Well, Poppet was in her nest when I visited the loft this afternoon. She is tucked into old hay on the southeast corner and has lined her space with clean materials. She twittered when I peeked in, and I backed off so she could sleep. Now that I kow where she is I can watch for her without waking he...

Poached pear recipe with red wine and spices. Ingredients: •3/4 cup water •1/4 cup dry red wine •1 stick (3 inches) cinnamon •1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg •pinch salt •2 teaspoons granulated sugar •2 thin slices lemon •4 ripe pears, halved lengthwise, peeled, cored Preparation: In a saucepan, combine ...

I feel very lucky. I get to see all kinds of wildlife, and since David has the coops fortified, the chickens are safe. Both Miss Ellie and Poppet are settling nicely, I see them briefly at sunrise or sunset and they are no trouble whatever. I think Poppet revealed herself to see if I were a danger o...

A cub can certainly lern to be handled, but trouble starts when they reach sexual maturity. Even the females can get nasty. Besides, she is a wild creature and if she assumes all humans can be approached to food and cuddle, she is more likely to be shot. But yes, she is a cutie! She makes an enticin...

Truth be told, David maintains a sanctuary at the base of our property where deer and other animals can shelter during hunting season. We have a large number of ringneck pheasants year-round, and we can allow the fox dens to remain where they are. One of our neighbours placed some game cams in the c...

Poppet turned up on her own, so far as I know, though problems with people relocating them do occur. Ellie is one the property using the abandoned burrow underneath an abandoned chicken coop from the 1970's. She flounces around in the goatweed, thinking I can't see her, but her tail sticks out above...

ost people regard raccoons as pests, especially around chickens. But we have housed one raccoon per year in the barn loft for each of the 24 years here. The trick is to have solid protection for the chickens, a self-contained unit that is impenetrable above and below ground. This little girl is bare...

About tomato juice- I've also been told Irish Spring soap helps and we have a special solution in the barn for animal odors. Also, Palmolive makes a dishwashing liquid especially for cleaning bad things nd it is safe on human skin. I hope we won't need any of this!

I hate that wire too, we used 1/2" hardware cloth also...curved out so when you use stell staple ad are leaning into it you have a better chance of survival. Great when t's installed though, we used it 3' underground too.

She will be a very interesting addition to the hobby farm. We have had others but they were reclusive and she is different in that regard. She's a charmer. Last night, after sunset: http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b132/LynneP/DSCF26861.jpg She appers interested in the abandoned burrow, so I hope a...

She's endearing, so pretty and casual around us. But getting sprayed when she becomes mature is a disgreeable prospect! There are other skunks, but none who ever dared to sleep in a cat box. The barn doors, usually open, are closed because they don't like climbing. We'll get her sorted. http://i18.p...

This is the time of year when juvenile skunks leave their mother and littermates and find a burrow to set up house. But first, they check out local buildings, especially barns, for temporary housing. They are fond of cat and dog food and will linger on a property hoping to find a steady supply close...

I'm going to show this to a few local friends- the hardware store locally is begging us to take pallets away. Thanks!

Well, today was the day- the pods, the peas, the stem and leaves- gone!

We're thrilled at how well it worked- and we didn't want to attach anything to the generator or fan directly. No warranty invalidations, and it feels safer...