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market-farming - Re: [Market-farming] Farm Dogs

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  • From: "Marie Kamphefner" <kampy AT grm.net>
  • To: "'Market Farming'" <market-farming AT lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: Re: [Market-farming] Farm Dogs
  • Date: Sat, 3 Jan 2009 14:42:40 -0600

Regards to the list:

 

Hi Marcy and all,

 

We got Minnie as an adult from a family in the city. They confined her to their home and to a small kennel in the back yard. Their neighbors complained that she barked too much. She was AKC registered and had a long French name part of which was shortened to Minnie. She had pink toenails and bows in her hair when we got her and she smelled better than I did! LOL She had the run of the farm and the only training we did was to stop her from jumping up on us. She went wild when we first turned her loose. She ran all the way to the creek (over ¼ mile) back to me to nose my rear-end, then another quarter mile to our fence line, back to me to nose me again, then back to the creek. When she was exhausted, she flopped down on the porch and grinned. She was home and we loved her and she loved us.

 

We noticed that the chicken count stayed the same and the chickens showed no fear when she was near them. The possums no longer came to eat the cat food, but Minnie ate it. She loved her cats, letting them sleep on her when it was cold. She even let them nurse; even before she had puppies, she had milk for the cats. Then we finally got strawberries that spring! And peppers! Always before, the deer ate the buds out of the tops of the pepper plants, as do the sheep if they get a chance. The coyotes stopped getting so close and the neighbors stopped losing newborn calves. When I was out mushroom hunting, I would feel “eyes” on me and I’d look around and there sat Minnie, just watching and grinning. I tried to get her to find them for me, but she never did.

 

Minnie had pups and we still have Louie and Charlotte. They all worked as a team – stopping hawks and eagles from landing near the chickens, dispatching stray dogs or cats, coyotes, deer, raccoons and guarding their humans. When we had people coming to give us estimates on building a barn, they all took turns standing between me and whoever was here. Nothing overt, but they were on alert with their curly tails held high.

 

When the pyrs were chasing deer, they went after them fast, barking, growling and snarling, acting vicious.  When someone who doesn’t belong here would drive up, the dogs would act the same way. Those people were afraid to get out of their cars. If someone comes who belongs here, even if we don’t know they’re coming, the dogs ignore them, or want to be petted. I want to get a baby girl pyr so Louie and Charlotte can pass on their Minnie wisdom and keep it going.

I could go on and on about the dogs, but suffice it to say, they carry their weight here on the farm.

 

Marie in Missouri

 




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