Progress

Twenty-Two is "movin' slow and talkin' low" as to be expected, but he's actually recovering better and faster than others who've gone before.  He certainly hasn't lost his appetite.  He has much more interest in the cereal bowl now and it won't be long before he's completely weaned off the bottles.  He won't think that's so great, but he doesn't realize it will open up a whole new world outside the barn when I can let him loose with the herd when he no longer has an interest in udders.

I don't know what's up with Poppy.  Usually plodding silently through the days, for whatever reason she has started...for lack of a better term...singing.  The goats have a fairly extensive vocabulary of sounds, uttered in varying pitch and volume.  Poppy is a Johnny-One-Note and has no volume control...loud is all she knows.  The first couple of times I heard her bawling, I ran out to see what was happening.  Nothing.  She was just standing in the field with the others, bawling at the top of her lungs.  For all I know, she's trying to "talk" to the goats, but there's definitely a lack of communication.

Those deer I so enjoy seeing have completely denuded the lilac bushes in front of the kitchen of all leaves as high as they can reach.  With only the top branches left with greenery, the bushes look like they've got Bart Simpson haircuts.  While it's irritating, I can sympathize.  At this dry time of year there is little left for the wild things to eat.

I've given a lot of attention to the ground squirrels.  It took a long time for the grey squirrels with the fat, fluffy tails to come out of the woods and up to the nearby oaks, but they've settled in over the years.  This is the first year I've seen the babies.  I find it interesting that they've had their litters just before fall when there are plentiful acorns.  The little rowdies race up and down the oak and play tag and leapfrog in the front yard.  Over by the bird feeder oak, a territorial adult will beat a rapid tattoo with its front feet on a limb, telling me in no uncertain terms that I'm coming too close.

Steve's, and therefore my, cousins from Arizona are coming today for the weekend.  It's been so long since they've come for a visit and I'm so looking forward to their company.  I even dusted.