I'm back...again!

 Hello there! It's been quite a while since I wrote about life here on Hickahala Ranch. My apologies for that...I've had my hands full (as usual). I have to confess...my biggest reason for not blogging is that I forgot my password! So tonight I finally sat down and figured out how to reset it!

As you can probably guess from the photos we've had a few new members join the family and, sadly, we've lost an old one that is missed.

Pictured above is little Max. I found him last December running down a deserted road late one cold rainy night in the Bankhead National Forest Wilderness Area. Of course I stopped immediately, hopped out and snatched the frightened little boy up and brought him home (a two and a half hour drive).

Max is a chihuahua/dachshund mix and was only four months old when I found him, weighing a mere six pounds. He's doubled his weight now and is quite a round little sausage of a dog. He's a Mama's boy too, of course!

Next is our most recent family member, Bailey. Don found her sitting next to our garbage can when he left for work one day a few months back. She was also about four months old and is a boxer mix.

Like all the dogs we find, Miss Bailey fit right in with the other dogs and is a happy-go-lucky
girl who loves to play and jump in the pond. She's like a bull in a china shop, but is such a friendly sweet girl I can't help but love her.

It is with a sad heart that I have to add that we lost dear old Drake a few weeks ago. Drake was nearly 14-years-old and was suffering congestive heart failure. Meds helped him for a while, but age caught up with him. Fourteen is very old for a Labrador, so we were fortunate to have him in our lives for such a long time.

A kind soul to the end, Drake released us from the hard decision of taking him in to be put to sleep. While I was grocery shopping he slowly followed Don to the pond where the other dogs were playing. Drake loved to go swimming, but hadn't made it down there in several months. I guess he wanted to leave this earth doing what he loved best though. Don watched in surprise as Drake swam out to the deep end and took a few laps. Then he paused, looked at Don for a moment and slipped under the water. Don dove in and pulled Drake out, but he was gone. Rest in peace old fellow. We miss you.

Hello August!

The dwindling pond

August and the dog days of summer have arrived! Only thing good I can say about August is that it's one month closer to Autumn! Just today I noticed the days are getting shorter. Normally I do my evening chores as late as possible in hopes that the temperatures will be a tad bit cooler. Usually that means I'm back in the house by dark, which has been 8:30ish. Today it was 8:00ish and dark already.

The heat has been a real bear, but fortunately all the animals seem to be dealing with it okay so far. I expect it will be worse before it gets better, but the rabbit gets his bottle of ice to cuddle with, the chickens, ducks and goats have shade and fresh water and the dogs stay inside in the air conditioning. They're not about to lay around outside during the dog days of summer!

Hermione and Teagan

Even the cats have found ways to stay cool. Some of them refuse to go out, some of them prefer lounging on the cool concrete floor in the garage and, as you can see, Hermione likes to spread out on the floor with the dogs so she can cool her belly on the floor. More often than not you will find her sprawled out like this with her belly spreading out on each side of her body. It's like she has plastered herself to the floor.

Guinness, our Husky mix, is the only dog to lay like this.. He likes to lay on the back porch with his rear legs sprawled out to the sides. Being a large dog, it's a funny sight to see.

Even the two barn cats have given up the relative cool of the barn for the garage. Harley and Murphy both can be found snoozing in the garage. Murphy sleeps like the dead in the most awkward positions. One of these days I'll have to share a photo of him. Coming home from the grocery store Monday evening I found him down by the pond sprawled out in the middle of the driveway. He never even twitched as the truck got close to him, which scared me badly. I just knew he'd suffered heat stroke or something and was lying there dead. Jumping out of the truck I called his name and he slowly raised his lazy head and yawned at me. WHEW...I moved his lazy self off the driveway so I could drive on up to the house.

Speaking of the pond, it is getting awfully low. I haven't been down there fishing since Don killed the huge water moccasin. Nearby Arkabutla Lake is so low that I see dead fish floating on the edges of the lake when I go to Hernando to do my shopping. It continues to be terribly dry and hot here. Today I dug up an onion for supper and the ground in the garden is dust on top and dry as a bone beneath the surface. It was so hard I was barely able to get the shovel into the ground around the onions. No way would I have been able to just pull it out of the ground!

So I welcome August and hope it passes swiftly! I'm yearning for cool Autumn days and autumn rain pattering on the roof.

Forecast: Sunny and scorched

I did it again and I apologize for going AWOL for a while. I've been dealing with some health issues...mine and some of the critters, but things are settling down now just in time for the drowsy hot dog days of summer.  Or maybe those days are already upon us considering all the sleeping dogs scattered about the floor around me!

So far this summer has been a very hot and dry one. The  Sycamores (above) have been losing leaves and the elms have pretty much kicked the bucket. We lost another favorite elm (right) in our yard this year...a real beauty...and I will probably cry when it is cut down for firewood. We just had a week of rain, which may have saved some of the vegetation, but this tree is past saving, as are a couple more elms down at the pond. At least they will not go to waste since we only harvest dead or downed trees for firewood in the winter. This enables us to keep the thermostat very low (a chilly 64 degrees) so we don't have to burn as much propane gas. 

Last year we made it through the winter on just over half a tank of propane! Of course, it helped that we had a mild winter and I am thinking we may be in for another...the climate is definitely changing and I am convinced that global warming is upon us. I'm pretty sure this won't be the last elm we lose and am kind of relieved it is the last one that was in the yard.

Today the USDA designated our county a national disaster due to the drought we are having. I know a lot of folks around us have lost their corn fields, but last week's rain saved our peanuts. I was worried because the peanut plants weren't growing, but they look good now and are blooming. I've pretty much given up on my garden this year. Last time I tried to plant something in the garden the ground was so hard and dry I could barely scratch out a shallow hole. We're getting potatoes, Roma tomatoes, onions (left in the garden from last year) and peppers. In fact, I should be canning tomatoes right now! 

One thing that has done well this year are my two apple trees. They are just now old enough to really set fruit and they are loaded. One tree is even leaning over from the weight of all the apples. Last week's storms helped cull some of the apples and I picked them up...no sense letting them go to waste! I've made green apple jelly with them...a new jelly for me. Hopefully we'll enjoy it as much as we do the dewberry jelly (which is already down to only two jars that I have hidden away for wintertime). Dry weather means the kudzu won't bloom this year, so no kudzu jelly and there may not be any elderberries, so no elderberry jelly either...apple is going to be it!

Fortunately, all the critters are managing in the hot weather so far. The goats, chickens and ducks all have plenty of shade and are given fresh cool water throughout the day. Elvis (the rabbit) is enjoying life in his new pen and snuggles up to the bottles of ice we place in his pen when the temperatures soar. The horses can find shelter in the barn or under the trees at their pond and the dogs and cats...well, let's just admit that the dogs and cats are SPOILED ROTTEN and get to lay about the house in the air conditioning all day long!

As do I!

Fear and loathing in Mississippi...

If there's one thing I hate about living in the South during warm weather, it's got to be venomous snakes. I do not like them, I do not want to be near them and I do not want to see them. However, I am married to a man who insists on bringing them to the house so I can take a photo every time he kills one, which he did day yesterday.

While sitting down at the pond after a walk with the dogs (a morning routine for Don) he noticed my little dog Aislainn had spotted something in the shallow end. Going to investigate, Don saw a huge water moccasin (also known as a cottonmouth down here in the South) slither out of the water and raise it's head up.

Water  moccasins are known to be aggressive and whenever we see a snake taking a stand, instead of fleeing, we immediately go on alert. Don approached this one cautiously and was able to pin it down by stepping on the snake's head and then killing it with a stick.

Don has killed cottonmouths with sticks before and even killed one at the barn with a screwdriver! This was the biggest one he's ever killed though and I have decided he must get a pistol for Father's Day. He's very lucky he didn't get bitten and so is little Aislainn. She's barely 15 pounds soaking wet and if that big nasty snake had gotten her, Aisliann would not have survived.

As you can see in this photo, the water moccasin's tail narrows suddenly. This is one way to identify a moccasin should you come upon one while out walking. They are usually short and stocky too. This one was very stocky and about three and a half feet long. I'm telling you...it was humongous!

We don't condone killing wildlife on our property, in fact, we're a certified Wildlife Habitat (even have a sign on our gate). However, we do make an exception when it comes to venomous snakes. We've had two dogs bitten by water moccasins. One spent a week at the vet's and barely survived. We don't want that to happen again and the dogs are always with Don when he's out and about. Fortunately, the dogs are fairly cautious about snakes and the ones who have been bitten (by venomous or nonvenomous snakes) are extremely cautious with a snake.

We've been very luck to have never come across a copperhead or rattlesnake and last year we didn't see any water moccasins. Now we've got them in the front yard pond! I've already informed Don that I will not be going to the pond in the evenings until we have our first snow.

I suppose I could go down there and take his pistol with me, but if I saw a cottonmouth as big as this one I'd be shaking so bad I would probably shoot myself in the foot! Then the dogs would have to call 911 because I'd be snake bitten, shot in the foot and having a heart attack!

It's beginning to look a lot like...

Autumn! It's almost here and you can definitely tell it. The trees are all starting to turn and it rained last night! We needed it so bad and we got a gully washer. We never got over 70 degrees today either...my kind of day.

Don was off today so I walked to the barn with him to feed the horses and then we spent some time at the pond. The ground was littered with fat juicy ripe persimmons and the dogs enjoyed feasting on them. I even snacked on a few myself.

It even SMELLS like Autumn now that its rained. I just sat there and took deep breaths...heavenly!

Of course, Autumn doesn't officially arrive until Wednesday. I'm just grateful I can feel it coming!

Busy days ahead...

The past two days were very busy and I know this is just the beginning of a very busy time of year. Autumn and early Winter fly by due to preparing for holidays, family visits and getting critters settled in for the cold weather ahead. Do you find this to be the busiest time at your place as well?

Tuesday I had jury duty. It's only the second time in my life I've been summoned for jury duty and I really hope it is my last! Those hard wood benches made my back hurt and I felt like my entire day was wasted, even though I was released at noon. I barely escaped being on the jury of a shoplifting case, but I escaped!

Wednesday was shopping day. I got a bit of a late start and wasn't sure if I'd make it home in time to spend the evening at the pond with Don. I made it home just in time to unload the groceries, feed the chickens, ducks and Elvis then head to the pond. Don took a flashlight since it was so late and we needed it coming back up the driveway! It was heavenly to just sit there with my eyes closed enjoying the cool breeze and quiet. Don said we need a double hammock down there so we could nap. At least he's not still talking about putting his old Lazy-boy recliner down there!

I noticed on my way to town yesterday that all the corn on our road has been harvested. I'm not sure why the farmer left his equipment in our field, unless he had a breakdown. The crows were back today so I'm sure they're after any corn left scattered on the field. I need to do a bit of gleaning in my own garden...the sweet potatoes and carrots need to be dug up and I need to gather any dried seeds (butter beans) that still remain so I'll have them to plant next year.

Hope you've been enjoying a productive week as well!

Yesterday there was a murder at our pond!

Yesterday, while a sad day for the country, was a peaceful and pleasant day here on the farm. Well, other than the murder at the pond!

I went out to sit in my rocker while I let the dogs play in the front yard, but it wasn't as quiet as it normally is here. There was a huge commotion at the big old oak down at the pond. Crows! A whole murder of crows cawing back and forth!

We don't often have crows here. Perhaps the numerous buzzards scare them away. I suspect they were attracted to the recently harvested corn field. I don't know for sure, but I do know I had a great time talking to them and hearing their replies (although I don't speak Crow so have no idea what they were saying).

After a 15 or so minute discourse they flew off past the barn...all two of them? I thought there were much more than that in the tree! It takes more than two to have a murder, so I was relieved when a third crow joined them as they flew out of sight.

According to Cornell University, the phrase "a murder of crows" is a poetic term and never used by scientists. Scientists prefer to call a bunch of crows a flock. I'll stick to murder...it appeals to my poetic side.

As the day faded away a big harvest moon came up over the trees. A perfect ending to a murderous day!

Check out my mussels...

Isn't my mussel a beautiful thing? It's certainly bigger than my muscles! This lovely freshwater mussel was living in the pond. Don was there the other day when our dog Caoihme (pronounced Kee-va) came trotting out of the pond with this mussel in her mouth. She'd found an elephant ear mussel, known in the scientific world as the species Elliptio crassidens.

This is a good indication that our pond is very healthy. Mussels are nature's water filters and can filter several gallons a day! When we moved here a neighbor told us this particular pond (at the lower end of our front yard) was dead. He said nothing had ever lived in it and told us when our property was a cow pasture the cows wouldn't drink water out of this pond. It's a "run-off" pond and isn't spring fed, so that concerns me as to what pesticides, etc. were being sprayed out here before we bought the place.

Fortunately all that appears to have dissipated and we have a thriving pond. For that, I am very grateful. The pond is a source of entertainment for Don and I. We enjoy sitting there watching the dogs swim and play, we enjoy discovering all the wildlife in and around the pond and I enjoy fishing there.

Unfortunately, freshwater mussels are considered the most endangered critters in North America. Approximately 70 percent of their species are in peril of becoming extinct and in the past 100 years 30 of those species did cease to exist. Believe me, this particular mussel was quickly returned to the pond where I hope it lives a long and healthy life!

Hello Harley...

Almost every evening when I go to the pond our barn cat, Harley, is there to greet me. Some days he's lounging on the old picnic table, sometimes he's in one of the chairs. He always wants some petting and his motor is always running. In fact, that loud motor Harley has is part of the inspiration behind his name.

I got Harley from a local feral cat rescue when he was just a kitten. One of his ears had been clipped when he was neutered. They do this so they can identify feral cats that have already been caught, fixed and released. The rescue folks were afraid no one would adopt a scrawny scruffy black kitten. When I picked him up at his foster home I figured he was about the ugliest kitten I'd ever laid eyes on. Harley's ears were to big for his head and his fur stuck straight out in all directions. Don came up with his name because he had a big motor (purr), was dressed in black and very scruffy...just like a biker dude on a motorcycle!

Anyway, Harley proceeded to grow into a huge gorgeous fluffy lazy love bug. He was about a year old when we moved to the farm and couldn't run more than a few feet without huffing and puffing. He rarely went outside, preferring to stay in the comfortable house where he didn't have to travel far to get a bite to eat!

Seven years later it's hard to imagine that Harley is now an outdoor cat that hates to be inside. One day he decided to move to the barn and there he's stayed ever since. He ambles down to the pond to say hello and he comes to the house at night to have a can of wet cat food in the garage when Don comes home from work. Most of the time Harley is at the barn earning his keep by napping on a bale of hay or surveying his kingdom from the barn loft door.

If it's true that cats have nine lives, then Harley has a lot more living to do. Best I can figure he's only used three of those lives so far...one as a feral kitten in foster care, one as a spoiled house cat and one as a barn cat. That's a comforting thought because I hope mellow old Harley will be around for a long time to come!

I can feel it coming...



What a beautiful day today! We had a high of 82 degrees with a nice steady breeze. There's a big orange moon peeking over the tops of the trees right now. While I was out feeding the ducks and chickens just now a fIock of Canada Geese flew by overhead.

Now, I know it's the middle of August, but I could feel a hint of Autumn chill in that breeze and I loved it! Autumn is my favorite time of year (summer is my least favorite) and it always gives me a thrill when I catch that first promise of Autumn's arrival. I'm pretty sure that's what the geese were heralding as they flew overhead.

I can officially say I was thrilled today while at the pond catching fish. It was a lovely way to end a pleasant Sunday and I am looking forward to more of the same!

Crawdad Crook strikes again!

Just about every evening I walk down to the pond to check the minnow basket. I like to supplement the ducks' evening meal with live fish. They love to jump in their kiddie pool and chase minnows around and around. It's a tasty treat they've sorely missed this summer due to a sneaky thief down at the pond!

That's right...we have a thief in our pond that I call the Crawdad Crook. Every day I find one crawdad in the minnow basket and no minnows. I am convinced that it is the same crawdad who has figured out the minnow basket is easy pickings. 

What to do? Normally I get my fishing pole and catch a few small fish if the minnow basket is empty, but it's just been to hot to stand down at the pond fishing...plus, there are skeeters down there. I'd call the crawdad cops, but their number is unlisted. Should I have a crawdad boil? One crawdad ain't going to make for much of a boil! 

Guess I'll just have to relocate the Crawdad Crook tomorrow. He's going to find himself in the big pond tomorrow evening. Hopefully he won't be replaced by another sneaky thief! If so, the ducks may be eating crawdads!