Drew made the Paper Again!

Lianne said it's really difficult to get any publicity for your event in the Citizen - Drew made it twice in ten days - he volunteered as a "meeter and greeter" at the ALS Walk and then did the walk. Lianne works for ALS.

Photos and video: Ottawa Walk for ALS


The Ottawa Walk for ALS started and finished Saturday, June 18, 2011 at the Canadian War Museum, with more than 700 participants this year. Every day, two to three Canadians are diagnosed with ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, and every day, two to three people die from it.

http://www.ottawacitizen.com/travel/Photos+video+Ottawa+Walk/4970370/story.html

Garden Update

Not a lot of new planting has been happening due to the mouse problem. The rest of the garden just keeps ticking over.

Breeding Season

Now it's breeding season - no more shows now until next year (apart from the Qld wyandotte show next weekend). Last Sunday we trimmed up the silkies and put them into their breeding groups. Several whites have gone clucky and are totally "in the zone".

 The barnevelder team has grown to ten hens; they lay magnificent eggs. We never really intended having barnies; someone sent up a dozen eggs on a cattle truck from the south and here we are (a fox attack one night saw us end up with only one hen; a strategic purchase at last year's auction delivered a rooster and the breeding program began again).

The black silkies are my favourite (at the moment).

Last Saturday, Old Red had all these wives. Now he's only got 4! We sold all the others on Sunday.

There are chickens (of course).

Don't forget the ducks!

Annual Show

Our local poultry show was held last weekend. Meg and I did a couple of hours in the canteen with Sandra, serving mince rolls, pies, sausage rolls and cakes/slices. Gibbo was a steward for the day and learnt a lot.

We won a few ribbons; my silkies gained 4 firsts and 2 seconds from a total of 16 entries. Gibbo's wyandottes did well too but I don't know his statistics :)

Meg is trying to convince Linda to sell/give her the big Plymouth Rock bird in the cage.

Eggs for Breakfast

Each morning Poofy does the rounds of the chooks with Gibbo then comes with me to my side. He sniffs for mice under the feed bins and in the lemongrass (if he manages to sneak into the permy garden without being seen). He is the world's most enthusiastic (but worst) mousecatcher - for every one he gets he probably misses three. He has fun though!

He knows he'll get an egg or two from me each morning and he knows I keep them in my coat pocket; he looks at me, searchingly, going from one hand to the other, his tail wagging madly. He just knows! He takes them from me ever so gently and then gingerly cracks them open so as not to let too much of the contents spill out. He carefully licks/sips/sucks the yolk and white until the inside of the egg is totally clean. Then he licks his chops and looks encouragingly for another one.

We Love Our Animals

Chloe Update....she continues to grow and treat us with equal amounts of love and disdain. She really likes our dressing gowns and will sometimes snuggle quietly; other times she's a rampaging teenager racing from one screen door to the next, throwing herself flat up against them. Bizarre.

She is Coco's personal grooming machine. Coco stands there while Chloe licks her clean. Then they curl up together on the couch, beanbag or bed. St. John the Brave would be rolling in his grave (if he was actually in his grave instead of being dug up by something that took him away and probably ate him).

 

Coco is still fat and will go on a diet on the evening of July 16 (once Meg has left the country).

The goats are enjoying their new home.

And Wolfman - well he's just happy to be here!