Animal Planet

Outside this morning, I heard some amazing bird songs, so I ventured around the yard till I saw the owner to the voice: a big ol' crow. About the same time that I saw him, so did Beau the Bloodhound. Well, that ol' crow went and flew clear up and landed on the tippy-top of our tallest tree:

Beau was fascinated. I think he thought he was responsible for treeing this very large and very vocal bird. So Ol' Crow kept crowing, Ol' Beau joined in with baying, and circled and circled that tallest tree. Biserka the Bouvier, who has led a very sheltered life from what we can discern, (puppy mill?), got interested in the broo-haha at some point, and started circling the tallest tree too. Maybe she thought the bird would fall down or throw food or something. But she kept eyeing Ol' Crow while Beau kept up his bay.

When he's not running or baying, he is chewing...
Isn't he a handsome gentleman?

Back on the south forty (yards, not acres), the ponies had once again managed to slip through their electric fence bonds. What an equine saga. I have been trying to keep them penned up by the barn for the next month or so, in order to get the grass established in the rest of the pasture. Our very kind neighbor volunteers his time and equipment each year to fertilize our tiny plot of land, and he has in years past very kindly put forth his opinion that we should keep the ponies off the grass till June to let it establish. In that his is a successful farm and ranching operation, I suspect he know of which he speaks.

So! Last week while daughters were visiting home, I ushered them out to the pasture to pound t-posts into the ground and set up electric tape. (Two years ago College Boy Graham did it. This year, it was the girls' turn. {Last year? Oops, noone did it. Bad animal husbandry...})

The first few days, just the sight of the tape kept the ponies in their enclosure. (By the way, I refer to these two animals as diminutive ponies, but they are huge horses, approximately 1500 lbs each.) Then one day Turbo the Cowboy Horse figured out that it was not hot, and he started escaping under the tape. So after a few escapes and re-captures, I turned the hotwire on.

Boy, they did not like that.

Not one bit.

But in the wind and fog and mist last night, TWICE, the electric tape came down. Sufficient evidence that our daughters should not go into the ranch fencing biz anytime soon.

This morning I recaptured both ponies off the lush green inch of new grass, and repaired said posts and fence and electricity.

This afternoon, I looked out and noticed that poor ponies were so sad/traumatized about electric fencing, they had not moved and had not eaten any hay or gone to the water tank all day. Not only is that sad, but a health issue in the pony GI tract. So I turned off the fencing, took their evening feed over to the hay bale, which they were afraid to stand by...because they are not too bright?... and I fed them there.

Now looking out, they are haying and happy horses. I will turn the fence back on after dark when they are up by their barn.

Animals. Unggghh.....