I keep fairly busy outdoors throughout the day, but mornings are when you’ll find me hardest at work. I’m up for coffee at 6:00, and out of the door by 7:00, tending to chickens and working in the garden, flower beds, or yard while it’s fairly shady and the temperatures are cool. As I begin … More Tukker’s Lair
Last March, when FD’s mother passed away, our first big endeavor was to clean out the house, and go through items in the garage, barn and garden shed. Overwhelming as it was, we managed to get through the worst of the hoarding in about six months. FD still needs to go through the garage with … More A Treemendous Project
With FD working from home under the COVID-19 Safer at Home guidelines, the pace of life around here has changed a little. It’s much more relaxed since FD doesn’t have to be dressed up for work, or preparing to fly off to some destination. I get up an hour later than usual, at 6:30 now, … More Luna See in the Barn
I should have expected Tukker, our newly released orphan deer, to incur a few wounds in his first weeks out in the wild. For orphaned youngsters like Tukker, it’s normal to see scratches from barbed wire fencing and a few hoof marks from being run off by some other fawn’s mother. However, Tukker’s barbed wire … More Safer At Home
I will never forget the first time I heard a co-worker exclaim, “Dad gummit!” in complete frustration over a problem we were trying to solve. At first, I thought I heard her wrong, so I asked her to repeat what she said. After a repeat of the phrase confirmed I had indeed heard what I … More Dad Gum Tree
When FD’s mother passed away in March of last year, we inherited a flock of two old roosters and eighteen old hens. At that time, we were only getting three to five eggs a day, so I decided we should order some new stock. This time, I wanted a variety of chicks instead of what … More PerfEgged Timing
Three weeks ago on a Friday, Mr. T, our eldest Japanese Chin, decided he no longer wanted to eat. I had known for a couple of weeks that he was losing ground. In the last year, there had been many health issues for him to overcome. Last August, we opted to have the eye removed … More Mr. T’s Velvet Kisses
The weather was bitter cold the day after Tukker’s release, but the sun shone brightly and a mild breeze from the south brought hope of a better day. FD and I were up early, with plans to take Tukker on another hike to the west end of the property and cover more of the orchard, … More The Fawn Who Walks With People (Tacicala Tuwe Mani Kici Oyate – Lakota Sioux)
When we took in our orphaned buck fawn, Tukker, we created a better set up for his raising than for any of the white-tail fawns we rehabilitated in the past. From Daisy to Emma and Ronnie, FD and I learned a lot along the way, and made improvements accordingly to our fenced quarters and barn … More Wide-Eyed on a Windy Day
Last week I found myself picking acorns for our orphaned fawn, Tukker, from an oak tree near the old river channel. We have a good number of oak trees on our property, but it just was not a great production year for acorns. I had been picking from this particular tree for a couple of … More Winter Foraging For Tukker
I was a bit sleepy-eyed yesterday as I walked towards the deer pen in the dim morning hours. There, I knew I would find Tukker on the other side of the gate, anxiously awaiting his bottle of warm formula. As I slipped through the gate, he began bopping my leg with his nose, hoping to … More Breakfast Interrupted
