Time Lapse from Seven Cats Farm

The Lovey has discovered a feature on the iPhone.  This is the view from the deck adjoining our dining room. Captured on Feb. 27th. Enjoy!

Sounds on the Farm

Okay folks, go with me here…..

Doggie says: Bow Wow

Kitty says: Meow

Turkey says: Gobble Gobble

Sydney walks: Hobble Hobble

Chickens say: Cluck cluck

Crow says: Caw caw

Chicks (if we had them) say: Peep Peep

Mule says: Beep beep!

Life on the Farm is Not Easy

Just ask Oliver, King of the Pride

We are a barn cat relocation site for Project Purr. This hard working and dedicated organization mainly focus on the trap, neuter and release aspect for feral cats (Feral cats are not wild and something to fear. They are cats that have had limited - if any - exposure to humans and so they are afraid of us. A real life 'fraidy cat). However there is a rescue function to this organization as well. Feral cats which are turned into shelters have no chance of being adopted, and so after their three day'stray period' these cats are euthanized. Project Purr rescues these cats and finds homes for them. I've talked about the relocation and imprinting process here and here and here.

We have had four groups of cats relocated here. Oliver was in that first batch and has become our poster child for what ferals can do on a farm. He has blossomed into a friendly cat that sits on our laps yet is also a great hunter of rodents. He's taught the newer additions how to be a hunters and showed them that humans are not scary.

With the drought, we have had wild critters (coyote, mountain lion, etc) come closer than usual, but we have also had visits from other ferals as well. Food and water are a big draw to these guys, and we have that here. It would be great to incorporate these guys into the pride, but Oliver has a different idea. Fights do happen - it is the way it is.

Oliver didn't show up for breakfast for a few days. Missing one feeding isn't uncommon, but missing two in a row is not so good and I begin to worry. Day Three and Oliver showed up looking a little swollen. His continued to swell and swell. He eventually looked like this

Because he's as tame as he is, I was able to feed him some turkey broth as he was having a really hard time chewing.  He's not tame enough to capture and take to the vet, so we had to have nature do it's thing.

After about 4 days, the infection burst. Because there is a loss of fur in the area, we were able to see that he had been in a fight and was either scratched or bitten (if you want to see an 'after' photo, you can   look after the jump - it's not bad but if you're a teeny bit squeamish you may not want to see). He was not able to eat dry food right away so he was given a diet of sardines, tuna and ground turkey baby food.

Oliver is now eating dry food again - he's on his way to health again! YAY!!!!!

Outside my back door

We get the best looking clouds outside my back door.

Lately the wild turkeys have been making their rounds (did you count them? Yep - Seven)

The original chickens

Candy, getting reacquainted with the flock

The 'babies', still in the chicken nursery 

Of course, our hens - total count is 16.

An awesome compost pile

Our backyard apple tree. We'll probably harvest this weekend. Things are ripening up earlier this year compared to last year.

Some of our Feral pride, keeping us pest free! Yep, just another rough day in my life. :-)

Our Morning Routine

There is a certain rhythm that we dance to here are the farm. Every morning, before we do anything, we let the dogs out, and then bring them in and feed them (have I told you about the dogs?), feed the inside cats, let the dogs out again, feed the outside cats, let the chickens out of their coop and make sure they have food and water. Then we sit down and have coffee. There. Probably more than you would ever want to know about two 50 somethings with a pretty boring life.

Oliver, King of the Pride

One could find the routine mundane, but I am reminded everyday why I married this man that I now share my life with. He sees the wonders in small things and shares them with me, and I with him.

In this daily morning routine we are sung to. Every morning. The outside cats, our worker cats, greet us at the door and sing. Eight voices, always in unison, never on key. It is glorious.

They sing for their supper and we gladly oblige them.

A Few Years of Friday

I'm a knitter. And a spinner. An overall fiber-aholic. When I lived back East I used to joke that I spent so much money on yarn and fiber that if I ever became homeless, at least I'd be warm. In the early days of our relationship (like day 20), I showed The Lovey my fiber 'collection'. Deep down I was trying to scare him away. It didn't work. He was impressed with my spinning hobby and made videos of me spinning to show to his friends.

When the Lovey and I were dating, he gave me a birthday present of ceramic sheep figurines. He said they were place holders for the sheep that someday he would get for me. Sure, I thought. I lived in a condo and he lived in a 2 bedroom house with a teeny yard in the middle of Silicon Valley. A sheep. Ha! Whatever.

After we got married The Lovey's bestest friend, the Gentleman Farmer who lives in Minnesota called to tell me that he had my sheep. He would take care of her, and I got to name her and have her fleece. The Lovey and he had been in cahoots all along. We named her Friday after the Norse Goddess Freyja - a goddess associated with love, beauty, fertility, gold, war, and death, who thought cats were sacred.

Young Friday - just a few days old

Fast forward to today, and we have fleeces. Ladies and Gents - LOTS of fleeces. So what is a good spinning girl to do? Skirt the fleece so they can get processed! The Lovey and I are heading down the coast for a little vacation, and we are going to stop by Morro Fleece Works to drop of this white bunch of loveliness!

Skirting means to take off the yucky parts - poop, weeds, really matted parts, etc. So I spread each fleece out on a tarp, take the nasty bits out and then package it. I LOVE the smell and feel of the lanolin-laden fleece. Truly, it doesn't get much better than this.

Of course, there is always an audience.

Rudy and Maddie at the door

And at the end of the day we get Cat TV. Here is one of the ferals playing in the tarp that the fleece was on. It smells good to her, too!