Feeding the Family

Our farm animals get fed on a regular basis. Not only because we think that is responsible but it also satisfies my concerned wife. The horses, geese, chickens and cats are most favored animals in the community. However they sometimes don’t act as though they believe it is true. They beg, haggle, plead, stomp and purr trying to gain some extra favor. I stand firm – until I cannot stand it any longer and just give in to extra treats.

Usually I feed the animals early in the morning. They all seem to be quite enthusiastic about eating and will greet me with such rambunctious antics I am seriously concerned for my safety. Fortunately they are on one side of the fence and I am on the other.

They lean over the fence, poke their heads through the gate or through some other unconventional opening in the fence. I am not truly sure about their intentions but I surmise they are after what I have to give them.

For the horses there is hay. It isn’t the alfalfa hay but a combination of grass and alfalfa. The one hundred percent alfalfa hay can be too hot and cause them medicinal problems. They may loose a little weight during the winter months but not enough to bring on any problems.

California has mild winters but the grass doesn’t seem to be good enough to nourish the horse population enough to carry them along, so we supplement the available food.

Last week I decided to feed the geese and horses soon after taking care of the chickens. As I walked toward the usual feeding spot the horses began bucking, kicking up their heels and cavorting about wildly, causing clouds of thick barnyard dust to drift over the whole area. I quickly backed away and headed for the house.

In the meantime the geese (all seven of them) took to the air. Three of the more nimble of them circled high enough to clear the tree tops and fly over the neighbor’s property to the east. Making a huge circle, they flew over the neighbor’s property on the west of us, finally settling down once more almost at the exact starting point.

Those big birds flying are quite impressive. With a wing span of over six feet, the updraft, downdraft and wind currents created by these foul friends, make one feel quite inadequate and insignificant. The resulting dust storm with its settling process was to be avoided at all cost. I headed for the house. I did notice that the cats scurried, no ran, for cover, and I could see why.

The horse’s bucking, snorting, crow hopping antics coupled with the seven geese on high alert, squawking, honking and trumpeting both on the ground and now flying out and around the tree tops, was enough to intimidate even the most adventuresome farmer. I stood transfixed in awe at the energy displayed by these usually docile animals. The shear power displayed was awesome and even inspiring for one used to domesticity. It truly pleased me to witness such a display of activity. We often don’t get that much activity around here anymore and I was enjoying it immensely.

When all returned to whatever normal is, I ventured back to the barnyard to continue feeding the contingent of “farm yard kids”.

Of course the horses got fed first. They are the biggest and will often take over the process anyway. I always start on my left with the horse with the most authority, Sugar. I can count on her to be at her place for feeding. Showing her continued impatience was what I expected. There she stood pawing at the ground, making her “hole” a little deeper all the time. She gets fed in the old enamel four footed bath tub that sits behind the barn under cover. The other horses eat out in the open under the trees, unless it is raining very hard, currently slight chance of that here in dry central California.

Next in line to get fed is Sis. She is the picky one and will sniff at something offered, sweet or not, and turn her head away and let Sugar have it instead.

Then last on the pecking order is Arrabella. Poor, poor thing. She is a rescued horse and was brought here to help keep the grass down in the summer. Her feet are broken down and she has a huge brand on her left flank that denotes when she was born and where she stood in the pecking order at another horse facility.

Arrabella is not a pretty sight but she is willing to eat and eat she does. We have never been able to pet her, touch her or even catch her in her three years on the ranch, so manicuring has been very much lacking. The elite members of the barn yard society have their hooves done every other month.

One thing I have to admit, Arrabella is food savvy. She always has her nose to the ground for something to eat. While the other upper crust barn yard society is standing under the eves of the barn, Arrabella is out foraging on her own, not waiting for any hand out.
When I toss out bread slices the high brow other horses will always turn up their dainty noses at the basic grass/hay and make a bee-line for the scraps of bread that I bring along. While the “blue bloods” are looking for bread pieces Arrabella has now moved down the eating chain to where the first horse was. Since the stall is now vacant Arrabella has moved in and is eating with frantic haste while the other two are out looking for bread scraps that were intended for the geese anyway.

Not finding what they want the upper crust has moved back into the eating mode and have situated themselves at feeding stations much less desirable than what they had to start with, but are now eating comfortably in less than standard eating areas. “Pride goeth before a fall.”

Another thing that ceases to amaze me, is how well the animals all get along with each other.

The geese have quit trying to intimidate the horses with their hissing, head wagging and neck stretching. It just didn’t work. The geese now wanting to have some “slice” of what is going on, have to be aggressive and grab and run or the horses will be there.

I marvel also that the geese don’t get stepped on. Once in a while I see one of them hobbling and I surmise that they didn’t move quickly enough, but they seem to be resilient.

Of course the geese, all seven of them, each have their own personality and it shows up at unique times.

While feeding goes on, I often take smaller pieces of donated bread etc. to hold out for the geese. The horses have discovered that I favor the geese somewhat with pieces of something they really like. I surreptitiously hold a piece of bread through the gate. The first goose will have it in a flash. The second will have to be quick about it to get it before the horse sees it and moves in.

I am then to the point of throwing the bread over the shoulders of the horses to distract them. They can eat the larger pieces that give the geese more difficulty. If I can keep the horses busy with big pieces I can feed the geese smaller pieces that they can manage.

It is interesting to see the large pieces of bread making its way down the throat of the geese. Knots of outside feathers move along as the bread goes down. It isn’t long before the geese seek out the watering trough and they wander off to let things settle down a bit.

There is a facility here in town that gives bread to the homeless. They often have boxes of donated bread left over. Since they are only giving bread out one day a week, they often have left over bread for me to pick up to feed the farm animals. The homeless don’t like the hard bread or messed up cupcakes, left over donuts, pies with mold, cake that looks crumbly or bread that gets squashed. So I am the happy recipient of up to four large boxes of bread type food each week. No one here seems to care about a little mold and if it is broken that is OK also. It can even get dirty and they still will eat it.

The chicken’s digestive system doesn’t seem to be fazed at all by the mold growing on anything I toss them. They scratch right in with delight, pecking away at the proffered morsels. What a great being I am for providing such wonderful new menus for them. I often tell my wife that we have chickens so we can feel better about throwing out spoiled food items. Of course they return the favor, providing us with eggs. It is a give and give society.

If you get the idea that we live in a relatively idyllic setting, you are most likely correct. We have an easy cohabitation that a lot of people would find most entertaining if not down right funny at times. I am constantly amazed at the animals we keep here. I marvel at the intelligence often shown by these barn yard creatures, and it humbles me to be a small part of this mix with the greater part of the responsibility.