Things I Learned in 2013

Here it is -- February 2014 -- and I'm just getting around to a year in review.  I decided what I'd write about is what I learned over the past year.  I'll try to keep the list short...

1.  For my birthday, I had spinning lessons and was able to purchase a spinning wheel.  Yep, I started to learn to spin.  This is the third time I'd taken a beginning spinning class, but this class was on the wheel I purchased and over two days, instead of trying a bunch of different spinning wheels during a one day class.  My efforts produced my best yarn so far, but mostly what I learned is that it takes practice, practice, practice to get proficient at it.  Since I've only spun twice since being on my own, my goal this year is to take another class (I am better at meeting other people's expectations than working on my own) and then look into a spinning guild that meets once a month so I will keep working at it!

It's a beaut!  I purchased an additional flywheel so I can practice spinning fine to heavy fiber -- now I need to practice, practice, practice!!

 2.  I learned about hatching emu eggs.  After having emus for several years and trying to let them hatch their eggs with no luck in spite of trying different ways to keep the eggs viable until Wisconsin had decent weather (emus lay eggs from the end of October to March since they are from the Southern Hemisphere and it would be summer there -- their biological clocks do not change to accommodate Wisconsin winters).  It was no easy thing to keep the temperature and humidity just right.  We also had to remember to turn the eggs at least three times a day. Being the father figure for the emu eggs was no easy task, though we did not stop eating and drinking for the eight weeks it took - and it took longer than the normal eight weeks since the first egg hatched in February and the last one the end of April -- we put the egg in the incubator as we found it (you can see the difference in size in one of the pictures!).  We also loved watching the eggs hatch and the emu chicks grow!  We hope to have this experience this year, too.

3.  We learned how important it is to have the right 'tools' for the job!  Though we have had a website and business cards for a couple of years, this was the first year we hooked up with Gigsalad and Partypop. What a difference THAT has made.  These party planning sites make it a lot easier for people to find us and we are grateful for that!

4.  I learned about BOSS (black oil sunflower seeds).  My goats didn't shed out like they should have last year and I was worried about them.  I did research and found that I should give them BOSS.  They loved it, they shed out, they were shiny and healthy looking.  I am grateful for people who know more than I do and add their knowledge to the Internet!

The next two things my cousin shared with me!

5.  I learned that avian respiratory systems are completely different than mammal respiratory systems.  Learning about this explains why many things that don't affect us (at least not immediately) can kill our avian friends!

6.  I learned that there are no blue feathers!  Who'd a thunk?!?  Those blue feathers of blue birds and blue jays are made to look blue from tiny air pockets in the barbs of the feathers that scatter incoming light. 

My cousin holding Asimov, the umbrella cockatoo -- hmm, need to get a bird with blue feathers, David?!?

There are many other things I learned in 2013 as I've purchased new animals, met with a lot of different groups and talked to new people.  And I've learned skills that I need to practice!  I can't wait to see what I learn and start perfecting in 2014.  I hope you are here so I can share what I learn, and I can learn from you!

GEE Funny Farm Thanksgiving

Hi, I've been remiss in keeping up with the blog, but now with Thanksgiving just yesterday, I feel the need, as owner and operator of GEE Funny Farm, to list some of the things for which I'm thankful!

1.  I'm thankful to all of the people who trusted GEE Funny Farm to be part of their lives this year.  We had a great year and we owe it to all of you.  We had fun at your open houses, your assisted living residences, your preschools, and your birthday parties!!  Thanks to all of you!


2.  I'm thankful for my new assistants this year, Sarah and McKenzie.  We learned a lot as we worked together and I'm thankful they were there when I needed them -- and hope they will be again once spring rolls around!


3.  I'm thankful for new animal experiences this year:  5 emu chicks, 1 hedgehog (Prickly Paul), 1 short-tailed opossum (Levi), 1 Richardson ground squirrel (Ammon -- he is still a work in progress), 1 flying squirrel (Lydia), and one miniature pig (Neum)! 

We also had kids (baby goats), chicks, and ducklings on the farm again and that is always a treat. (Hmm, need to get pictures of the short tailed opossum and Richardson ground squirrel...check Facebook soon)

Two of our emu chicks. Taken by Sea J Photography.

Prickly Paul, our hedgehog. Taken by Sea J Photography.

Lydia, our Southern flying squirrel.
Taken by Sea J Photography.

Neum the Juliana mini pig practicing a 'sit.'
 Taken by Sea J Photography.

Two of our six kids --
taken by Sea J Photography

4.  I'm thankful for our new, awesome, wagon for hay rides, complete with steps!!  We were so blessed to have such a handyman in the area who refurbished it and that we found him!

5.  I'm thankful for USDA requiring a written emergency preparedness plan.  I wasn't so happy when I first heard about it, but I am grateful that I have equipment, food, water, and a plan in place for emergencies now -- it is still a work in progress, but I'm feeling good about it.

6.  I'm thankful for the Yahoo group, Animals4Kids2, which has professionals who have petting zoos, educational programs with animals, pony rides, and other animal related activities.  I've lurked a lot over the years and learned a lot from them.  I'm grateful for their experience and advice.  I avoided a lot of mistakes I might have made as our business has grown.


7.  I'm thankful for the photo opportunities GEE Funny Farm has had with photographer Christine Strzalko, owner of Sea J Photography in Sussex, WI.  She has captured a lot of wonderful pictures of my animals.  I'd recommend her if you want a great photographer for your visit to the GEE Funny Farm.  You can see a few of her pictures on this blog and on GEE Funny Farm Facebook page. Check out her Facebook page for more examples.



8.  I'm thankful for my wonderful husband who acts as my assistant when he is available.  He doesn't love animals, but he loves me and he works for free, so I'm grateful for him.  (He does love people, so he has a good time interacting with them).

My better half, David.  He is outstanding in his field -- whatever he does! 
Taken by Sea J Photography.

9.  I'm thankful for the Internet and companies like Gigsalad.com and Partypop.com where our website is easily found.  They have really helped our business to grow.  I'm grateful for Facebook where I can post everyday happenings, if I think you might be interested....

10.  I'm thankful for opportunities I have to meet with professionals, like

•  Kristi Smith and Carol Lowrey, Parelli Natural Horsemanship instructors and Lori Blush of Blush Acres -- she has a fabulous facility and my horse, Porthos, and I have learned a lot from going to clinics there.
• Luci Williams, a master spinner and owner of Sheeping Beauty Fibre Arts, in Hartford, WI.  I bought a spinning wheel from her and took lessons.  I learned a lot and she is always willing to help me when I get stuck.
• Dr. Richard Loof, a veterinarian from Sullivan Veterinary Services, my primary veterinarian who makes house calls, even when I'm out of town (my animal caregivers had an incident with one of my goats, after hours and still Dr. Loof showed up - he's awesome!!)
• Gary Pfeiffer, my farrier, who visits about every three months to trim up the hooves of my equines (3 horses and a mini donkey).  I've learned a lot about horses from him over the years.  
• Dr. Dawn Barksdale, my USDA inspector.  I'm not crazy about government rules, but I'm lucky to have Dr. Barksdale.  She is fair and reliable.  I almost look forward to her visits!

I know that there are many other wonderful things and people who are connected to the GEE Funny Farm.  I hope I didn't miss YOU!  We had our best year ever and we are grateful to all of you.

Thanks,
Kathy Gee

Book Review: Thinking Straight About Animals

Here at GEE Funny Farm, we are passionate about animal education. Besides actually interacting with animals, what better way to increase animal education than through some great literature? Recently, among ourselves, we’ve passed around the book Some We Love, Some We Hate, and Some We Eat by Hal Herzog. It’s subtitled: Why It’s So Hard to Think Straight About Animals.

This book is entertainingly informative. Herzog is a professor in the psychology department at Western Carolina University. He’s especially interested in the field of anthrozoology, the study of the relationship between humans and animals. If that doesn’t sound complex enough to study, then you haven’t given enough thought to the nuances of our interactions with other species. Even if you do have some grasp of these nuances, Herzog will very likely broaden your view.

For instance, how did a gray wolf transform into all the variations of house pet dog that we now have? (103 – 109) In fact, Herzog investigates the human-pet relationship in many different ways. He discusses the issue of animal hoarding (138 – 141), as well as the reasons we keep pets (78 – 82), and the cost of pet-keeping (75 – 78).

Another angle to our relationship is, of course, our consumption of animals. Have you ever heard how the chickens you get from your local grocer were bred, raised, transported, and marketed to be brought to your table? If you are in the dark on this process, then don’t miss Herzog’s no-fluff description (167 – 170). Of course, when discussing meat consumption, an anthrozoologist would do well to learn about vegetarianism, why people are (or are not) vegetarians, as well as why they are no longer vegetarians (190 – 201). While these may be the obvious angles to humans and meat-eating, Herzog also discusses why eating one kind of meat (dog, or rat, or cat, or sheep brain, or pig intestines) in one place is repulsive in another place (182 – 187).

Herzog also introduces us non-scientist types to the complexities of using animals in scientific testing (Chapter 8). He looks at the benefits of dolphin therapy (18-23), shares tests given to people about whether they would save animals or people with their inconsistent results (54-57), and what we think about what animals are thinking (60-62).

Of course, if you want to learn the answers to these questions and others besides, then the best place to go is the book. While the book is marketed for popular reading, Herzog includes lengthy notes at the end for anyone who wants a more in-depth look at the studies and books he references. This makes it a great starting place for budding anthrozoologists, and also a perfectly acceptable ending place for someone who’s just slightly curious about the subject matter.

Mostly, this book is informative. But each subject he discusses really boils down to ethics in the end, so Herzog does conclude by encouraging us to all make a little more effort to make our actions more consistent with our beliefs about animals, whatever they may be. Herzog has both the merit and the fault of being slightly inconsistent himself, which helps him avoid the pitfall of being uncomfortably preachy. He’s honest about his own animal cruelty as a child and discusses how ethics plays into his meat-eating choices. He’s also open about the confusing nature of animal ethics. So ride along with Herzog on his investigations and discussions and decide for yourself whether your money and effort is better spent preventing cock fighting or improving the lives of Cobb 500 hens.

Umm, Do You Have A Different Animal? Wait! Who Can Resist a Llama?

As we get calls for our animals to come to different venues, I suggest a llama.  This year, in all but two cases, my contact asks, “What else do you have?”  Every time anyone sees or hears about one of our llamas, it seems the first thing that is said is, “Llamas spit!  I have a friend…”

Does this look like a 'spitter?"  Abinadi loves to meet people -- and, looking into his big eyes with long eyelashes, everyone wants to give him a kiss.

 

Do llamas spit?  Well, they can.  Usually the spitting occurs between llamas over food.  Sometimes people get in the way and they get spit upon.  If a llama really spits AT a person, the llama may have been hand-raised and never learned llama etiquette.  Have I been spit at?  Well, yes.  My very sweet boy, Abinadi, threw quite a fit during shearing this year and let go with some dry spit – he had barbed wire stuck in his tail – a place shearers don’t often go (and maybe won’t again).  However, the dry spit is a warning, and while annoying, it is nothing like what happens between llamas or that were directed at my incredibly annoying ram who had taken to ramming one of the llamas who retaliated with green, gooey globules of spit.  It smells; it is gross; it is disgusting!

 

The truth is that the llama doing the spitting finds it disgusting, too, and, so, it is really pretty rare to end up covered in a globule of spit.  

I tell people that if they are worried, they need to watch for warning signs that the llama is annoyed.  The llama’s ears go back.  There is a rumbling in the throat area.  The head tilts back.  If you haven’t moved away, this is a good time to do so because the next step is….spit!  The most common is the dry spit that while bothersome, can mostly be brushed off.  However, the green gooey globules are really repellant – which, of course is the whole point.

We’ve never had one of our llamas spit at a visitor or anyone that we have visited (well, except the shearers).  We did have a female who would occasionally chase me around trying to nail me, but she is no longer on the farm.  So, I guess it can happen (I never knew what set her off, it was very sporadic and she did NOT always warn me – but she was not ‘normal’).

We have two really nice llamas who love attention.  They’ve been to llama camp and were even loaned out to a mom and son so they would have the experience of working with a llama (I took our older llama – he did not enjoy camp, so that was his only time).  They are well socialized.  Our female is especially sweet, in our opinion.

Llamas are curious about babies (of any species) and children.  The herd 'babysits' for one another.

Liahona at a Live Nativity -- she is, afterall, a South American camel...

So, do llamas spit?  Well, yes they can, but these two haven’t (at people anyway).  Llamas are curious and have been used by the Incas as pack animals, for their fiber, meat, hide, etc. for thousands of years.  We hope that you don’t deny the opportunity to meet one because of stories you’ve heard.  If you are respectful, Abinadi and Liahona are really worth meeting!

More Emus and Four Kids

So, we have ended up with 4 emu chicks!  The first one, who was so weak, did die.  We were sad, but in all of the excitement of having a chick, we didn't even realize until later that he hatched after only a mere four weeks in his egg instead of the expected eight.  No wonder he was weak and had to be handfed!!

Meanwhile, our surviving four seem to be growing like weeds, only they are cuter.  So...the chicks that survive were hatched on March 9, March 12, April 1, and April 3.  What a difference three weeks can make in size!

 



Emu chick hatched April 1 and Emu chick hatched March 9

If you notice on the April 1st emu chick, there is purple Vet Wrap on his legs.  While his splayed or spaddled legs were not as bad as our first little guy, he did seem to have trouble walking.  After a long search, I found a website by Kathy Shea Mormino, the Chicken Chick® with information about how she wraps her chicks' legs.  Voila!  It has helped a lot!  I'm sorry I didn't find Kathy's site for my first little guy -- maybe it would have helped.


You can see from this rear view (his head is down), that his legs go out to the sides instead of being straight up and down. He is actually much better than he was -- he likes to have his legs rubbed between wrappings.  Maybe the wrap is like a cast and his legs get itchy.



Here he is with his legs vet wrapped and a connecting piece of Vet Wrap going between his legs to hold them in the right position.  He walks pretty well with this set-up!

We are looking for warmer weather so they can be moved outside.  Sadly, unlike my goose, the emu chicks aren't as imprinted on me as I would like.  Maybe I'll have to carry one around in my pocket next year, though they are considerably bigger than a gosling!

Then, on April 10, I went out to find that Zipporah, my Nubian cross, had two kids!  The father is an Angora buck.  The little boy already has wavy fiber, but the little girl doesn't. 

Zip with her new kids!  The boy on the left and the girl on the right.

Finally, Monday morning, April 15, I went out and Zarahemla had had twins, too.  With the same father, they look remarkably like Zipporah's kids!  Surprisingly white is a dominant color in the sheep and goat world!  (Zip's girl is a very light tan, and a couple of others have a little dark color running through the white -- but none look like their mothers!)

And, as if four kids aren't enough, Martha, our Saanen, should be having one or two more in late May or early June!  We will have milk in abundance this summer! 

Emu Chicks at GEE Funny Farm!

It has been an exciting two weeks at the GEE Funny Farm.  We’ve had three of our emu eggs hatch.  The first one was a surprise just because though we have had eggs in the past none have hatched.  On February 27, there was a flurry of activity as Kathy read up on what to do with newly hatched emu chicks.  We were surprised that the little guy seemed so weak.  He could barely hold his head up and it took three days before he could walk.  How could a emu chick in the wild survive?!?!

The first chick, still in the incubator....

Hatching from its egg...

So cute baby emu!

While the Internet can be a wonderful source of information, it can also be an instrument of frustration.  There are several emu farmers (people who raise emus for their meat and oil) and like every other farmer, probably, each one has an opinion.  I am also in a ‘group’ of emu people and they are mostly farmers, too, with little understanding for people who raise emus as pets.  Needless to say, it was tough to get information that gelled with all parties.

As our very cute first chick got a bit older, he did not eat on his own – it seemed, from what I read, that emu chicks like chicken chicks would start pecking at things and just had to be guided to food.  I ended up hand feeding him with a eye dropper.  He also seemed to have less and less control of his legs, with them splaying in opposite directions – and walking seemed an impossible feat.  However, he is a stoic little guy and is finally eating on his own, though I still encourage water drinking since I don’t actually see him do that on his own.

Our next emu chick hatched on March 9.  Upon hatching, we noticed that it was considerably bigger than our first chick AND he could support its head immediately and could walk soon after hatching.  An aha moment as we realized that our first chick was not really ‘normal.’  The 2^nd chick ate greedily by the 3^rd day and we breathed a sigh of relief that he would not have to be handfed.

 Our 2nd emu chick walking, a little.  It is exciting to see it go!

Our 3^rd chick hatched on March 12 and it, too, was huge compared to our first guy (who really didn’t seem small when he hatched).  The 3^rd chick could support its head, but seemed very tired – he did take 8 hours to hatch and it was an exhausting process.   This is the 2^nd day since it hatched and it seems to be somewhere in between the other two:   stronger than the first and not as strong as the second.

While we try to educate others about our animals, we find that we are always learning, too.  Sometimes it is exciting – having emu chicks.  Sometimes it is sad – our first chick isn’t as healthy as we’d like.  But that is life on the farm.  With chickens, only about ¼ of the chicks survive the first 4 days.  We’ve done better than those odds.  We hope and pray for a miracle with our first little guy.  We hope and pray that the other two, and any that we may have in the future, will be healthy.  We are grateful for this very cool experience!!

 This is what greeted us at 6:30 am on March 12. 

You can see it finally free itself from its egg on the GEE Funny Farm Facebook page!

Tame or Domesticated: What's the Difference?

So, our newest critter is Paul the hedgehog.  I’ve been asked if he is tame.  Well, not yet.  Hedgehogs aren’t domesticated, but soon Paul will be tame, we hope.  Sometimes the words ‘tame’ and ‘domesticated’ are used interchangeably, but they really mean something quite different, and I think the difference is surprising!!

To be domesticated, an animal is ‘tamed’ usually by generations of breeding.  This is done so that animal will live in close association with people as a pet or as a work animal.  Usually the dependency caused by this makes the animal lose its ability to survive on its own if let loose in the wild.  

An amazing study was done by scientists who were interested in how wolves became tame dogs.  In 1959, Soviet scientist Dmitri Belyaev set up a breeding project, not with wolves, but with the silver fox.  Not only did the breeding for tameness happen, but other changes were made in the descendents of the first silver foxes.  Belyaev decided which foxes to breed based only on how well they got along with people.  It is important to realize that Belyaev suspected that breeding only for ‘tameness’ would also change the fox’s physical appearance, and these suspicions were confirmed.  By the 9th generation, the fox kits were born with floppier ears, different coat colors, and they were already whining and wagging their tails in response to a human presence.  These attributes were never seen in wild foxes!   At 1-2 months, the tamest foxes were chosen and then again at 7-8 months final choices were made about which foxes would be bred.  And not only were the foxes tamer, the genetics of the foxes had changed!!  So dogs are NOT just tame wolves; the wolves of today and the dogs of today have a common wolf ancestor, but they are genetically different now.  This is true of the llama and the alpaca vs their wild counterparts the guanacos and vicuñas or wildcats and house cats.  Pretty cool, don’t you think?!?

The silver fox breeding project set up in 1959 by Dmitri Belyaev continues today at The Institute of Cytology and Genetics at Novosibirsk, under the supervision of Lyudmila Trut.

So, how does this apply to the GEE Funny Farm?  Clancy, our 13 year-old Bennett wallaby, is semi-tame.  He allows me to pet him and he will allow others to pet him, sometimes, if David is holding him.  However, wallabies are being bred by certain breeders for the pet trade.  ChrisThompson of Fox Hill Farms has been hand raising wallabies for over 25 years.  Will the next wallaby we get be genetically different from Clancy?  Will s/he be tamer and will there be variations from its wild ancestor in color or how floppy its ears are?  We’ll have to wait and see.  I do know that there are many more albino or white wallabies available than there are in the wild – some breeders breed for that gene.  Mary, our Patagonian cavy, is also semi-tame.  She likes to follow me around and she allows me to pet her.  However, she doesn’t really like to be held (though I’ve heard that some do, Mary is more the norm). Cavies are relatively new to the pet trade in the United States.  How long before a Patagonian cavy is truly domesticated?  Again, we will have to wait and see.  Meanwhile, Paul, our prickly hedgehog, is getting friendlier.  The International HedgehogAssociation warns people 1) A hedgehog who is not friendly to begin with will require a lot of patience and respect to socialize and 2) If you do not handle the hedgehog frequently, they may not stay as friendly. We’re working on it.

Note:  Paul was doing pretty well and then we went on a ‘vacation.’  I tried to take him with me, but the airlines wouldn’t allow it, so he stayed home.  Ten days of no handling and we are back to square one (or maybe two).  Hopefully, it won’t take as long for Paul to become as ‘tame’ as he was when we left!  So…we’re working on it. (Actually, he did pretty well while he was out today -- maybe square 3 (of 4) to get back to where we were -- whew!)

Umbrella or White Cockatoos have been pets since the Tang Dynasty (618-907 AD), but are still considered by some to be 'wild' or 'exotic.'  The tamest ones come from being hand-raised....

Dogs have been domesticated the longest.  Working dogs were the first use: hunting, herding, guard, etc. Dogs still do best if they have a 'job.'

Horses have been used by people for centuries, but their first instinct is to run from danger. 

Emus have been raised by farmers in the USA since about 1980 -- 
we love ours.

Will this emu chick be more 'domesticated' or 'tame'?  We hope so -- Kathy is hoping it imprints on HER (Mama:) oh, er, (Daddy) -- the males sit on the eggs and raise the chicks.

Goats and sheep have been domesticated for centuries -- used for fiber and milk (and cheese and soap....)