October 20, 2005

• Goosebusters

  We were jarred
  out of a deep sleep this morning by the phone ringing.  It was the
  neighbor.  She wondered if the huge gray and white goose sitting
  inside their fenced-in back yard belonged to us.  I groaned. 
  Yesterday morning our blood pressure was jump-started by someone
  driving by and honking persistently.  That usually means only one
  thing – one of our animals is out on the road and yesterday it was the
  two young dogs who had escaped through a blown-open gate.  Two
  days in a row?

  Pete and I threw on clothes, ran out and checked the pasture to
  discover that all occupants were present and accounted for…except one
  goose.  Dang.

  Off we roared to the neighbor’s house.  And sure enough, sitting
  in their back yard as placid as could be was our errant goose.  We
  were astounded.  He had to fly over a 4 1/2 foot fence to get out
  of our pasture, cross a 5 acre field to get to their place and then fly
  over their 4 foot fence to get inside their back yard!  We finally
  cornered him and carried him honking and protesting back home.

  He was apparently missing the company of his female companion and the
  male duck.  Those two have taken permanent refuge from our two
  foolish, teen-aged Great Pyrenees dogs by hiding inside the chicken
  house.  I put Gander in the chicken house with Goose and Duck and
  they were joyfully re-united.  The dogs have the unfortunate habit
  of chewing on the chickens and other fowl who aren’t quick enough to
  get away from them.  They don’t really hurt them – just pluck
  feathers and carry them around like chewy toys.  But I can see
  where such undignified treatment would get on your nerves. 
  Apparently Gander had had ENOUGH last night and took a way of
  escape.  Totally bizarre, though, how he fenced himself in at the
  neighbors.

  When I got back and got everyone fed I stood there talking to our horse
  for a minute as she munched her grain in the barn.  I heard a
  funny, very muffled clucking and looked around for the source. 
  Here’s what I saw (note dishevelled feathers due to dog-plucking):
  
  One of the hens had burrowed into the horse’s hay and was getting ready
  to lay an egg.  A few minutes later, this was the view:
  
  Two of the cats have become quite smitten with the horse.  They
  must have been around one at some point in the past, before they
  wandered into our realm.  Here’s Dancer, shortly before he lost
  his balance and landed in the haymanger:
  
  Becca and I laughed so hard we could hardly stand up.  He was quite miffed at losing his dignity.

  Oy weh – these animals do keep us amused.

  • 11:25 am
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