Always trouble

Our new hens escape every day.  We haven't had the electronetting hooked up, so they've figured out where they can scoot under it.  Or the two flighty ones can fly over it.  They know where their coop is now, so I'm not worried about them getting lost, but they do stay out really late.  All of the other chooks go to bed at a safe time, including the roosters. But these girls seem determined to get themselves into trouble. I really hope they don't, because we are becoming quite fond of them already. 

On the agenda for the weekend just past, was to hook up the electronetting. I can't have the two roosters escaping and then finding their way over to Mr. Flan in the backyard.  We already know that Flan can kill.  

After G and I spent a few hours digging swales, he started to work on the electronetting.  But unfortunately after all his work stringing wire and installing attachment points for the fibreglass rods, I can't turn the power on for a very important reason.  Our super powerful KUBE unit is made to have extra power in dry conditions, in long grass etc.  So now that the ground is wet, it's grounded much too well, and G warned me last night that he tested the fence and it's reading at 10 000 volts!  That could easily kill one of our new little hens as they try to go under or through it.  Remember that last year a skunk was killed by the fence.....Even though I intend to add another length of netting, G still thinks the KUBE will be too powerful,  even if we electrify the horse fence too.  I will probably end up using our solar unit, which has a Patriot charger inside, reliable but not super powered like the KUBE.  A good reason to test your fence so you know what you are dealing with!

G has been working hard on many projects around the farm, but it seems he can't go half a day without getting hurt somehow.  I've told him I'd rather he just slow down a bit, if rushing is what is contributing to this trend.  Rushing, getting hungry or tired or overheated, using the wrong equipment for a job. All can be factors.  Accidents are accidents, but I need him in one piece! He's lucky he's started wearing proper gloves for jobs.  He took a strip of skin off of his finger while wearing gloves, so I'd hate to see how bad it would have been without...The injury I'm most worried about is a crush injury on his index finger.  He was using the five pound sledge hammer with the super long handle for some log writhing for garden bed edges, but it's not balanced for that like a mallet.  I think the wedge slipped and he ended up bringing the whole weight smashing down on his finger.  He's only got partial use of it after over a week.  It's hard for him to get to the doctor and then for xrays, and then for physio when he's travelling again this week.  But it needs to be done. In the mean time, we bought a nice four pound mallet that is perfect for many of the jobs around here.

Winny is getting his sheath infection treated with mastitis cream (a bovine product!).  His culture had come back with 4 + corynebacterium growing after the vet swabbed him a few weeks ago.  It's a typical bacteria seen in cow abcesses.  But whether a normal part of skin flora or not, 4 + means it's in excess and not balanced by other organisms.  I have to reach waaaaaaay up in there to administer it into the inner ring of his sheath.  But as in typical Winston form he's well behaved, and I'm not concerned that I will get kicked.  

We got two swales put in this weekend, and one more marked out.  The problem with swales and constantly AWOL chickens is that they tend to make a mess of any newly dug dirt, or eat and dig for anything you've used to overseed with!  They were absolutely ecstatic about the project, and new hen Penny especially was getting right in the middle of things. Literally--she was standing on G's shovel and getting lifted up with each shovel load.  It was funny and endearing, but G has sharpened that shovel so that it's truly a dangerous weapon, and a mistimed strike could easily remove a toe or foot....Chickens, always trouble.

It turns out that we have quite a bit of clay in that area of the property, so I think G's brain is heading back to a project he was keen on back in Victoria.  He went to a workshop on how to make a cob oven.  Cob building material is a mix of clay, sand and straw.  It's nice to find some building material on our own property!

Our neighbours have been cutting along the fenceline, and we discovered that they have been cutting down shrubs on our side of the property line.  Time to go and have a chat with them.  We will likely be planting along there, so we need to protect all of our hard work!  We need to take down some dying trees over there before I can set up the bee hives. I don't want to upset them once they are in their new home!  

I'm kind of glad that all of the trees we've ordered have pushed back delivery dates, likely due to the strange snowy weather all over the eastern US.  We might not get them until late May.  Until then, I will be very excited to start my seeds for the herb garden once they arrive.  

Well I don't have much more time to write today.  Being outside for the most of the weekend means that the house is a disaster, laundry needs to be done, and much more.  Yesterday while it rained G and I were very glad to be out working in it--it reminds us of home.  But that also meant I tracked a lot of mud into the house...So now I'm paying the price with house work. Not exactly my forte!

Photos to follow soon.