A Short Walk in the Buffer Strip

I was going to go for a walk in the pasture, but the sight of a kid in the buffer strip snacking on alfalfa changed that plan.  I hopped the fence, hung my camera on a post and walked back and forth several times before quickly grabbing a back leg and landing on my knees.  But I caught the little stinker.  In case you can’t tell, my little boys that look just like their daddy, Sam, are wild.  I am not even sure which one this was.

Colt (I think)

But I tossed him over the fence to go play with the rest of the kids.

While I was in the buffer strip, I thought I’d walk around (and take the easy way back instead of climbing the fence again).  Obviously, the alfalfa is blooming.  It’s once again past ready to cut and bale.

The bees are happy though.

So are the butterflies.

I know, the monarch is on clover (along with the honeybee), but they were flitting from clover to alfalfa to clover again.  It was positively buzzing out there.

I do hope you’ll come back to join me for Friday’s Hunt.  I have this week’s items listed at the top of my side bar.

A Sports Injury

Last week, I was walking through pasture just taking pictures for one of my blog posts when I saw several kids, including Caroline, was getting a bit behind the herd.  I called out to them encouraging them to catch up.  They all took off racing.  I thought Caroline was running a bit funny.  When she got to me, she stopped.  She sat.  It was weird.  I stood her up, and she immediately went down again.  I carried her up to the barnyard.

Sweet Caroline

I figured she just twisted something because she is an athletic little girl.  She can’t walk without twirling and bouncing.  I haven’t decided if she’s going to be an Olympic gymnast or the next American Ninja Goat Warrior.  I assumed she didn’t stick the landing on her super duper flip and twist with an extra kick since we had rainy conditions out in pasture.

After resting, she still refused to put weight on it.  I panicked at the thought of it being broken.  I called the vet even though it was after hours.  Bless my vet, Dr. Schmitz.  He asked if I wanted him to see her tonight as an emergency or wait until morning.  I could only say, “She’s a keeper.”  He said he’d be here soon.

Where she decided to wait for the vet

Luckily, it wasn’t a break.   (Sorry for the emergency visit, but I never know if it’s an emergency or not.)  She injured her stifle (the bendy part at the top of her back leg).  He did say it’s a tough injury to heal from, and it will take a long time.  It’s an injury that tends to be aggravated because they feel better and try their acrobatics again.

She should heal fine though.  For now, she’s banned from the pasture.

Annie begging Caroline to come to pasture with her

That does not make her or her maa, Annie, very happy.

Friday’s Hunt v3.25

Welcome back to Friday’s Hunt. I want to thank everyone who joined in last week. I had a lot of fun visiting everyone who linked up. It’s very simple. Anyone can participate. The link opens at 7pm Central time and will close Sunday at 7pm, so you have plenty of time to enter. Hopefully, you’ll be inspired to visit some of the other entries.

If you didn’t participate this week but would like to next week the topics will be: Starts with Z, Week’s Favorite, and dessert. I will always keep a list of the items for the coming week in my sidebar at the top. I am crazy busy with working on the farm right now, but I will make sure to visit all participants. Without further ado, here’s my interpretations for the week.

Starts with Y:  I’ve only ever had one goat with a Y name on the farm.  That’s Yolanda!  Luckily, she was an excellent model.

Week’s Favorite:  So many choices!  I have to say, I’ve really enjoyed all the birds out in pasture.  That’s a benefit to all the time I spend tracking kids out there.

bobolink

dickcissel

Splash:  The geese were enjoying their pool when we were so hot.  Sadly, my hope that the llady llamas spending a lot more time in the barnyard would keep them safe was not the case.  I lost my African gander.  They are back to being shut in with the chickens and peacocks.  I am herding them into the building at night to keep them safe from raccoons.  I am seriously not liking all the predators.  I had geese without problems for sixteen years, and it breaks my heart to have them killed like this unless they are locked in that small space.

Chinese goose

Before I turn it over to you, I will definitely do another round.  I’ve been coming up with items.  I did like Claire’s suggestion of taking out the “week’s favorite” for another prompt.  Of course, if you choose to do only one prompt or two and then give me your favorite, I’ll still be happy.  Blogging is supposed to be fun, not a lot of silly rules.  Thanks to all who continue to join in the fun!

Now it’s Your Turn!