Wes, chicken abuse, last of the hay, Joshua

When Wes gave us Jazz he left his saddle with us so we could ride Jazz and Flashy – the second horse he was boarding with us. Soon after that Flashy got injured and Wes had to take her to the vet. After he got her doctored up, he put her close to him so he could keep an eye on her. We have ridden Jazz a couple of times but all the while Wes’s saddle was still with us. I looked at it last weekend and thought it was about time to get it back to him, but was not sure where to take it.


Well, last night he came by to get it about the time we were going out to feed the calves. He joined in the feeding but left pretty quickly after he had given one of the calves a bottle – saddle in hand. It is always good to see him since he can be difficult to catch. He has a fulltime job as well as fifteen horses – which is an additional fulltime job. He is always a very enjoyable person to be around.

Mama and I separated the chicken into non-pecking groups again last night. I am not sure how long we will leave them separated but it could be a while. I am tempted to let the rooster in with the second group so he takes ownership of them also, but I have not run that by Mama. The hens do not need him with them to keep laying, but it would be good to use him to keep the eggs fertile in case one of them decides to get broody and sit on a batch of eggs.

What started the need to segregate again was the damage being done to one of the young Buff Orpington hens. I do not know if they would actually kill one of their own, but she was missing quite a few feathers which suggested a thorough abuse by the other hens. Besides, we need to ensure they all get a chance to eat and rest. With the pecking going on, we could not be sure that was happening and these hens are too pretty to watch them get abused; especially to the point of dying. You can see them trying to keep out of harm's way.

Grandpa cut the last of the hay from the meadows so we could bale it to have for the calves. The coastal seed we planted has taken root in most areas of the meadows. With winter close at hand, we wanted to get the last good growth in the barn. It will help the grass and the ground get ready for winter and it will keep us from having to deal with too much twisted growth – from long grass resting on the ground through the winter – when we cut in the spring. We will bale it tonight.

The deer have found the alfalfa we have growing in patches through out the upper and lower meadows. There were some pretty impressive tracks in the upper meadow over the weekend. I have never seen the big bucks Grandpa has watched cross our property, but I have seen their tracks in the soft ground near the big tank. I hope to get to see them this hunting season – at least one of them.

Joshua called me yesterday to check on Mama. I guess he missed the memo on Mama switching cell phone carriers which disabled the number he had. We talked for a few minutes and I gave him the home number, but I do not know if he called to check in there. He is talking about coming up sometime near Christmas. We will see how that works out. He still has not gotten his license but he assured me the paperwork is in place to do so.

Joshua did tell me that Sunday was an exceptional day at church.