Anniversary gift

Firstly, thanks to everyone for their good wishes on my last posting.  It was a wonderful relaxing day (in front of the Rosie) - with snow falling on the higher mountains in the Eastern Cape & Lesotho.  Sadly, not on our mountains though...

The 31st was Tweedle Dee's due date.

But, nary a peep was heard, not chick was spotted.

I feared that her three week semi-starvation was all in vain.  Was Tweedle Dum not up to the task?

I felt so bad for her...

An anniversary gift from Tweedle Dee - the
sight of a baby chick :)

However, the afternoon of our anniversary I went out to check on her progress, and what did I spy peeping out from next to her?

A baby chick :D

What excitement.  S'truth!  You'd have thought RMan and I had won the lottery lol

Such proud "parents" bwahaha.  T'was the easiest childbirith ever!

In anticipation of the arrival of a chick (or two) I had been voraciously reading up on all aspects of making Tweedle Dee's first experience of motherhood as "perfect" and as comfortable as possible.

Most sites advised keeping the hen and baby chicks apart from the rooster.

The chicken coop we made out of
the frame from the water container

That was a problem as we only had one coop - the one we made from the water container frame.  Knowing that trying to source another frame in a short space of time was not feasible I racked my brains as to what we could do.

I even resorted to googling buying a new chicken coop, or small garden shed...

Until I had a brainwave.

I sent the local tile shop an e-mail, asking them if they had any pallets for sale.  I knew that tiles were delivered to them on pallets, and wondered if they had to return them to the supplier, or whether they kept them?

Sure enough they e-mailed back giving me the name of someone to call / speak to the next time we were in the area.

RMan, in anticipation of woodworking chores ahead, is not always keen on "quickly stopping to see if they have anything suitable" but I managed to get him to drop in.

They had pallets which were very solid, and had to be returned to the suppliers.  But, then they also had these:

Scrap pallets - with our name on them :)
 Any idea's what we could do with all those
outdated bathroom fittings - they're due to be
smashed shortly - because the new loo seats
don't match / fit.  What a waste!

Less study pallets, but they would certainly do the job.

Five were loaded in our trailer.

George, the carpenter from "The Wood Shop" had offered us some old nesting boxes which he could no longer use because the otters in the nearby river, kept eating his chickens.

Those got loaded into the trailer at the same time.

Offloading everything at home we got to work.

The new pallet chicken coop in the making

The pallets got stripped and the wooden slats were moved closer together to make walls.

We added one of the two nesting boxes to the one
side of the coop.

 One of the two sets of nesting boxes was added to the one side.

Collecting eggs from here in future is going to
be a breeze :)

A door was added...

Apart from the roof, the entire structure was covered in chicken wire - even the floor - so that if any otters fancied digging underneath they would find their way blocked. 

We placed the new coop next to the old one, and covered both of the roofs with a piece of IBR sheeting (corrugated roofing), and a double layer of shadecloth - to prevent the coop from becoming an oven in the hottest time of the day / year.

"His" and "Hers" chicken coops lol
Tweedle Dums is on the  right,
and Tweedle Dee and the chicks pallet
coop is on the left.

Literally, as we finished that coop, Tweedle Dee became a mama.  Of 4 chicks (clever Tweedle Dee - and Tweedle Dum lol) :D

And, watching them, the chicks started clambering all over the quaddie tyre nest.

They wouldn't stay in there long.

I was concerned that they would get out of the nest and fall 2 - 2.5 feet to the floor.  Would they survive?  I doubted it.

Plus, when Tweedle Dum came near Mama hen rose up menacingly with wings widely spread.

Definitely time to move them. 

But - how do we transfer her and the chicks to the new coop?

How to move this bulky nest to the new coop?

Three days after we had spotted the first chick, 4 chicks were toddling round the nest, I said to RMan that it was time - we couldn't wait for the other two eggs to hatch / not hatch.

He carefully picked up the tyre and base and tried to manoeuvre them out of the frame coop and into the new pallet one.

Naturally, the chicks leapt out of the nest - together with mama.  Now they were running round the frame coop.

Oh, how to catch a chick.  Not bloody easy, is it, but, bless RMan, he did it.

Transferring all of the chicks (and the two remaining eggs) to the new coop, all that was needed was for Mama to now locate them but their frantic chirps.

Finally, they were are securely ensconced within their new dwelling.

We have fenced off the area outside the coop
so that Mama and the chicks have access to outside
without fear of Tweedle Dum interferring

Mama wasn't interested in the last two eggs, so they ended up being sacrificed for the good of the 4 chicks.

Clever Tweedle Dee - teaching the chicks
to scratch for their food

The first couple of days the chicks couldn't make it out of the coop - the lip under the door was too high.  Strategically placed bricks soon sorted that out.

Tweedle Dee is forever going inside and out of the
pallet coop - I reckon she love it :)

Tweedle Dee has been amazing - I am blown away by her mothering instinct!!

Firstly, when she was sitting on the eggs, she only got off them for about 10 minutes every 3 days.  Every THREE days?!  I kid you not.  Her comb went almost colourless, and her feathers lost their lustre.

What dedication!

Now they are hatched, she does not let them out of her sight for a second.  When chick feed is sprinkled on the ground, she rushes up and "pretends" to peck at it.  Naturally, the chicks follow suit.

When she is happy that they are all eating, I then scatter her normal chicken feed down, and she then proceeds to fill her stomach.

And - whoa!  Have you ever given your baby chicks ( and Mama of course) some cottage cheese?  They absolutely love it - the baby chicks grab a mouthful and rush away to the corner to eat it - so that no-one can steal it from them.  They have even swiped Mama's mouthful straight out of her beak!

At bedtime, it used to be a chore to get Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum into the coop.  Food had to bribe them inside each and every time.

Bed time - everyone safely ensconced in
their bed 

With the new coop, in the late afternoon Mama toddles inside when she's ready, settles down in the nesting box, with the baby chicks rushing to join her as fast as they can.

All I have to do is close and lock the door behind them.

The new coop is a brilliant success - everyone is happy, and have accepted it as their new home.

What did it costs us?

A pair of hinges and a dead bolt for the door, a packet of screws, 10 mtrs of chicken wire - and some of our time.  The IBR roofing and the shadecloth we had already.

And the wood shavings - well, it's nice to have a friendly carpenter in town - he's only too happy to get rid of his waste :)

What about Tweedle Dum?  He has settled down into his coop on his own - well, the rest of his family is right next door, aren't they?!  He probably enjoys having the entire roost to himself, if the truth be told...

I have a sneaky suspicion that one of the chicks is a rooster - it has a dark "line" on it's head, and it's wings have dark markings which the others don't have.  So, for a period, Tweedle Dum may have company - until the "spare" rooster is ready for the pot.

Rearing babies

Thank goodness that time in my life is well passed.  But, for the rest of the inhabitants of this planet, life carries on.

18 October 2014 - we
noticed a nest had
been built on a
wall shelf above (and
to the left of) the
roll of porous pipe

In this instance, new life involved some Rock Pigeons.  In late October RMan went into our LP gas storage area  to change out the tank which provides our hot water.   He noticed that a nest had been built on a shelf up on the wall - and that it contained a couple of eggs.

Unfortunately, I can't find the pic I took of the eggs.

19 October 2014 - taken when Mama slipped off
the nest to seek some refreshment

But here is a pic of the pigeons when they were only a couple of  hours old. They are really scrawny, almost alien looking creatures :)

26 October 2014 - Mama on the nest

Mama Pigeon arrived shortly thereafter and plonked herself back on the nest.   I beat a hasty retreat - I remember what it was like with a newborn (never mind two) and didn't want to disturb her at this vital time.

29 October 2014 - not a pretty sight

Three days later and they are now pretty ugly looking chicks.

1 November 2014

November arrived, and, intially, there wasn't that much progress...

1 November 2014 - legs are definitely operational

...except when you walked near the nest to get a close-up they reared up on their legs - almost menacing!

5 November 2014 - feathers developing

What a difference 4 days make. They now only have a small amount of their downy fur left peeking out from within their developing feathers.

Day 24 - 11 November 2014

Day 24 and I reckon they are about to spread their wings and flee the nest. They don't seem that perturbed by either RMan or I, so hopefully they will remain in the area and be friendly to Coo.

The weird thing is apart from when the chicks were really small and Mama seemed to spend all day every day on the nest, once they got to day 12 - 13 we never saw Mama visiting the nest.  How, and when, they got fed we have no idea.

But, in the case of these chicks, the ugly chicks certainly developed into beautiful baby Rock Pigeons.  Nice :)  I'm so glad that Mama trusted us enough to lay her eggs, and rear her young, so close to us.

Shearing time

It that time of year to shear the alpaca's again and this year there are three of them :)

This will be Minky's first experience of being secured by the legs whilst lying prone on the floor, and I have a feeling that he is temporarily going to forget that RMan is his best buddy.

The other day I caught him pruning one of the two black wattles which provide shade in their paddock.

It started out quite innocently with a casual nibble here, and a nibble there... 

Minky and Miranda have pruned this black wattle
over the past few months

 ... and then he got more involved...

Now the leaves are starting to just
be out of Minky's reach

Until he got to the point that he just can't help himself.  He had to get whatever leaves he could reach...

Ha!!  Clever boy.  I didn't know that
alpaca's could balance on two feet :)
I guess it's a case of whatever works
to enable an alpaca to eat leaves
that are growing above head height...

There's no problem with him eating the leaves / stripping the lower branches. At least the upper branches will ensure that they still have some shade in the paddock.

Minky is now 7½ months old, and his days with his mum are slowly becoming limited.  Much to RMan's dismay, it is getting close to the time that he moves into the male paddock.  Once he's there RMan won't be able to see him from the front porch - or from our bedroom window.

He is a typical scruffy, sand playing, mud rolling mischievous little boy.

The owners at Helderstroom Alpaca's have very kindly offered to travel to us in order to shear our alpacas.  That means that thankfully, we will not have to try and source a horsebox this year - three inside would definitely be a crowd!! (Am I the only one who finds it strange that it's "a horsebox", not "an horsebox" LOL - I mean it's not a hotel, but an hotel).

A good brush and a summer haircut will do him
the world of good :)

Getting this coat sorted out before Wednesday when the shearer from Helderstroom Alpaca's arrives is going to be one heck of a chore for Minky's best buddy... ;)

Minky progress

Minky - just after  birth

If you were a follower of my blog back on the 3rd March 2014 you'll remember that Foothills Michael, a.k.a. Minky, was born and we experienced the first ever birth of a farm animal - our precious Minky, the Alpaca cria.

Minky - in all his
cuteness

Miranda has been an amazing mother and has cared for him beautifully and that is evident in the change that is now visible in Minky.

Minky has certainly grown.  And then some...

This pic is deceptive - his coat has grown...
and even his face is covered with a blanket.
Just as well - it helped to keep him warm
on the coldest nights this winter

He's now just over 5½ months old and is almost as tall as his mother.

Because Minky is so tame, he insists on "smelling"
your face whenever you enter the paddock and has
the gentlest nose that you ever felt :)

Because he has not been left in a paddock with other alpaca's with no human contact expect when they need their inoculations / deworming, he been "humanised" and is extremely friendly - to the point that anytime anyone enters his paddock, he rushes up to give their faces, necks and ears a good sniff LOL

I have read on quite a few alpaca websites that alpaca's don't like to have their heads or necks touched - obviously Minky hasn't been told that alpaca trait!  There's nothing he likes more than a good rub of the fur on his neck or on top of his head.

Minky's not too keen on the water splaching on
his legs or feet - it makes him flick his
feet - maybe it tickles LOL

Initially, Minky wasn't as mad about water as his Mother and Kris.  Now...

"Give us a drink, RMan"!!
With the drought we have been
experiencing, RMan was watering their paddock
with the water from the rain tank.  Minky
rushed up and shoved his mouth in the streaming
water.

...he can't get enough, and will even try and drink it as it flows out of the hosepipe.  And, like Miranda and Kris, has stated cushing in any puddles that form.  Strangely enough though, when it rains he rushes under cover?!

Mother and son - what a difference!!

Minky, although very friendly, can be "difficult".

He is obviously going through the Terrible Two's / Troublesome Three's and the moody teenager phase - out of the blue he has been known to give RMan a welcoming sniff, flatten his ears, and then give him a dose of the contents of his stomach - probably just practising for when he needs to spit as an adult. Thankfully, with his immature spit, it's not as bad as when an adult does it to you LOL

Oh, brother - that fur is going to take time to
get clean again!

There is nothing he loves more than to roll over in the loosest grass he can find - not ideal as he works it right into his fur, and it is an extra chore when it is time to give him a brush.  That fur will have to be sparkling clean before he is sheared in a month or two - otherwise the blades get blunt very quickly.

His playfulness with his mother extends to nibbling the back of her legs, until she gives him the same treatment.  That stops him in his tracks LOL  Then they have a session of neck rubbing -  similar to giraffes - or he tries to walk under her stomach as though he is still a small cria.

He can be a handful - just like all small children.

And, he also is not terribly neat.

The original midden is the circle at the back -
the "skid" mark is the midden as Minky moved it
closer and closer to the stable area.

Due to his laziness (?) the midden that Miranda created near the stable has been stretched from it's original position, and now reaches almost to the stable.

Alpaca's are incredibly agile - it always amazes
us how he can bend down to suckle from Miranda

His body fur is an even mink colour, his face is a slightly lighter shade - almost like coffee with milk, and...

Dark, dark fur round his hooves.  Almost as though he
is wearing dark booties LOL

...the fur round his hooves is dark brown

Who wouldn't love that face? :)
He almost looks like he's smiling for the camera,
doesn't he.

For all his nonsense, we love him.  Life at Foothills Farm wouldn't be the same without Minky - or Miranda or Kris :)

Alpacas at play?

RMan is in heaven.  He has finally found someone or something that is permanently in play mode.

First, last year he was concerned that the alpacas may be bored.  The alpacas???

They don't look bored to me, but they did to
RMan

Kris spotted the foreign object in a flash

So, connecting a rope to a football, he placed that in the alpaca paddock.

Should I get closer...?

Sitting outside the paddock, he slowly began to pull the ball towards him.

RMan has the patience of a saint

Kris, naturally, had to see what this was that was slowly moving in the paddock.  It was white, but it didn't look like a duck.

A leap here, and a leap there - what is this
thing that keeps moving...?

He couldn't resist - he had to follow.

The same happened with Minky.  RMan figured that he needed some companionship.

RMan getting a good sniffing over by Minky

Minky is not as timid as the two adults.  He always comes to greet you when you enter the paddock.  And that greeting entails a good, but oh, so very gentle, sniff of the face and neck.

Mike gets the sniff over now

Mike was entranced the first time Minky gave him the once over.

But, make no mistake, Minky is very strong willed.  If you get up too quickly, before he has completed his daily "inspection", he then tries to nip your posterior if you turn your back on him.  Very gently though :)

The joy of being alive...

He does seem to miss the companionship of other cria.  So he has a game...

... so aptly demonstated by this little cria.

... round and round the paddock on this own:)

...or with whoever is willing.

Ah, a human has come to play - Minky sprints
down the paddock after RMan

 And, RMan is always willing to come out to play LOL

Oh - there's another one...

Then, last weekend Mike stayed over with us.  And, naturally, he had to join in on the game.

... slow coaches.

Minky was in alpaca cria heaven.

Minky is not even breathing deeply after
all that exercise

Boys will be boys!

What a treat this little cria is - what pleasure and joy he brings to our lives.

And don't think I didn't see you hiding behind
the camera Dani

It's the simple things in life that give one pleasure.

I would hate to have so many animals that they are just livestock, and I / we don't get to know them as we have Minky.  What a loss that would be - to our lives, and theirs.