Chacha

This is Chacha, my chihuahua. He is 10 years old today.

He was given to me as a Christmas present at around 7 months old and has been my best friend ever since. He is only 3 lbs, but is not afraid to take on anyone and has more courage then any other creature I have ever known. Anytime I am upset or not feeling well, he is there to protect me and is always ready to chase anyone away.

It might look like he is starving sometimes. We fed him everything that we could think of but nothing made him gain weight. He has always been skinny and the vet told us that some dogs are just like that. After we started feeding him vegetarian dog food and a lot of 'table food', he gained a little weight but not much. One of his ribs was broken when was younger and you can clearly see it on his side.

He is the boss around here and he knows it, but I would never do anything to change that. He does not tolerate more then about three people holding him or petting him in a dominant way. He loves Fifi and will guard her while she is eating so Callie does not steal her food. He puts up with all the different animals that I bring inside, although he does not really like the rat, Remy. At least not when Remy wants to play with him.

I am not really sure what else to type. I mean, how do you describe someone that you love more then you can say? Words will not do him justice, so here are some more pictures.

Izzy the Fent

Izzy the Fent is a very special rooster. 

It was May 23, 2008, when we were at Kathy B. house that we saw four little chicks and their mother in a small cage. One of the chicks, who was later named Izzy, had been attacked through the cage and had a large scab covering about half of his head. We took him and the other chicks- named Cuckoo, Axel and Missy- home. We had to keep Izzy away from his brother and sisters because they would peck at his head. It was not long before he bounded to me and acted as if I was his mother. 

I had to carry him with me as I did my chores and he slept in a dog bed beside my pillow at night. Soon his head healed. I was sure that he was a hen- hence the name- until he started flying up on the end of my bed each morning to crow. 

He was later moved outside. We kept him with Flower at first. 

Although he has had several other hens in his flock, Flower remained his favorite hen until her death in April of 2015. 

Because of their size, it is nearly impossible to let our bantams free-range without hawks or wandering cats killing them. We have built a nice pen - that is 10 ft wide and 45 ft long - for them and chicks that are too small to join the big flock. 

 

Izzy is very gentle to the chicks and will sometimes help the mother hens to care for them. 

He is the father of Amelia,Taylor, Ebony and Little Babe.  

Once Little Babe grew up, he took over from Izzy and became the King of the bantams. 

Izzy is very laid back and does not mind being held. He has never showed any aggression towards me or any people, but will not hesitate to take on a rooster many times his size. 

He is 7 years old today. 

Watch Me Grow: Amberlink Chickens

These are our 6 new Amberlink chicks.

The purple on their feathers is medicine to stop them from pecking at each other.

Their feathers are coming in and one started to bleed, so now they know that if they pull feathers there will be blood, and they like to eat blood.

Last updated on 5-15-15

Tup

On April 8, 2015, we rescued Tup from Wal-mart. 

Most of his fins and his mouth was covered in a white fungus. I had never had a fish that bad ever survive, so I was unsure about his recovery. He was keep in a bowl while being treated and it was not long before the white patches started to fade. They eventually disappeared all together. 

Once he was fully recovered, he was moved to the aquarium. 

He has never been very active and is often found resting on the gravel.

 He was named after a character from the Star Wars: Jedi Apprentice series. 

I am not sure which brand of fish medication I used, since I always seem to loose the box and end up with all these mysterious tablets everywhere. But whatever it was it worked great!

Shade

"Your favorite martians, now in minis!" - Summer

When my dad came home from work on April 15, 2013, he brought us four baby opossums that he had found in a storm drain. They were adorable! We fed them puppy milk replacer to begin with, then vegetarian dog food, eggs, fruit, vegetables, and other things when they got older. Each one was was different. This is Shade's story.

Shade was the smallest of the four brothers. 

We had only had them for two days before he disappeared. 

The other three "martians" were still asleep in the box when we checked on them, but Shade was gone. We searched everywhere, even in the yard in case he had somehow gotten outside. 

I was very worried about him since he was too young to have any chance of surviving on his own. The next morning he was found in a basket of clothes, fast asleep. 

I was very relieved that he had come to no harm, and kept a closer eye on him after that. It did not seen to phase him and he remained the most adventurous of the brothers. 

I named Shade after a character from the book Dark Life by Kat Falls. 

Unlike his brothers, he was very picky. The only food that he really liked were cucumbers, squash, zucchini and apples. Also unlike his brothers, he loved to climb trees. He had amazing balance. 

I only saw him loose his grip once, and the branches caught him before he fell too far. 

He was very active and strong for his size. We often saw him dragging a oversize cucumber or zucchini that must of weighted many times then he did behind something to eat it without being watched.

The day came when the "martians" were ready to begin their life in the wild. 

On August 3, we carried them to the woods behind our house and said goodbye. 

The next day I saw Shady wandering close to the spot where we had released them. 

I had to tell him goodbye again, to please come and visit me sometimes and that I loved him. 

After that, Shade was gone.