In The Dark
☆ July 11, 2012
I’ve been sleeping outside because it’s been so hot
(I could sleep outside even if it weren’t this hot but sometimes we
need to be FORCED out of our routine) and last night
a strange thing happened.
I was lying there looking up at the stars and saw what I thought was a satellite gliding across the sky.
I hate satellites so I was glaring at it (no logic there)
and suddenly it flashed this HUGE bright light, much like a camera flash
but slightly slower, and then it disappeared!
Did Google photograph me scowling in the night?
Did I get implanted with temporarily-latent destructive coding via light ray?
Was it an alien ship beaming off to another galaxy?
Have any of you seen this??
HOLY COW!
☆ July 6, 2012
We did it!!! The first year of Star Brand Beef is sold out! Wow and yeehaw and thank you! This is really profound and exciting. I have a few unpaid invoices (everyone has until Monday) so if you were hoping to get in on it, email me and I’ll put you on a wait list in case any of the remaining orders fall through.
Other tidbits ~ Sir Baby is improving daily. His wound is still in the healing process and, with this kind of injury, it’s a long process. But I see daily improvement and he’s in great spirits. Thanks so much for your well wishes!
There was a fire here, though nothing remotely close to what’s going on in Colorado, and I do have pics and a post written but haven’t had a moment to
type it up (I hand write everything). Coming soon…..
AND: I’ll be doing some behind the scenes work on the Daily Coyote blog so it will be down for a period of time over the weekend ~ not to worry! My computer genius web man is fixing up some back end stuff and we’ll have it up again asap.
The quickest giveaway ever ~
☆ July 2, 2012
The good people at People Magazine sent me a copy of their special edition “Amazing Pets” because Charlie and I are in it. It’s really well done ~ more like a book than a magazine with tons of stories and big pictures. It’s also $15.99 at the newsstand, so I’m going to send my copy to the first animal lover to email me their mailing address. Go!
And it’s nabbed!
Hoofin’ It
☆ June 28, 2012
I found my wounded Baby the Saturday before last after searching for him for four days, managed to get a horse trailer to him since he could barely walk, and brought him home. (Reason #979 why I’m so glad all my bovines are pets: Baby loads in a trailer as easily as a horse – easier, actually, as I don’t even use a halter on him.) I called my vet AND HE WAS OUT OF TOWN. Argh.
I didn’t want to give Baby any shots without direction but I wanted – needed – to get working on the massive infection that had swelled up his whole leg. So I got online and read about a charcoal poultice that others had used on wounds, for themselves and their animals. It made sense to me, especially in light of what I know about charcoal from the ambulance – we give it orally in certain poisoning cases as it absorbs (adsorbs?) the toxins – and thought perhaps a charcoal poultice could help draw out the infection. It was certainly worth a shot. Turns out this technique is amazing.
First you need charcoal:
You also need a dish, a knife for chipping and/or scraping the charcoal, a rock for grinding, and a spatula (stick) for stirring and applying:
Put chunks of charcoal into dish:
Grind it into powder with the rock (photo taken halfway through the process):
Mix with water:
The paste works better if it’s a bit thinner than you would expect to want it – this stuff is like cement in that it looks runnier than it behaves. It’s also easier to apply and stays on longer if it’s not clumpy:
Apply to wound:
This is Baby’s hoof yesterday. On flickr, I posted a photo of his hoof from ten days ago for those who want to see the progress, which is remarkable. But don’t click if you don’t want to see a horrible wound!
One of the greatest benefits of this technique is that the charcoal layer serves as protection for the wound, keeping dirt out while allowing the wound to breathe and drain. It looks like a thin, neat coat when it’s first applied but over the course of 24 hours it puffs, or plumps, as it sucks out the infection. Then it cracks and falls off in chunks when it’s saturated. These chunks come away with a crisco-frosting-layer of puss coating the backside (there, I’ve just cured you of ever eating a grocery store cake again); gross to write, but great to see when it means your bull is healing. Then I apply a new coating of charcoal and the process continues.
Sometimes, the timing works out perfectly and I can apply the charcoal when he’s lying down. But sometimes he’s standing up when it’s time to put on a new coat, and you can’t tell a bull to lie down like you can with a coyote. It’s essential that he doesn’t move while I’m applying the charcoal so dirt doesn’t get kicked into the wound. Luckily, boys are pretty easy to figure out. I carefully apply the charcoal poultice with my right hand while scratching his balls with my left. He drops his head, his eyes roll back, and he drools a little, and he stands perfectly still. Once the charcoal is on, I have to sit there and continue with this perverse activity so he doesn’t take a step until it dries. You do what you gotta do!
Bee Butts & A Baby Scare
☆ June 24, 2012
Sometimes you just need to look at a couple of bee butts. Or at least I do.
Sir Baby got tangled in barbed wire which has absolutely consumed my last two weeks. He was on the spring pasture with the cows. I’m just so grateful I found him in time. He’s here with me with a nasty cut-up hoof but healing beautifully.
MY NEW BOOK!
More, Elsewhere
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