Long pause, followed by non-yak pictures!

I've talked about our Miss Leika Lu Fivefang in the past...well, though Kai has been a great friend and playmate for her, he is getting a little big and we're starting to contemplate re-integrating him with the rest of the herd. Leika has been a little more spazzy than usual recently, and the concept of her no longer having her Kai-face to run around with was not a happy one. So, today we went and visited the lovely folks at Black Dog Animal Rescue up in Cheyenne, where Leika came from and picked up a little sister for Leika.

Meet Godiva, the shar pei/lab mix. She started out as Sunshine, but I think she's a little too spunky for that name, and between her chocolate colour, diva-like personality and air of expectation to be treated like royalty, Godiva it was. (This still has a chance to change, since Daven is having a few problems with it rolling off his tongue, but for the time being at least, she is Godiva.)

Edit: Godiva didn't work out. Now she's Kona, since she is a little more piquant than some nice smooth chocolate, and does look like coffee with a little splash of cream.

Caaaandygram

Kai thinks he should be an inside-too yak. After all, he plays with Leika, and she gets to go inside. Why shouldn't he?

Leika is aiding and abetting by rouping at the back door constantly to be "let out", which is more of code for "Open the door so Kai can come in to play with me, Mama!"

We remain yak-free inside as of this posting. It is pretty adorable to see the two of them standing on the steps, looking hopeful about coming inside, though.

Kai head

His head! It is enormous! Also, he turns 3 months old tomorrow. He is so darn cuddly. Daven was skritching him today and he fell to his knees, then rolled over onto his back so Daven could get to his tummy. I swear, he thinks he is a dog.

Friendly fellow

A friend of ours used to say she always wanted to hug a yaks. Well, these photos are for Aster. :)

Happenings around the farm

I've been awful about keeping up on the blog lately, for various reasons that don't really matter.

There have been a few exciting things that have happened. Kai went from being super skittish to being Mr Friendly with the simple application of apple and oat cookies. Yay! I'm still working on getting him to lead a bit better with the halter, but he's been so receptive to just following us without it that I'm letting him get used to that before I start messing with him again.

The big excitement happened on Saturday evening. I heard a bunch of coyotes howling, and watched the yaks bolt off to the East. Not that noteworthy, these things happen a lot. However, when I was heading out to work with Kai a few minutes later, I noticed...hey...the yaks seem to be one fence too far to the East...OH CRAP. Yes, led by Snort, the herd (sans Kate) had managed to make it over the 5 string barbed wire fence and the electric fence on the other side. I shouted at Daven (who was lifting weights at the time) that the yaks had escaped, and then called our neighbours to let them know, hey! Yaks! Visiting you! Sorry about that! We will fix anything they damage!

Because our neighbours are awesome, they mostly found this to be pretty hilarious. They turned off the electric fence so Daven could try to lead the fur-beasts back through to our land. After a lot of cajoling (with Kate following along on our side of the fence), Daven nearly had them through the gate...when Kate spooked. The wrong way. Well, good, now everyone but Kai was next door. Cussing (loudly) ensued. Daven continued to try to get them back for 2 hours, until it was quite dark. At that point, our neighbour called and said, basically "He's going to kill himself in the dark in that pasture. We've put up protective fencing around our house, just leave 'em for the night and try again in the morning."

It was not a good night.

I woke up unaided at 0600, thinking "MAYBE THEY CAME BACK!" No. They did not come back. They had settled in on a little hill and were not interested in coming back. And yet, on his first (more patient and less sweary/shouty) attempt, Daven got everyone back on our side of the fence. He fixed up all of the electric fencing that had been knocked down and was back inside by 0700. Awesome husband!

At the end of that, Snort had a slightly cut up nose for his troubles. I'm hoping he won't try that again, but it is a little unnerving that if properly motivated, he will just go *through* whatever is in his way. On the upside, Snort has calmed the heck down in the last couple of months, to the point that whilst Daven was leading Kate with cookies, he was leading Snort by skritching the furry one's face. Considering my concerns about Snort after the whole "picking me up with his horn" incident, this is a fantastic development.

So, we have good days, and bad days. The yaks are still fascinating critters to have around, even if they can be bloody frustrating on occasion.

Kai's new digs

Kai got moved from the dog run to the back yard (about 3x the size, and with grass that isn't down to nubbins) last night. (7/25/2011) Leika loves having her Kai buddy right outside the back door!

Mornings are not stylish times.

Kai is a month old today! And stubborn as hell, but I am hoping (possibly against hope) that he becomes more tractable soon. Uff da.

Milk Face

After a tense first day, where Kai wouldn't take the bottle, opting instead to call constantly to Mama, who called right back to him, I gave up in despair and dumped the remnants of the bottle into the little water dish I had bought for him. I'd seen that he'd drank the water, so maybe he'd be interested in food that way, too.

Well, the next morning, the milk was gone, and Kai had decided he was going to be a bucket baby, rather than a bottle baby. Since he was used to feeding over the course of the day, he doesn't really finish his milk in one go; he spreads it out. When the milk is gone, I replace it with water, and he gets another feeding in the evening. I'm trying to space them about 12 hours apart, usually hitting around the 7:30's.

He is still skittish, and doesn't come up to people right away. That's OK. Since I'm not getting him the hands-on attention of a bottle, I'm keeping the bucket between my feet so I can pet him whilst he is eating. He is improving, though he still doesn't like being tied up, and doesn't lead well at all. On the upside, my 4-H training of many years ago taught me how to move an animal his size. I showed sheep (Fred and Harry. I always had a thing for odd names for critters.), and they were bigger than he is now, and just as stubborn. Finally, some hands-on experience I can draw from!

The grunting party that was going on for the first two nights is mostly over with. We still have Kate isolated, and we'll probably leave her like that until a week has passed. The little area we have Kai in is up against the pasture, so the other yaks can come and visit with him through the fence, but it is (hopefully) escape-proof, as it is the dog run. Kai has started chewing on grass a little bit, and I'll probably add some Calf Manna into his diet. He is not aggressive, despite the amazing ass-whupping that he can hand out. He's just scared. He'll learn that we aren't trying to hurt him.

Yak-napping

Last night, Daven and I (mostly Daven; I distracted Kate with tasty treats) yoinked Kai to start trying to bottle feed him. We should have done this at 3 days old, but were unsure of ourselves. Mea culpa. Now we know for next time.

Bottle feeding a baby who is used to mama and does not want to drink is a frustrating business. Patience is key, but we haven't had much success yet.

I do have a new definition of "too early". If you've been up and messing with livestock at least 2 hours before the feed store opens (needed a new halter), it is too early. ;)

So, he is now haltered (Twice; Daven got his ass roundly kicked by him both times and is now sporting a limp, several head wounds and a crushed hand. Yaks are feisty.) and tied up to get used to the idea of staying still. Water left nearby him, which he of course has already splashed out, mostly. That's OK, I'll keep refilling it. This is a process, and he will come around. Even before we haltered him the second time, I was able to pet his face and neck, but he just got too skittish to let me put the halter on him without being restrained, yet. It will come.

Sorry about the pause in posts, again. I had a relapse of sickness, which knocked me down all last week. I'll try to be better.

Adventure!

Since you didn't get a post yesterday, today you get two!

Kate and Kai had a bit of an adventure. I took Leika out for doggy business, and thought I'd look over at the chickens...THAT WAS NOT A CHICKEN. I saw the super duo trotting past the chicken coop, and I ran into the house croaking about "YAKS! OUT!" with the small amount of voice I have recovered since yesterday. Daven slipped on some sandals, threw the other yaks some grain, refilled the bucket and bribed Kate to come back into the paddock. She was so good about it that we're kind of tempted to let her into that area on occasion so she can graze it down.

Giving birth really mellowed Ms. Kate. She was never terribly aggressive towards us, but she was just such an irritable pregnant lady that we were always on edge with her. Since Kai has come along, she's been fine with being bribed to let us mess with him (to a degree). She's turned into the sweetest girl now that the little spitfire is on the outside, rather than the inside. If he was anything internally that he is externally, he probably was tap dancing on her internal organs for months. That'd be enough to make anyone cranky. I also think that Kate likes being near the other yaks, but not having to fight for dominance with Snort. Kai, of course, gives not a darn about fences, and goes to visit the other yaks regularly. Millie seems to be his favourite; another imperial, of course!

Nubbins!

It took less than a week for Mr Smooth Head to get little horn nubbins growing in. Tiny nubbins! So adorable!

(This was meant to go up yesterday, but I was sick and forgot. Sinus infections are no fun.)

When it rains...it gets wet.

And this is what a week old yakling looks like when soggy. It has been raining and raining for the last few days. Though we need the rain, it has turned the paddock into muddy soup, which makes life difficult. On the upside, Kate has been pretty darn understanding about Daven and myself going in to mess with Kai. He's a skittery little thing!

Maria

Maria got highlights over the winter. "Black" yak, indeed!

Those lashes!

Seriously. Click on the picture. Kai has the most ridiculously long lashes.

Auntie Maria

After Kai's first escape, he had his first quality time with the other yaks in the herd. Maria, in particular, was all over him. It was precious to watch.

The chase

Kate, encouraging Kai to come back inside. Kai, in favour of this, but unable to figure out how the heck to get back in. Maria, Not Helping.

As an aside, Kai has figured out how to get in and out of the paddock now, so no longer needs external intervention on regaining Mama time. He showed me how adept he was at this by running through the barbed wire fence several times, at top speed. He is a frolicky little thing! The cute. It burns!

Pay no attention to the lack of posts...I distract you with cuteness!

We had a new addition to the herd! At 13:20 on 5/12/2011, Kate had her calf. He is 30 minutes old in this photo, but already on his feet. I did get the birth on video, but I'm not sure anyone but myself is interested in watching it.

Here he is at 3 hours old. Continuing our ridiculous naming scheme, he has been saddled with the name Kai. Yes, we've named him Kai Yak. This is my dad's fault. However, his middle name is all Daven...Kai Thulu. If he starts growing tentacles, we know who to blame.

And here he is at 3 days old. He'd just had a lovely adventure where he'd slipped out of the paddock and away from mama to go visit Maria. After Maria herded him around a bit, both he and Kate got agitated, so he tried to get back to her...only to discover he couldn't remember how he got out. I took photos. They shall be posted as I resume my Yak-a-Day posts. Sorry about the extended absence! I hope you enjoy the new little one as much as we are!

Synchronized Nomming

Its just a nom to the left...and then a nom to the ri-i-i-i-i-ght.

Variety pack

Snort, Grunt and Maria...Large, Medium and Small. (Millie is even smaller, but she couldn't get her head in the trough with the rest of the lot.)

Grow wider!

Occasionally, it astonishes me how much Grunt is growing. It isn't just that his horns are growing (though they are), but his head is getting much bigger, too. Someday he won't be my little fuzzball anymore. *le sigh*

Whatcha doin'?

Maria, filling Grunt's normal role of "inquisitive nose".

Neaaar! Faaaar!

This reminds me of one of those strange 70's photos where you've got the extreme zoom on one subject, and there is a smaller, secondary image included. Also featured: Maria's slightly busted up horn. It is growing back nicely.

Miss Millie

Impish little Millie has really taken a liking to Leika. Leika, for her part, is very good at sitting very still and letting everybody get used to her. Millie is not a huge fan of people (I don't think we've ever successfully pet her, but, yanno, that's because she fails to fall for treats and is generally very skittish), but she will run right over as soon as she sees the dog out. I think Millie is just thrilled to see someone smaller than her that she could possibly play with. What she might lack in bulk, she makes up for in strategy, though. She regularly bests Maria in games of "push" by going in lower than Maria is ready for. Crafty and cute.

Curls should not be crispy

Yesterday was very damp. Snort responded to this by getting as absolutely filthy as he possibly could. Look at his poor curls! Mud-encrusted! Tsk. Boys.

Uh. Neither of us are sure about this.

Leika is adjusting to farm life. Part of that is getting used to the yaks. She didn't constantly bark this time, and Snort was on the other side of three kinds of fence, so she was as safe as possible. They sniffed at each other a little bit, then Snort got a little spooked since Kate was coming up, so I decided to end the encounter. Everyone will acclimate to each other eventually, there's no huge rush. Progress is being made. :)

Pregnant Lady in the Wind

Kate is not amused. Every once in a while I wonder if I'm imagining how pregnant she looks, then the wind kicks up and her giant tummy informs me that, yup, she is pretty round these days. Hopefully we'll have a new little critter joining us in the next month or two!

Don't leave me hangin'!

Kate, dashing away in the middle of a game of "push". No, Snort is not about to impale her side, he was just holding still and she skittered off.

In other news, the new puppy is right proper freaked out by the yaks. Doesn't mind horses, but barks and tries to run away from the yaks. The yaks, for their part, give her very disdainful looks and then ignore her.

Gosh, what beautiful weather.

Uh. It is April, right? And that is snow, right? And it was 80F yesterday?

*sigh*

At least the yaks are enjoying themselves in this weather. Unfortunately, they were all playing "push" too far away for me to get any great shots, but you get the idea.

April Fools, I guess.

Evidently, my April Fools day joke on you was not posting a picture. I got distracted. This morning we went and picked up this little addition to our family.


This is Leika (which is Icelandic for "play"), who is a 2 month old Black Lab/Border Collie mix. She's had a tough life so far, but hopefully she'll be happy on our little ranchette. She should blend right in; she's got the same colouring as a yak! (Even has the same little white sock on her right hind foot as Maria!)

We picked her up from Black Dog Animal Rescue, who are a great group up in Cheyenne.

Lighting is everything

The sunset the other night really lent itself well to some fantastic pictures of Snort. This has such a softer feel than the pictures taken in the afternoon. It has been too windy to get many good shots of the critters for the last couple of days; hopefully that'll change tomorrow.

Grazing off into the sunset

The sunset indicates that hey, I got a shot facing to the west! The actual mountain mountains are to the south west, so, still no mountains, but some reasonable bumpy bits in the background. This picture makes me happy; I love how Snort is glowing around the edges in the sun.

Interpretive Yak Dance

When I was creeping out to take photos of the yaks, the Littles got startled and gallumphed off. They stopped in this formation, which I decided was the beginning of the Yak Dance.

To blatantly re-post what I said on Facebook:
Step one: Get into an equilateral triangle.
Millie, eyes forward, please.
Maria, stop flipping your tail. Please also take a step closer to Millie for proper positioning.
Good job, Grunt.

The sky was beautiful.

Chickens are also threatening

Yes, this is Kate staring down a chicken half the size of her head, right after she charged and threw her horns at him. Since it is a Heavy Metal Chicken (I'm not sure if it was Ozzy or Sabbath), he just made a disparaging noise and shuffled away from the giant ball of pointy death. Chickens. Not so bright.

(The white fluffy chicken that Grunt was having an encounter with yesterday was Dio, and the last of the four is Zakk. Really, we have metal chickens. Ozzy emits a bizarre growling noise that I had no idea chickens could make.)

Chickens are apparently confusing

We've recently started letting the chickens run free range for part of the day. Today was the first time that the yaks and the chickens were near each other, and the results were not what I was expecting. The little bantams (who are, of course, very bold) came right up to poor Grunt here, who decided they were Scary, and ran away. This brought Kate over, who also decided that Chikkinz Iz Scary, but she decided to charge the chicken who was challenging her. (He skittered away from her.) I tried to explain to the wee fluffy chickens that it is all fun and games until they get trampled by an angry yak, but, well...explaining things to chickens doesn't usually go very well. The whole flock seems determined to dig around right outside of the paddock and are having a fine time doing so, while the herd is pretty unsure what the heck these little things are or what they are doing. They've been in sight of each other the entire time, but now the chickens can get CLOSER. Terrifying!

When is dirt not dirt?

Right after a small snowfall that melts. Then it is mud. Kate apparently missed the "this is mud, don't rub your face in it." memo this morning. Photo taken between rounds of low-key yak jousting.

The things they pick up from their friends...

We have rabbits that live on the farm. Clearly, they are bad influences on Grunt.

Peeeeenk!

Snort would like to wish my mother a very happy birthday and offers to give her big pink nose kisses the next time she comes down to visit.

Future's so bright, I've gotta wear shades

Luckily, Grunt has built in fuzzy shades to protect him from the somewhat blinding sun. We were looking at photos of when we first got the yaks back in September, and it is amazing how much they've grown and changed! Especially in the horns...his horns used to be little nubbins that didn't even reach the end of his ears, and look at 'em now. Ah, how fast they grow.

Blue tongue

Grunt goes "tbbpt" at me for posting this so late today.

Tiny Stampede!

Clearly, Millie doesn't take this as seriously as everyone else in the herd. It is just an excellent opportunity for frolics for her!