Hermit Crab

While beach-combing, we found this little Hermit Crab who was in the process of abandoning his shell to make home for himself in a larger one or going back into safe hiding when he made eye contact with us!  Either way, he was interesting to watch!!

Hermit Crabs are crustaceans and very social animals that can live 10 years or more.  Some have lived up to 30-70 years!!  They molt several times throughout their lives and grow up to six inches in length. They are a lot of fun to watch as they climb and explore with their habitat mates.  They can make great pets for a classroom as they are low maintenance, non-aggressive and hypoallergenic.  They are also known to make wonderful family pets!

The Hummers are Back !!

Female Ruby-Throated Hummingbird

The hummingbirds arrived May 18th this year!  The high winds and heavy rain did not stop our feathered friends from feeding and entertaining us for the afternoon!!  We enjoyed staying inside sippin on a cup of coffee and capturing some photos through the window!

 

Male Ruby-Throated Hummingbird

And I couldn't help but add this photo !!!!

I managed to get two focal points in the one shot .. LOL!!  One is obvious .... and if you look closely, you can see that his tiny little tongue is sticking out!!

If you would like to see some more hummingbirds, click here!

Gray Jay

 This little fella, along with his better half are sure to be perched everyday on our deck rail at mealtimes!!  They are very patient too because they know a great meal is on the way!! One morning they got lucky with some homemade blueberry pancakes!! (yes, with syrup....haha)

Patiently waiting for a bedtime snack!!

Patience paid off!! Going to bed with a full belly!!

Gray Jays are highly curious and always on the lookout for food....They nest during late winter, incubating the eggs in temperatures that may drop below minus 30°C.  I also learned that gray jays do not attempt a second brood in the May–June breeding period, even though the warmer conditions would appear to be more favorable for them.  They weigh 2.5-ounces and have to consume about 50 calories per day!!  (They certainly get that here!!)  Their fluffy plumage puffs up in winter and even their nostrils are covered in feathers!!

Here is a very interesting fact:

The oldest Gray Jay on record was at least 17 years old. Banded in 1985, it was recaptured and re-released by a bird bander in Colorado in 2002. (WOW!!)

Make Way for the Warblers!!

Well, you learn something new everyday.... and today I learned that the Palm Warbler is a "tail-wagging" bird!! who loves to show off its yellow undertail !!  They have a unique song of their own.. to hear it, click on this link: http://www.birdjam.com/birdsong.php?id=90

Palm Warbler

These beautiful little songbirds were very much welcomed upon arrival yesterday with some friends, the Yellow-Rumped Warblers, (see photos below) and there were many of them....arriving with much excitement....going from tree to tree & feeding themselves with all the insects they could find; not to mention, looking for the best nest making spots along the river & pond!!

Yellow-Rumped Warbler

This little guy seems quite content singing his tune!! Want to hear it? http://www.birdjam.com/birdsong.php?id=30

Happy Purr Day to you !!

 (Here is the happy birthday song in cat!)

  Meow meow meow meow meooooow
Meow meow meow meow meooooow
Meow Meeeeooooow meow meow meoo-ooow
Meow meow meow meow meooooow!

Happy Birthday Misty Moon.... It seems like yesterday we brought you home and you were so tiny and could fit in the palm of our hand....You are adorable and full of life at 11 years old!!  We wish you another 11 purrrrr-fect healthy & fun-loving years with us!!

Love Skye, Philly, Lucky, the Fishies, Skittles, all the chickens & ducks and of course the loving hands that feed & pamper you ~~ Mommie and Daddie xoxo

Official bird of Mexico - A Crested Caracara landed in NOVA SCOTIA !

Complete story here:
link from CBC.ca/ns :  http://www.cbc.ca/player/News/Canada/NS/ID/2367951043/

Or you can read an article and view some photos here:
http://thechronicleherald.ca/novascotia/1120523-official-bird-of-mexico-makes-surprise-visit-to-ns#.UVrsvxc9exo.blogger

Peek - A - Boo

Pekin ducks 11 months old

It wasn't until I put the photos on the computer, that I noticed this particular image looked a little funny !!...... Our Pekin ducks were playing Peek-a-boo with me... !! (click on photo to enlarge image)

A great way to get the duck's attention and perhaps some fun photos along the way, is to feed them some of their favorite treats!!  Soon, you will be enjoying them all around you!! Another good idea, is to let your pets get used to the camera at an early age....(some may run away from the sight of the flash or clicking noises on the camera)

Ducks can be a lot of fun to have around.... They quack, waddle, swim and eat.  They have great personalities and are a lot of fun to watch....Taking care of a duck as a farm animal or pet can be a rewarding experience and is relatively easy....

Some treats you can feed to your ducks are: Romaine Lettuce (other dark lettuces, not iceberg), tomatoes, worms, night crawlers, cucumber, cracked corn, eggplant, peas, bell peppers, carrots, eggs (scrambled or hardboiled chopped with shells on), beans, feeder goldfish/minows/guppies, plain yogurt, mealworms, broccoli, cabbage, brussel sprouts, cauliflower, beets, asparagus 

Special Treats:  floating koi food (they love this stuff in their bath or pond, good protein), cottage cheese, apples (applesauce), bananas (no peel), marigolds, pansies, clover (from a florist or homegrown, no pesticides!), pears, peaches, cherries, grapes, melons (cantaloupe, watermelon), squash, pumpkin, pomegranate, turnips (cooked), raisins, zucchini, oatmeal (cooked), strawberries, rice (cooked, small amount) 

These Treats are No-Nos!!!!
Bread, crackers, spinach, onions, potatoes, avocados, seeds of any kind, chocolate, sugar, junk food of any kind, nuts, citrus (lemons, grapefruit, oranges, limes), popcorn

Happy Purr-Day to you!

(Here is the happy birthday song in cat!)
 

Meow meow meow meow meooooow
Meow meow meow meow meooooow
Meow Meeeeooooow meow meow meoo-ooow
Meow meow meow meow meooooow!

Happy 10th Birthday Philly aka Philly Velcro !! You are our ''Mr Magnificent Boy" and life would just not be the same without your sense of humour and wonderful personality.... we wish you another 10 purrrrr-fect healthy & fun-loving years with us!!

Love Skye, Misty, Lucky, the Fishies, Skittles, all the chickens & ducks and of course the loving hands that feed & pamper you ~~ Mommie and Daddie xoxo

As Promised "My Spring Snow Woman"

Continued from my last post The First Day of Spring

I did get out to create my Snow Woman and I can definitely tell you it brought "the kid out in me"...... and it was a lot of fun!!  I actually caught myself giggling at times... especially when I put the flip flops on her... LOL....Here are a couple of photos of her:

I don't think she will be stickin' around too long!! :-)

but for now, we will just enjoy her presence!

First Day of Spring !! (okay, if you say so) !!

Snow mixed with ice pellets ending early this afternoon then cloudy with 40 percent chance of rain showers or flurries. Snow and ice pellet amount 5 to 10 cm. Local blowing snow early this afternoon. Wind southeast 40 km/h gusting to 70 becoming south 30 gusting to 50 this afternoon. High plus 2

The official start to spring was at 8 am today!! This is what we opened our eyes to:

"the first day of spring is one thing, and the first spring day is another"

All I can say is those little rodent groundhogs better hide a little longer, wherever they are for getting our hopes up and telling us we are going to have an early spring... haaaaaa

What little sign of daffodils we saw last week breaking ground, are now covered in snow!

But, guaranteed, spring is just around the corner.. why?? because the

''spring weight restrictions now in effect'' signs are everywhere!!

So, now I look forward to making a ''spring snow woman'' when this wind tames down a bit and I will dress her up in a colorful ''spring'' outfit and a pair of flip flops!!

HAPPY SPRING everyone!!

Proceed to part 2.... As Promised My Spring Snow Woman

Our Muscovy Ducks

 Muscovy hatchling 1 day old....

and if you think this is cute....

......

......

 Two Muscovy Hatchlings <3

"And let's just say that perhaps this may have not been the most appropriate shirt to wear on day one of this little duck's life"

A few facts:

• The adult males can weigh up to 10-15 lbs (4.5 6.8 kg). The male measures, on average, 31 inches or 79 cm

• Most of the females are 5-7 pounds (2.3 - 3.1 kg) but can, in rare instances, reach up to 10 lbs (4.5 kg). The female measures about 23.6 inches or 60 cm

• Muscovies also eat mosquito larva in the water....They make a huge difference when it comes to insect control.....They are excellent fly catchers!! (click on the photo below to see Donald in action)

Donald, our 3 yr old Male Muscovy catching flies!!

• They have webbed feet and strong sharp claws for grabbing tree branches and roosting.  Their tail is fairly short, flat and wide

• Male Muscovies have a dry hissing call - often ''wagging'' their tail and fluffing up the feathers on their crown at the same time and the females make quiet trilling ''pip'' sounds

• They do not swim much because their oil glands are under developed compared to most ducks.  Muscovy hens can set three times a year, and the egg clutches can vary from 8-21 eggs.  The eggs are incubated for 35 days.

Life of a Duck...."Lucky" our Pet Call Duck

 Posing for his portrait.. nothing to it..  He's a natural!!

Now it's sleeptime.. !!

"Lucky" is a Call duck and is the smallest domestic duck.  It is almost 2 years now since he has been with us.. He eats layer pellets and when he is hungry, he lets you know it.. He walks, or should I say waddles to his cupboard when his belly needs to be fed, and instead of crying like a baby, he quack quack quacks until we open the door.. ! He does not have his flight wings clipped, so he is able, and does fly around the house whenever he feels like it!!  He is very tame and is a pleasing addition to our home and family.  When he goes outside in his enclosed 'bungalow', he is soon surrounded by all the chickens, Skittles the rooster, and of course Skye, our Border Collie, who is always close by keeping a watchful eye on everybody!!  When Lucky is in the house, he wears a 'duck diaper', yep, that's right, and it's custom made by the way.  Thank goodness for google and our online friend Christine from http://www.facebook.com/pages/Waddle-Wrappers/132401986855304 ;-) We sent her a few measurements and a couple of weeks later, our duck diapers came in the mail... !!  Lucky is extremely amusing to watch and gives us hours of pleasure with his inquisitive behavior.  He is simply irresistible.

UPDATE:  Lucky was alone up until last year.  (Alone, as far as having another duck to play with)... you can see his furry family here .....Last spring, we got our Pekin ducks and now, this year, we have Lucky back outside and he is having a great time.  We are happy that he is able to be adventurous with rest of his feathered family!!  Lucky even became a father this summer.... Read all about it here !!!!

Happy Birthday Skye !!

Three birthday cheers for our loyal sidekick and soulful companion.  How can anyone live without woofs, purrs, quacks or tweets in their life.  Our Border Collie turned 3 today!!  Thank you for gracing our life with so many wonderful memories of love. Happy Birthday Skye!!

Love is in the air

Clouds naturally forming a heart-shaped sky!! How often to clouds form a heart?  It was neat when I looked out of the window and saw the formation beginning! ~~ note: this photo was not altered; only the lighting and contrast were touched up!

Happy Holidays ~

Traditional Apple and Cinnamon Spice Ornaments

We filled our Christmas tree with these homemade ornaments! Not only do they look good, but our house is filled with a warm fragrance for the holidays! They also make beautiful hand-made gifts for family and friends for anytime of the year!

If you would like to order some ornaments

You can find them here ! 

 

Wishing everyone a Happy and Healthy 2013!

All Grown Up

Tony is 6 months old now!! 

 

And here is Tony being born May 2012...It never ceases to amaze me how wonderful mother nature is!!

Our Rooster "Skittles"

 

This is our 26 week old barred rock rooster named ''Skittles''.  He just found his crowing voice a couple of weeks ago and it is hilarious when I say "Do it again Skittles" and he crows for me.. Skittles and his 10 hens free range during the day :-) In the background down in the pond are the Pekin ducks simply enjoying life.. Click here  http://shamik4.blogspot.ca/2012_07_01_archive.html to find out how they got here!!

Willow Tree with a Face!

On our canoe trip the other day, we came upon this willow tree standing on the side of the bank.. It has the shape of face with a little nose and eyes just above the 'wide open mouth'... Not exactly the Harry Potter whomping willow tree, but unique in its own way!

Skye

Skye is our devoted border collie who deserves to be shared with the world.  Skye is 2 years old and a very smart dog. And I'm not just saying that because she is ours, she really is!!  (The Border Collie was on the cover of the National Geographic in March 2008.. Studies have shown that some border collies know and associate up to 340 words and counting) Sometimes we have to spell words when she is in our presence, otherwise, she is patiently waiting to do that job from the words she hears.. She will, on command, ''pick up'' items and bring them to us, or if we say "recycle", she knows to look for a water bottle to take to the recycling area!! One of my favorites is saying "slippers".... She is off on a mission, looking, looking, looking, and within a minute, she is back with my slipper and then, off she goes to get the other one! One time, she brought the two of them together.. (that was just luck).. Since a puppy, she loves playing with "sticks" and the bigger, the better!  "Ball" and "frisbee" are on top of the list as other favorite games.  She loves the camera and poses for me on any occasion.  Here, she is out on the farm keeping a watchful eye on her large family of ducks and chickens who are free-ranged during the day... Come dusk, and she hears the words "chicken bedtime", she is up and ready with her tail wagging! When everyone is accounted for and tucked in for the night, she is a happy dog and knows her job is done for another day!  See you tomorrow.  Love Skye <3

Autumn Rainbow

While having our morning coffee, we were blessed to witness this magical moment!