Ever wondered what the inside of a tank looks like? Nah, me neither. But thanks to Anthony and my digital camera, I now know anyway.
Our concrete tank is about 25 years old and full of cracks. The cracks were allowing water to seep out, but also allowed us to see how full (or empty) the tank was. Finally the whole thing drained out, so Anthony took the opportunity to jump in, bucket and pump out 25 years worth of mud, and seal up the cracks with some pretty toxic and addictive, as it turns out, black tar. Well, maybe not completely addictive, but I did catch him going out there a few times having another sniff when the withdrawal headaches got too much.
The chooks and ducks had a lovely time noodling around in the mud that came out and then muddying up their drinking water as they cleaned themselves off.
So we now have a functional tank. Just need the rain to fill it!
Tuesday, March 20, 2007
Tuesday, March 13, 2007
Pru and Tru II have shot through
The sheep have bolted. It's a relief in a way - they'd eaten the grass down to bare earth and were starting to eat the fruit trees down the back. Plenty of fertiliser around (courtesy of the non-stop pooing efforts of sheep, chooks and ducks), but no rain to make more grass grow.
At least one of them has previously attempted escape by pitting brute force against a fence, but this time it seems they sauntered casually out through an open gate. I couldn't remember whether I'd even used that gate during the day, so Anthony rather sensibly claimed responsibility for having left it open.
We did have some immediate concerns to do with the possibility that Pru and Tru II were at that moment eating our neighbours' gardens, or positioning themselves in front of very expensive vehicles on the Hamilton Highway, but after several hours of walking and driving around the block we were fairly convinced that wherever they were, they were no longer anywhere where they could be connected to us. There is a paddock a little way down the road with some pretty shoddy looking fences and I'd like to think they've moved on to (literally) greener pastures and joined the flock that live there.
By the way, Tru II suddenly appeared one day in lieu of the original Tru, who had been a bit prone to flystrike. If I don't ask Anthony any questions, he doesn't have to think of a lie to tell me.
We might get some replacements in a couple of months time, but in the meantime, we are going to indulge in the luxury of leaving gates open and see if we can watch some grass grow.
At least one of them has previously attempted escape by pitting brute force against a fence, but this time it seems they sauntered casually out through an open gate. I couldn't remember whether I'd even used that gate during the day, so Anthony rather sensibly claimed responsibility for having left it open.
We did have some immediate concerns to do with the possibility that Pru and Tru II were at that moment eating our neighbours' gardens, or positioning themselves in front of very expensive vehicles on the Hamilton Highway, but after several hours of walking and driving around the block we were fairly convinced that wherever they were, they were no longer anywhere where they could be connected to us. There is a paddock a little way down the road with some pretty shoddy looking fences and I'd like to think they've moved on to (literally) greener pastures and joined the flock that live there.
By the way, Tru II suddenly appeared one day in lieu of the original Tru, who had been a bit prone to flystrike. If I don't ask Anthony any questions, he doesn't have to think of a lie to tell me.
We might get some replacements in a couple of months time, but in the meantime, we are going to indulge in the luxury of leaving gates open and see if we can watch some grass grow.
Monday, March 5, 2007
Three little ducks
These are our three little (sort of) indian runner ducks: Peking (black duck, also known as Honky), Pate and L'Orange.
They do like to run, and also to honk. We're working on a theory at the moment that it's the girls who do the honking. Certainly when tipped upside down it's the slightly smaller ducks (Peking and L'Orange) who do the honking, and Pate just sort of whimpers. We don't, by the way, make a habit of tipping them upside down, it was all in the name of science.
We got the ducks on some romantic notion that they could be used as pest control in the vegie patch. We were right in part, because their webbed feet do not scratch out the mulch and seedlings in the way that the chooks do, but sadly their diet is not limited to bugs and creepy crawlies. The ducks, in short, will hoover up anything that strays near its beak. Gumnuts, straw, sheep poo all go down the gullet without a moment's contemplation on whether it's a good idea or not. And yes, fresh broccoli shoots, spinach, sunflowers, and pretty much anything that one might normally find in a vegie patch but be hoping to actually consume oneself.
Fortunately we do have a fence around the vegie patch so their role is now strictly limited to entertainment for the humans. And that's good enough for us.
They do like to run, and also to honk. We're working on a theory at the moment that it's the girls who do the honking. Certainly when tipped upside down it's the slightly smaller ducks (Peking and L'Orange) who do the honking, and Pate just sort of whimpers. We don't, by the way, make a habit of tipping them upside down, it was all in the name of science.
We got the ducks on some romantic notion that they could be used as pest control in the vegie patch. We were right in part, because their webbed feet do not scratch out the mulch and seedlings in the way that the chooks do, but sadly their diet is not limited to bugs and creepy crawlies. The ducks, in short, will hoover up anything that strays near its beak. Gumnuts, straw, sheep poo all go down the gullet without a moment's contemplation on whether it's a good idea or not. And yes, fresh broccoli shoots, spinach, sunflowers, and pretty much anything that one might normally find in a vegie patch but be hoping to actually consume oneself.
Fortunately we do have a fence around the vegie patch so their role is now strictly limited to entertainment for the humans. And that's good enough for us.
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