Spring on the Farm!

For some reason this winter has been especially hard on me this year, I know I have been complaining about the fact that it feels like spring is taking FOREVER to get here.  I can only contribute this to the fact that I had my garden planned before I had my fall crops in, and knew all of the things I wanted to do differently for 2013.  With the ice storm Thursday all hope of spring every arriving was lost in my eyes.  How quickly that changes though.  We went to a Millennium Quarter Horses on Saturday, and that is when I realized spring was hiding there!

Here is the proof:

Everything on a farm happens at the right time, and foals happen in the spring.  That can only mean one thing:  Spring has to be right around the corner!  Nature doesn't lie....

Pinterest, Farmyard Style!

Tonight I went to the horse barn and when I walked in I noticed there was a plastic water bottle, half full of water, sitting on top of the bank of light switches.  There is sat secured by a "zip tie", in all it's glory.  My first thought was, "Wow, that is a genius way of telling if it is cold enough for the water buckets to freeze!"  In my rationale if the water in the bottle froze, then you would know that it was cold enough for the buckets to freeze, and you should turn on the bucket heaters.  I went on about my night, catching up with my barn friends, not really thinking about the bottle.  

Several hours later, while chatting with Anna and her mom Kerri, I asked, "Why is this bottle sitting here?"  Anna pipes up with: "It's to catch the water that is leaking in from the roof!"  Anna went on to explain that she was turning on the light switches last week, and when she reached over she got shocked because there was water on the bank of switches.  She said shortly after she got shocked, this bottle contraption showed up, so she was guessing someone else got a shock too.  This just made me laugh.  If you think about it, this is quite the invention.  It will probably never make a Pinterest board, but I have to give whoever came up with this design some credit for creativity, functionality!  

Update: Playing Well With Others!

Tonight we got several inches of snow pretty fast, and the dogs have been taking full advantage of it!  At first I wasn't too excited to see snow, however I will admit that there is something about the way that it renews that world that is absolutely stunning.  This paired with the fact that it is only 32 degrees outside actually makes it bearable!  

I decided to take the pups out for a little romping and got quite the surprise when Stella and Chai decided to play!  You have to understand that Stella is a dog who is a fair bit dog aggressive if she feels threatened, and sometimes only she understands exactly why she feels threatened.  (The rest of the world can't exactly make sense out of her thinking at times.)  Chai is dog aggressive as well.  He rarely plays with any other dog, so for him to play is a huge deal!  

It is hard to believe that Stella is the same dog that I brought home just a few weeks ago.  She has come so far, and is doing amazingly well.  Stella is figuring out how to adjust from her show/kennel life which was solitary due to her aversion of dogs, and she is learning how to adjust and function in a pack.  I am damn proud of this girl.  It is not easy to ask someone to get over something that they fear, yet Stella trusts me and this pack of dogs and I have only had a few scuffles.  Look how happy she is running with Ziggy and Chai.  This proves, you can teach an old dog new tricks!

"Brew" Money for Betsy?!

Betsy was an owned dog that was loved very much by her family.  Sadly, her owners died and Betsy found herself homeless.  She was adopted by a gentleman and his family where she has been living for the last month.  They decided that 2 dogs and a busy lifestyle was not in the best interest of Betsy, so she was stated to go to the shelter.  Lost & Found K9 Rescue stepped in to help this beautiful girl.  

When Betsy first arrived, she was limping noticeably on her rear leg.  Thinking that she was just a bit sore from being an older girl, she was taken to the vet to be looked at.  When she was examined, the vet noticed that she had severe pain in her right hip.  An xray quickly confirmed that Betsy had a dislocated hip that had been that way for quite some time, and this girl was in quite a bit of pain.  After a discussion with the vet, it was decided that the best thing for Betsy would be to have a Femoral Head Ostectomy (FHO) performed so that the pain she had been living in could be relived.  

An FHO is a surgical procedure that removes that head and neck of the femur.  It is a salvage procedure, reserved for only when the dog's pain has reached a point that there is no other way to manage it.  The procedure exposes the head of the femur and the head is removed by a small saw or bone hammer, and it is not replaced.  Instead the body will heal this and the joint will develop a fibrous scar tissue so that instead of the joint rubbing bone-bone, which is why the dog was originally in so much pain, the body will form a "false joint" and the pain will disappear.  

The good news is that Betsy should make a full recovery, although she will benefit from staying thin and being walked on a regular basis.  The best news is that she will no longer be in pain!  With that being said, Betsy's adventure at the vet today was not a cheap adventure.  (That paired with the fact that Molly had to have her eye removed...)  What we would like is to ask for one day of your "brew" money.  I know, you are wondering what in the heck I am talking about, right?!  We know times are tough, and money is tight, that is why we would like to see if you could donate the $5.00 that you would normally spend buying your morning cup of coffee on Betsy!  Please could you use Folgers just for tomorrow, and donate the money you would have spent at Starbucks on this girl?  In your mind, insert Sarah McLachlan singing that Angel song right here...  And if you hear Sarah in your mind, and feel Betsy in your heart please send your $5.00 donation by:

1)  Paypal to lostandfoundk9@gmail.com (Please make sure that you mark that it is a donation so no fees have to be paid on your donation!)

2)  Called in to our veterinarian at 937-335-6999  (Let them know you would like to make a donation to the care of Betsy with Lost & Found K9 Rescue, and our account number is 17610.)

3) Or by check made payable to: Lost & Found K9 Rescue, 1890 Old Staunton Rd., Troy Ohio 45373, and put Betsy's name in the memo section!

Your donation is tax deductible since we are an Ohio non-profit!

Thank you all in advance for caring!  And of course, we will keep you updated on Betsy! 

And the winner is....

The winner of the bar of soap, supported by the Skin Soap Co. is Lisa Warner! 

Congratulations Lisa and thank you Skin Soap Co. for sponsoring this give-away!

2 Hearts Connected By 1 Love....

A chance meeting happened today, and I am so happy that it did.  My soul needed it and her soul needed it too....

A friend of mine, involved in rescue transport was asked to transport a very old collie to Troy Ohio to it's new home.  She had been conversing with the "new" owner when she realized that the owner wasn't this dog's "new" owner, in fact it was this dog's "old" owner.  The dog that she was transporting was going back to his original owner, Debbie.  My friend was shocked by this and immediately called me when she put two and two together.  I too was shocked for a minute, and then I was actually relieved.  It is seldom in rescue that people that take at an entire situation, and look at it objectively.  I strive to be that rescuer, although sometimes I know I have room for improvement.  I really wanted to meet Debbie!  I felt like I already knew her and I really wanted to answer any questions that she had about her dogs and were they went to.  I know if I was in the same situation, I would want to know what happened to my "babies".

When we took part in the Tipp City hoarding case, it was evident that the owner of those dogs had the best of intentions and that they were loved.  The dogs were all well fed, in basically good condition, and all but one was spayed or neutered.  I felt that the owner's heart was in the right place, but 85 dogs is just too many for one person to physically to take care of.  We were told from the get go that there were a few dogs that the owner wanted back, one of them being a 12-13 year old collie named Secret.  The owner had had Secret since he was a puppy, and no doubt loved him.  She knew Secret had a seizure disorder and was up front about it from the beginning, and collie rescue and I discussed that if the owner was able to get back on her feet again she could have the dog back.  I am happy to say that collie rescue felt that Debbie was in a place that was adequate for her and the dog, and I agree.

Before any readers get up in arms about this, please remember: In rescue we are are all within a few steps of being in the same situation as this owner, and we should pray that other people would help us out.  Meeting Debbie and her sister tonight was nothing short of amazing.  She was everything I knew she would be.  She is very kind, has a big heart, and loves dogs as much as I do.  (And so many of you do!)  She thanked me several times for helping to find her dogs rescues/homes and I hope that Debbie has a sense of closure tonight.  I pray that she feels better knowing that I worked so hard to find appropriate places for those dogs, and that the ones that she was worried about, she no longer has to worry about.  I was able to tell her about every single dog and where it went.  (She was a relieved Momma!)  I pray for Debbie's health and healing, and I am confident that real healing occurs when your heart and mind are happy.  I think Debbie is well on her way tonight.  Her boy is back home with her, in the loving arms and heart of his mom.  As soon as Secret and Debbie laid eyes on each other tonight, I knew there was no where else that he should be.

Responsible Meat Eater

My passion in life from the time I was 5 years old has always been animals.  I have loved them since before I can remember, and I was always that kid that brought home every stray that need a warm place to sleep, and a meal to fill it's starving belly.  As I grew into adulthood that part of me never changed.  I still bring home every stray in need.  Anyone who knows me, knows my passion and I can't think of anyone who would question that.  Because I write about my farm life and rescue on my blog, sometimes I catch heat from equally passionate people behind the scenes.  These people don't always agree with the fact that I raise animals for my consumption.  Thankfully I have broad shoulders and I am able to take whatever comes my way via passionate people.

Usually when dealing with these passionate and somewhat radical people, I can internalize and remind myself "it is all for the animals", however I am really struggling with this issue this week.  I was contacted by an animal advocacy group over the weekend and was asked to help with the seizure and removal of several hundred animals, including many farm animals.  I told them I would help, but after the conversation I felt like I was being judged by the organization because I eat meat and raise my own animals to sustain my life.

In the end, although I was literally 1/4 mile down the road from the seizure, they declined my help.  I would be lying if I said that my feelings weren't hurt and I wasn't offended.  Here is an animal advocacy group that I have worked with several times on recent situations, questioning my ability to foster animals all because I eat meat.  I felt like I was being compared to the cast of Twilight.  "Don't let her foster your animals or she might eat them!"  I don't like having my love for animals questioned anymore than they like to eat meat!

As strange as it sounds, it is my love of animals that makes me want to farm.  For many years I was a vegetarian.  I wasn't a vegetarian because I didn't like meat.  I was a vegetarian because I hated factory farming.  I did not want to eat meat that had been stuffed into cages, never being allowed to touch grass.  I did not want to eat eggs from chickens with physiological issues due to living in small cages, with wire bottoms and no sunlight.  I did not want my dietary choices to contribute to the cruelty of animals.  It wasn't good for my soul.

It is because I love animals that I choose to raise my own meat.  I have to know my food personally.  In my opinion that is the only way to farm.  I want to know my dinner from birth to death and everywhere in between.  It is imperative that I know where my animals come from, ensure that they were treated kindly and that they were respected.  I have to know that they were free to run around, feel the grass under their feet, the sun on their back and that they, in the end were thanked for giving their life to sustain me.  I am not the type of person who doesn't know how they die either, and even that has to be humane.  I have watched this process several times, and am comfortable in the fact that I was with them until the end and they don't suffer.  I do not take any aspect of this farm for granted.  It isn't my style and it isn't why I do this.  I farm to nourish myself and my family with whole food that was raised in a humane environment.  So don't get mad at me and shun me because I eat meat.  I am being a responsible consumer.  Do you think less of the person who works along side of you as a volunteer and buys her chicken from her grocer's freezer?!  I think not....

I would be a poor excuse of a person if I didn't treat these animals with the same love and respect that I feel I deserve myself.  The fact that I eat meat bears no prediction on my desire or ability to rescue animals.  Just as these people are concerned for animal welfare, I am too!