When I fed the poultry this morning, I didn't see the keet. Mama Serema was in the yard with all the other chickens, ducks, geese and guineas eating the corn I'd just thrown out, but the keet was nowhere, nor could I hear it chipping. Yesterday, it was amongst all the poultry, dodging the bigger feet of the other birds, snatching a piece of grain when it could. Once full, the Serema went back to where she'd left the keet (on the far side of the horse trailer) but the keet was still in the chicken yard. I herded it out towards the Serema until they heard each other and connected once again. This morning I re-checked the chicken yard, no keet. Slower, I started searching for it until I found it, limp, but still alive, under the upside down kiddie pool in the side yard where I'd had them moved after the first keet disappeared after falling out of the rafters. Took it into the garage and held it under the heat lamp. Put it in a feed bowl and went to find the dog crate in the shed. Filled a chick waterer with warm water and a pinch of vitamins, and drew some Vit B into a syringe, added some warm molassas water, pried it's beak open and squirted some down. It was cold in my hand, neck twisted and limp. Turned it over so it's belly was facing the warmth. We had a deluge in the night, and it obviously got wet and then chilled. Put some dry, fresh had in the carrier, added a bowl of corn, lots of the finer stuff from the bottom of the bag, plus the waterer. When I got back to the garage, Marmalade, the calico cat was far too interested in this scrap of bird, so I chased her off. Then went to find the Serema, as the weak, sick baby would want it's mama. She was in the side yard, chipping and looking for the keet and was fairly easy to catch. She's tiny, fits in one hand. Took her to the garage and popped her into the carrier with the keet, blocked off part of the grated top so that she didn't have to be under the heat if it got too warm for her. She was loud when I caught her, squawked all the way to the garage, and didn't stop until I left her there. When I went to check on them a little later, the keet was half under the banty, as much as could fit under her, mama was quiet, and the keet looked much better. So that was my excitement for the day.
Took them both back to outside the chicken house later this afternoon after seeing that the keet was walking around, and tonight, it was tucked under the banty in the corner on the chicken house, under the nesting boxes. SoWhen I fed the poultry this morning, I didn't see the keet. Mama Serema was in the yard with all the other chickens, ducks, geese and guineas eating the corn I'd just thrown out, but the keet was nowhere, nor could I hear it chipping. Yesterday, it was amongst all the poultry, dodging the bigger feet of the other birds, snatching a piece of grain when it could. Once full, the Serema went back to where she'd left the keet (on the far side of the horse trailer) but the keet was still in the chicken yard. I herded it out towards the Serema until they heard each other and connected once again. This morning I re-checked the chicken yard, no keet. Slower, I started searching for it until I found it, limp, but still alive, under the upside down kiddie pool in the side yard where I'd had them moved after the first keet disappeared after falling out of the rafters. Took it into the garage and held it under the heat lamp. Put it in a feed bowl and went to find the dog crate in the shed. Filled a chick waterer with warm water and a pinch of vitamins, and drew some Vit B into a syringe, added some warm molassas water, pried it's beak open and squirted some down. It was cold in my hand, neck twisted and limp. Turned it over so it's belly was facing the warmth. We had a deluge in the night, and it obviously got wet and then chilled. Put some dry, fresh had in the carrier, added a bowl of corn, lots of the finer stuff from the bottom of the bag, plus the waterer. When I got back to the garage, Marmalade, the calico cat was far too interested in this scrap of bird, so I chased her off. Then went to find the Serema, as the weak, sick baby would want it's mama. She was in the side yard, chipping and looking for the keet and was fairly easy to catch. She's tiny, fits in one hand. Took her to the garage and popped her into the carrier with the keet, blocked off part of the grated top so that she didn't have to be under the heat if it got too warm for her. She was loud when I caught her, squawked all the way to the garage, and didn't stop until I left her there. When I went to check on them a little later, the keet was half under the banty, as much as could fit under her, mama was quiet, and the keet looked much better. So that was my excitement for the day.
Took them both back to outside the chicken house later this afternoon after seeing that the keet was walking around, and tonight, it was tucked under the banty in the corner on the chicken house, under the nesting boxes. So glad the little one is much better. Still not as perky as it was previously, but moving around, pecking for food.
Have a guinea hen sitting on eggs in the middle of my strawberry patch so hopefully there'll be a whole batch of new keets shortly.
Herbie has a new dispatcher at work, who is making him work 16 hour days so he was exhausted when he got home tonight. I cooked "home-made junk-food" for lunch - French fries with Yukon Gold potatoes, crumbed onion rings, also deep fried, and tilapia, with a lime seasoning done in the cast iron pans on the stove. Hit the spot for both of us. I don't use the deep frier often, but was needing some 'slap chips'. They were perfect :). Yep, it's more work, peeling and cutting the potatoes, then pre-frying them until cooked but not brown and re-frying to golden readiness :) but I know there's only 2 ingredients, oil and potatoes, not the 16 or so ingredients in the frozen fries.
Herbie fell asleep on the lounge floor, so I went and did some banking and shopping. Came back, he was still sleeping. Took the truck to the back yard, loaded up with hay, took half the the bulls and horses, the rest to the cows and calves.
Dolly only gave me 2½ gallons of milk today, and there was a hardness in her back, full udder. I massaged her with the garlic infused udder cream, tugged on the inflators until she got antsy with her feet, held a hot wash-cloth against her udder. She was fine at yeaterdays' milking, but I saw her standing in the yucky pond yesterday. Damn it, hope she's not heading to mastitis !
Thank God that we got the hay all baled and put under tarps before last nights' drenching. Wonderful for the fields all the rain, but the back garden was swampy. I had even covered the 2 bales for the sheep :)
Will be collecting Anni tomorrow, and maybe the tyre for the buggy Herbie ordered from a place on the Eastern side of Michigan. They could give us ½ the price Polaris quoted.
Teri wants to help with a project on Friday morning. Hmmmm, what needs attention most urgently ? Plant the grape vines and lavender ? Put additional gates in the pastures as well as planting more posts to extend the channel ? Weeding ? Trellising the tomatoes / grapes ? Picking blackberries ? Making jam ?
Spoke briefly with my dad. He and Claire were also out doing some chores. Hope this marriage is what they both wanted and expected.
Herbie has stumbled upstairs and is now sleeping next to me.
Goodnight, from the farm.