call you on that one DD!

We double fenced the property here thinking good to go and then along came Fixins...the ACD that could negotiate her flying body right thru regularly spaced page wire. Up went the third fence and in retrospect, if asked now to do it over, we would just chain link the five acres and consider the job done once instead of three times. It has been an ordeal indeed.

Fixins might have been happier going outside her boundaries to bite the deserving world, but the end result from that need she had, that would ultimately NOT have made her happy. Too many horrors to happen with her able to get out.

Fixins was happy because of all the work and efforts that came before her and what we did to accommodate her extra special needs during her lifetime. She never was an easy keeper that one! But with extra effort comes the extra rewards.

Nov 11 2014 - Funny, we don't have THAT much snow THIS year!

All Rick and my work and efforts to set up Pear-A-Dice began because of the love and ongoing understanding we have for these cow dogs. I would suspect what we did seems to have just happened because that is how we roll but from how tired and wore out we are--I know it was never a cake walk of easy. I counter nothing came easy as with all good things in life it takes simple honest work. Nobody gave us any financial jump to start, nobody gave any advice past my own family cynically commented when I left my home town to travel my own life path, how I would be back begging for my plate of supper on their step. I often feel like the "boy named Sue" in that Cash song...I'm where I am now because I am stubborn and hard headed...don't tell me what I plan on doing is impossible because I'll make you stand back and watch me! Eat crow baby!

Thank You Tara, I enjoyed the Snow dance!!
Scott

I am happy you have enjoyed witnessing the waltz. Ain't it kewl how just some words typed and photos posted can do a little story and cross over the miles between us all. Pretty neat.

Well finally, made a trip to the city feed mill to get 1/3 of our poultry rations for the year...four tons of the bagged bird foods in 160 bags. YAH.

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Tired from the trip but content.

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Now to restack the one pallet of bags onto a coupla pallets so Rick can move it with the tractor to the feed room where I will need to pack and stow it away. Then take the small trailer and boo one ton truck to town for clean up. Still ill but to heck with it. Not dead yet and it's so time to get on with this life and keep living it to the max.

Doggone & Chicken UP!

Tara Lee Higgins
Higgins Rat Ranch Conservation Farm, Alberta, Canada

 

[CanuckBock]

Heel low:

So it is like plus 7C (45F) right now...with a warm Chinook wind blowing. Interesting because in a few days, the daytime high will be -7C (19F)!

I know the twenty belows (-4F) are showing up but right now it is simply surreal! Have to push myself to comply that the heat lamps need to be cleaned and checked AND tossing of ample oat straw bedding is important...yeh...jest can't be serious and must!

So I got the one ton loaded out and on two pallets for Rick. He got off to a start yesterday and I figure did up THREE days worth of items in one!

First off, he took care of work. Working this morn...agh...but no matter. He took Friday off to take me to get the feed and home...so I guess it was like a weekend...har har!

He got the grader washed (huge job!), the winter fronts on...the snow wing is on and he already changed the blades to sandvik board. Then he hurried back home to catch me and the dogs needing just one more half hour and we would have been ready. He spent the half hour changing cloths, getting cleaned up and having a rest.

Then at it again he went...this time driving the tractor, he took the now six pallets (one ton in two lots) off to the muster area by the Dog Kennel. I tarped and weighted the pallets down and that be that. Off Rick went to the car wash in town AGAIN (frequent attendee this day, eh!) and thoroughly cleaned the one ton and small trailer.

To me, that was three separate work bees that could have jest as easily been one whole day's worth of events...what a fella...and when he returned with the rig all swanky spik and span...under his arm he was carrying a much appreciated bucket of KFC as a treat. Greasy, hardly good for you and tad expensive but after a day like we had yesterday...I'm for it. Ha ha ha...quick eats, no brainer eats. I was good though and after the greasy mush chook, I set out a bowl of mandarin oranges and a bowl each of red grapes to rehydrate the both of us. The fruit went down nicely. Both still sicky poo but I think back on the mend. Hard to when you abuse yourselves, eh?

What did I do...I stayed home with the creatures all day to play with feed and do up chores. As said, started the day when I pulled out the loose 40 bags of poultry feed on to two pallets (the smaller trailer pulls way nicer, same weight of 14,000 pounds but with a metal bottom, it just seemed to haul more secure I guess). Then began the mix feed and distribute it bee for me. Did a rough tally and I hauled 3/4 of a ton of feed bags and grains in the cart to be mixed up--> first to be mixed and then to be distributed out. Made up 35 feed buckets (of which four were metal garbage can sized ones for in the Duece Coop) and distributed the buckets of feed to all the birds in their buildings. Places like the Pear-A-Dice houses for the geese are neat because for three pens in the one building of two, I use only one feed bucket stored in the middle pen to supply those gaggles. So just two feed buckets for six geese pens...but for birds like say the Ruddy Shels or the two pairs of swans, they get a bucket each of their own special mixes. My rendition of the Swedish Chef Tom was as usual predictable...but I tried to be good about hiking up 55 pound bags and pouring INTO the cart so spillage was zero to none!

The only mistake I made yesterday was sitting discussing our days with Rick in the living room. When I went to put the KFC in the oven to degrease it...we both had a good laugh as I had already seized up and he laughed at my heave up/waddle to top the single step out to the kitchen...good GACK...don't stop, shut down could be permanent. Never ceases to amaze me when you are mid stream to working how you just flow along but take a quick pit stop and suddenly to begin again is like getting a big old truck moving again.

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Got maybe four inches/ten centimeters of snow on the roster; starting tonight. It is more the twenty below for three days that needs prepping for after the snow comes (gotta warm up to snow here is the mantra!). Tossy tossy the oat straw bedding and the warm red glow of heat for some of the birds. I need to put up the tenplast on the Taj Mahal...been wondering when I should get that covered on up.

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Really am having to kick start me self...Old Man Winter seemed to have forgotten us but I guess someone pointed it out to him. Be a short winter for sure but we may always hope for a kind more relaxed one, eh.

One positive for contemplation...with all the sickness here, one benefit has come to pass. I have dropped the white death (my Aunt use to call it that, way back in the 70's) added to my daily coffee cup...no more sugar for sweetening and gone to a nice tub of raw creamed honey. Love it because I never approached it like it was going to be the be all to end all...kinda just happened! Really does seem good that there is vitamin B's in honey (not ruined by the heat of a cup of coffee either!) and my sugar bowl has remained at the same level for the past two months. So another life changing but not difficult positive choice made and adhered to. Just like dropping soda pop to bottled water...each little betterment to quality of life hurdle completed and the benefits are substantial without too much pain to change to. Pretty glad on this new habit adopted.

No photos to add this morn...I was not that focussed on clicking much of anything and content to have my Feed Day such a success...today is straw and heat lamp and cover up day...with dogs in tow again. It is gonna be yet another "Oh yeh, I guess you two might enjoy a mid-day puppy nap" session. I did laugh when Rick came home to move the pallets around with the tractor...I looked at my two shadows and thought, "Shadows indeed...these are pretty played out puppers...having to try and keep up with me back and forth and tromping EVERY where's with the feed buckets." Not sure which one looked more run ragged...Emmy or Lacy but there was NO complaints when I walked them up the ramp to the Man Porch, inside for a quick lunch and then retired for a much, much needed nappy.

Only issue to watch for today...with the light snow cover plus the chinook winds and warmth...gonna be a skating rink out there today. Oh well, four on the floor pups will learn a new gait...slip sliding in prep for spring time in the Rockies. Bwa ha ha...few snoot plants, coupla full body presses to the hard icy ground, and always the slide right by your opponent lessons and the pups will begin their learning how to cope in our climate.

Extremes indeed...I re-set the temperature on the thermometer for outside since winter is starting up finally and marvelled at the -30C (-22F) versus the +45.5C (114F)...yeh, that is some expanse in temps, eh and last year was a wimpy winter if -30C was the lowest...-53C (-63F) is the all time coldest one so far and on those, I can do without that extreme thanks.

Doggone & Chicken UP!

Tara Lee Higgins
Higgins Rat Ranch Conservation Farm, Alberta, Canada

 

[CanuckBock]

Heel low:

Oh yeh and I did manage to fill a cart fulla birch firewood and get it to the ramp at the Man Porch yesterday...that is as far as it got.

This morn, unloaded it in the Man Porch wood box and hauled up another cart.

Having helpers makes getting the firewood stocked up go along nicely, eh.

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OK...maybe not helpers so much as distractions...

PEEKABOO!

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And always the puppy conflicts...

"Hey, waz this?" ​

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Followed closely by the joint melding of the minds...even with a foot in yer belly...chewing comes BEFORE gut pains...

"Oooh...chewing birch bark...in heaps of plenty! <<GNASH GNASH>>"​

From the looks of the dwindling pile of birch...this will be our next pile to load up and burn from.

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Doggone & Chicken UP!

Tara Lee Higgins
Higgins Rat Ranch Conservation Farm, Alberta, Canada