Through Marcy's Lens

There are some days you just want to say

P--- on it!

Never give up.

See sunshine on the webs.

and diamonds that appear in the morning dew.

Be grateful

you're not the spider's lunch

Hide if you must but only for a short while

There's always worm poop

But if the light's right

It's a work of art

Enjoy the sunshine on the web of life...

and smile.

White Lies or Omission? Not For The Weak!

We all share parts of our life but no one shares it all.  Is that presenting a false front or just an omission of facts that different people would not understand.  Do we consider these little white lies?

Life in different in the country.  Things that happen may be frowned upon but that's the way it is around here. We protect our livestock (cattle and chickens) which is our food source and our money.

We don't get many drive by shootings but we do protect and make it safer for our animals and us.

Lil and the team find a skunk.

See it hiding inside the tire?

Using a long iron piece to drag and flip the tire.

All the dogs have been sprayed by now 

and are pretty set on ending this.

The tire is flipped.

Skunk removed by Lil

and the team jumps in to help.

Skunk dispatched quickly.

Good farm dogs!

These two try to remove the smell in the water garden.

Said all that to say this...

Join Two Shoes in Texas

for Tuesday's fun.

Word prompts this week are white and lies.

Invaluable Farm Team and Treasures...

The rain and thunders storms rolled in and out all day.

We had uninvited visitors.

Not ours!

Why do ours stay in but we can't keep these out?

Lizzy and Junior

Squiggs, Junior and Ki

Add Border Collie Diamond Lil 

and you have an unbeatable team to move cattle.

To see stock dogs work is a thing of beauty.  Each dog is trained by the one above them.  Lil is a head dog, the smaller ones are heelers and movers.  

When the strangers arrive Marcy can clap her hands, I yell "Yhaw!" and the team moves like a well-oiled machine.  Itty-bitty Lizzy and Squiggy gets them moving, Ki and Junior separate the strangers from our cattle and Lil takes the head. 

I've never had the herds completely blended until today.  Squiggs (not twelve pounds) cut out our cattle and headed them back to their spot while Junior, Ki and Lizzy curved the strange bunch back out of our pasture.  It was simply amazing. I face an oncoming wave of half grown calves.  For a second, just a second, I doubted the power of my team.  I raised my arm and I pointed.  The dogs take our cattle one way and the strange ones are herded the other. As they hit the divide, Lil picks up the chase and takes them totally into their home pasture.

Pure dance and art when they work.  A motley crew of Border Collies, a tiny Cairn mix, a Jack/ Rat Terrier,  my hot pepper Ki-Anne of unknown origin and her son Junior moved together like a well choreographed Broadway musical.  

I am proud of our little pack.  All were throw aways except for Lil.  They fit perfectly together and make a fantastic irreplaceable farm team. Not only with herding but also on protection and patrol detail.

Between rains I took a short walk and discovered a few treasures the farm had to offer for my pleasure and enjoyment.

Not For The Squeamish or Animals Rights Activists...

For those of you who have farm animals you know farm dogs are an intregral and essential part of the operation.  We have a fine team of farm dogs quite a mix in fact.  We have two Border Collies and four mixes that each have their own talent and work together as a team.

Lil our short-haired Border Collie is the jump in and finish it lady.  TP is the alerter, Ki and Junior are the finders and seekers, Maggie our other Border is the all around dog.  Lil, Maggie and Squiggie herd, kill snakes and varmits.  The young ones are learning.

 The three little ones are after a mole here.  They keep the yard and garden free of them.

TP treed this bad boy

 in the corner of the chicken house.

Lil took him out and shook...

and really took him out!

The Hot Peppers learn by watching...

and Lil says, You ain't getting my 'possum!

Good Farm Dogs!!!!!



Don't Even Ask About Yesterday...

 It was tax day at the postal service. While I am extremely grateful that people still use the postal service, why wait until the last day to mail your tax return? 

I took care of each person with a smile and the patience of a saint but I sure was exhausted at the end of the day.  Tax Day plus Monday equals chaos and craziness.

I am grateful I have a job.  This was not my favorite day but pay day is and I guess I'll stick around.

Rare pictures of Ki Junior being still.

It didn't last long.

Too many things to see and smell.

Progress in his training by the other farm dogs.

Another dead Copperhead,

one Cotton Mouth torn to bits

and I think Junior has almost got it.

Katching Up With Ki-Anne

as she runs,

and as she watches.

Playing with a new ball with the Borders.

Same ball later, not quite as red.

My Ki-Anne, frayed collar thanks to Junior.

That's my girl!

Something Said, Take The Camera...

but did I listen?  Nooooooooooo and I regretted it.  The dogs were barking, Ki, Junior and Squiggie were baying, barking, singing a wild dog song.   Knowing my dog's barks I heard, "Danger!"

As I approached the Borders joined the melee. Rarely vocal, the Borders assessed the situation quickly.  With a simple no nonsense motion, Lil stepped in, silently, swiftly removed the snake, ending the canine chorus with one deadly shake.  Ki and Squiggs jumped in for their piece...of the Copperhead.  Within fifteen seconds of my arrival, the poisonous snake lay in pieces so  scattered I couldn't determine the original size.  All that mattered was one less poisonous snake.

During Junior's first poisonous snake encounter he acted safely and cautiously while trying to remove the snake from between the rock and the fence post.  The three from the small team darted in, grabbed and retreated.  Then came Lil, Big Bad Lil, never one to waste a motion, she quickly extracted and executed the snake in one whiplash move.

Ki, foaming at the mouth, from the terrible taste of a poison snake, dropped her piece but gained another during the farm dog dance of success.  The barking had ended.   The words, Good Dogs, were spoken generously.

I returned to the house, proud of my little pack of farm dogs, doing their job well...and still kicking myself for having no camera!