Beautiful Spring day here in Michigan. Herbie called me to the last bedroom window - and there were little, teeny weeny green leaves on one of the trees behind the chicken yard ! It's a start.
The chicks, keets and ducklings are doing great. Their one gate was open this morning, and one duckling was out in the chicken yard. Don't know how that happened, but double-checked it tonight. Lowered the one heat lamp as they were all huddled under the other one, and put some boards up and a small water trough to block some of the wind.
Have the 2 geese, the Toulouse or maybe the Toulouse / White Chinese cross sitting in the one basement window well, give them some grain every morning. They hiss, but stay sitting. Want to put another pallet below the diningroom window, as the White Chinese goose has laid 6 eggs there, and was sitting there earlier this evening. The 2 boys who are escorting her were standing on the cement slab a little way from her, on one leg each, heads tucked under their wings. Don't think she's sitting yet, as there where white ones when I shoo-ed them to bed tonight, but it was too dark to see clearly which ones.
Checked the cows, Dollys' udder is not showing any sign of imminent birthing, suppose according to the vet she's due in 5 weeks still. Stars' udder is looking a little better, still a bit puss-y, and I felt a hardness in that back quarter, but she's looking more chipper. Hate that we can't let them out into the fresh pastures yet, it's green but we need more growth. Shaw's looking good, and I love watching him with his dad, they spend a lot of time together.
Niece and Hugh are getting so big. She's the heavier of the two even though he seems a more urgent bottle-sucker. Saw Herbie feeding them today :). They are little buggers though. Won't stay in the sheep yard, once I turn my back they climb out. Then they dive straight into my rose garden and also attack the Japanese maple. It was such a nice day it wasn't fair to keep them closed up in the garage, so after one of their feedings I put them on the patio where they curled up together on the step and slept in the sunshine. Then it was back to the front and the roses. Took th out to the chicken yard, used baling twine to secure the gap in the large gate, closed the outside chicken house door, and they stayed there for about ½ an hour before I saw them heading back to the roses. When I'm outside they follow me around, into the cow yard, to check on the new chicks, and I keep putting them back in with the other sheep, but Hugh is a noisy baa-er. Had to catch Laceys' brown boy twice again today. He waltzes in and out of the sheep yard at his pleasure. His brother doesn't join him, and Anni is great at helping me catch him. She chases him towards me. I checked his birthdate, he's 5 weeks old already but still too young to take him from mum. I considered putting him in with the 2 bummers, but with all the chading and catching, he's very skittish.
Yep, there are buds on most of the trees, but we will probably have at least one more heavy frost before Winter leaves.
Sad, I opened the beehives today. Looks like we've lost them all. There were tiny ants in the one, with eggs, the top-bar hive had lots of comb and looks as if there's honey in there too, couldn't get the one open, will take the hive-tool tomorrow and check it out but I'm not hopeful. Saw some dead bees in the top-bar one, but haven't pulled any of the others' frames out to check what happened :(