We are saving up to get a fine pair of giraffes.

We need to organize a barn raising event for....The first giraffes in Washago. We'll also need....Some large sweaters and britches. Looking for volunteers to pick up giraffe patties during Canada Day parade.

The Incredible Tale of the Peacock and the Train! Believe it or Not.

A good read.

Last spring we got these two beautiful peacocks.  A real pair of love birds. 

One sunny day the peacocks were stepping around and picking up seeds under the clothesline.  I came out on the porch and started hanging up laundry.  I guess it spooked these two and they flew off into the bush.  The bush around the farm is a dangerous place.  Many a chicken, rabbit or squirrel has lost their life unexpectedly as they doddled around in the trees.  

We searched for the peacocks for a few hours but only the male turned up.  We chased him back to the barn.  We just thought the female,  Penelope, had been snatched up by a fox or raccoon.  Peacocks can fly but they tend to run along on the ground if something is chasing them.  This would have made her an easy dinner for a wild critter.

We’ll skip ahead six months to late October.  We were watching the male Peacock, David, one afternoon.  He seemed lethargic and sedentary.  Every little while he’d peck Merle the turkey on the head or knock a chicken off the roost.  Not a happy guy.

We decided to find him a new mate.

Nelly checked kijiji and the first thing she saw was... Free female peacock available to good home.  Mactier.

Mactier is 96km from our house.  We called and a lady told us that 13 other people had responded to the add.  They all said they were coming to pick up the peacock.  We told her that we’d be there in an hour.  Up the road we went with a cage and some birdseed in the car.

We followed directions she had given us and came to a cottage on the lake just north of Mactier.  A man met us as we got out of the car.  He told us that him and his wife were headed to Florida for the winter and had to get rid of this peacock that had been there all summer.  He said his sons worked for CN Rail and had found the peacock stuck on the front of a train at the rail yard in Mactier.  They had brought it back to the cottage, where it spent the summer.

We put the peacock in the car and took it home.  I took the peacock to the barn.  It hopped out of the cage and up on to the perch where our former peacock sat.  David the male was beside her in a flash.  It was his mate that had vanished six months previously.  They were happy as clams.  Lovebirds I should say.

To summarize... Our bird had gotten spooked and flew across the highway to the train tracks. She was hit by a train and became stuck in the grill at Washago.  The train traveled to Mactier, where it stopped in the yard almost 100kms from Washago.  The boys took the peacock out of the grill and back to the cottage.  This is where we picked it up after finding it instantly on kijiji.

More Tales from The Pipe and Slipper.....

Clean, well scrubbed puppies.

More Tales from The Pipe and Slipper....

Friends drop over to see Thunder and the puppies

Everyone loves a puppy. Freshly scrubbed in the kitchen sink.

More New Life At the Farm

Balto on the left, Little Bob on the right. One month old. Born Dec 1st 2017. Two of four.

New girl at The Slipper

It's been between -20 to -30 these past 5 days. That didn't stop this healthy looking girl from stopping in for some cracked corn at about 9:am yesterday. Today we put some hay out. She can share with the rabbits. More Tales from The Pipe and Slipper....

The rabbits were on high alert when this guy in the black coat came to visit.

There were actually two bears. The dogs chased them away but the were back an hour later
looking in the sliding door and climbing a tree beside the front porch.

New Guest at The Slipper

Nelly found this little orphan in the driveway. Took us a while to figure out what to feed him. He's a banana and grape guy. His name is Cecil Muffuraw and he also likes a good nap.

My friend returns

Man Lights BBQ With Burning Newspaper and Kaboom!

This is the last photo we found on his cellphone. No sign of him. Phone was picked up in Washago near water tower.

Missing dogs from Washago area. Please share!

These dogs belong to our friend Cheryl from Switch Rd.

Subject: Missing dog poster

Hey, poster attached.

Thanks so much, really appreciate all of your help!!

Crossing fingers...

Oh yes and good morning

My friend Dan and his best girl.

Thanks for the photo Dan. Yes she is beautiful and I understand that she enjoys tractor rides and long walks in the field. The word photogenic comes to mind. She speaks to the camera.

After the Snowfall...How to Avoid Cabin Fever

It's that time of year again. Sure we spend lots of time outside tending to the animals but there's more to stopping yourself from going wacky in the dead of winter. I've always had short conversations with my horse, Thunderboy. But this time of year the conversations become longer and more detailed. 

Some quiet talks even delve way into the past. Yesterday we talked about a tussle I had in grade six at DHC. ( That was my public school ). I asked Thunder what he'd do if someone kicked me in the privates and ran home, leaving me laying on the muddy ground. Thunder just looked at me with his one eye, dropped a pile of horse turds and walked away. 

Just before he walked away, I thought he might say something. Then I realized I wasn't right in the head. This is cabin fever. Horses don't reply in English. They speak horse. He has a soft nose and uses it to nudge me for a Jolly Rancher or a donut. He knows I'm acting strange. 

Here are some ways to avoid cabin fever.... 

1. When it's around -10, run out to get the mail in just slippers, a t-shirt and long underwear. Bring a cell phone in case you slip and smash your head on the gate. You may need to call a neighbour to get you into the house. 
2. Go on a diet where all you can eat is salad without dressing. You're already nuts. You may as well go completely mental and feel like you're freezing to death. 
3. Start arguments with your wife. You already know she's way smarter than you, now you can prove it. Oh and you won't have anyone to talk to at home but animals. This will go on for days. 
4. This is the best one. Think about politics. The result will be superb. This is when you go completely wacky but you think you're fine as you give everyone your opinion on Donald Trump. 
5. Now you've completely forgotten about Cabin fever.

- John

IMG_1386.JPG Newborn rabbits

We've been nursing a sick mother rabbit these past several days. Maybe an ear infection. Two days ago she had a baby. At first we weren't sure what it was, just this little form partly under her. Yesterday she had seven more. We are feeding them replacement kitten milk. Just a few drops here and there. One of these guys will fit in the palm of your hand. It will be interesting to see how they do.