26 July

Guarding The Old Sheep. Farm Chess. Checkmate?

by Jon Katz
Farm chess

I see my life with animals – dogs, donkeys, sheep, barn cats, even chickens – as a continuous round of what I call farm chess. They make a move, you make a move, they make a move. Sometimes you win, sometimes they do. Generally you do, as you have the money, certain kinds of equipment and rumors of a superior intelligence.  You need to be patient, cunning, intuitive and anticipatory. I have been tangling with sheep and donkeys and dogs for years, and I have learned a few things.

The old sheep, it seems, have been walking right under our electrified fence for some days and then returning in the night. We learn this from following trails and droppings up into the woods. It seems the early Spring rains washed away some dirt under one of the fences and it was large enough for them to crawl through. We just didn’t know it until our  neighbor called and saw them eating his garden.

Why would they do this when there are seven acres of grass around them? Because it is there. So the round of chess begins. Step one, pile up some stones underneath the fence, shovel more dirt. Step two, lock them in the lower pasture for a couple of nights hoping they forget (no chance.) Step three. Have a dog like Red you can post on guard duty to discourage them from even approaching the fence.

They didn’t like seeing him there, although they did still approach their former secret escape and Red gave one a good nip to back her off. The old sheep are not so old that they haven’t some remaining tricks up their coats.

You can say a lot of things about sheep, but like most animals, they are not dumb when it comes to food. All ruminants think the grass is greener on the other side. After two days, we think we have it in hand. The sheep rushed to the hole (above) and Red stayed there for an hour or so, glaring them down. So they found some grass further along in the field. Is this checkmate? Well, it’s a big fence.

26 July

Red’s Lovely And Surprising Morning

by Jon Katz
On The ATV

(photo by Maria Wulf)

Red continues to surprise me. This morning, I got on the ATV to go check on the fence where the old sheep broke out with Maria. Red hopped on the back of the ATV and rode right behind me. He went to the spot where the sheep crawled under the fence and he stood guard while put more rocks up. He got Maria’s sheep into the barn and held them while we gave them their shots. He rounded up the old sheep and moved them down the pasture. He went through the field and stood on Orson’s gravesite.

He walked with me to the field. He found Maria gardening and cuddled with her. I am so taken aback by this wonderful creature. What did Karen Thompson see? How did she know? Where will this dog take me? We are just beginning this journey. Photo album on Facebook.

Red at Orson’s grave
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