Sebastopol Geese
I
suppose we should just say goose. Our gander, George, was killed by a
homicidal raccoon. Poor Gracie is all alone now and we are trying very
hard to find her a new mate. We hope to have one this year so we can
have some goslings in spring 2008. This breed of goose is very
beautiful and graceful to watch. They are a quiet goose, medium size
with feathers that hang in long rings down from their body. We found
baby gander to raise so Gracie will have a mate next year. George II
Giant White Embden Geese
Regular
Embdens weigh in at 15-20 lbs. Giant White Embdens tip the scales
between 20-30 lbs. Antony and Cleo are yearling geese so we do not
expect any goslings from them until spring 2008. The photo is of Antony
and Cleo standing on either side of a regular Embden. Do you notice a
size difference?
Turken AKA Naked
Neck Chicken
This
is hands down the ugliest breed of chicken. We got a rooster as our
free exotic chick in a shipment of 4-H fair birds. Of course one of the
kids had to keep it. This year we ordered 2 pullets to keep with our
rooster. Turkens are actually a very old breed of chicken developed in
Europe. They are in the Standard of Perfection and currently listed as
recovering. What they lack in looks, they make up for in personality.
Our rooster, Vulture, has never attacked a human and is rather friendly
for a chicken.
Peafowl
We
seem to have a lack of males on our farm. Last year we bought 2
Peacocks and they both ran away because our hen was so mean to them. We
traded another 4-H farm for some fertile eggs and our hen hatched out
another hen. I'm sure we'll be trying again this year. Our Peahens are
a Pied and a Blue.
Donkey
Tony
is a standard donkey. He's black with a light muzzle and underbelly. He
stands about 48 inches tall. We bought Tony several years ago from a
strawberry farm to protect our miniature horses from predators. We no
longer have minis, but Tony was a keeper. There isn't much he won't do.
We've done trail riding, parades, creek crossings, plowing, pulling
logs, and now we are teaching him to pull a cart. He is an awesome
protector. He woke me and my husband up when a mountain lion came on
our property. So, we were already awake when the lion came onto the
porch and took one of the cats while our 2 boys slept in a tent nearby.
Tony is also very trustworthy. I know for certain I can put anyone on
him 1) he won't buck them off and 2) he'll always bring them home.
(sometimes sooner than they want to come home) Tony has a forever home
here with us.
Horse
P.Nut
is a mustang Shea bought. Shea and P.Nut do all kinds of things
together; Jr. Horseman drill team, Trail riding, swimming, etc. There
isn't much he won't do. He's an incredible horse with lots of patience.
At 18 years old he still has a ton of get up and go. I'd say he's a
keeper.
