Flowers and critters...

I feed the wild birds, and they repay my kindness by planting sunflowers all over the place.

I took my camera for a walk this morning, hoping to get some interesting pictures of the animals.  I especially wanted some of Abraham. It turns out he is hard to photograph, because he wants to be right next to me every moment. If I walk, he is just one step behind me. If I stop he nuzzles me and asks nicely for attention.

Here he is, right behind me as I went out to the pasture. He shadowed me the entire time, then finally went off to see what the goats where eating.

As soon as I headed back to the house he trailed behind me.  Clearly he enjoys human company more than that of the other critters.

He was in lockstep with me all the back to the house. I think he'd like to come inside.  Can donkey's be house trained?  As you can see, Chanel is doing very well.  So much better than I could have hoped. She even runs a bit sometimes.  My vet is a wonder.

My silly Silkie chickens usually keep their white feathers pristinely clean, so I chuckled when I saw the mama hen all covered in wet and mud.  To me it looks like her chick is saying, "Um, mama?  There is something on your face."  Mama hen looks tired to me.

Speaking of Mama hens, we have a bit of a mystery here.  One of my Light Brahma's hatched 5 chicks out about 3 weeks ago.  She has been a model mother, taking exquisite care of her brood. It delighted me to see her going about the yard, clucking to her brood, and the 5 wee ones staying right with her, a cohesive little family.  Then yesterday the mama apparently decided she'd had enough of the whole experience and quit talking to her babies, or spending any time with them. They are left to their own devices to forage for food and explore the pasture.  This is not good, because without a mother hen looking out for them, they are far more apt to become a snack for some predator. I can't even tell which hen is their mom, they all look nearly identical.  So, I am hoping for the best and keeping my eye on the little dusters whenever I can.  I have no idea why the hen has tired of her peeps, but she surely has left them high and dry. Too bad there is no local foster care program for chicks who have been abandoned by their parents!