Catching Up

I apologize for not posting much lately but I've been pretty busy. Our daughter got married on June 25th in a beautiful outdoor ceremony in Manitou Springs, Colorado. The weather was perfect and the ceremony was very touching.

Here is the happy couple.

 

The week after the wedding, our new chicken coop/house arrived. Mid-May I got five Rhode Island Red pullets. One chick died within a few day, most likely from shipping stress, and another one died a couple of weeks ago and I have no idea what happened to her. I found her dead in a box in the chicken run one morning. So, we have three pullets left. They are growing like weeds! The first week, I swear you could watch them grow right before your eyes. I would check them first thing in the morning and then throughout the day and every time I looked in on them, they were bigger than the time before. Once I moved them outside to their run, they grew quickly and it was a lot easier having them outside, rather than inside in a large cage (a lot less messy in the house!) They slept in a pet carrier in the run until we bought The Chicken Hilton for them. They wouldn't go into the new house so I picked one of the girls up and set her inside. She came squawking out of there like a bat out of you know where! Hmmm...so the first night they slept in their crate. I decided I hadn't spent all the money on The Chicken Hilton just so it would look good next to the run, so I removed the crate and put some of their food inside. They weren't buying it. So then I put a light in the house and they at least trotting up the ramp and had a look inside. Then, I got an ear of corn (their favorite treat) and broke it into a small piece and a larger piece. The small piece I dropped on the floor just inside the door. They all fell on it at once. I then set the larger piece all the way across the house on the floor and soon one at a time they came in and started eating the corn. Now they love their house and spend every night in it and are sometimes in it during the day, just chillin'. They are now 9 weeks old and look like chickens, not chicks. Rhode Island Reds should start to lay eggs when they are about 4 months old so they're about half way there. The chicken house has a nesting box attached to one side of it with three nest sections in it. We purchased a second nesting box that can be attached to the other side of the house at a later date when we have more chickens.

Here is The Chicken Hilton. I cut a section of the chicken wire from the run just large enough for the little door on the opposite side to flop down, creating a little ramp for them to use to enter the house. I stapled the chicken wire to the side of the house so nothing can squeeze through and get into the run or the house.

Here's how it looks with the second door open. I am not letting them out to free range yet as they still aren't big enough.

And here is how it looks from the other side of the run. Notice the chicks playing in their water pan. I put a paving brick in the center of the pan to hold it down and to give them something to stand on. They love to play in the water.

And above is a close-up of the chickens - sorry, they're all mooning us!

Next post I'll tell you about another recent addition to the ranch!

Please Chip In

My niece, Alena, was diagnosed in April with uterine cancer. Because she does not have medical insurance that covers the surgeon, they would not schedule the surgery until she came up with the money. She was able to borrow the money for the surgery and had that surgery on June 24th. She is not able to work for six weeks so is unable to pay for her rent, utilities, food and living expenses. I have set up a Chip In account for her in the hopes that we can get enough money to pay her expenses until she is able to return to work. I would also love to be able to get enough donated to help pay back the money she borrowed to get the surgery.

The surgeon told Alena that she believes she got all the cancerous tissue during the surgery so radiation and chemo will not be necessary. This is extremely good news, especially since over two months went by between discovering the cancer and getting the surgery.

Alena is a very talented artist who makes beautiful mosaic pieces. I will post photos of some items that she has for sale so if you would like to purchase them, the money will go towards her expenses.

Here is Alena with her three daughters.

Anything people can donate would be greatly appreciated. Even $1 would be helpful to help offset her expenses and medical bills.

And, of course, prayers and positive healing energy are always appreciated! 

Thank you in advance for your kindness and generosity!

Rosie is growing up!

Here is a photo of little Rosie that I took yesterday. I just love the color of her fleece! And that face...she's such a cutie pie.

Wordless Wednesday - The newest critters at Split Rock Ranch

Another new cria at Split Rock Ranch

Last Wednesday we had another bundle of joy delivered at Split Rock Ranch! Minnie Pearl gave birth to a gorgeous rose gray/silver suri female cria at approximately 3:30 PM on June 22nd.

Here is how the baby looked immediately after birth (I knew Minnie was in labor so I was in and out all day long, checking on her and I knew when she was close so I brought out towels, the birthing/vet bag and my camera ahead of time). Crias (lama babies) are born with "toe caps" on their feet to prevent their toes from tearing their mother during the birthing process. You can see the white caps on the baby.

 

It doesn't take crias very long before they attempt to stand up. They are pretty wobbly at first and take a few tumbles before they master all four legs at the same time. Here is the baby after she wobbled about for a little while.

I had fed her mother a flake of alfalfa on the green mat and the cria rolled around in it so in this photo (above) she's full of alfalfa flakes.

And here she is (above) after she has mastered all four legs at the same time. Her mother is resting and awaiting the delivery of the placenta.

Many times, the cria uses their mother as a "crutch" to help keep them from falling over. They circle around and around and around their mother, leaning against her to help them balance.

The rest of the female herd is anxiously awaiting their opportunity to inspect the new arrival and greet her properly. We like to keep the new mother and her cria separated from the rest of the herd until the mother has passed the placenta and the cria is stable on all four legs. This also gives them the opportunity to bond and keeps the rest of the herd from crowding or knocking the cria down and stepping on it.

After the mother has passed the placenta and the new cria is walking about fairly well, we let them back in with the rest of the herd. Above, Phoenix (born 6/4/11) is greeting the newest cria, under the watchful eye of Minnie Pearl.

Phoenix got a little too excited about the new baby and tried to jump on her. Fortunately, Tina Fey (the red llama) stepped in just as Phoenix tried to jump on the new cria.

And here is how the new baby looked about 18 hours later. She is finally all dried out. And she sticks very close to her mother!

We are still contemplating what to name the new cria but are considering Roses, Champagne & Pearls (roses and champagne because she is rose/gray/silver in color and pearls because her mother is Minnie Pearl.) Some have said they think they name is too long and suggested Champagne & Pearls but I have been calling her Rosie so I think she will most like be named Split Rock Roses, Champagne & Pearls aka Rosie.

Here is a photo of the sire of this cria - his name is Shimmering Sands.

Happy Birthday Black Jack!

Our oldest llama hits a huge milestone today - he turns 20! This is Ivory Pond's Black Jack. We bought Black Jack in the spring of 1998 for our daughter, Jackie, to use as a youth performance llama. Black Jack was almost 7 years old when we bought him and had been used by quite a few youths in the show ring.

Here is Black Jack and Jackie after winning first place in every event and Grand Champion in her youth class at the 2001 Sangre de Cristo Llama Show in Westcliffe, Colorado. At this show they got a perfect score in two out of the three classes. They missed one point in the pack class because Black Jack didn't step on the last step coming off the bridge. The judge said he rarely gives perfect scores and he was actively looking for something to "ding" them on but couldn't find anything until the missed step in the last class. So out of a possible 240 points they scored 239 points!

Here is a compilation of the awards won by Jackie and Black Jack over the span of four show seasons.

Grand Champion Youth Performance

• 2002 Rocky Mtn Regional Championship Show
• 2002 Colorado State Fair
• 2002 LOCC Fall Show
• 2002 Boulder County Fair (1st in all events)
• 2002 LOCC Spring Show
• 2001 Rocky Mtn Regional Championship Show
• 2001 Kiowa Creek Youth Show
• 2001 Sangre de Cristo Youth Show
• 2001 Boulder County Fair (1st in all events)
• 2001 LOCC Spring Show - Ultimate Grand Champion
• 2001 Banana Belt Llama Classic (1st in all events)
• 2001 Western Slope Llama Classic(1st in all events)
• 2001 Ntl Western Stock Show (1st in all events)
• 2000 Ntl Western Stock Show (1st in all events)
• 2000 LOCC FallClassic Llama Show
• 1999 Western Slope Llama Show
• 1999 LOCC Spring Llama Show

Reserve Grand Champion Youth Performance

• 2000 Sangre de Cristo Youth Llama Show
• 1999 Banana Belt Llama Show
• 1999 LOCC Fall Classic Llama Show

Top Ten @ 2000 Grand Nationals - Public Relations

4th Place @ 2001 Grand Nationals - Pack Class 4th Place @ 2002 Grand Nationals - Pack Class
7th Place @ 2002 Grand Nationals - Public Relations
8th Place 0verall @ 2002 Grand Nationals

I'll write more later as a tribute to Black Jack, who we affectionately call "the bestest best llama in the whole wide world".

Chillin' on a Sunday Evening

Elton has the right idea for how to spend a Sunday evening!

Updated Photos of Midnight Phoenix

I went out to take photos of a fire burning about three miles to the south of us and when I was coming back from the turnout pasture I went in to see little Midnight Phoenix. He started posing for me so I got a couple of really good shots of him practicing his show ring stance. He is four days old in this photo. You can see how much different he looks from his newborn and day old photos! Phoenix is going to be our next halter show llama. He has the same style and presence that his grandsire, Midnight Hour, did.

A new Cria at Split Rock Ranch!

On Saturday, June 4th, Split Rock Winona Wildfire gave birth to a beautiful 30 pound male cria (baby llama). I suspected that Winona was in labor that morning but we already had plans to go to Colorado Springs to celebrate my birthday and my Dad's birthday. We always celebrate our birthdays together and this was a milestone birthday for Dad - his 75th! He proudly announced that he made it three-quarters of a century. Since Winona has had three other crias and wasn't a first time Mom, we felt comfortable leaving for the day. When we got back home a little before 5 PM we noticed that one of our studs was pacing the fencing in his run and we didn't see any of the females when we drove up so we knew something was going on. I left my purse and everything else in the car and headed out to the pasture to see what was going on. As soon as I got to the end of the privacy fence around our back yard, I saw that all the girls were gathered together under one of the big pine trees in their pasture. I knew that meant that either there was a brand new baby just born or she was still in the process of giving birth. I hollered to DH that we had a baby and he ran into the house to get clean towels and the birthing bag. I saw that the baby was partially out; his front legs and his head were out but his shoulders were stuck. DH came back out with towels and birthing bag and he grasped the front legs of the cria and gently pulled to loosen the shoulders. The rest of him quickly slid out into my waiting arms. We toweled him off an pulled the birth sac off him while all the females, including momma llama, sniffed and hummed to the new arrival. I sprayed the umbilical cord with iodone and DH carried the cria to an area where we normally put newborns and their Moms so they can bond without all the other llamas intruding. I gave Winona some grain to eat while her cria started trying to stand.

I went back to the car and got my purse, etc. and changed into my work clothes, grabbed my camera and went back out to feed the horses and our two elderly llamas who are not in large pastures where we have bales of hay so the llamas can free feed. By the time I got back to check on the new cria, he was up and toddling about.

Here is a photo of him when he was first on his feet.

And here is the other side

I haven't used the video feature on my digital camera until recently and I was surprised at how easy it is to use and download the videos! Here is a short video I did of the cria as he was toddling about trying to figure out where he was supposed to nurse from.

When he finally got his sea legs and had nursed, we opened the gates and let them go back in with the rest of the female llamas so everyone could say hello to the newest member of their herd.

Here he is with his momma, Winona, before we let them back in with the rest of the girls.

The dam's name is Split Rock Winona Wildfire; she was born at the height of the Hayman Fire in June of 2002. The sire's name is Midnight's Kemui Yama, which is Japanese for Smoky Mountain; he was born during a wildfire across the road from us in June of 2006. This is his first cria and we are thrilled with him. This cria was born during the wildfires raging in Arizona and the air here has been filled with smoke for days now.

Here is Kemui Yama

We knew that we wanted a name with "fire" in it or something that gave the sense of fire. We also wanted to include Midnight in the name in honor of his paternal grandsire, Midnight Hour who passed away from cancer this past January. Somebody suggested Firestar, which we liked. But Midnight Starfire rolled off the tongue easier so we were considering those names. But then someone who read the story about his background suggested the name Phoenix - to represent rising from the ashes of fires, which is perfect! So, we are going to name him Split Rock Midnight Phoenix. He already answers to the name Phoenix so we think it is perfect for him.

Here he is the next day when he was about 20 hours old. He was all dried out and fluffy so he looks totally different than he did in the first photos when he was still damp.

 

We expect Midnight Phoenix to be our next halter show llama! He will be eligible for shows as of November 4, 2011 so he'll miss this year's show season but he'll be ready to go for the 2012 show season! We're hoping he'll follow in his sire and grandsire's footsteps.

All Gave Some - Some Gave All

While Memorial Day weekend marks the "official beginning of summer" it is also a time to remember those who served our country and paid the ultimate price. Thank you to those who have given their all to protect, defend and serve our country. All Gave some, but some gave all. I love this song by Billy Ray Cyrus - "Some Gave All"

Happy Memorial Day Weekend!

I want to wish everyone a relaxing, safe and fun Memorial Day weekend! What do you do to celebrate the official start of Summer? Do you go camping? Do you have a cookout on the patio or deck? Share your special way of celebrating this weekend.

We don't have anything special planned for this weekend. We were supposed to be attending and exhibiting at a llama show but the show was canceled due to the outbreak of EHV-1 (equine herpes virus). The show was canceled as a cautionary measure so that exposure to the camelids was reduced. So we have an unexpected "free" weekend!

We plan to set up our smoker and smoke a chicken, a cornish game hen and a couple of hugs slabs of Alaskan Salmon. We'll have enough meat to last the entire weekend without having to cook every day.

Tomorrow we'll probably start shearing llamas and trim toenails as needed. Then we'll relax the rest of the weekend and enjoy our time off.

And I have new rose bushes to get planted. I bought these a couple of weeks ago at Lowe's for only $5!

To help kick off summer and to celebrate the long holiday weekend, I'm having a sale in my ArtFire store! Use the coupon code Memorial 10Off to receive 10% off everything in the store!

Visit SplitRockRanch's Studio

SAVE 10.00 % On
All Items

Use Coupon Code:

MEMORIAL10OFF

during checkout.

Holiday Decorations

A New Rescue Kitten - Mowgli

Saturday afternoon our daughter called to tell us that our son had called her wanting to know if she could come get a little feral/stray kitten and take care of it. Apparently a momma kitty had kittens under the bay window at our son's house. While she was moving kittens to a new location she either dropped one or he wandered off while she was moving the others. Our granddaughter found a kitten and picked it up and brought it into the house. Momma didn't come back for him. So, they called our daughter, knowing she has experience with raising tiny kittens. We went down the mountain to Colorado Springs on Sunday to see the kitten. He is one of the cutest little kittens I've ever seen. Because our daughter works a full-time job and because this little guy is young enough that he needs to be bottle fed, I offered to take him and raise him. It just makes more sense because I work from home and can feed him every few hours without any problems. I think he is probably about 4 weeks old. One of our male cats, Munchkin, was a rescued feral kitten that we also bottle fed and he loves helping to take care of kittens.

Here is little Mowgli

And here is little Mowgli with Uncle Munchkin

And I took a video with my digital camera (I've never used this feature before!)
 I had just fed little Mowgli his bottle and Munchkin was laying behind us on the chair so I set Mowgli up with Munchkin and Munchie started to clean little Mowgli.

Isn't Munchkin just the best surrogate Momma cat?! He loves taking care of kittens.

Lalo and Kitten

This morning I came out of my office and found Lalo, our former foster kitten, a Tonkinese mix male, "hugging" one of the foster kittens. I ran back into my office and grabbed the camera and managed to get a couple of good shots of them. snuggling. I just love how my cats get along so well with the foster kittens!

New Foster Kittens!

We have new fosters kittens! Last Wednesday we picked up three little eight week old kittens - all dilute orange tabby males. Eli, Elmo and Elton are their names.

Here are the three of them - for some reason they insisted on sleeping on the toilet seat - go figure.

It is Elton in the back, Elmo in the middle and Eli in the front. Its hard to tell them apart just looking at them so the shelter put different colored collars on them with their names written on them. We're learning to tell them apart by personality though. They are probably the sweetest, friendliest litter of kittens we've ever fostered.

Eli is quiet and reserved, a bit shy, but he loves people and is perfectly content to sit in one of our laps and purr. Or he's happy laying on the sheepskin rug in Jim's office. Elton, on the other hand, has earned the nickname "Mountain Goat" or "MG" because he climbs everything. He can't sit still; he has to be on the move and exploring everywhere. He's learned that the dogs are fun to play with but I think he's getting tired of getting a bath when playing with them. Annie, my Aussie, loves to lay down with Elton between her paws, licking and licking and licking on him. And little Elmo is in between. Sometimes he's content to lay in one place and nap and other times he's off with Elton playing.

Today I was taking photos of some new fleeces and I got some really good pics of Elmo playing on the back of the chair.

But soon it was nap time for little Elmo.

Happy Mother's Day!

Wishing my Mom and all the other Mom's out there a very Happy Mother's Day!