City Chicks Meet Country Chicks

These sweet little chicks are a new addition to our home.  Sadly the little black one didn't make it.  She was just too little and had I realized she was struggling when we picked them out I would not have brought her home.  She was VERY small.  I did learn, though cute small is not always a good idea when we are dealing with chicks.  I had to feed her a mixture of food she was so small she would not even peck at the food or drink.  She might have been sick too. I am just not sure.

The orange and yellow chicks however are thankfully thriving and chirping sweetly.  They are inside out of the cold damp weather we have been having, under the warmth of a heat lamp and doing very well.  In the very small town we live in, we are not allowed by city ordinance to have chickens in our yard, so when these little ones are grown they will go to our friends farm to live as happy little free range chickens.  We purchased a rabbit hutch for them so they would be safe from the longing gaze of our inside cats.  Since we cannot have chickens in town and they are so small they are inside with us until they are big enough to go to the farm.  I have no idea if or when we will ever find a home in the country so I have let the girls have chicks now twice here.  I think it is important for them to experience and learn how to take care of them.  If I waited, I think sadly they would miss out on the opportunity to learn. 

I am sure the chicks look like a delicious snack to the cats so I wanted a strong cage that if  the curious cats jumped on, they would still be very safe and, have a cage that is easy to clean.   However now, the cats love to lay by the cage and take naps by the chickens enjoying the warmth of their heat lamp as well!  The chickens go to the edge of the cage and nap.  The cats do not have their claws in front so they are not in danger to them.  We have learned to listen to their peeping and chirping and can tell when they are not happy.  My youngest dd runs to see what is upsetting them.  They are held and cuddled gently and will be wonderful sweet hens..unless we have a rooster! lol  I do believe they are the most spoiled little chicks ever :)

Weekend Reprieve

I'm still awake so I'm still claiming this as my Friday...  I plan on spending my weekend relaxing, reading, being creative, decorating and constructing things with my children.  These two the best of friends have already started on their weekend reprieve.  They started with taking over my chair, I am now posting via my perch on the kitchen stool.

I have spent a great deal of my time today going through all of the blogs that I have bookmarked on my computer and "officially" joining the blogs that I enjoy reading.  I have chosen them for various reasons over the years but mainly the consistent reason I found was that they quite simply were inspiring in some form or another.  I am extremely creative and I found  when going through the blogs I read that I felt a spark of excitement that comes when the creative juices start to flow.  So I share with you, on my blog page now the blogs that I enjoy, and hope you will find as much inspiration, creativity, and enjoyment as I do.

~Enjoy your weekend reprieve~

For the Love of our Pets

The health and welfare of our pets are so important.  We go to great strides to care for them and today we have one that is quite ill.  He was acting a bit "off" for him the past couple days.  Normally keeping to the other side of the bed from me but instead wanting to be close to me and laying with me as much as possible.  I thought maybe it was the cold.  While watching the television with my husband he was laying on my lap.  I enjoyed the companionship.  Then he started sort of a howling type of meow which was odd.  I kept watching him as he walked and noticed his gait wasn't quite right.  I wasn't so sure that he hadn't possible hurt his hind foot from jumping down from some object (which he knows isn't allowed) like the kitchen island?  His is an ornery boy you know.  Then we noticed he kept trying to clean himself and was howling then.  He seemed to be pained.  I checked his foot and did not notice anything out of the ordinary but knew he was going to see the vet in the morning.  Something was off.  I kept observing him and could not see what the problem was.  He was definitely trying to tell us something.

 

Sure enough, in the morning when I checked on him he was trying to use the restroom and it was then that I realized he had a urinary blockage!  I quickly called my mother because this all seemed vaguely familiar to me and she confirmed that this had happened to our other fur family.  The cause was determined to be related to his food.  I contacted the vet and rushed him in.  The vet confirmed that he had a blockage and said he would have to stay until Monday and be given a sedative and a catheter and  iv fluids to flush him out.  His first question was what kind of food did he eat.  My daughter and I were very brave but also very sad to leave him there.  He is a special boy as all of our animals are.  As shown above he likes to find a nice cozy drawer that the children have hurriedly left open while dressing in the morning before school and make himself a bed.  He likes to go where the children are  because he knows he is one of them and watches out the window when they leave for school in the morning, and again in the afternoon for them to return.  The house seems so empty this morning as I check his already full food bowl that is untouched and I have no furry orange pumpkin (as I refer to him) to great me as I walk to the kitchen.  He is a healthy boy!  At times like these I wish he could speak, yet he was trying to tell me I just wasn't getting all the clues.  I feel sad for not putting the puzzle together sooner but very hopeful for a full recovery.  I will know more tomorrow.  Until then I hope he is resting comfortably and he is greatly missed.  It is amazing how quickly our pets touch our lives.  They blend so seamlessly into our daily lives and effect so much more than they realize.