it really is the wet feet that make winter miserable.14F is a great temperature. Snow stays solid, it's very dry, you can do all kinds of winter activities, but it's not too cold to be outside.
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it really is the wet feet that make winter miserable.14F is a great temperature. Snow stays solid, it's very dry, you can do all kinds of winter activities, but it's not too cold to be outside.
Its so much better with your pics. Hopefully byc will get the bugs worked out soon. I have seen a few pics posted today on other threads so maybe they are making progress
XXX Photo of Gorgeous Delicious looking CAKE!! XXX <--even x-rated it because it looks too delish!
It uploaded!
The upload seemed to hang but then it picked up when I clicked on submit.
This is a Doberge cake.
Thanks for that recipe Ron. I've never heard of it before. After looking at the recipe, does it have a good lemon flavor to it? I love lemon!
Oh yay, the pictures are fixed!!! Speaking of, Fixins the FIERCE AND TERRIBLE,ONE CANNOT NOT smile looking at that dog! And What a produce bounty, and what a great assortment of edible ornamentals you have chosen! Except lilacs of course, but they smell good, so that counts too. And the Caragana, that's the arborescens, right? Then I know you probably know the story of during the great depression poultry farmers used it to feed their flocks. (I'm sure everyone HERE knows it, but being the plant person that I am, I can't help but make a comment)(my Caragans a. is not even big enough to scratch me yet, and I don't have my chickens yet anyway, lol)
Ok, to answer your question.....
The Red Gold Pheasant Male was a fully colored long tailed adult of unknown age when I got him (in about 1987?) from a collector who had ordered a mated pair of the birds some years before. He was sent three, two males and a female, which I understand is the normal arrangement (now, I didn't now nuthin then!) Not knowing different, he was afraid that the two males would fight and he kept them separate. As soon as he knew I had the space he asked if I would take the one. He had a nice big secure cage for him and for quite awhile he was fine. I so loved coming home and seeing him in all his feathered glory! Wow, what beautiful birds these are! Then he died. It broke my heart. I was living alone then and it felt like someone had taken my sunshine away.
I am sorry, I still get a little emotional about this, I was going through a rather rough patch during that time, and this has brought a bit of that back. BUT, I'mmmm feelliiinnnggg mmmuuutcchh better now, thank you very much!
Seeing these birds again has both given me tears and GREAT JOY! Especially tonight looking at the guy in the rafters
I'm just going to have to get some one of these days..... But for now I can so enjoy looking at yours, so if you want to keep slipping their pictures in now and then please do....
Thanks for the smiles (and the tears!)
Australian Cattle Dog - Ideal Home
By Tara Lee Higgins
I am sure if dogs had it their way, all living rooms would have biscuit trees, T.V.'s that played only dog food commercials or animal videos, fake fur couches would be THE interior fashion statement and a trickling brook would run right through the middle of it all. Unfortunately, this doggie dream would be impractical to most human situations. The ideal ACD home would make ALLOWANCES for the dog(s).
Sleeping Quarters: Kennel or crate, dog or human bed. If you would feel comfortable in the area your ACD is sleeping in (draft free, dry, warm, quiet), then it should be fine for your dog. The ACD has powerful jaws and can shred most blankets. Consider using fake fur as ACD bedding to keep down on the wear and tear.
Grooming Facilities/Health Provisions: The bathtub is just fine, though a detachable shower head is kinder to the owner's back muscles. Lake, kiddie pool, hose, or sprinkler are good for summer clean up. Remember that the ACD is famous for its wash and wear fur coat but, it still means your ACD will need a regular brushing (use a tight metal "flea" comb for the downy undercoat and a rubber horse curry comb will loosen the long outercoat) and the occasional bath to remain sweet smelling and huggable. Teeth can be brushed daily or a vet may remove the tartar build up biannually. Inspecting your ACD's paws often is good to detect cuts and abrasions and dry, cracked pads can have human hand cream applied to alleviate the dryness. Most ACD's require regular nail clipping, especially their front dew claws which do not wear as constant as their other nails. Watch for changes in behaviour as well as physical ones. Condition score your ACD daily, watching for sudden weight gains or losses as an initial warning sign of health problems.
Exercise Area: This one is a MUST. Your ACD is a very, very active breed and needs daily exercise to coexist with humans. Woe to the owner who misses a day's exercise. You will pay by having to play extra hard the next day! The ACD does not fare well without an area for pedal to the metal all out running, or swimming, or Flyball, or sledding, or herding or whatever you two can dream up! Just make sure your ACD is physically and mentally tuckered out. Both of you will sleep better for it. And if you think that a walk around the block is going to suffice, think again. An ACD's daily exercise requirement schedule is going to require some effort. I recommend you have convenient access to safe, off leash areas for complete exercise freedom.
Safe Containment Area: In a perfect ACD world, the owner would never go anywhere without their faithful Blue or Red along. Unfortunately, this is not reality. Owners must be able to leave their ACD at home (or take them to a doggie day care) where they are safe from harming themselves and their surroundings. It can be an X-pen with a top and a rubber floor mat with non-tippable water and a crate to nap in. It can be a dog kennel & outdoor run or even a safe room (just dog proof it). Do not chain your ACD, many ACD's die from choking/strangulation, and you also expose your dog to all sorts of unsafe conditions (wandering animals, malicious people, severe weather, etc.). Containment is a major issue in acquiring your ACD and it is your responsibility to ensure your ACD's safety and those affected by your dog's actions. Never leave a collar or item on your ACD that might cause them to get caught on something and hurt. Have your ACD microchipped or tattooed if you are worried about lack of identification, but keep the collar off the dog when they are alone.
Transportation: Your ACD does not have to go with you EVERYWHERE but you will need to take them to the vet, out to dog events and just as your side kick. If your ACD is not strapped into a seat with a safety harness, then your ACD should be contained in a crate. This preserves both you and your dog's safety while driving.
Home Location: You will note that I will not tell you that a farm/ranch is THE place for an ACD. Not all ACD's need to be home on the range herding stock to be a complete canine. An ACD is just as much at home in the city as it is in the country. The key to your success is managing to keep your ACD both physically and mentally active each and every day. An urban apartment dweller may own a content ACD, but they will have to try harder than their rural counterparts. Sometimes an apartment dweller may have more time to devote to their dog than a rancher/farmer. The environment that an ACD needs is one full of stimuli, access to exercise and caring. Adaptability is just one of the many attributes your ACD is graced with but you must be able to provide the proper inputs to receive the correct outputs. Ranch/farm life is more ACD friendly, but every ACD owner must be obligated to spend time with their dog, no matter their geographical area.
Fixins is adorable fighting that blanket, he seems like a similar lovable dummy that we've got a couple of at home. And the colors of those pheasants are amazing.
Oh my goodness, beautiful post Tara, reminds me so much of other ones I have read, and I revisited the pictures too, some a view from the shoes, smiling. I am now exhausted, thank you, and have used up all my morning internet time, visiting with you as I read through your posts and others -- you tire me, as I can imagine the hours and hours I envision you putting into your posts, hours of picture making and the captions and all the speech that goes along with the pictures. And I thank you from the bottom of my heart for this most beautiful bunch of pictures and whatnot to just start me out on my day among my own critters and farm (I got way more veggies than you do, na na na na na) (and I love you). Never stop being that awesome person you are, the sharing that you do, of your life, your conquests with the Rocky Mountain life and oh....did I ever mention that I love that song by Burl Ives, the Big Rock Candy Mountain, and of course too -- 16 chickens and a tambourine.....have a beautiful day, CynthiaMQ
Tara, I was about to ask how Foamy got her name and then I noticed her full name
Styra Foam - does she love eating it like chickens do - chicken pop corn
My chicken sneaks into the house all covert ops stylee so she can steal some Styrofoam.
Hey Tara
I'm still here and still reading and loving all your posts. Figured rather than keep telling you how much I enjoy your posts, I will just let you know when I see something I do not like .. do not expect to hear from me any time soon
Tara, I've been looking up some of the shrubs/trees/plants you mentioned.
On the caragana, it says that it is particularly delicious to a wide variety of insects and this result in early defoliation. Have you found this to be the case?
Good morning Tara!
gee, I am thinking you must be a zone warmer than I am if you can grow pears! I so wish we could but we can barely grow apples and even those must be northern hardy. Planted some that were "supposed" to be for our zone and the poor things did survive a year or two, or three, then gone. Our best luck was actually rescuing some gone wild little apple trees we discovered growing amonst some Jack Pines on our property and moving them into the sunlight. They are doing well! Too bad their apples are small and grainy. They do make a decent canning sauce tho.
Just about every plant we have that's thriving is a Canadian variety like our Jon Monk roses and the John Forsyth Lilac. Had a good chuckle at our government department of agriculture. They had decided a few years ago that our winters were actually getting warmer so they moved us into one zone warmer. Felt sorry for the folks that actually paid attention to that and planted according to "zones". Anyone that did lost a lot of money, especially this past winter. We lost every one of our well established cherry trees that were developed by the University of Minnesota for northern zones and our favorite commercial apple orchard, one zone to our south, took a horrible hit and lost over 25% of their beautiful heavy producers and the rest were either damaged or so stressed they are hardly producing.
Anyway, I do so envy your beautiful plants and trees. We believe in planting for the future as well, but over the past 20+ years, well, lets just say Mother Nature has her own idea what she wants growing on our little patch of Pear-A-Dice.
I have a question for you.
I have read that there is quite a personality difference between the white and brown etc. Chanteclares (spelling?). Is this true? I know they are (or were?) from two distinctly different original breeding programs. What I've read states that the whites are very flighty and unfriendly where the browns have a much more mellow Austalorp type personality. What is your experience/opinion?
Flowering this spring
My excited discovery is Haskaps (Russian) this year. Also called Honeyberry and I had two plants and did not realize I needed more varieties...so now may have three kinds...not sure but next spring will be exciting...as for zone 3, not sure as they are suppose to have flowers that survive a dip to -7C and still good to go...we shall see...we shall see if we get some purple berries next year.
Still catching up, but I have to say I love how one of our dogs has turned into my chore buddy. Originally I had pegged her as a "never chicken safe" kinda dog but I was wrong. It took some work and I doubt I'll ever trust her 100%, but wow am I ever impressed with how far she has come! She walks the yard with me as I do chores and when we get to the chickens she stands guard at the door to keep any from escaping. When we're done she practically prances back up to the house with me she's so pleased. Our other dog is just not interested but that's OK too.
I'm supposed to be doing inside the house chores like laundry, dishes and picking up.... Ick.... is it bad that I'd rather clean out the chicken coop?
I'm going to be naughty and keep reading!
Edited to fix silly auto spelling errors....
I love a good chore dog and yeh, giving them a job is totally in their natures...dogs love their work!
House work is rotational...you begin the cycle and it never ends. Sorta like pen cleaning but at least when winter hits and it freezes up...it is layer time. Har har...
The U of S (university of Saskatchewan) puts out some pretty hardy fruit trees, not sure if they have pears but you could google them and see. I want to get some eventually.
UofS has lots of great plants. Usually they have their interests in most of the awesome fruits and bushes that are hardy in our cold climates.
Northie, I have an explanation for why you may rather prefer to clean the coop... it stays done longer. Doing housework is a major pain in my back side as the very next day it looks like I haven't done anything at all! I'd rather clean the coop too! Welcome!
There is a standing thought that the time invested in a barn looks way more accomplished than time spent on "House & Gardens." One of my healthy quotes for work was "a clean desk is the sign of a sick mind..." the proper quote is ...
Northie, activating your dog by giving it a job like that will lessen the risk of attacks too. Dog problems often stem from the dog not having enough mentally or physically challenging work to do.
My sister was a exchange student at the U of S a few years back.
The mantra for us is a "tired ACDog is a GOOD ACD." Like children, a bit of physical running and playing tempers them down so they a joy to be around. All of us living things need the edge taken off us everyday. Tired in the mind but tired in the body is good for a complete soul.
U of S is beautiful and I hear very kewl to study at. Good ol' Uncle Roy (Dr. Roy Crawford - the editor of the chicken bible) taught there and we hauled all the dogs there in 2001 to have their hearing tested...including Makins' puppy litter. Very neat place and did I say beautiful...we went in August and it was magnificent all the trees and plants and we never even made it to the place where they experiment with the trees and shrubs.
Love all the new photos, especially of the pups and the baby chicks! And did I read correctly that your favorite temperature is 14F?!?! It got down to 17F this past winter during the horrible Alabama Ice Winter 2014, and I was MISERABLE in that temperature! But right now it's getting to almost 100F and I feel that might just boil you!
I can't believe how much testing costs for the birds to ship across the border! That's just crazy! I guess I will just have to satisfy myself with 'Merikan chooks..... ;-) is that an oxymoron?
Any day now I will have my first ever egg!
Yup, give me minus ten please. Wonderful working weather...ask them dogs...working dogs...no bugs, t-shirt weather...move that load, tote that bale, split that wood...worky work work...beauty!
See the smirk on the Fix...this is her kinda element...wood, ice, snow, cold, toys...yeh, living the good life!
Oh we can stand the heat if we hafta...we moved from Kamloops at 104F...did I mention we MOVED FROM Kamloops...away away...Rick rented a truck just because it had air conditioning so we could have some relief as we ran away...away away from the hot stuff...
Temperature of 100 degrees...
I do not prefer these kind of temps and mostly that is the sun shining on the thermometer but is it over 100F or not...cause if I stood in the sunshine, would I not also heat up too...oh well, you can happily keep the heat...me no likey it.
I think the estimate we had on the go was $1500 would test the nine birds, have them shipped across the border to the States but then some sorta more testing was required but thankfully in the States at their rates. As I said...FREE trade...now sure how the term FREE got in there but oh well. It is what it is.
We can and have imported birds from the States for way cheaper than the other way round. It makes no sense.
Oh oh oh...first egger...wonderful! I hope that Cindi lets me post that piccy of her sis and an egg...it encompasses SO much of our emotions...of holding those eggs in the palm of our hands and how so important that is. Gifts from the birds of life and food and oh my...so much more. I will never EVER tire of collecting up eggs...that child like "there is nothing wrong in the entire universe" is what an egg translates into as far as feelings go. Hee hee...congratulations!
14F is a great temperature. Snow stays solid, it's very dry, you can do all kinds of winter activities, but it's not too cold to be outside.
People need to embrace all four seasons and while some years it feels like ten of the months are designated to winter...one had better enjoy the climate they choose to be in or expect to be miserable alot more than they should be.
We live where we love it and winter in its whiteness is just as inspiring as summer in its greenness. All about attitudes I suppose.
I don't like driving in what we call "Coast" snow which is heavy, melty, bogs you down, throws you around. When we get the usual Alberta snow, it is like driving in dry sands. Breeze and easy.
I hope to enjoy more dry cold again this winter and maybe, just a maybe a bit less snow this time round--icrumba!
When I lived on the Coast (Nor end of Van Isle for 25 years) the worst temps was -10C (the ocean bay froze and all the pipes were bursting...not nice!) but with all the humidity there, it may as well have been -50C here...the wet makes it chill you to the very bones. There is no popping outside to go to the garage to pack back a loaf of bread from the freezers like I do here...you poke a toe out in the humid Coast and it freezes instantly...black ice makes driving treacherous. You never quite knew when there might be hidden ice on the roads and if you touched your brakes...it was no whee more like "pee yourself scared!" kinda feeling...no control at all as you spun outta control some winters. You can most definately die on the Coast from exposure...it does not have to be savagely cold to be cold! So each place has its version of winter which to one that lives there is just plain cold. Depends what you are use to.
Now it would be a given if we went from room temperatures of 20C today right into -10C I would be all gibbled up and slowed way down...burr...but it happens over time and you acclimatize to the seasons as each one begins to happen. It is cold and it is hot in relative relations to what we adjust ourselves to. I can say I do get cravings for fatty foods in winter but I also work that off. I think some of us also have "brown" fat which we inherited from our parents and grandparents. My family stems from Northern Europe...my father from Latvia which I believe is rather close to where Vehve is now...we thrive quite well in winters and celebrate the seasons and expect the cold and I love the cold because it makes certain things we do in summer STOP. Full halt stop and we do different activities more to jive with the season that is upon us.
it really is the wet feet that make winter miserable.
Dress for success...here are my fireman boots.
Good for -100 C (the -40C Sorrels are kiddy style...too wimpy for me) and pliable flexible waterproof materials...steel toes (not required but has saved a few toes from breakage when I do firewood hauling I suppose). Not cheap either as I believe these pair of boots ran us $240 or so. Compared to my run runs...yeh, by the time winter is over...I am dancing about in the runners feeling alot less confined and not so trudge trudge but man alive, I could not do winter chores without dry toasty feets!
Insulated coveralls...called "tough ducks" made of canvas and that tan colour with red lining. Good wool lifetime socks we get outta Bass Pro (nfi)...and yeh, already returned several pairs for new ones because we wore them out. Inside clothes under the outdoor wear...I can tell you...the day I have to wear "Depends" (nfi) is a day to celebrate...I am just like the kid in the snow suit...all bundled up after an hour to struggle into them and then that one cup of coffee needs to go elsewhere and I near break into tears...nothing like being outside and having to go half way thru chores. I am not ready for a rest...don't like the fogged up/iced up glasses, the layers and the fight to disrobe...yes, yes...bring on the DEPENDS! What a luxurious invention...maybe I should be a test subject and start now...
Heh heh heh...well there goes 3/4 of the Pear-A-Dice audience now..."She freely admits that she wants to pee IN her pants...ack!"
No toques (I hear Americans don't have the word toque and it makes me laugh!) or Balaklavas for me--get too hot...so it is a roast or freezy toast situation because you boil with one on...constricted on how you can breath and just blah! No brim on a toque and even though it is winter...we get bright sunshine...lots and lots of cheery sunshine here. Makes winter like those postcard photos.
Some of MY winter hats but in the middle thar...the BUS DRIVING MOOSE is LOOSE twinkly plaid pukey Fudd Hat!
Yeh, my son wants to disown me (Rick too) but I wear Fudd hats...yeh, woollen baseball caps with furry ear flaps and a brim to keep the blowing snows off my glasses and outta my face. I love them and have several colour coordinated hats to go with my outfits. Yes, very stylish wear! How to be vahboobah wearing the plaid I say!
In my entire winter garb...I am something ELSE to behold but yah know...that great big grin, that furnace chugging away within...I am as pretty looking as the great big smile plastered on my face out doing my winter chores because I am WARM and HAPPY! I ooze happy doing what needs doing because I am warm and comfy doing it!
Rick keeps me in proper clothes so I can do what needs doing and he is sure glad HE is not the one out and about some days in the gear!
Coldest ever here was -53C...not sure how accurate because mercury acts funny at low temps...and now some revamp is made over the wind chill values...whatever...cold is cold is cold...burh eh?
Layers works...sheep skin lined mitts (gloves suck, not enough heat generated in a glove compared to a mitt) for when it gets past forty below. I usually am bare handed though...I seem to generate enough heat to keep the fingees functioning. You adapt I guess....adapt or die. At least if you freeze...you fall asleep...I figure way better way to go than heat stroke where I hear you suffer immensely...I'll just tuck up in a snow bank and do some zzzz's...LOL
I spent too many years in Houston, I don't like the cold.
It is all relative to what you are use to. I have the genetics in me for cold living. I look forward to winter when the "two" months of feverish summer time things can stop (make it stop, eh). Winter is a busy time too but a different sort of busy. Now if you plunked me back on the Coast and told me I had to endure the 90 days straight of grey rainy days again...nope, not going back to that. I have seen the light...literally. Rick and I wore sunglasses the first two years we moved here to Central Alberta..."that orb in the sky...what is that?"
<blink blink - like moles emerging from their burrows>
Most beautiful place on Earth is the Coast with a sunny day to show off the tropical green of the growth...but so many days were grey and dreary and way too wet, moldy and depressing. I am happy here and love the dry cold. Each to their own and we should all be so lucky to live where we thrive.
Supertramp - It's Raining Again:
Oh, it's raining again
Oh no, my love's at an end.
Oh no, it's raining again
And you know it's hard to pretend.
Oh no, it's raining again
Too bad I'm losing a friend.
Oh no, it's raining again
Oh, will my heart never mend.
May everyone live where they love it...it makes for so much happier people and happy people are in short supply for sure! Never enough happiness.
Thought for today from Albert Einstein...
Doggone & Chicken UP!
Tara Lee Higgins
Higgins Rat Ranch Conservation Farm, Alberta, Canada
I see u got your keyboard fixed
Hi Tara. Great post, as usual. Took me a long time to read it but worth it!
Tara, I'm way up north from Latvia, closer to the heights you're living at, but the Gulf stream keeps our weather slightly warmer. Minus 20 C for weeks is pretty normal here though. Doesn't get much colder than that here down south. Now up north, that's a whole other story.