A recent @YellowCottageHomestead TikTok video of the chickens not sure what to do with Brussels sprouts:
Cat update for week ending April 17
Not many pictures of the cats this week, as my cameras were having issues, but some nice ones.
Firstly, two cats in the garden by the stream (which was off at the time; I just turned it on yesterday):
Porcini on a path:
Paladin doesn’t like the pâté wet food, so I’m giving it to the ferals; they’re not as picky. Here’s Spud enjoying it:
Porcini asleep inside the cat house:
An animated time-lapse GIF of several hours inside the house, showing her movements:
A skunk visited the house too:
Porcini is an expert at relaxing:
One more picture of her, outside this time:
Finally, Pommie oozing out of a cabin on a warm afternoon:
Flock Friday for April 16
Some quite nice pictures of the ducks and chickens this week; sunny weather helps get better photos.
Some ducks in the pond:
Duck butt:
Ducks on the lawn; I love Rémy’s shiny green head:
Betty peeking at me around the duck house:
Chickens with treats (apple and kale this day):
On another day, chickens expectantly waiting for treats:
Chickens with treats (cauliflower, grapes, and Brussels sprouts, in order of their preference):
The ducks continue to lay eggs in the duck house, but nobody sitting on them yet; we’re leaving them there for now, just in case:
Bert on the duck house ramp:
TikTok: ducks idly swimming in our pond
A recent @YellowCottageHomestead TikTok video of ducks idly swimming in our pond:
TikTok: quacky ducks on the bank of our pond
A recent @YellowCottageHomestead TikTok video of quacky ducks on the bank of our pond:
TikTok: chickens scratching at bedding
A recent @YellowCottageHomestead TikTok video of chickens scratching at new bedding in a coop:
Cat update for week ending April 10
This week on Caturday, various feral cats, several watching me, plus a GIF of a possum at the cat house.
Comfy Porcini in the cat house:
Cats greeting:
A GIF of a possum climbing onto the awning of the cat house (no cats home at the time):
Spud relaxing in our kitchen garden, watching me watching him from a window:
Porcini in a cabin, watching me walk past:
Paladout watching me refill the cat feeder:
Paladout and Porcini:
Porcini on a bench by the fountain garden:
And Bella watching me from under the bench:
Finally, three cats at the cabins:
Flock Friday for April 9
For Flock Friday this week, some ducks and chickens, plus duck eggs in a new place.
Some ducks in the pond by the duck house ramp:
Others in the shallow end:
Hey, look what I found: three duck eggs in a nesting box in the duck house! I wonder if they’ll lay more there; that is the ideal place to lay:
Betty stretching a wing:
Sleepy ducks:
Ducks on the lawn, with chickens visible in the background:
Chickens enjoying apple slices:
TikTok: chickens excited about rice
A recent @YellowCottageHomestead TikTok video of chickens getting excited about rice, one of their all-time favorite treats:
RIP Pepper, shop cat
Two weeks after posting about the passing of Poppy, the outdoor feral momma cat, I’m sad to report another cat death: Pepper, the feral cat that kept the front of our workshop free of rodents. The two cats never met each other, but they had similar jobs, in different domains.
We got Pepper back in 2015, when she was a few months old, along with Pansy, the other shop cat, via a local “kitties for hire” program, where feral cats off the street, that are too wild to become pets, can be given a productive life helping keep workshops and barns free from rodents.
Here’s Pepper soon after she joined us:
And a more recent picture, on her heated bed:
I always enjoyed seeing her when working in the shop. Of all the feral cats, she was the most trusting of me. Like any feral, she’d retreat if I got too close, but she was content to watch me from a few feet away, supervising my work.
Now Pansy has the shop to herself, which will suit her, being a loner; the two shop cats quietly avoided each other.
Pepper was also buried near the pond, next to Poppy and our late pet cats.
Rest in peace, Pepper.