BL'S BunnyBarn

Major Sale

2010-08-13T12:18:00.000-07:00

With everything that has been going on, I have decided that I need to sell out of the rabbits at this point---before, I had Pete to help me with everything---now I am on my own and it just seems to much for me to handle. This has been a hard a decision and I know that I will miss them and all my bunny friends....so what I am offering is all that I have that is bunny related.
cages, feed dishes, water bottles---you name it, it needs to go. I believe my rabbit count at this time is 40.
I am asking one price of $500.00 for everything. I have 3 6 hole stackers that is almost brand new and several 24X24 cages.
If you know of anyone interested, please email me at brandi_loughrey@yahoo.com

This is so hard

2010-08-05T21:26:00.000-07:00

I've had some recent changes in my life and things have been really hard....Pete and I have decided to go our separate ways. With this being said, I am trying to make the decision to wheter or not I should, and can continue with the rabbits---this was something that Pete and I started together, as a family. I don't know if I will feel right attending the shows anymore. I love the bunnies and I love the friends I have made and the people I have met during this adventure.
I haven't decided what I am going to do at this point, but a complete rabbitry sell-out may be in store. I won't be online for awhile----I have alot to think about and to get myself together. I just wanted to let everyone know what "may" be happening.
You are all in my thoughts and prayers and I will update again when I make my final decision.

Great News!

2010-07-30T12:44:00.000-07:00

I finally had my interview with the Department of Corrections---I got the job! however as excited as I may be, I will not be able to start until September. I still have to complete a physical and psychology exam. Needless to say it has taken me almost a year trying to get this job, so I guess I can hold on for another month.

In rabbitry news, Ruby had a litter of 3 (2 DOA) on the 28th. Naturally it is a REW cause Rickie is the daddy---I'm hoping this baby turns out to be half as nice as it's parents. Sweet Dreams had her kits on the 27th , 2 healthy and 1 peanut--she was also bred to Rickie. Phoebe, and Sugar Pea are due today.

I revamped my Dackelhund site and I think it turned out pretty nice---now I have decided that the bunny site needs a major overhaul as well. I plan on working on it for the next couple of days.

Other than the above....not much going on. Hope all is well with everyone and until next time....

Oh, if you want to check out the dog site, it's www.dackelhunds.com don't forget to sign the questbook!

Always Busy!

2010-07-25T19:59:00.000-07:00

Today was spent cleaning the rabbitry and the house...it soo needed it. We also groomed some bunnies and looked over the newest litters----we have some really cute ones and moving those that don't make the grade is (again)going to be hard. I have 2 does that are due on the 26th and a couple more due the week later. One of the does that is due is BL'S Ruby and we are really looking forward to see what she produces---this will be her first litter. BL'S Cajun's babies are looking great and if I sexed them right, we have 2 does (REW and tort) and REW buck.

The other animals are handling the heat the best way they can and we are putting cold, fresh water in the water barrels a couple of times a day---we did have some rain today and that cooled things off a bit.

I have also decided that I need to be strickter on my "sales policy". I feel as though I am a fair person and treat people the way that I want to be treated, however I have had a few people take advantage of my kindness and before, I just kind of rolled it off my shoulders....can't do it anymore! I would like for my friends to remain my friends, but there has to be a line drawn somewhere between friendship and business. I will bend over backwards for anyone and I will continue to do so----but if you cheat me once, "shame on you, if you cheat me twice, shame on me". With this being said, I will soon be putting together a new sales policy and sticking with it!

I have been working on updating my links page on my site, so if you don't see your rabbitry up there yet, hang on....I'm working on it in my spare time (which I haven't had much of lately).

Hope all is well with everyone else and you are in my thoughts and prayers....

Taylorsville Show Results

2010-07-18T17:36:00.000-07:00

It was a nice show in spite of the heat...Our results were:
Show A--Open
BL'S Ruby (REW doe) 1/6
McKie's KaceQ (broken buck) 2/2
TB'S Rickie 1/6 BOG
Show B--Open
Ruby 1/5 BOV
KaceQ 1/2 BOSG
Widget (shaded jr doe) 3/7
TB'S Rickie (REW buck) BOB
Youth show A
Hartman's Dude (broken buck) 1/2 BOSG
Jiggy (self junior doe) 1/3
TB'S Sugar Pea (shaded doe) 1/1
Show B
Dude 1/2 BOB
Jiggy 2/2
Sugar Pea 1/1

I would like to congratulate Tresia B, for her BOSB--Kristen Drum for her BOB and Joni Moore for her BOSB.
I didn't have any luck selling any rabbits....I don't think anyone did, other than the Chin junior doe that I purchased from Jackie! I also brought home 2 new ND and a new silkie chick. It was after 2 in the morning before we got home and it took us an hour to unload and get everyone settled in for the night. I was glad to be able to spend some time with my bunny buddies and am looking forward to the next show!
Hope all is well with everyone and you are in my thoughts and prayers!

Saluda Show

2010-07-11T20:01:00.000-07:00

We did not attend the Saluda show on the 11th---however we would like to congratulate Tresia Burleson with her BOB with BL'S Midas! she also took BOS breed in show A with her broken doe. Judy, Tresia's sister also placed very well at the show and took BOS with a REW buck that she was showing. Sorry we couldn't make it to see the wins or to visit with our bunny buddies, but it would have been a 200 mile trip for us and with entry fees at $4.00 per rabbit...we chose to sit this one out. Taylorsville right around the corner and we are looking forward to attending this show---only 30 minutes from the home front!

I've got a couple of juniors that I just can't decide if I want to keep or not. BL'S Prince has a killer body, but I don't care for his head and ear (a little long for my liking). I also have two tort does that carry orange in their pedigrees...I could use them for my orange project, however they are kinda small. I may just keep one and sell the other. I would like to see what I could get out of them. I 've got some really nice up and coming juniors---just can't keep them all and I hate having to make the decision about who to keep and who to let go of at this age! most of the time...I end up letting go of some awesome rabbits, that I later regret. I know that my lines are really slow to develop and this is frustrating for me.

In other news, we have decided that we are going to paint the outside of the rabbitry (it really needs it) we are leaning towards the color burgundy, but haven't made our minds up yet. We are also getting out of the small animals---I just don't have enough time to devote to them like they need. We will be keeping the chickens, ducks, goats and horses (and of course the dogs and bunnies).

Other than that...nothing else is going on.

Latest News

2010-07-10T06:38:00.000-07:00

We've been trying to keep everyone cool around here and let me tell you, it's not been easy! The A/C in the rabbitry has been running constantly. The horses have been spending alot of time in the shade, but you can still see them sweating...the dogs are only going out for a short time. The worst part about all this, is that it's only July! ---have I mentioned how much I LOVE fall?

Pete was sitting outside the other night and heard the chickens make a terrible ruckus...he went to investigate and found a 5 foot copper head snake trying to sneak and steal some of my silkie eggs. He killed it thank goodness, however I wish that we could have noticed him in the coop earlier---my button quail started disappearing and I couldn't figure out what was going on....now, I know. I have been collecting the quail eggs and putting them in the incubator. Hopefully they will hatch ( I no longer have any of the adults due to the snake). I will be putting moth balls out ASAP.

Taylorsville show is coming up and I don't know who we are going to show. We wormed and either the bunnies are in a serious molt, too young or have babies on them. I do have a couple of juniors that I would like to receive comments on if they can make weight. I also need to take the time to send off for our NJWC membership----I forgot about it and let it lapse months ago! Pete was really upset with me about it. We have placed in several shows and because I haven't been on top of things....we won't be getting any points for the last 7 shows that we have attended. I was told that the point system will begin again this month. Sometimes, I have so much going on, that it is just hard for me to remember everything and if I don't write it down, I'm screwed!

I also have a couple of dog shows that I plan on attending----Bones get to move up into a different class (9-12 months old). He is now going through his gangley stage, but I still want to show him so that he doesn't lose his "attitude" about being in the ring.

Trace is turning 13 on the 15th of this month! I no longer have a little boy....I'll be dealing with a teenager with raging hormones!

Other than that, not much going on. Hope all is well with everyone else and you are in our thoughts and prayers.

Happy 4th of July!

2010-07-04T19:00:00.000-07:00

We decided to have a cook out to celebrate the 4th---plenty of food and it was so good! My sister and Mom left after dinner to go celebrate the rest of the night in Love Valley. Pete, Trace and I decided we would just lay around the house. Last year we went to Mooresville to watch the fireworks and it took us 4 hours to get home (we only live an hour from there). Traffic was horrible and the fireworks weren't that great---didn't want to go again this year. Our neighbors have been setting off the fireworks since last night, and all the critters have been upset. We have alot of woods around our area and I hope that nothing catches on fire!
Our week has been very busy. We painted our kitchen---a yellow and it looks really nice---brightens the place up some! My sister has moved in with us for the summer and has decided that she wants to go to Afghanistan for a year to work. She has applied to about 14 different positions. Hopefully something will come through for her.
In other news, I found a gold mine! I was looking for some hay--$8.00 a bale is getting pretty costly for us--I found a guy who has over 100 round bales of fescue and orchard hay for $10.00 a bale! WHOOHOO. He also told me that everyone I sent to him (and they mentioned my name) he would sell me my round bales for less money. I know of several people looking for hay. He also told me that he was doing another cutting in about a month and if we wanted to pick it up from the field, he would let us have it for $5.00! Pete and I already have plans to get a flat bed trailer for when he does the cutting and getting stocked up for the winter. It's always a blessing when you can save a dollar or two.

Bella came into heat last week and was bred to Coldwater Creeks Mikey---hopefully she took and we will be expecting pups in late August or early September. I had Bella, Bones and Gabbi's pictures made by a friend of mine that owns a photograpghy studio and they really turned out nice....thought I would share one with you.
Hope every one's 4th was nice and you are all in my thoughts and prayers....until next time!

Talk about hot!

2010-06-26T20:15:00.000-07:00

Today we decided that the rabbitry needed a major cleaning. We drug out all of the cages (38 of them) so that they could be torched and pressure washed. Since we wormed all the rabbits about a week or so ago--and that threw them all into a major molt, we had woolie fur everywhere! I swept the floors and cobwebs. Once that task was completed, all the feed dishes were washed. Then, everything had to be brought back into the barn. Fresh shavings were put in the trays and rabbits were groomed. It took us about 5 hours to do everything---it was in the middle of the day and boy, was it ever HOT. I thought I was going to die of heat stoke and the poor bunnies were doing without the A/C since we had the door open. They did get to enjoy being in the xpen (in the shade) while we cleaned and rearranged the cages. I am very happy that we was able to get so much accomplished today. The rabbitry looks and smells great! Tomorrow will be house cleaning day since we were so tired from today's events---oh joy, I'm so looking forward to cleaning again (yeah right).
In other news, McKie's Lilly gave birth to 3 kits today. She is a broken chestnut and was bred to Rickie who is a REW....all 3 kits are chestnuts. Still waiting on several more does to kindle between tonight and the 2nd of July.
Hope all is well and you are in our thoughts and prayers!

Why?

2010-06-25T18:44:00.000-07:00

Ok, so I posted about our weekend sale just about everywhere that you can imagine. I have recieved several emails about the rabbits. My questions is why does a person respond to an ad, request all sorts of information and personal pictures (even though they are on my site) and then leave you hanging on wheter or not they are going to commit to the purchase? This drives me crazy! I understand that they may want a little more information--or maybe I wasn't clear enough on the description...that I don't mind dealing with. It's the folks that say, YES, YES, I WANT THEM AND I WILL BE THERE ! and then, you never hear from them again. In the mean time, you have already turned down other prospective buyers because of the I WANT THEM statement. Ok enough of the rant---I have actually sweetened the deal a little bit. I am offering a free breeding to any of my bucks to the does that are included in the package deal. I personally think this is a great deal and hopefully will interest more folks. This time around it will be a first come, first serve ( I'm not going to be waiting for someone to not show up) If you want this deal, you need to come and get them by Sunday the 27th. I have to move these rabbits out so that I can prepare for the 8 does that are due to kindle any day now.
I have also decided what other critters don't sale, it just wasn't meant to be and I will be keeping them---especially when it comes to the horses. That was the hardest thing I have ever had to do---list them for sale.
I still have not heard anything from the state, so I applied to a Medical Records job (offered by the state) to the prison in Burke county. The closing date for this position is on 7/2, so I know that it may take awhile for me to get a response.
Other than that, not much is going on. Hope all is well with everyone else!

Huge Weekend Sale On The Farm!

2010-06-23T15:18:00.000-07:00

We are going to be having a sale on most of our animals this weekend. I don't want to go into details at this time on why we are having the sale, but we are offering some really good deals. This is what is available:
Both Piper and Diego asking $1400.00 for the pair. Piper is broke to ride, Deigo is not. Deigo has came along way since we got him and is finally looking good-he is still a stud! Piper rides good, but hasn't been on in a year or so and will need a tune-up. I also have a female beige chinchilla with her cage, 20lbs of food and her wheel. I am asking $100.00 for her. Itzy (the female hedgehog) her cage and supplies $100.00. 3 muscovy ducks (one drake and 2 hens) plus 2 of their ducklings $40.00, 7 unrelated guniea pigs $10.00 each or all 7 for $50.00. A pair of chinese hamsters $20.00 and 2 blue russian dwarf hamsters (and their 3 young ones) $20.00 this includes the cage. I am also offering a total of 16 Jersey Woolies and 3 ND for one price of $350.00. I have one English lop buck (pet only) for $20.00. If anyone is interested in any of the above, you can email me at ploughrey@roadrunner.com. The animals will need to be picked up at my house this weekend, I can not hold them for you.
I have a couple of JW juniors that are going to be weaned soon and will also be added to my for sale page on my site.
I am not getting out of the rabbits, just need to cut WAY back on them. Hope all is well with everyone and you are in my thoughts and prayers!

Latest Happenings

2010-06-21T16:56:00.000-07:00

Bones and I had another dog show this weekend. On Saturday we took first place in our class. On Sunday we took another first place in our class and then moved up to the winners ring. We took reserve winner! This was very exciting for me--Bones sire, Tucker took winners dog. We had a great time and I was able to meet Krista from Mt. View kennels and also Mrs. Linda (Garlins kennels) and Lauren (Castleway kennels). They were really nice ladies and I enjoyed our visit. I recieved several very nice comments about Bones and everyone seems to think he is a natural in the show ring. He has the "show attitude" and loves to strut his stuff. He just turned 7 months old and has started off really well---hopefully it won't take me long to finish him. I also LOVE the showing! I still enjoy showing the rabbits as well and am extremely pleased in how our litters are turning out. We just put in 6 more nestboxes today. I have a couple of litters that are almost ready to wean and will be adding some more bunnies to my sales page in the next couple of weeks.
With everything that we have going on right now, I have also decided to sell some of the critters. I have 7 piggies, a pair of chinese hamsters, a pair of russian dwarf hamsters, 3 rats, a beige female chinchilla and (I can't believe I'm doing this), I am also offering Itzy--the female hedgie for sale. If you know of anyone interested in any of the above animals, send them my way. I wanted to start a small pet shop, but just don't have the time anymore.
It's been really hot in our area lately and thank goodness we have the A/C in the rabbitry...however I think I need to get a bigger one for next summer.
Other than that, not much going on....I added a picture of a shiz tu (not sure of the spelling) that was getting groomed before the show....I thought he was the most adorable thing so I thought I would share.
Hope all is well with your families and you are in our thoughts and prayers...

Just an update..

2010-06-15T14:51:00.000-07:00

Today we went through the rabbits and decided what we needed to move on--cage space is so limited and I still have several more does due within the next week or two. I updated the sales page on my site (pictures aren't the best), but I needed to go ahead list them. I also decided that my blog needed a "facelift" so I changed it as well. I really need to work on getting a better website. I like the company that I am hosted with, it's just that my site is so dull!
All the critters are doing fine. We did rehome all of the baby hamsters yesterday and there is now a new litter. I found out that our local pet store is closing soon and I asked the owner to let me know when they were planning on having the "closing the door" sale. I know I can get ahold of some really good deals on cages and other pet supplies.
My dad just got a new job, so Trace's vacation will be cut short...he will be coming home by the weekend. I know that he is disappointed.
Other than the above, not much going on. Hope all is well with everyone and we are looking forward to the next bunny show!

Great Weekend!

2010-06-13T19:17:00.000-07:00

Mrs. Cindy, Jane and I headed out for Ashville on Friday to attended the dog show. We arrived sometime after 4:00 and got things set up for the show for Saturday. Since it was a 2 day show we stayed at a motel not far from the grounds. Doxies were in the ring at 9:00 am on Saturday morning. I was nervous, but went in there like a pro. Bones showed very well for me. On Sunday we were not up until almost 2:00 and this time when we entered the ring, I was not nervous at all---we went in there and strutted our stuff! We came home with 2 first place ribbons. I must say that there were some amazing dogs there....I have never seen so many dogs in one place! I'm not exactly sure of the count, but if I had to guess, I would say there were at least 300 people and double that in dogs. Pete came up on Sunday to watch us show---I really appreciate him taking care of all the animals while I was gone, he even cleaned the rabbitry, so that it would be done before I came home. He is very supportive of me in anything that I decide I want to do and It's good to know that I don't have to worry about things when I am gone.
Even though I had a great weekend, I am glad to be back at home with my family---Bones and I are going to take a couple of days of much needed rest!
Hope all is well with everyone and you are in my thoughts and prayers!

Latest News

2010-06-09T18:44:00.000-07:00

Tomorrow is the last day of school for Trace and he leaves out for Louisiana on Saturday....he is so excited about all the events that my father has planned for the both of them. Last year, my dad purchased a new RV, so they plan on doing some driving, camping, fishing and tubing. Trace is also excited that he will be going into the 7th grade next year---time sure flies and before you know it, I'll be sending him off to college!

All the critters are doing well---the rabbits are molting like crazy since we wormed them. Bones has been at the handlers for almost 2 weeks and will return home on Friday. We leave out Friday to go to the dog show and I'm extremely nervous. Everyone keeps telling me to just relax and have fun, so that's what I'm gonna do. I don't expect much from him, he is still a pup and we have alot to learn, so if we can get in the ring without freaking out, we will be doing good. I put the baby ducks in the sink to let them swim around some---they sure had a good time! They are sooo cute. The 2 that I had planned on selling, are now spoken for and I had a lady contact me wanting a pair of the dwarf hamsters. All of the baby rats have found new homes and we have several button quail eggs in the incubator. Those little jokers lay like crazy---just won't sit them. The duck has laid a new clutch of eggs, so we will have some more baby ducks soon. Scooter is doing fine and growing like a weed! He has gotten to where he will follow me around the pasture like a puppy dog.

Other than the above, not much is going on. Hope all is well with everyone and until next time.....

Latest News

2010-06-06T13:26:00.000-07:00

My sister came down from Jacksonville to spend the weekend with us...it was alot of fun. She will be moving in for the summer while she concentrates on her real estate and gets started on her other business. She is going to do freight brokering (on the side). She is also going to be helping us in our search to locate our "dream property" with her being a realtor, she has access to more sources than we do. Our plan is hopefully to find something this summer while Trace is out of school and in Louisiana visiting his grandfather.
The guy came from Tennessee to collect his rabbits today (The Amercians I was keeping for him that came from California) and come to find out, he is good friends with Brian Caudill! He was a really nice fellow and also shows dogs, so I'm sure we will be seeing one another on occasions. I took pictures of a couple of his bunnies before they made their journey home.
Taboo kindled 4 kits today. She was bred to Hartman's Dude, so they should turn out nice. Friday, I spent the day cleaning the rabbitry and doing some grooming. All the bunnies were wormed on Saturday in hopes to get them to finish molting. The ducklings and chicks are doing well and later today, I'm going to put a little water in the bathtub, so they can swim around a bit---it's quite funny watching them all try and get into their water dish!
Today we are just relaxing from all the weekend activities. Hope all is well with everyone else. You are in our thoughts and prayers!

They are finally here!

2010-06-02T17:42:00.000-07:00

The baby ducks have arrived. She had 14 eggs, however only 4 ducklings hatched. one is going to be black and white and the other 3 are chocolate and white---just what I was hoping for! The chocolate Muscovy's are beautiful. We are planning on keeping 2 and selling 2. I had to bring them in the house and put them in with the silkie chicks because they kept getting through the pen and I was afraid something would get them. When they are bigger, I will put them back outside...for now, we will get the pleasure of watching them grow.
In rabbitry news, I am waiting on Phoebe to kindle and Taboo is also due this week. I bred 2 more does today.
Not much else going on. Hope all is well with everyone and look forward to seeing you all soon!

Crawfish boil Louisiana style!

2010-05-31T20:47:00.000-07:00

Sherri arrived with the crawfish around 3:00 pm today and boy was I ready to eat! She had them on ice for the 16 hour drive, so they were still good and fresh. Trace decided that he would play with a couple of them (since they were live) while we prepared the cooking pot. We added ears of corn, potatoes and mushrooms in with the Louisiana seasonings...in about an hour, we were ready to chow down. My brother-in-law and his family joined us and since they had never tried Crawfish before, we had to show them how to peel and eat the tails and then suck the heads. We all were about to bust by time it was all over. What we couldn't finish eating, we peeled and will put them in the freezer to eat at another time. For awhile, I thought I was back at home.
In other news, I was contacted to see if I would be interested in housing some American rabbits, that are being delivered from California, for a week. I am very excited about this because I have not seen this breed in person and I will get to learn about them while they are here at my rabbitry. The new owner resides in Tennessee and will come and pick them up this coming weekend. I will post some pictures of them in a couple of days. I will be picking them up sometime after midnight. In return for taking care of them, Bones will get to spend a week with a professional handler before our next show. It's a win/win situation.
I also took a couple of pictures of Scooter today. Other than the above, not much else going on. Looking forward to seeing everyone at the next show!

Taylorsville show

2010-05-30T19:36:00.000-07:00

Saturday was the Taylorsville show and we had a great time. Allison, Ariana and Joe came down from Maryland to join us for the show and we really enjoyed their visit. It was good to see everyone again even though it was awful hot out. We were pleased with our show results:
BL'S Ruby won BOG,BOB in show A & B (this will give her a total of 11 legs at this point). TB'S Rickie won BOSG, BOSB in show B. BL'S Isis was 1/4 in show B and also received BOV in the jr. does. CW's Sea Spirit received a BOG in show B ( I think this may be her first leg). We would also like to say Congrats to Joni for her BOSB with her buck. Everyone had some really nice rabbits!
In Youth, Ariana won BOB and BOSB with two of the chestnut bunnies that were purchased from us. Trace won BOB in show B with McKie's Lilly and Kelsy from Maryland won BOSB. Allison also placed very well with some more of the BL'S Bunnybarn stock. We are very proud of the way that our rabbits are turning out lately.
We also met a lady that is just getting started in the wooly breed and we gave her a really nice junior buck to help her get going. I think she was pleased with him.
In rabbitry news, BL's Mellow x Hartman's dude gave birth to 3 babies on Friday--2 REWS and a broken black. BL's Legacy gave birth on the wire this morning...the babies did not survive.
In other news, Scooter is doing fine and spends most of his time sleeping---he does like to run circles around his mama bucking and kicking! he is just too cute. Ducks haven't hatched yet and we will start a new round of silkie and button quail eggs sometime this week.
My sister made a trip home to Louisiana and will return tomorrow with 40lbs of crawfish---WE ARE GONNA HAVE US A CRAWFISH BOIL! I am so excited! haven't had any since we left Louisiana in 2005 and my mouth is already watering. I invited my MIL, but she said "NO Way" would she even try them....that's OK though, leaves more for me!

Hope all is well with everyone else and you are in our thoughts and prayers!

Newest Happenings!

2010-05-26T19:00:00.000-07:00

On May 24th I was awaken by Pete at 6:30 am to come and meet the newest addition to our farm. Maggie gave birth to a beautiful bay colt! We have named him Scooter and he is quite the character. Very nosey and acts a lot like his daddy. He loves to be scratched and petted on. Maggie is a good mama and watches over him like a hawk. We have her on mare and foal feed, so he is getting plenty of milk. We are very excited that he is here and it has been a long 11 months awaiting his arrival. I will be keeping everyone updated as he grows.

In other news, I spent 5 hours cleaning the rabbitry, putting in nestboxes for the next round of does due and grooming---I am exhausted! I also bred Ruby and Cajun (both to Rickie) and am really looking forward to these two litters. Kaycee was bred to Shazaam and Lilly was bred to Rickie as well. I also bred McKie's Olympia to Hartman's Dude in hopes for a broken Chinchilla.

Mellow, Legacy, Taboo and Phoebe are all due this week. Trace has a really cute broken smoke pearl that he plans on showing at the next show and we hope she does well for him.

I emailed off our entries for the up coming show---we will be bringing 4 and Trace will have 4 to show as well.

The rest of my day was spent cleaning off the porch and doing some rearranging...Pete finally got the grass mowed, so now everything looks better.

We only had two silkie chicks to hatch(they have already been promised) and the little button quail did not make it....maybe we will have better luck next time.

Hope all is well with everyone...you are in our thoughts and prayers!

Columbia Show

2010-05-23T21:32:00.000-07:00

WOW! what a show...we had a great time. We had the chance to see some of our bunny buddies and meet some new folks. We decided to go ahead and enter under Pete and Brandi at this show instead of waiting. We brought a total of 5 rabbits (3 for Pete and I, and 2 for Trace to show in youth).
Our results were:
Show A--open
BL'S Isis 9 week old REW doe--BOG, BOB (this floored me! I knew she was nice, however it is hard for a junior to beat a senior rabbit for BOB)
BL'S Ruby 1/5
Lynch's Yeow 1/1 (he was the only tan pattern there and in a sever molt).
Show A--Youth
BL's Cajun BOB
TB's Budda BOSB
Show B--open
BL'S Isis goes on to win BOB again!
BL'S Ruby BOG, 1/5
Lynch's Yeow 1/1
Show B --Youth
BL's Cajun BOB
TB'S Budda BOSB
JW Specialty show:
BL'S Isis BOG
BL'S Ruby BOB
We were excited that we did so well, but the highlight of the show, was when they had the best junior contest. BL'S Isis won over 39 other rabbits of different breeds! I was in complete shock. The judge had Isis and Gary Smiths ND on the table for a third and final look. I just knew that Gary had that win under his belt cause the ND was a BEAUTIFUL Siamese sable. The judge commented on how nice the rabbits were...he said "some of the best juniors I've ever seen". and then he said, "the best junior here, is the REW junior doe". I almost cried. Our prize was $49.50. Half of the money went to me, the other half to the show. I told Pete on the way home, that I could care less if Isis ever won anything again....to me that was bigger than anything I could have hoped for. I know this may sound crazy, but it's true. I was offered $100.00 for her, by a man at the show)I said, "sorry she's not for sale". He then offered $200.00 ( I really had to think about it for a second) I turned him down. As the rest of the day continues and we are waiting for BIS.....the man is getting ready to leave and approaches me again. This time with an offer of $300.00. He said this is my final offer. I said no. I know that it sounds crazy and I should have sold her ( I don't even know if the man was being for real or not), but I just couldn't bring myself to let go of her. However, I did sell him 2 other of the rabbits that I brought for sale and I gave him a good deal. Deider Edder also purchased 2 bunnies from us and I think they will do well for her.
I would also like to say congrats to Kristen Drum for her BOSB win (she was not able to come so Joni showed her rabbits for her) and to everyone else who placed in the shows. I really am happy with the way that our rabbitry has improved and we have some nice up and coming bunnies.
I went through the barn today and made some hard decisions on who to keep and who to sell---getting harder every time I have to evaluate, but I need the cage space, so some of them have to go. all I have are REWs and I will be updating the sales page over the next couple of days. Trace also has a bunny for sale that we need to put on his site. Discounts will be offered to youth breeders.
In other news, we had our first silkie chick hatch---looking forward to more. Thanks to Teresia and her hubby for loaning us the incubator.
We are looking forward to the next show and Allison and her family will be joining us, so we are excited they are coming up all the way from Maryland!
Hope all is well with everyone else...you are in our thoughts and prayers!

New Additions

2010-05-19T17:18:00.000-07:00

BL's Righteous X McKie's Kace Q had a litter of 2 today (1 broken and 1 chestnut). O'Hare's Pity X Hartman's Dude had a litter of 6 (all broken) and A BABY BUTTON QUAIL HATCHED! I am so excited. We have never used an incubator before and I wasn't so sure that we could hatch anything from it....Pete called me over and said it's starting to hatch! I said "what is hatching?" he said one of the quail eggs. I went to check it out and sure enough you could see it's tiny beak pecking at the shell. Finally it was out of the egg and it is the smallest thing I think I have ever seen! really about the size of a bumble bee. I hope the little fellow makes it. We have several others in the incubator as well, so I'm looking forward to more of these little ones. Mr. Bill was here and got to see it---he claims that he was looking to purchase some and they were about $30.00 a chick! I told him not to worry, we would give him a couple. I do plan on selling some of them, but I know they won't be priced that high from me! (I'm thinking more on the lines of $10.00 a chick). We are still waiting on the first peeps to come from the silkie chicks.

I love all new babies and am excited that spring is in the air. I still have 4 more does that are due in the next week or two and a couple of litters that need to be weaned. I have some really nice juniors that I will be selling at the Columbia show and also the Taylorsville show...haven't taken pictures of all the ones that will be available---I'm still trying to decide!

Hope all is well with everyone else and until next time!

Always Busy!

2010-05-16T18:44:00.000-07:00

Today we spent several hours in the rabbitry cleaning pans and grooming rabbits. I also had to decide who we were going to be showing in Columbia. Again, pickings are slim---most of them are in a molt, have babies on them or are bred and due soon. I have some young juniors I thought about showing, but decided against it for right now. Pete and Trace will be the only one' s showing....I will be tagging along so that I can see all my bunny buddies! We have also decided that after the next two shows, we will be showing under one name. Our entries will read Pete and Brandi. We feel that it will work better for us that way, instead of having to divide the rabbits up to "his/mine". Trace will still have his own rabbits and website.

What time was not spent cleaning the rabbitry, was spent on cleaning the house...it so needed it!

I received some really great news from Mrs. Cindy today---she went to an all hounds specialty show in Raleigh and Bones's sire won BOB! This was very exciting for the both of us. Tucker has earned another point towards his championship. I wanted to attend the show, however I had to much to take care of on the home front.

The baby hamsters and rats are growing like weeds...I swear every time I go to check on them, they have gotten bigger! I took a couple of pictures of the horses today---they are really enjoying all the grass.

Not much else going on, just wanted to let you know you are in my thoughts and prayers.......

Dog show and other news

2010-05-15T16:30:00.000-07:00

Today was mine and Bones's first puppy match. Things started out pretty good---I got up early, made sure I had everything and was excited. When we arrived at the show, I was calm and enjoying the sights. OMG there were some beautiful dogs there! It wasn't a big show, if I had to guess, I would say about 25-30 dogs of different breeds. My sister, Sherri drove 4 hours to be there for moral support (Pete and Trace, of course were also there) I had my own little "cheering squad"! I was relaxed and ready to get things started....finally it was time! I had Bones ready and stepped into the ring-------my mind drew a total blank and I felt like I was going to be sick. I was sweating and thinking to myself "what am I suppose to do now?" I was a complete nervous wreak and wanted to run and hide. Thank goodness the judge was nice and started talking me through things. She told me to relax and it would all be ok..."just talk to your dog and relax", she kept telling me. When it came time to stack him on the table, the judge smiled at me and said "it's ok, you are going to be ok. Just remember this is yours and the pups first time, it does get easier". Her voice seemed to calm me down somewhat and I was able to complete another round in the ring. I guess my nerves were written all over my face cause several people asked me if I was ok. Second time in the ring, was a little better for me. I was very proud of Bones for moving like he was suppose to and not laying in the middle of the ring with his belly up begging for tummy rubs! We brought home 3 ribbons! This show was a match, so we didn't earn any points (and that's ok because I didn't expect us to do that well). We do have our first point show coming up next month and I am so excited.....I have been bitten by the dog show bug!

In rabbitry news, TB'S Sugar Pea X Hartman's Dude produce 5 kits this morning. 2 are peanuts, but the other 3 are nice and healthy. Teresia Burlson will get first choice of the babies (this is a shaded litter). We also had a litter of 6 Russian hamsters and a litter of 9 Dumbo rats born yesterday. The duck is still sitting her eggs and the incubator chicks are due to start hatching on the 21st.

Other than that, not much else going on----hope all is well on your side of town---until next time...

Deal of the day!

2010-05-13T12:23:00.000-07:00

A couple of weeks ago, I had gone into Tractor Supply to look around and I noticed that they were carrying a new dog food by the name of 4Health. I looked at the ingredients and thought that it might be worth a try, so I picked up a pamphlet they had available. I did some research on it through the Internet and also called the company for more information. They told me that TS was offering a $5.00 off coupon and that I could go to their (TS) site and download the coupon, so I did.
To back up a little, my dogs are VERY picky eaters. I have tried several different brands of dog foods on them to see what they would eat and what they turned their nose up at. I wanted a dog feed that was high in protein, but yet something that would not cause them to be overweight ( I free feed). I wanted something that was good for their coats, as well as help with joints and muscles. I also wanted something that started with a "meat" in the ingredients, and not have alot of additives and fillers---however I also needed to be able to afford it.
Today I decided to make a trip into town and stop by Tractor Supply...they were having a sale! They were offering $5.00 off of several of the name brand dog foods that they carry and 4Health was one of them, so between the coupon I had printed off of the Internet and the store sale, I got a 35lb bag of the 4Health for $20.00! WOOHOO what a bargain. The Purina puppy chow that I am currently feeding is $16.99 for a 16lb bag, so I feel like I saved a few bucks. As I walked around the store, I also noticed that they had Ivermetion horse wormer (in apple flavor) for $5.99 a tube----this was another great bargain---and since it was time to worm the horses (I have 4) I picked some of that up as well. I am pleased with the fact, that I was able to save some money on the things that I needed.
When I arrived home, I mixed in some of the new dog feed with the old, to see how the dogs would react....they loved the new stuff! and picked it out of the Purina. Guess I finally found something that the dogs will eat and be happy about it. If you are interested in finding out more about this food, you can go to their site at www.4healthpetfood.com. Also don't forget to go to the Tractor Supply website and download your $5.00 off coupon. I'm not sure how long the sale is going on, but if you want a deal for your dogs or horses, I suggest going right away!
Until next time......

Just an update

2010-05-11T19:16:00.000-07:00

We still have no babies from Itzy, so I called and talked with Amber about what could possibly be wrong...she thinks that Itzy may have given birth and has eaten them. She explained to me that this was not uncommon for a first time mom. I checked her cage for any signs of birth and found nothing---Amber says that is also not uncommon. I spoke with Jacklyn about what was going on and we decided to try and get her bred again. Maybe next time we will have better luck and if not, then I guess she just wasn't meant to be a mommy. Itzy is my little cuttle bug and I love her, so it really doesn't matter to me whether she has a litter or not.

We are hoping to go to the Columbia show on the 22nd, however I have been told some very sad news and at this time we are not sure if the show will go on. Mrs. Edder has told me she will keep me updated on the situation. Mrs. Bennett and her family are in our thoughts and prayers.

I have another Dr.'s appointment tomorrow and I hope that they will release me to go back to work, however I feel that the way things are going at this point (with the doctor's restrictions) that my seasonal job at Lowe's will be over by time I am 100% which is what Lowe's is requiring. I'm still hoping that the state will call me soon.

I've slowly been working on my Dackelhunds site and hope it will be up and running soon. It's nothing real fancy, but it' s a start and at this point, I do not have the money to pay someone to build me a more professional site. I would also like a better site for my rabbits. I asked Pete for some graphic software and photo shop for Christmas, so maybe he will get it for me.

Other than that, not much going on. Hope all is well with everyone and you are always in our thoughts and prayers. Until next time.....

Busy Weekend!

2010-05-09T17:59:00.000-07:00

Happy Mother's Day!!!! I hope everyone had a great day....I know I did. Trace bought me a new Gary Allen CD and Dustin called me from Maryland (haven't heard from him since before Christmas).

Sherri, my sister, came in on Friday and we had a wonderful visit. Spent all day out running around and enjoying the beautiful weather. We went in half and purchased Mom a new microwave (hers was like 20 years old and finally bit the bullet) then we all went out to eat. Today was spent with Pete's mother and she prefers labor over a gift. They do "good son deeds", such as cutting down trees and what ever work that she may need done around her house that she can't do herself. It was cool here in Harmony today and all of the critters enjoyed that.

Itzy still has not given birth and I am starting to get really concerned---I will call the vet first thing in the morning. She doesn't even look pregnant anymore and I wonder if she had them and then ate them.....however, I see no evidence of any type of birth and I check on her all the time. I have been laying await for the last couple of nights waiting to hear any type of squeaking sounds---nothing, just her crunching on her food. I have tried to be very careful and not stress her in any way and I haven't moved anything around in her cage. Hopefully tomorrow I can find out some answers.

All the baby bunnies are doing well and are in the cutest stage----I wish I could keep them all! The baby Chinese Hamsters have found a new home and the family is coming all the way from Virginia to get them this coming weekend. Bones and I also have our first dog show. It is only a match, but I'm super excited (and nervous). He has been doing so good and now knows how to free stack. I'm very proud of him.

Not much else going on. Hope all is well and until next time......

Incubating!

2010-05-02T16:30:00.000-07:00

Yesterday we had a visitor, Mr. Bill from Willow Walker rabbits. Pete had repaired his roof for him awhile back and he needed some more information for his insurance company. It was a nice visit and we talked a little about the rabbits. He liked our rabbitry setup and put in an order on some button quail chicks (when I have some available). We spent the rest of the day cleaning pans and doing some light grooming. I've started to evaluate the newest babies and so far have 4 that I know will be definite keepers. I have also decided that I am going to move Embers on after she weans her litter. I LOVE this does head and ears, but am not happy about her hind end.

A while back when we had visited Teresa and Doug, they had loaned us an incubator. We decided that we were going to give it a try. I collected all the button quail eggs as well as the Silkie chicken eggs, washed them good and stuck them in the incubator. Now, we just have to wait and see if we are working it correctly and hopefully will have some chicks. I started to grab a couple of the duck eggs as well, but the hen has been sitting on them faithfully, so I will leave her alone and let her do her job. I have a couple of folks that are interested in the ducklings, so that's good that I have a market for them already!

Still no hedgie babies yet. I did take a picture of a VERY pregnant Itzy last night, so I guess this is all we can see till the young ones arrive.

Hope all is well with everyone!

Positive Things!

2010-04-30T19:17:00.000-07:00

Finally some good things have been happening for us. First, Pete is going back to his old company that he was working for when we met...Statesville roofing. He was the project manager before he quit the company when we decided to move to Louisiana. Yesterday, he saw that they had posted a job opening, so this morning we went to check it out. Everyone was glad to see him and they defiantly wanted him to come back to work for the company. He starts next Monday. He will have to start out as a regular commercial roofer for 30 days and then he can move back up into the position that he had before....he is overjoyed! He was not really liking the factory work, but at least it was a job (even though it did not pay much, some money is better than no money!). As far as my job situation, I am still trying to get on with the state. I talked with them last week and they are hiring and doing interviews at this time. Good news, I am on the roster....bad news, is the Human Resource manager told me that the roster is 40 pages long and it could take up to 6 months before they can get everyone interviewed!!!! I am going to have to call on a couple of folks that I know in the correctional field and see what kind of strings I can pull. Good news....I have 5 years experience. Bad news....I left DCI as a Sargent, but I will have to start at the bottom of the ladder here in North Carolina, because rank doesn't hold position in another state unless you transfer from one facility to another. I don't mind starting at the bottom, I just want to hurry and get in there! do my time for a couple of years and then go into probation/parole. I am trying to be patience and I do believe that good things come to those who wait.

In other news, Itzy is due to have her babies tomorrow (if I calculated right) and I already have a waiting list of 5 people! I doubt that she will have that many babies, so I will be selling them at first come, first serve. It's going to drive me crazy when she does have them, because I have been told and read that you can not mess with them or the mother for 2 weeks when they are born. They may eat them if disturbed. If i know me (and I do know me) I'm gonna want to play with them! I will be good though and only post pictures of them, when they are old enough. The ducks have laid 14 eggs and are finally sitting them now. My button quail are also sitting, so I guess that before long we will have ducklings and baby quail as well. The bunnies are doing fine, other that the fact that a couple of them have gone off their feed....I believe it is because they are going through a molt...however I am keeping a close eye on them and have been feeding them hay and lots of clover. I have 2 tiny tort babies that I am also keeping a close eye on. They look and feel fine, but they are only half the size of their litter mates. All of my does have had their litters with the exception of 2 and I don't know why they didn't take. I am trying a buck that I recently got and so far, he hasn't produce anything. I know that he is fertile because I have a son of his....and he is doing his business on the does like a madman, so at this point I'm not quite sure what I need to do other than just keep trying him and cross all of my fingers and toes. I really like the buck. He is small and typey, plus he is a really nicely marked broken black. Wish me luck!
Well, that is all the news I have for now. Hope all is well with you and your families......until next time.

Feeling Better

2010-04-26T15:47:00.000-07:00

The last couple of days, I have been in a sort of slump (for a better word depressed). I have some decision that I need to make, so that I can figure out where my future is going to take me and I can't seem to come up with the answers that I need. I hate feeling like I don't know what direction to take....anyhow, I realize that this blog has become my place to vent, and that is not what I wanted. I don't need to place my "personal" drama on my blog that is suppose to be rabbit and other animal related---so, I will try to stay on that subject.

Today, Pete had to put down one of my tort does that I was really looking forward to putting on the show tables soon....she was coming along really nice! I had her out and was checking her over (due to the fact that she hadn't eaten in 2 days) and I noticed that her teeth were all messed up. I don't know if it was chewing on her cage wire or she developed malocclusion (not sure of the spelling). we have never had a problem with our JW's teeth before, however when we were breeding the ND, we did have one doe that had malocclusion. We took her to the vet in Hickory and he trimmed her teeth. He showed us how to do it, so that next time we could just clip them ourselves. We did this for months and it never got any better...we ended up having to put her down because her mouth was so sore that she just stopped eating period. Anyway this is the only time that we had to deal with this type of situation. The tort doe's teeth were already starting to grow into her jaw and I knew that there was no way we could even get the clippers into her mouth to trim the teeth---we did what we felt was best for her.

All the other critters are doing fine...I have lots of babies in the nestbox with a variety of colors---it is going to be really hard to decide who stays this go around. I also have some baby Chinese hamsters (3 of them) that will be ready for new homes soon and Trace still has a litter of baby rats that are ready to go now---they are beautifully marked with tan and white coloring. We are asking $5.00 each for the rats and hamsters and they can be delivered to the Taylorsville show in May. I have decided to sell Trace's chestnut doe, Righteous as well. she has 3 legs and is ready to GC. The only thing I can fault her on, is that she is a little long in the body...she still shows well though. I am asking $40.00 for her, if you know anyone who might be interested. Itzy (the hedgehog) is due to have her babies on May 1st and I'm so excited! I had the chance to see baby hedgies that the Mcginnis had, and they are so cute! First pick will go to Jacklyn Taylor and the rest will probably be available after they are weaned...if you want one of these cute little critters contact me.

Well, that is all for now...hope all is well and you are all in my thoughts and prayers! Until next time.

Where is life leading me?

2010-04-23T16:14:00.000-07:00

Do you ever wondering where your life is leading you? Do you ever feel like you need to make some changes on how you are living and how you deal with issues? These are a couple of the questions I have been asking myself over the last couple of days. I have a few hard decisions that I need to make and can't seem to find the answers for them that I need. One of the things that I am facing at this point is--do I want to return home to Louisiana where I have a house and 5 acres that is mortgage free or do I want to try and stay in North Carolina to put down roots, OR would I actually like to move to another state that I have never been to and start over completely. Their are pros and cons to each of these events. The one thing that I can be POSITIVE about, is that I am not giving up any of my animals under any circumstances---they are helping me live out my dream of wanting my own farm. I know I would never be happy living in the city in a tiny apartment somewhere. I am most happy when I am playing with and caring for the animals and being able to sit on my porch and look at an empty open field instead of my neighbor! There is little too know work in North Carolina, but I hear it is like that everywhere. I like the fact that NC seems to have the most rabbit shows---honestly folks, this is all the "extra" activity me and my family have.
The next issue that I seem to be facing now, is how I chose my friends. I will be the first to admit that I am the biggest push-over that I know and seem to bow down around folks because I am not one for confrontation or to say no to someone. I used to be very shy and didn't like to be around people---now I look at myself as outgoing and friendly...even somewhat of a mingler. I can count on one hand how many people are truly my friends (not just my friends when they want or need something). Those are the ones that I value the most and would do anything for. I do have people that I enjoy talking to and like being around and then there are those that only intend to use me for their benefit---from now on, I am going to start standing up for myself and not taking the BS anymore...I'm too old for it and life is way to short.
I have a few other issues that I am dealing with, however at the moment I really don't feel like bringing them up---I just need to vent a little and now I feel better!

In other news, all the animals are doing well....my nest boxes are overflowing and I am now up to 8 duck eggs as of today!

Hope all is well with everyone else and hope to see you soon!

Sales Policy and Contracts

2010-04-21T11:55:00.000-07:00

Today got me thinking about what may happen in the event of not having a sales policy or written contract. I go to several websites a day (rabbit, horse, and just about every kind of animal you can think of), most of them have a sales policy or a contract on their site, that explains what they expect from you as a buyer and what they will be or not be responsible for as a seller.
What happens when you don't have a policy or a written contract?

First off, you are leaving yourself wide open for a whole world of trouble....the person you are buying from may change their mind about selling you the item after you have put down a deposit or could even change the purchase price...um, because they feel like it! without a contract, what proof do you have, stating that once a deposit was received the item would no longer be for sale at the price it was stated?
Secondly, years ago a verbal agreement and a handshake was all that was needed to seal a deal---well, not anymore folks. According to a lawyer friend of mine, if someone decides to take you to court and sue you, the only thing that will stand up in the court of law, is written documentation. Everything has to be proved, otherwise it is a he said she said type of deal and most of the time it ends up getting tossed out of court and you may be left paying the court fees for nothing!
Thirdly and most importantly, never trust someone who claims to be your friend (a lot of times we tend to go out of our way to "help" a friend out....we feel obligated to give discounts or to sell them something that we didn't want to, just because they are "Friends". Now, don't get me wrong, I enjoy the friends that I do have and would do anything that they asked of me---however we must remember that business is business and a line has to be drawn somewhere.
You wouldn't purchase a car or a house without a contract, would you? why should it be different with any other purchases that you make? If you are in the hobby of rabbits, horses, dogs or whatever you may be doing, and you are selling the animals or products, it still is considered a business and should be treated as such.
It is YOUR responsibility as the seller to make sure that you have a sales policy and or written contract....this way the buyer knows what to expect. If the buyer feels as if they shouldn't have to sign anything or choose not to follow your sales policy, then I strongly suggest not dealing with that person any longer.
I, personally have a sales policy on my website and it has been a tremendous help to my buyers... they now know what is expected in the purchase of any item that I may have for sale.
Bottom line is, everyone should have a written contract or sales policy in place when deciding to purchase or sell anything---in the long run, it could possibly save you alot of trouble!

Hope all is well....and your days are successful!

Exciting News

2010-04-18T11:06:00.000-07:00

I received an email yesterday from my good friend, Cindy (she owns coldwater creek doxies where Gabbi and Bones come from)...Tucker--Bone's sire, earned another point towards his major this weekend at the dog show. Bone's half sister, who is being shown in California right now, won her puppy class! This was very exciting news for me and I hope that Bones will show just as well as his family members. He will be shown for the 1st time in May and hopefully I won't be to nervous and ruin it for him. He seems to enjoy being in the ring when we attend puppy classes and has a very out going personality.
When I first decided that I wanted to show the doxies, I was unsure how I would be able to handle both the showing of the rabbits and the dogs---now I feel confident that I will be able to manage both. I don't foresee myself showing at the larger dog shows (like the national dog shows), but I am hoping that we do well enough to do some traveling and my main goal is to see if I can finish Bones and make him a GC....even if he never points out, I think it will be fun and yet a learning experience as well.

In rabbitry news, the newest litters are looking very promising and it is going to be hard to decide who will stay and who will need to move on. We are working on all the color groups with the exception of the AOV. We will keep one of the does that we bought from Teresia B.--she has thrown me 2 very nice Siamese sable babies in this last litter. I also just received a very nice smoke pearl doe from Teresia, and can't wait to get this doe bred. All of the does that I had bred, took with the exception of one (Righteous) and she will be re bred this afternoon.

Not much else going on, just enjoying the beautiful weather that we have had the last couple of days---oh! I forgot, we now currently have 5 duck eggs and are hoping that she starts to set soon!

Hope all is well with everyone and you are in our thoughts and prayers...

Took a few photos

2010-04-16T15:08:00.000-07:00

Today Pete cleaned the rabbitry and now everything is once again fresh and clean. I needed to update my website, so we took new pictures of the rabbits and some recent purchases we have made.

I traded Teresia B a baby goat for a rabbit. We named him Trouble and he likes to stand guard over the ducks! He is a cute little fellow and seems to get along well with the dogs.

Speaking of the dogs, I also worked on stacking Bones today....he really wasn't in a co-operative mood. I have been taking him to puppy classes and he is doing well so far. Hopefully I will be able to take him to attend his first show in May.

My sister was suppose to come for a visit this weekend, but that didn't work out---guess we will just sit home and enjoy the nice weather that we have been having.

Not much else going on. Hope to hear that everyone is well and we are looking forward to the next rabbit show!

What has been going on

2010-04-15T11:47:00.000-07:00

My internet has been down for quite some time...but now I am back on line and can proceeded with my life. I didn't realize how much the internet meant to me until I found out that several folks had been trying to contact me via email for rabbit sales and such. I also missed my favorite forum the Rabbit Habbit and have spent the last 2 days catching up with everything.

We now have a new email address---PLOUGHREY@roadrunner.com if any one needs to contact me.

All the critters are doing fine and Itzy is now bred...we are looking forward to the baby hedgies in about 30 days. I already have folks inquiring about them. I've added a couple more silkie chickens and muscovy ducks to the farm. The ducks have laid 3 eggs so far!

Pete finally got a factory job and is not to happy about it...he is waiting for the construction to pick back up and in the mean time I am sitting at home with a hurt shoulder that happened while I was at Lowes unloading a truck----I sure hope the state calls me soon. They said that I scored really high on the state exam and was on the roster for alexander county as well as Burke county.

We attended the Taylorsville show on April 10th and did really well. Pete took BOB and BOSB in both show A and B. Trace took BOSB in the youth show and Josie took BOB---congrats and way to go Josie. We wanted to attend the JW nationals, but could not afford the trip....however Taylosville was nice and relaxing and everything went smooth.

I have several litters in the nestbox and some really promising juniors, so I am excited about that as well as rabbit sales seem to be picking up. I even had a few out-of-staters contact me about wanting to purchase rabbits from me....which makes me feel awesome that folks are starting to notice the quailty of our rabbits. We have worked hard to improve the bloodlines and it's nice to know that they are doing well on the show tables.

I hope to hear that all is well with everyone and a big congrats goes out to all the JW national winners!

BABIES GLORE!

2010-02-17T19:34:00.000-08:00

It has been an interesting couple of days---we have hit a major baby boom! Marti gave birth on last night to 2 beautiful babies. One red and white female and one tri-colored male (who is mostly black and white with a little tan around the eyes and muzzle). These puppies will be the last litter for Marti, as she will be spayed when the pups are weaned. We may have interest in the little girl...so the male will be the only one available. I am not going to register these pups.

In other baby news, in my previous post, I told you about coming home to Violet (the rat) and her 13 babies, well she now has 11 and they all seem to be doing fine. Roxie (another one of Trace's rats) gave birth tonight---not sure how many yet, as she was still birthing when I set down to type this.

Pete and I spent all day searching for jobs...no luck yet. Hopefully something will come through for us soon. We are planning on having another yard sale this coming weekend, so that will help alot.

In rabbitry news, we bred 3 more does yesterday. We have some really nice litters that we recently weaned and I have 2 more litters that will be coming off their mom's in a few days.

The weather is still cold and bitter here, but at least it is not snowing or raining!

Other than that, not much else going on! Enjoy the photo of the puppers.....

Busy Day!

2010-02-14T15:54:00.000-08:00

The sun was out today, so we decided to tackle the rabbitry that was in desperate need of a good cleaning. Pete started with the cages and I had the task of washing all the feed dishes. He also groomed the bunnies really good before putting them back in the cages that he had to scrub and peel the hair off of. Now everything is nice and clean and it smells wonderful in there. The bunnies seem to look and feel alot better as well.
Teresia B. and her hubby, Doug came for a visit today and to pick up Cisty. I showed her all of the new babies and some of the older rabbits that I have not shown yet, to see what she thought of them. She seemed pleased and said " I have some nice bunnies in the barn". I was glad to hear that because I value her opinion alot. We bred Kace Q to Cisty and hope she gets some nice babies out of it....the last litter (same breeding) threw some really awesome babies. Speaking of babies, we had to meet someone at 4:00 today--she wanted to purchase some of Trace's baby rats. The lady was very nice and ended up getting 3 of them....anyway, back to the story, when we arrived home, Trace's rat, Violet had given birth to 13 Little ones!!!!!!! Thank goodness we have the extra room for them now
We are all exhausted from the days events, so I will probably hit the bed early tonight. Hope all is well with everyone and you are all in my thoughts and prayers. Until next time.......

UGH! MORE SNOW

2010-02-12T15:00:00.000-08:00

I can't stand it! we are expecting a winter Storm again this weekend...starting tonight! It was finally starting to melt were we live---however it has turned everything into a muddy mess, but I was enjoying the sun that has been out the last 2 days. The stores are packed and everyone is preparing to stock up on food and candles (talking about power outages is our area). I am soooo ready for Spring and warmer weather. I know that the critters would welcome the sun and green grass. The dogs are getting to where they don't want to venture outside to go potty, so I've been stocking up on the peepee pads.
In other news, I passed my state exam, but haven't heard any news about a opening in the DOC, so I have applied to the Lowe's company that is only a couple of miles from the house. Keeping fingers crossed that I will hear something soon. The unemployment office has been packed for months and I was just informed that my benefits are exhausted and I don't qualify for the extension. Pete has not worked in weeks due to the weather we have been having, so with all that being said---we won't be attending any rabbit shows anytime soon.
I have some new babies that I have added to my for sale page---a couple of them, I wish I could keep and grow out, however I don't have the extra cage space....so they need to move along. Mellow and 9M produce 4 beautiful kits, but one didn't make it---the others are doing fine. I also have a litter from China Doll and 9M and am looking forward to seeing how these babies turn out. I had gotten out of the tan pattern for awhile and now I have decided to try it again...wish me luck.

Other than that, not much going on---just wanted to let you know that you are all in my thoughts and prayers!

Helping New Breeders

2010-02-10T12:33:00.000-08:00

Last night I was sitting and reminiscing about when I first got started into the rabbits and how far I have come over the years...so today's post is about "helping out a new breeder"...we all were once that person and I was just curious to how people handle dealing with new breeders. I, personally enjoy it.
When I started out, I didn't even know what a Jersey Wooly was--we were at a show (our first) and I saw a spotted bunny and had to have it! I approached the owner of the rabbit and asked what breed it was. She was very nice and told me it was a wooly and answered endless questions that I had (all with a smile on her face). I paid $65.00 for my new beauty and had been invited to attend the next show. The ladies name was Rachel Waltz out of Baton Rouge Louisiana---I don't know if she still shows or breeds anymore, but I will never forget her. She provided me with her business card and told me if I needed anything to give her a call or drop by and see her. I don't think she realized at that time, what she was getting into! I called her SEVERAL times...I had endless amounts of questions and we would spend hours on the phone or sitting at her table talking about the rabbits. She was kind enough to show me her rabbitry set up and how she worked her breeding program. She showed me the ropes at the next show and congradulated me win I won BOSB with the bunny that I purchased from her. When it was time for me to do my first breeding, she walked me through the steps and helped me choose the right buck that I needed to get my start. She let me cry on her shoulder when I lost a litter and she always told me to hang in there when I would get discourged and just wanted to quit. If I didn't place well at a show, her comment would be "it's ok, you will do better next time". We become really good friends and I knew that I could always count on her...and her smile. Since we have moved to North Carolina, I haven't heard from her (she moved as well), but I owe mostly what I know about the rabbits, to her and I told myself that if someone needs my help, I will be there for them. I don't know everything, but I don't mind sharing the knowledge that I do have---whether it be with the rabbits, horses, dogs or whatever...and I always try to carry a smile about it. I also still ask people for advice and for what knowledge that they have and want to share--we learn from one another and I learn something new everyday!
I have sold rabbits and have the buyers call me with questions...I don't mind answering to the best of my ability ( I really enjoy it ) I like to know how the bunnies are doing...I have had buyers email me pictures and thank you notes( I still get a monthly update on Sunny, the Thrianta that I sold over a year ago, who is a library mascot). Some folks I never hear from again, but I hope that someone out there is answering their questions. Most of the people that I have met since getting into my hobby have been really nice and then I have met some that are like "give me your money and go away, I don't have time for you to linger around and bother me". I personally believe that this discourages folks for wanting to be apart of the rabbit community. I've also noticed that some folks don't like to be bother with the youth at all--unless the parents have the money to shell out for the rabbit they are wanting to purchase. The youth are our future and they learn from the examples that we set.
I have met several folks in the dog, horse and rabbit world and have become really good friends with them, however along the way, I have ran into some not so friendly folks---I have had my feelings hurt, began to question myself and have felt not "worthy" countless times---I still go on with my head held high and smiling. I will always try to go out of my way for people...just because that's the type of person that I am and I hope that if I need help with something, there is someone out there I can count on.
With all this being said, I like to help out new breeders and strongly encourage them to contact me whenever need be.......our motto is "It's not just our privilege, it's our obligation!"

I miss you Rachel...thank you for helping me along the way---I would like to say thank you to everyone who has helped me along the way---and I would like to think that in turn, I have helped someone in their new journey.

PaSABA Show

2010-02-08T17:54:00.000-08:00

Due to the horrible weather conditions, we left on Thursday for the show. Keepe joined us for the trip.....I can say it was an interesting adventure. I showed a 10 week old baby and Pete brought a baby and Foster (who has been in retirement for the last 2 years). Pickins was very slim for this trip, but we decided to make it anyway. The hotel that we stayed in was very nice and even had a free dinner for us. The snow was deep and cold!
The show room was huge and people was everywhere---this was overwhelming for me. I was able to meet a few of the RHers and that was nice. Ragen, Meg, Reggie, Julie...are all awesome! I also got the pleasure of meeting Allison and hopefully she is off to a good start with her rabbitry. She is new to the woolies and I tried my best to answer all of her questions to the best of my knowledge--she called me with news today, that Bluebell kindle and had 4 kits (at the moment, 3 are doing well) Congrats Allison and these should be some nice babies!
We did not show on Sunday, however Trace did and took BOG with his rabbit Budda (from Teresia Burleson) this was his first time on the table. Kristen did quite well with her rabbits and we are so proud of her for representing district 9 in such an awesome way. I won't say much more about the show other than alot of things went on that I am not use to and it is an experience I will never forget.
I was glad to cross the North Carolina line and never so happy to arrive home----parts of the trip were a little dangerous and I silently prayed that we would all make it home safe and sound.
In other news, Bella had to be rushed to the vet today---she wasn't acting right and I could tell something was wrong. She has a bacteria infection in her uterus (the vet pronounced some big long name, I can't remember). She was given a shot to reduce her fever and an injection of antibotics. The vet also put her on antibotics for 14 days...if she is not better by thursday, I will need to bring her back and they are going to preform surgery. I was freaking out...I almost lost her, but the vet assured me that I had brought her in before it was too late---at this point she is not out of the woods and I have been watching her closely. I now have a huge vet bill, but I'm glad that I haven't lost her---that's apart of having animals...you gotta take care of them and I don't know what I would do without her in my life.
Other than that we are trying to recoop from all the latest events and not looking forward to the next storm that is headed our way!
Hope everyone is well and until next time.....

It never fails

2010-02-01T18:46:00.000-08:00

We have been having some issues with our feed lately...we were feeding the purina advanced show formula---they changed the color of the bag, so we didn't think it was a big deal. I noticed that some of the bunnies were not eating and others would just pick at the feed. I added the oatmeal and gave them nutra drops in hopes that would solve the problem...no such luck. The last bag I purchased was filled with whole kernels of corn and had something strange looking in it (looked like mud and small pieces of trash). I took the bag to my feed store and showed them what I had discovered---they don't process the feed, just have it shipped in--but the manager of the store called the dealer and made a complaint anyway. Pete also called the dealer to complain. I tried Manna pro and let me just say, it made things worse...lost a litter of kits and the rabbits were losing more condition at a faster rate. I decided to put them on the Purina show (blue bag) everyone started eating right away and I haven't had any issues since-----other than the fact that now all of my bunnies are out of condition and in a terrible molt. I have a show coming up and nothing is decent enough to even bring! I feel horrible. I'm pumping them with sweet potatoes, oats, and show supplement in hopes that it will help some....but I think that I have ran out of time to see that much of an improvement---show is this coming weekend. We have 4 that will be decent enough to show. I was going to back out of going to the show, however I have to deliver rabbits and pick up a couple....so, we will be there.
We spent most of the day cleaning the rabbitry and grooming, so at least everything smells better. With all of the snow and rain we've had lately---we haven't had the chance to clean the rabbitry like we normally do. I hate the snow and will be glad when spring is here.
Other than that, not much going on...just wanted to say hello and let you know you are all in my prayers.

How our rabbitry works

2010-01-28T19:29:00.000-08:00

I thought I would post tonight about how we do things at BL'S Bunnybarn. When I first started showing in 2005, I was the only one that showed. Pete and Trace came along to get out of the house and for moral support. They soon became bored with just being "groupies"--this was Pete's words for what they had become. They decided that they also wanted to join in on the fun, so they decided to start out showing the ND. That didn't last long. Pete than wanted to try his hand at the Thriantas. At that time, there wasn't enough competition for him---anyone who knows Pete, knows he is very competitive. I, on the other hand was showing for fun...now, I'm not saying that if I won something it didn't make me giddy, but win or lose I can have a good time! Pete and Trace then decided that they liked the way that the wooly folks were so friendly and there was alot more JW people than a majority of the other breeds.
At first, we took turns showing the best rabbits that we had in the rabbitry---I soon found out, that it was against the rules ( I didn't know...I assumed that since we owned and took care of the rabbits, that we could show them anyway we wanted). We were confronted at a show in front of many people that we were showing illegally. I was so embrassed because honestly, I didn't know.
This brought us to the conclusion that we needed to divide the rabbits that were in the barn......now, we have Pete's rabbits, Trace's rabbits, and my rabbits. I chose to let Pete and Trace have the better stock ( it keeps them interested) and I am willing to stepdown because I am not as competive as Pete.
For a long time we had problems with Trace showing---he wanted to play around with the other kids and not concentrate on showing. He didn't want to help with the feeding, watering or grooming. It took an act of congress to find him to get him to the show table and then he threw a fit because I made him stand there and pay attention. I finally got fed up and decided that he would not be allowed to show anymore. I was planning on selling his rabbits. We had a "sit down" and discussed the pros and cons of the rabbit shows. I told him if he didn't want to show that was fine, he could stay with a babysitter while we were gone. He said he wanted to show and that he would do better. We agreed that if he started acting right and helped with the rabbits, he could continue to show and I would make him his own website. He could sell his own babies and buy his own stock (he even has to pay us for rabbits that he wants from our litters). He seems to be doing better and is starting to pay more attention at the shows---so, so far my plan seems to be working. Trace is ADHD and for him to stay focused on something for any amount of time is a great feat, so I'm not sure how long showing will last for him.
We have also decided that we will leave all of the bunnies with the prefix BL'S Bunnybarn because that is how we registered out rabbitry---whether or not the bunny belongs to me, Pete or Trace...however we are letting Trace register rabbits in his name.
Pete or I always attend with Trace at the youth table--to make sure he is listening to the Judge and puts the correct rabbit on the table (Pete always does the tattooing, so unless it's a rabbit that Trace usually shows, he probably doesn't know the ear number)...this is turn, leaves only one of us at the open table. Who ever is there at the open table, puts the rabbits up. I know that some folks are wondering, why isn't he or she putting their own rabbits up?----well, the above statements should explain this.
We are still learning all the rules of the ARBA, so if we mess up...it's because we don't know and didn't mean to do things to step on anyone's toes or to raise eyebrows.
We are excited about the PA show and hope that are animals are competitive enough--if not, we will learn were we need to improve and work harder at getting better stock. I may also step down from showing after this show and hand it over to the boys---I don't mind being a "groupie".

Until next time.....

Mocksville report and other news

2010-01-23T17:11:00.000-08:00

We been pretty busy lately and I am finally getting a chance to post. We had a yard sale on wed., thurs., and Friday (we had alot of stuff in the basement we needed to get cleaned out). Friday night Helen McKie came to spend the night so that she would be closer to the Mocksville show...we stayed up until 11pm talking bunnies. She seemed to be pleased with the breedings on her does to our bucks and commented that the babies were really nice.
The show was pretty good---had a nice wooly turnout. Teresia B. won BOB in both shows with her broken black doe (she is an awesome rabbit!) Pete won BOSB in show B with Lefty and Trace won BOB with Mellow in the youth show A. He also won BOB with Mellow again in show B and took BOSB with Bogart. I'm pleased that our rabbits are improving and the best part about it for me, is that these are our own bloodlines.
In non related rabbit news, I have decided that I am going to get into showing doxies. I met a very wonderful lady who has helping me along the way. I will start attending puppy classes next month and have a little black and tan male that I will be starting. I have also decided to change my prefix name from "Tiny Paws" to "Dackelhunds", so now all of my dogs will be registered under the new name. Marti is due to have pups at the end of Feb. and this will be an unregistered litter...our plans are to spay her after the pups are weaned----just too hard to find a male and she turns 5 this year.
Tuesday is the day I go to take my state exam and I am so ready! I put in for 3 counties that I would be willing to work for...Alexander county, Burke and Onslow---my sister is hoping I get Onslow so I will be close to her...it really doesn't matter to me, I'm just ready to get back to work!
Other than that, not much to tell you about except that you are all in my thoughts and prayers.

Until next time!

Cleaning Day!

2010-01-10T18:30:00.000-08:00

Today it was time to tackle the rabbitry...it has been so cold lately that all we have done pretty much is water, hay, feed and check on babies. Today was a little warmer and the rabbitry was a mess. We started out with cleaning the pans and adding fresh shavings. Two litters were ready to be weaned, so we had to make some new arrangements which meant bringing in more cages to the inside of the rabbitry. We rearranged and put the English Lops in the larger cages that we had hung in the outside area. I have 2 piggies that are pregnant and I moved them into a cage and put in solid flooring and shavings for them. The male piggy ended up in his own cage. Cages were moved away from the walls and all the webs and rabbit fur were swept down. Fianlly after 5 hours that chore was completed! We then ventured to rake up the outside area (where we did have the hanging cages). It has now officially become the chicken coop. I only have 2 silkie hens at the moment, but am waiting on a new batch to hatch. I would like to add 2 more hens and a rooster. I am pleased to say, "we accomplished alot today" and now everything is nice and clean. I went through the rabbitry today and decided on which does I needed to move out. They are older does, but still producing and have really given me some awesome babies. Months ago I promised myself that I would keep my numbers down and with all the litters that we have had lately...it's been hard to do. I added the does I will be selling to my for sale page on the website and am willing to neg. the prices---I just want them to go to good homes.
I am in the market for any type of used cages with floor bottoms (need them for the piggies and rats), so if you have anything for sale or know of anyone who does, please contact me. I am exhausted, but glad that we finally had a day nice enough to do some much needed chores. Hope to hear that all is well with everyone. You are in our thoughts and prayers.....

Latest news

2010-01-03T10:20:00.000-08:00

Friday night, Dedria Edder came up to stay the night with us. We had a really nice visit and she joined us at my mother-in-laws for a New Years dinner. Saturday morning we had a rabbit show in Taylorsville....man it was cold! I never could get warmed up and I was glad it was a short show. Our highlights were, Pete took a BOSB in show A with his self sr. buck Lefty (he has now earned 5 legs). Pete also showed a little black doe-her first time out and she took 1/6....not bad for a 10 week old baby! Trace had NO one to show against in his show. I am starting to notice that we are having less and less youth showers. It seems that alot of the youth Jersey Wooly shows are not sanctioned and though we have offered to help on numerous occassions, we have had no luck. I wonder if the youth are not showing because of this. I hope that soon, things will pick up in youth---if not, we will start entering him in the open shows...we don't want him to get discourged from showing the rabbits. My mother-in-law and sister-in-law brought my neice to the show so that she could pick out a pet bunny.I showed them around and talked with them about each breed. We stopped in front of a ND breeder and Faith (my neice) was looking at a little black doe---to back up a little, My MIL has NEVER attended a rabbit show and has NO interest in them (rabbits or shows) and I've tried to explain things to her about them before, but it falls upon deaf ears...anyway, back to the story--the guy had a for sale sign on his bunnies and my MIL looked at me and says " I can't believe he is asking $65.00 for a rabbit with a broken back and 5 legs!" I died laughing!!!!! I told her it says "broken black and the 5 legs means that is the amount of show cerificates he has won with the rabbit"...she looked at me like I was crazy and said "oh". anyhow, my niece fell in love with the holland lops and ended up getting her pet from Kristen. SIL also picked up another doe for her son, from Joni and both of the kids are very happy! They headed back to their home in New Jersey with the new bunnies which will be living the spoiled life in the house as loved pets.
When we returned home, and unloaded the bunnies--I checked on Mellow to see if she had her kits yet....she did, they were all on the wire and DOA. I was VERY disappointed. This was an exceptional breeding and was hoping for really nice babies (she is a first time mom and was bred to 9M) I will rebred her in the next day or two. It was also a sad loss for me because I have lost 3 litters in the last 2 weeks---her's being the 4th. The only thing that is keeping me going right now is the fact that I do have 4 litters that are doing well. I have to litters that have a couple of brokens in them and 2 litters that have some pointed whites. I also have 2 litters that are ready to wean.
I want to say "Congrats to all the winners of the show" and it was great to see all my rabbit buddies.
Looking forward to the next show and will see you all soon!

The aftermath!

2009-12-27T10:10:00.000-08:00

Today, My sister left to return to Jacksonville...I really enjoy our visits and miss her already! I plan on spending the day cleaning the house and taking down the Christmas tree (it's been up since Thanksgiving). I also have to run to town and purchase a bottle of Alego for Pete. He shot a buck this morning and this is his favorite marinade for deer jerky---can't wait to sink my teeth into it! We will be returning to his mom's house later this evening for another meal, she cooks Christmas dinner as well as food for the following 3 days.
Trace's rat, Roxie gave birth to 8 babies on the 26th...they are so tiny and pink. He is excited to be "a grandpa". He wants to keep them all, but I said no way! I'm still waiting on does to kindle and looking forward to the newest batch of babies. Other than that, not much else going on....just wanted to let you all know that you are in my thoughts and prayers!

Merry Christmas to all

2009-12-25T15:40:00.000-08:00

Just wanted to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! We have had a wonderful day (other than the rain) and I am so thankful that my sister was able to join us this year for the holidays. Trace had us all up and out of bed at 7:00 am to open the Santa gifts. We all recieved alot of nice things in spite of the economy. I cooked a Christmas ham for us and we are all feeling fat, dumb and happy----I am ready for a nap! I am also ready to start the new year and looking forward to more positive things to come our way.

The animals are doing well, however they are still muddy and wet due to the weather....we have all been sitting around making plans for the new barn and rabbitry that we are planning on building as soon as we get on some "permanent" property. I have several does that are do this coming week and the litters that I already have are doing well. I think that I have some really nice babies for convention...I'm getting excited to see how they turn out. I posted on the RH, that I plan on selling my pair of English Lops, so if you know of anyone who may be interested, just have them shoot me an email. Not much else going on. Hope to hear all is well and see ya all soon at the next show!!!!

Snow!

2009-12-18T16:25:00.000-08:00

Well, it's been snowing here most of the day and the say that the worst of it is still to come....I hate the snow! and wish I was sitting on the beach in about 75 degree weather. Trace and the neighborhood chaps played up and down the street throwing snowballs...Pete was outside taking pictures of the snow and Christmas lights on the house and I watched warmly inside by the heat. I did venture outside at feed time...I thought I would freeze to death by time all the animals were fed, however we have a heater in the rabbitry and it was nice and cozy in there.

In rabbitry new, One Ears x Joe Glo had a litter of 3 today and Helen Mckie's broken doe is steadly pulling hair (I've checked on her a couple of times, but no babies yet). I have decided that I am going to sell the 2 English Lops---they are just too big for me to handle! They have such sweet personalities and love for me to rub their heads, so I am going to miss them. I do plan on keeping Dewy as a pet and plan on turning him loose in the chicken coop. If you know anyone who is interested in the Lops, shoot me an email. I would like to sell them as a pair of $75.00 (a lot less than what I paid for them). Diva, the doe has won a BOB at the Taylorsville show and Bubba the buck has never been shown, but is very promising...both of them are still young (not even breeding age yet). I am also tradeing my polish chickens for 2 more silkie hens.

Other than that, not much going on.....hope to hear all is well with everyone!

Latest news

2009-12-14T19:01:00.000-08:00

It has been a pretty busy week for us. My sister came down and stayed a couple of days and I really enjoyed our visit. Pete has finished putting the Christmas decorations on the outside of the house and the rabbitry (they have lights around the outside of the barn and a wreath hangs on their door). We've been trying to stock up on hay for everyone and I've been busy trying to do some Christmas shopping---it's going to be slim this year, however I am happy that I will have my family around and still have my health.
Pete has been staying busy at work and is picking up a couple of side jobs, so that hopefully when can get caught up on some bills that we desperatly need to pay off. I heard from the state today in regards to the application I sent in to the department of corrections and I was selected to take the state exam on Jan.26th! I am so excited.....this is the first step towards employment. I'm not sweating the exam at all ( I have taken it 4 times already due to the fact that everytime you apply for this type of position, you have to take the test). I have worked for 3 different correctional facilities and also worked for the sheriff department. When I pass my test, the next step will be to attend the classes---those are so fun! You have your normal book work (state laws and such ) and then you have your hands on training.....like shooting the shotgun, handcuffing, self-defense, telling the difference between what is contraband and what's not, what to do in a riot situation and other stuff like that. I don't know how things will work here because every state is different, but in Louisiana you are paid while you attend classes. Then you have another exam---if you pass, you will then recieve your assignment---if not, they show you the door. I, personally have an advantage of knowing the prision system. My dad worked corrections most of my life and my great uncle was the warden of DCI for 20+ years, so I think this is what I was meant to do in life.
In bunny news, I have 1 loaner doe that is due tomorrow and 2 of my own. The others are due on the 24th, so hopefully all my nestboxes will be full for Christmas. The other 2 litters I have are doing well and hoping around all over the cages. I have 2 tort babies and it's been awhile since we have had any torts, so I'm really excited about them.
I miss all my bunny buddies and can't wait until I get to see you all again! Hope everyone is doing well and until next time.....

Show News

2009-12-07T17:24:00.000-08:00

Well, I must say that Saturdays show in Columbus SC was the loooongest show I have ever been to! We were completely exhaused by time we got home sometime after 10:00 pm (we did stop and get something to it though). As far as the show went, it was ok. I was literally pushed out of the way when I was checking our entries in, by a woman who was "tired of standing in line"---I mean, that is what she said to me as she pushed me over to the side....while I was standing there looking dumbfounded 2 more folks jumped ahead of me!---I probably wouldn't have minded so much if I, hadn't already been standing in line myself for 15 minutes---with all that aside, I'll get on to show news. I didn't do that good. I did get some really nice comments on the 9 week old chestnut buck I brought (which basically is why I brought him, for the comments). Pete took a BOSB in the second show with Lefty (self sr. buck). Trace took BOB with Mellow in show A and BOSB with Bogart. He then went on to win BRIS with Mellow. In show B, he again took BOB with Mellow and BOSB with Bogart. He didn't recieve any awards in the second show. As I was milling around amongst the folks, I heard several people complaining about the awards (and lack of). One guy was making the comment that with the amount of money the clubs make, there should be better awards. He was even doing the math. He was telling me that there were 1200 entries for the show. He said and I quote " 1200 entries times 3.00 per rabbit (and that is not counting the late entries), you think that they could have afforded something better than a bean bag for an award. Where is our money going?" I just shrugged and said "beats me". He said he felt that "we, as rabbit breeders and showers, were getting screwed and he had talked to a member of a club ( I want to say he said VP) and asked them, where they were putting all the monies from the membership fees and such, he said they directed him to another person because they couldn't answer his question. Needless to say, this guy was upset and it made me start wondering the same----where does the money go. I know that they have to rent the building, pay the judges and provide food, but where is the rest of it going? I haven't seen very many awards, that let's say "are awesome"! We have alot of pens and keychains hanging around. We do have some really nice awards, however we do have some junk as well---just makes me wanna go Huh!!!!
I don't know if we will attend this show again. Anyway, Helen Mckie took Joe Glo home to breed to some of her does and sent a chin doe home with us to bred to Bogart. I didn't purchase any rabbits (thank goodness cause I don't have any extra cages), but I did sell a black otter doe. She is really nice, however I don't do the tans anymore so I moved her along. The folks that purchased her, entered her in the show and she recieved all great comments from 3 judges---I think they are happy with her and hopefully they will continue to show her. Congrats to all the winners and we are looking forward to the next show in 2010. I was glad to see all the bunny folks and missed the ones who couldn't be there----hope to hear that everyone is well and your nestboxes are full.......until next time!

Just an update

2009-12-03T18:02:00.000-08:00

Things here have been kinda dreary over her the last couple of days....I think it's due mostly because of all the rain we've had.There is so much mud everywhere and the horses look miserable. We need to build a better barn, just haven't had the extra money and I told Pete, I was not planning on staying here past the summer so there's no need to build the big, fine barn that he has in mind. We cleaned the rabbitry the other day and everything now smells so clean and fresh. I also decided who to take to the show and who to leave at home---pickins are slim. Most of my does are bred, others are going through a terrible molt and then I have the young ones. I decided to bring my little chestnut buck (who is only 9 weeks old) so I could get a judge's opinion on him and because I really didn't have a whole lot of choice as to who I entered. Pete and Trace also show, so we have to share the bunnies that are in the barn. I have some really nice babies coming up, so hopefully next year we can earn some more points and do some more traveling to shows. I will have a couple of bunnies for sale at the Columbus show, however I haven't had time to get them listed on my website. We will be bringing Joe Glo and a black baby to sell.

In other news, we finally got around to putting up our Christmas tree and decorating the house--still have the outside to do and will try to get to it sometime next week. I'm really excited about the upcoming show and can't wait to see everyone!

The Beach!

2009-11-30T17:49:00.001-08:00

I decided that I would spend Thanksgiving with my sister this year....at the BEACH! She has a friend that has a beach house in Topsail North Carolina and he was going home to Texas for the holidays and offered us the house. It was totally amazing!!! The house has 5 bedrooms and 31/2 baths and the deck goes straight out onto the sand. We spent Thanksgiving morning walking the beach and playing in the sand. We saw a school of dolphins and they were very close to the water's edge. I was tempted to go in and see if I could possibly touch one of them....however I am a chicken and don't get into ocean water due to the movie "Jaws". Bella joined us on the trip and had a blast chasing the seagulls (she is like me though and wanted no part of getting in the water). Trace collected a bag full of seashells and even came across some coral. Thankgiving night we decided not to cook and to treat ourselves out to a night on the town. NO cooking or clean-up afterwards---this was quite nice. Friday we went to Wilimington to enjoy the Christmas music, parade and the lighting of the tree by Santa. I didn't want to leave, however I needed to return home to the hubby and animals, so we left out Saturday morning.

I really enjoyed the time with my sister and mom....it was relaxing and while there, I didn't have a care in the world---just a good ole' stress free time.

When I got home, I bred 7 does in hopes for some convention show bunnies. So, far everything that we have been producing lately has turned out to be really nice.

Hope that everyone had a great Thanksgiving and until next time.....

Another busy day!

2009-11-21T18:54:00.000-08:00

This morning we took a trip to South Carolina to deliever a couple of does that a lady has been wanting. I hope that she is happy with them....they are right in the middle of a molt and going through the ugly teen stage. We talked bunnies for awhile and they said they would be coming to the December 5th show, so hopefully we can get some new wooly showers! It was a nice day and we enjoyed the country side. Pete was chomping at the bit to get home though--today was the first day of rifle season and him and Trace couldn't wait to get into the woods. I am soooo ready for some deer jerky and a good ole strap back! They did spot a deer, however he was not in range so they came home empty handed. Pete has been putting out deer corn and he also has a night camera, so hopefully it won't be long before we can pack the freezer.

In rabbitry new, Envy x Joe Glo had a litter of 4 and we lost them all. They were so tiny and she had them in the middle of the night ( I think they got to cold...she barely pulled any hair). TB'S Blue Star x TB'S Rickie have a litter of 4 (they were born yesterday) and Cassie x Foster had a litter of 4 today. At feeding time BL'S Bluebell was pulling hair, so I expect babies soon. Phoebe, Righteous and Pity are also due in the next couple of days. China doll and Cisty's babies will be ready to wean by the end of the month....they are turning out nicely. Our newest additions are settling in well and Trace LOVES his broken doe.

We have been invited to attend Church tomorrow with a couple of friends of ours and we will be gathering a thanksgiving dinner for a needy family. It's going to be nice to be going back to Church.....it has been awhile for us and I believe that we need to be attending on a regular basis.

The photo is of Cisty and her babies

Hope that everyone is doing well and until next time.....

New Bunnies

2009-11-16T16:59:00.000-08:00

On Sunday we made a trip to Tresia B. 's house, so that I could pick up my new little orange buck. He is so cute and we are calling him Sherbert. Then we all went to Helen Mckie's rabbitry to look at some bunnies that she had for sale---we were able to preview them before she leaves to go to the Conyers show. I chose a really nice chestnut senior buck and Trace spotted a chestnut junior doe that he wanted to add to his rabbitry. Teresia also picked out a couple of really nice bunnies. We also brought home a couple of Helen's does that she wanted to breed to some of our bucks....one is a tort and the other is a broken black. I plan on breeding these gals in the next week or so. It was a nice trip and the countyside was beautiful.

Today, I spent the first part of the morning cleaning the house---it so needed it! then I ventured out to the rabbitry and took a couple of pictures of the new bunnies and our 4 week old litter that is out of TB'S China doll x TB'S Rickie. I am very pleased with this litter. I also have 4 does that are due this week. I know that 3 of them are defenitly bred---Righteous, I'm not so sure about.

I'm still looking for a job, however I did hear from the state ( I sent them an application for a correctional officer position). They are planning on starting to do interviews after the holidays, so everyone keep their fingers crossed!

The photos in this blog are Trace's new doe and the orange buck Sherbert.....

Taylorsville 11/14 show report

2009-11-14T18:00:00.000-08:00

WOW! what a day....
Show A---Open
Pete won BOB with a self sr. buck Lefty. I was DQ'd for the wrong color on Drama. I thought she was a smoke pearl (still believe she is, but I'm not the judge, so what do you do?).
Show B, Pete got BOG with Lefty. I got 2/2 with Drama....however I did win BOB with my English Lop doe in show B and this was her 2nd time on the table. Needless to say, I was pleased.

In youth, Trace took BOB with his REW sr. doe Mellow (show A) and then in show B he took BOB & BOSB. BOB went to Mellow and BOSB went to a chestnut buck, Bogart. Mellow then went on to take BRIS. I can't live with him or Pete at the moment, but it was nice to come home with 6 trophies.

Trace also came home with a new rat that he has named Rat-a-toui (don't know where that come from) he will be picking up a female next weekend, so now he has his own rabbitry and rattery----I'm in for it now! He passed out all of his new buisness cards and wants us to print him more for the next show. I told him that he needed to slow down on passing out the cards because he was going to cause me to run out of printer ink!!!!

I was so happy to see all my bunny buddies and to meet new ones. We placed all 4 of the bucks we had for sale in new homes, so that was good. ...freed up more cage space for us.

We got home and unloaded the bunnies, fed all the other animals and came inside to Bella nursing the cat! I quess she is really wanting puppies or the cat was starving...can't quite figure that one out. Anyway, I'm exhausted and ready to hit the bed---we have another big day tomorrow.

God Bless and until next time.....

Rabbitry Project

2009-11-11T08:50:00.000-08:00

Yesterday, Pete started on a new project in the rabbitry. He is insulating the walls, as well as hanging paneling. He finished half of the barn and will work on the other half as time allows. He also built me a new work station and hung a fluorescent light above it---this is going to help me see better when I'm trimming nails! Of course, with the new work station being added, we had to move cages around and reorganize. It looks really cool and when he finishes with the walls, we are talking about laying tile over the wooden floor. Thank goodness that he works as a carpenter and all of the materials that we are using for the project have been free. I REALLY want to add an A/C unit next year for the summer months. We are also now looking for chocolate bunnies. Pete decided since I wanted to work with the oranges, that he wanted his own color. We decided to find something that we could use together with our breedings. I have already started the search and will be adding an orange buck from Teresia B. Trace has decided that he would like to add brokens to his rabbitry---right now, we have one broken buck. We would like to add a couple of more so that we can improve on our broken stock. We are planning on attending nationals and I'm super excited about this!
The rain over the last 2 days has kinda got me in a depressed state (along with the fact that I haven't heard back from any of the jobs that I have applied too) so I think I will go out to the rabbitry and go over the rabbits to see who will be attending the Taylorsville show on Saturday.

Hope everyone is doing well and God bless!

Our weekend

2009-11-09T06:30:00.000-08:00

Dustin came over to stay the night with us on Saturday. He had some news for us and wanted to tell us in person. He is moving to Maryland and will be gone by the second week in December. At first, I was a little sad that he would be moving so far away, but then I realized that he is 21 and needs to "do something positive" with his life. He says that he is having trouble finding a job (this I can relate to) and that he doesn't seem to be getting anywhere in his life. He statement to me was, " I need a change". I couldn't agree with him more. I think about how much different my life would have turned out, if I would have finished vet school and continued with the plans that I had made as a young adult....sometimes, it gets very depressing for me...then I have to stop and realize that God has a plan for all of us. I'm pretty content in my life at this point, other than the money struggles ( I think everyone in our county is suffering from this right now). Anyway, back to Dustin. He helped me to make a new logo for my site----I'm not exactly impressed by it and will work on getting it changed when I can. I wish that I had more computer knowledge! Dustin is not really an animal lover, but he wanted to see all the critters around the mini farm, so we ventured out. He saw Fred (the blue polish rooster) and I believe it was love at first site!!! I took a couple of pictures and told him that I was going to post them on his facebook page, so that all his buddies would see him and his new chick! He left out on Sunday and I quess that will be the last we see of him for awhile---I'm sure gonna miss him.

I have been trying to come up with an idea to get Trace more involved with the rabbits and to teach him some sort of responsibilty. Finally it struck me on what I needed to do. Here is the plan----Trace has 4 of his own bunnies (2 does, 2 bucks). I told him that I would create a pedigree book just for him. He can have his own business cards and do his own breedings and selling of the bunnies. I told him that he could decide which doe to put with which buck (with my supervision of course). I will teach him how to groom, clip nails, etc.. He will have to be responsible for cleaning his cages, feeding, watering and care of each of his rabbits. If he wants to purchase another bunny, he has to pay for it out of his own money---this is to include any rabbits that we have that he would like to add to his herd. He will also be taught how to build his own nestboxes. I even let him chose a rabbitry name...he decided on Little T's Rabbitry. He has 30 days to prove to me that he wants to do this and show me that he can handle it. If within the 30 days he doesn't do what he is suppose to do, his bunnies will be sold and he will not be allowed to go to the shows. Speaking of the shows, he has to start participating more (like writing and paying more attention to what the judges are saying) no more running around like a wild child! Hopefully this turns out as I expect and he will do better. I discussed all of this with Trace and as of right now....he loves the idea. I told him that AFTER the 30 days were up and he was doing good with the bunnies, I would be willing to get him a free website---let's pray that this works.

In rabbitry news, the babies are doing fine and are in the cuteness stage. I have been trying to decide who to show on the 14th and who needs touch ups on the tattoes. I can hardly wait, I miss everyone!

God Bless and until next time......

Finally!

2009-11-05T16:15:00.000-08:00

OMG I have been without the internet for a week...I thought it was the end of the world. I didn't realize how important it has become to me in so many ways. I couldn't get in touch with friends or even check out my emails, but now it's all good cause I'm connected again! Now to update everyone.....
I was laid off of my job with Asmo---the company just basically needed us temps to come in a build up a big order that they had...now that that is completed, they no longer need us. That's the problem when you work for a temp service----they just work you as long as they need you and then it's back to the unemployement line! I hopefully won't be returning to the temp service and have applied for a correctional officer position at the prison in Taylorsville. I have done this type of work before and really enjoyed it. I come from family of law enforcement officers (on my father's side) and it seems to be in the blood. It's a state job and comes with all the nice benefits that we so need. I'll keep everyone posted on how this goes, so wish me luck.
The bunnies are doing fine and I have a litter that just opened their eyes. I had to rebred a couple of does, so new babies will coming soon.
The mini horses are starting to put on their winter coats and are looking like small mammoth...we are thinking that Maggie will foal in the spring, so we are pretty excited about that. Piper and Diego are getting along fine and haven't had any problems. Diego let me pick up his front foot today, which is a big accomplishment for him. I am hoping to get him to stand still long enough for me to groom him in the next day or two. I took some quail eggs and 4 polish eggs over to a friend's house to be put in the incubator and we will know in 21 days if anything hatches out or not.
Other than that, I have no new news....gosh, I'm glad that i'm back in the loop of the internet world!

Busy, Busy, Busy!

2009-10-24T19:51:00.000-07:00

Today we had alot of things that we needed to get done. I started on cleaning the house and Pete started on the rabbitry....I completed 2 rooms and decided that it was such a nice day, that I needed to be outside, so I went to help Pete. All cages were cleaned and fresh shavings put in the pans. We also cleaned and sterilized water bottles and feed dishes. I moved some of the bunnies around and put mamas and babies on the top levels. I put younger juniors in stackers and for sale bunnies in our overflow cages. When the rabbitry was completed, we started on the chicken pen. The button quail are laying alot of eggs (they are so tiny). I also put down fresh shavings in their coop. My little silkies are doing great and starting to fuzz up. I named them Skeet and Toot. At some point I would like to start showing them. I also have the pair of polish and the hen has laid 3 eggs---I haven't seen her sitting on them yet. I have some friends that have an incubator and if she doesn't hatch these out on her own, the next batch she lays, I will take them to the incubator. I have to keep the silkies and polish seperated, because the polish are bigger birds and like to peck on anything that moves. Pete turned my old rabbit hutch into 2 seperate chicken coops for me(it's pretty cool looking), so I have the quail in one side and the silkies on the other---everyone seems to be fine with this arrangement. By the time we completed these projects, it was time to start feeding everyone...it was almost dark before we got back into the house! I quess I will have to finish my housework tomorrow cause I'm too tired to do it tonight!!!!!
I'm glad that we still have warm weather to be outside.....soon it will be cold and the days will be shorter...so not looking forward to that. Hope all is well with everyone and I can't hardly wait until the next bunny show...I miss everyone!
Until next time....

Quick update

2009-10-22T17:15:00.000-07:00

Not alot going on, so this will be a quick update. Deigo is doing fine and he has been moved to the pasture with Piper. At first Deigo (still being a stallion) challenged Piper and was ready to start a fight....however this didn't last long. Piper is 1200 lbs of muscle and poor Deigo is probably only about 800 lbs. Needless to say it only took one big snort and a kick from Piper and Deigo backed down. Now they are getting along fine and Deigo won't even attempt to aggerviate Piper. He really is enjoying the feed and hay 2 times a day! Hopefully he will gain at least 150 lbs by time the winter sets in. We need to work on getting another stall put up, so that he will have a place to get out of the weather...Pete is really starting to get "lazy" in his farm duties!

In rabbitry news, I had a lady contact me wanting some Jersey Woolies. I told her what I have a available and she wants a black doe and blue doe. I told her they would be ready on 11/13 for pickup, so she will be driving here from South Carolina to get them. I still have 4 babies that will be ready to sell at the Taylorsville show....all 4 are bucks. Sadly, Bluebell lost her little one, so she is now rebred along with a couple of other does that did not take. I ended up with 2 chestnuts and a black out of China doll and Rickie and I'm so excited to see how they turn out. Drama is still looking good and so far she is my favorite of the newest litters. We also kept back a little black doe and have high hopes for her as well. They will make their debute at the Taylorsville show.

Well, that's all for right now....hope everyone is well and their nestboxes are full!

Deigo's Story

2009-10-18T17:17:00.000-07:00

The last couple of days around here, have been rather busy. To start with, I will tell you Deigo's story.

My sister has been wanting a horse for quite awhile....but not just any horse, she wanted a rescue---something that needed alot of love and something that no one else wanted. I began my search, starting with craigslist. I knew there were alot of horses out there that no one wanted to feed for the winter. Tuesday, I ran across an ad for a 4 year old palomino stallion that was the result of a neglect and abuse case. I called the number that was provided to see if he was still available and to find out his history. This is what I was told. He was kept in a stall for 2 years with very little hay and water on occasions. He had hardly no human contact, so the lady bought him because she felt sorry for him and he was so skinny and weak. She brought him home and turned him out in a pasture with the 12 horses that she already owned. She thought he was to weak to breed on of her mares that was in heat, however to her surprise, a foal was born. She could no longer afford to feed him, so she placed him up for adoption. A man came along and promised him a good home with lots of love and feed. The woman went to check on him a couple of times, but the horse was not there. She was told he was at the man's girlfriends house and was doing fine. The man had the horse for 15 months and then last week he showed up at the woman's house saying that he had been charged with animal crulity and neglect....she needed to come and pick him up. He told her the charges had been dropped due to "lack of knowledge" but that he still wanted the horse gone. He (the horse) was then again placed on craigslist to find his "forever" home. After hearing his story, I called my sister to see if she was interested. Naturally she was, so I called the woman back and told her we would take him. She told me he was very poor and weak....we didn't care. As most of you know, we rescued Petty Cash the same way. We knew that we could provide this fella with feed and hay 2 times a day and lots of love with a forever home. She was to pick him up on Thursday and bring him to our house. When he arrived, he came off the trailer snorting and rearing, drug her husband across the yard and started to try and fight Piper over the fence. Pete had to take a hold of him to calm him down. He was very scared and sweaty, but other that, seemed to be ok. We put him in the smaller lot (so that we could watch him for a couple of days) and put the mini's in the front pasture. He is a little underweight, however he is not the bag of bones that I was picturing. His mane is matted and he has not had much human contact. The lady that brought him to us, was telling me she placed him on craiglist because she knew if she took him to the horse sale, he wouldn't bring much money....I was so Pissed----how could she even suggest him going to the sale after the story she had given me on the telephone! I paid her the $30.00 for delivering him and we said our good byes, but not before I told her, he would have a "forever home with us". My sister came down that night and we named him Deigo. So far, he seems to be doing good and the only issue that we have discovered, is that he is very timid around people----however we are working on this. He does enjoy getting 2 meals a day and we believe that he is going to turn out to be a nice horse. We did find out that he is a paso fino cross. I will keep everyone updated on his progress.

In rabbity news, China doll x Rickie produce 3 kits for us and Bluebell x Shazam had 1. Cisty's babies opened their eyes today and we weaned the other kits from there mom's. I have also decided to place Dewy in a pet home due to the fact he has only one testicle.....it's breaking my heart, but I promised myself that I would keep the numbers down in the rabbitry. I have 2 black bucks and 2 blue bucks that will be available at the Taylorsville show on 11/14/09. They will be 10 weeks old, so if you know someone that is interested, just let me know.

No other news to report. You are all in my thoughts and prayers........

October 3rd Show results

2009-10-07T16:43:00.000-07:00

I'm finally getting around to post the show results for Oct.3rd. Trace showed Rickie in youth for show A only and he got BOB. Josie Buckner won BOSB. We entered him in open for show B because the woolies were not sanctioned in the youth show. He recieved BOB with Rickie in open. I talked with Lisa and Kay about letting us know if they needed someone to help with the sanctioning fees for the youth for the next couple of shows. I believe that the youth are our future and if we can help, we want too! A big congrats to all the winners at the show. It was small, however as usual, I had a great time meeting new folks and visiting with friends. Dedria Edder showed a beautiful BEW doe that won BOB in show A and then went on to win BIS. I also picked up a new buck from Keepe and Joni. Both of these bunnies will be a great additon to my herd. Weblo is growing into a beautiful little girl and I have high hopes for her on the show table. We have 3 really nice litters and the cuts are going to be hard, however we have vowed to keep our rabbitry at no more than 30---we have 27 now not including the babies. I have 3 more does this due this week. One of them is China doll and I hope this litter is killer! Righteous recieved 2 legs form the Fletcher Mountain State fair and should receive another one from Greensboro. I plan on sending in for her GC papers as soon as the results arrive.
We are starting to prepare for the winter as far as the horses go and Pete brought in 30 bales of hay today.....we have more on the way and figure we will need at least 100 to get us through the winter. Work is going ok, but I hate my job and can't wait to start real estate school. Hopefully that will be in the near future. Other than that, not much is going on.
You are all in my thoughts and prayers!

A lesson learned

2009-10-01T18:43:00.000-07:00

I learned a hard lesson the other day and it saddens me that maybe it could have been prevented. I lost a very nice broken doe (full of babies) due to her getting out of the cage and eating rat poision. About a month or so ago, I noticed that we had mice droppings near where we keep our feed---thank goodness we store it in a rubbermaid tote (with a lid) so that nothing can get in the feed and it stays fresh. I decided that I needed to get some bait to put out and I hid it behind a shelf. Heartthrob is notorious for opening her cage door and roaming the rabbitry at night, so I put her in a cage that was on top of another one, thinking that if she did get the door open, she wouldn't leap to the floor. I was wrong. I should have put some kind of clip or something on the latch to keep her from opening it. Every morning either Pete or I go out to the rabbitry to check on the bunnies and to turn the lights off. Monday Pete went out to check on them and found that Heartthrob was running around loose. He put her back in the cage and was checking water bottles, when he found the bait had been scattered about the floor. He told me that she must have gotton behind the self and helped herself to some of it. Monday afternoon we checked her again and she seemed fine (eating and drinking as normal). I thought well he seems to be ok, so I have nothing to worry about. Tuesday all was still well....no signs of sickness. Wednesday morning the same. wednesday evening I took her out to palpate her and sure enough she was pregnant. I was so excited! However she didn' t seem to be her normal bubbly self and I started to get concerned. I asked Pete what we could do for her....he wasn't sure- we never had anything happen like this before. I put her back in her cage with extra hay and oats for her to eat along with her pellets....she died shortly after. I feel horrible. I should have known better. I should have tried to find a rabbit vet. I should have never put out the rat bait! I wish I would have known what to do for her. The one thing that I did learn though is to check everyone's cage doors twice to make sure they can not open them. I will miss her, she was a pretty little doe and had such a sweet personality.
From now on, I promise to be more careful.........

What's been going on...

2009-09-27T18:08:00.000-07:00

I haven't posted in a couple of days, so I thought I would fill you in on all the news....my birthday on the 24th, went nicely---I received several nice gifts from family and my sister came in for a couple of days. She brought me a new computer tower and swapped everything over for me---man, I did not realize how fast the internet really is!!!! I am no longer waiting 5 to 10 minutes for a page to upload. Sherri also gave me a flash drive so that I can store all my pictures on---now all I need is a new camara and someone who knows how to take a good photograph, and I'll be set! I really enjoyed her visit and we always have a great time (however, somewhere in all the mist of our fun, we forgot about the doxie races that were held on the 26th.......I missed it last year due to the rain, missed it this year, but will make every effort possibly to make it next year).

Today we spent time in the rabbitry----Trace really suprized me by cleaning all the cages---he was done before we even got out there! I wonder what he is up too!?! I palpated a couple of does and know that 2 are for sure bred....the others I couldn't feel anything yet, but will keep checking them. The babies that we now have, are SO CUTE!!!!! they are starting to nibble on the feed and hay. I'm completely smitten by little weeblo and think that she is a doe. She has such the chunkiest head and tiny ear----hope it stays that way. I also spent some time grooming and most of the bunnies seem to be in (another) molt. Pickins are going to be really slim for the next show. They are either out of coat or bred, so I think it will be mostly bucks going to Taylorsville.

Other than that, not much is going on. Just wanted to say "hi and you are in my thoughts and prayers".

Until next time......

Greensboro Show and Other News

2009-09-20T16:22:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was the Greensboro show and we had a great time. Pete took BOB and BOSB in show A with Rickie and Tribute. He was so excited (now he is almost impossible to live with!). I didn't do as well with my rabbits, other than Diva-the English Lop. She took 1st of her class in all 3 shows and recieved some really nice comments. I am really pleased with her and looking forward to see how well she develops. I am learning alot about the EL---they are judge differently from the woolies, but so far, I think I'm doing ok with picking out "my starter stock".

In the youth shows, there was an awesome agouti buck (that I think won BOB in all 3 shows). I don't know the owners name (she is a RHer), but Man that is a nice bunny!!!!! Jessica Shumate also did well in the youth and a big congrats goes out to her.

We picked up 3 new rabbits---an awesome agouti buck from Lil Bit Farms---I think he will improve my herd a great deal, a super nice little REW buck from Teresia Burleson---he will be Trace's new show bunny and a cute English Lop broken opal buck from Sara---I'm in LOVE with him already. I also purchased a new EL cage from Charles Byrant for Diva. Along with the rabbits, I got some cage holders for the rabbitry and some other things that I needed. All of the Thriantas were sold, so now we are completely out of them(with the exception of the buck and doe that I took to my mom's. we will still have an occasional litter). We did a rabbitry count today and we are down to 27 bunnies total!!!!!! this is great for us. I think things will be so much easier for us. The rabbitry looks empty now, however we are pleased with the bunnies that we picked to continue our herd. Our goal for the rest of the year is to work hard and improve the lines.

I really enjoyed visiting with all of my rabbit buddies yesterday (my favorite part of showing) and I would like to say a special thank you to locketlops for my new business cards!---I love them! Congrats to everyone who placed with their bunnies and it was great to finally have the chance to meet with melanie (lil bit farms) and all the other new folks. I'm looking forward to the next show!!!!!!!

You are all in my thoughts and prayers......

Show News and Such

2009-09-13T07:19:00.000-07:00

Friday night we made the trip to Kristen and Tim's , so that we would be closer to the Mountain state fair rabbit show (and we enjoy visiting with them as well). Saturday was the show and I did write down most of my show results, however I left them and Keepee's and don't remember what they were off the top of my head! Trace won BOB with his agouti doe Righteous in show A and she also took BOG. Joni was nice enough to take pictures for me since I left my camera at Keepee's house. I'm so excited to be adding a REALLY nice herd buck from Keepee's rabbitry and will be bringing him home soon. I know he will be a great addition to my rabbits. We will also be getting a Belgin Hare (as soon as it is old enough) to help to promote the breed. I fell in love with the little ones when I saw them. They are so beautiful and refined.

We arrived home around 7:00pm , unloaded the bunnies, fed everyone and enjoyed the rest of the evening just lounging around. I wanted to say thank you to Jacelyn Taylor for the BEAUTIFUL magnents that she made for me.....I just love homemade crafts and she is so talented.

Congrats to everyone who won at the show and we had a good time. Considering the fact that entries had to be sent in a month in advance and everyone's rabbits seemed to have a molting issue....there were alot of nice rabbits there. I was happy to visit with all my rabbit buddies and even won a few things off the raffle table! We also had the chance to see Heidi Chang---this will probably be the last time we will see her, she and her husband are off to do missionary work in another country.....She will be missed!

Today we have plans to clean the rabbitry and house (much needing to be done). Trip also has to have a bath----OH JOY!!!!!!

Until next time.......

What's been going on

2009-09-06T12:08:00.000-07:00

Friday I went to the auction to sell a couple of bunnies---let me say, "this was a sad experience!" the rabbits went for hardly anything. The chickens I brought to sell, went for even less. However the good side of this was that now I am down a few more rabbits and no longer have the chickens...this brings me to tell you about my new project......BUTTON QUAIL. I know I didn't need another project, however, they are alot different from the chickens and require alot less feed. I used the money I made from the rabbit and chickens sell to purchase 5 quail. They are already laying eggs for me! I will post some pictures of them later this week.

In other news, I have been working on my new website. Right now, it's just a general layout of how things will look, but in the future, I will be adding new links and buttons. I have incorperated the bunnies, dogs and mini horses into one site. The dogs page will be called "Tiny Paws" and the minis will be "Tiny Trots". I think that this will be a better idea than to have to build 3 different sites (plus I don't know if I'm up for all that). My sister suggested that I returning to blogging on the site (once I get it up and running) so that it will draw more attention to the website. I have also added a sales policy---didn't want to do this at first, but lately I've had to many people wanting rabbits and then backing out. along with the sales policy, I have added an updated site button---this is to remind me that I need to update as well as let folks know what is for sale and such. I am also getting new business cards made, so remind me to give you one!

Today we took new pictures of the bunnies and took them outside for better lighting and a more "natural" look. I am pleased with the way that they turned out.
We now have 3 new litters of babies and I have found 2 new herd bucks that I will be adding to the rabbitry hopefully soon.

Pete had a job interview yesterday, so keep us in your thoughts and prayers that things go well with that.

Other than the above, I no new news....hope all is well with everyone and see ya at the show!

And so it begins

2009-08-30T18:12:00.000-07:00

I took some pictures of Trace and Trip last night, so I thought I would post them for all to see. He is growing quite large and at this point is eating me out of house and home!

In rabbitry news, the babies have began to arrive. Blue star x Shazam had a litter of 3 very fat and healthy kits......I have 5 more does due in the next day or so and have another 2 due within the next couple of weeks. I still have juniors from the last litters that I haven't found homes for and may have to take some of them to the auction. I had 2 prospective buyers back out of getting the rabbits that they wanted, so needless to say, I haven't sold any bunnies in awhile....this is depressing to me----however I don't seem to be the only one with this problem. I plan on bringing a couple to sell at the Fletcher show and we shall see how that goes. I must have lost my mind when I bred these does----I seem to be doing alot of that lately!!!!!

The other critters are getting along fine.

Enjoy the photos!

When it rains, It pours!!!!

2009-08-29T08:18:00.001-07:00

Do you ever sit and wonder, "why me lord"? that seems to be my favorite question for the last couple of months. Things around here have been falling apart or so it seems. Pete and I were discussing getting a divorce and me moving out....well, we decided that neither of us was willing to give up on 7 years of being together. We have decided that we need counseling in the marriage and budgeting department. To back up a little, when I planned on moving out, I decided that the best thing for me to do was sell out of the rabbits. I listed them for an unbelieveable low price....I had a few folks contact me about the cages....however no one seemed interested in the bunnies (couldn't sell the cages until the rabbits were gone). I was fustrated! I was stressed trying to figure out what I was going to do or where I was going to go. How would Trace and I survive? what would I do with the rest of my animals and how was I going to cope with everyday life? Thankfully the Lord stepped in and gave me the courage I needed to sit and talk with Pete about our problems----things worked out and I don't have to change my life.
We want to keep the animals and continue with the bunnies, just on a much smaller scale. At this point, we plan on focusing on 2 breeds and improving what we already have. I have got to learn self control on the amount of rabbits that we keep and in the money department. Things that I think I have to have......will have to wait until we have the extra money. Long story short, I know that we have a long way to go, but things are going to work out between Pete and I.
Just when I thought that everything was going to be ok......Pete tells me yesterday, he was laid off from his job (do to the fact that the guy has no more work for awhile). So, again I ask..."why me Lord"? I need to focus at this point on trying to be stress free and let what ever is going to happen to happen. I know that God has a plan for all of us and in time he will see fit for it to play out----until then, I will just have to continue to live day by day, keep my faith and remember that I'm not the only one in the world who deals with "when it rains, it pours". Thanks to all of my family and friends who continue to support and be there for me. God Bless to everyone and I wanted to let you know that you are in my thoughts and prayers!

Fustrated

2009-08-25T19:06:00.000-07:00

I can't remember when the last time I was this fustrated! I've been trying to work on my new website, but can't seem to understand how to work. Tomorrow I plan on calling webs.com and ask them, if it's as easy as 123---why can't I figure it out! I have followed all the instructions that they have given me.....but NO....I don't understand what is being said. I'm going to give it another week or two and if I can't post anything, I'm talking my sister into going with another company. I'll keep everyone updated on how that goes!
In rabbitry new, we have decided to cut down to no more than 20 bunnies----PERIOD--I think we could handle a rabbitry that size. We are still selling out of the Thriants and will only have the woolies and English Lops. I am going to start the search for a killer Jesey wooly buck, so I can improve my does----haven't decided on a color yet.

I took Trip into the vet on Friday----he just turned 7 months old and weighs 79.5lb. The vet says"he is very healthy" . All the other critters are doing fine and waiting for the cooler weather to come in.....I know that I am ready for fall!

anyway, I just wanted to say hi.

You are in my thoughts

2009-08-21T06:01:00.000-07:00

I have alot going on right now----some major changes are taking place in my life right now. I'm selling out of most of my rabbits( I only plan on keeping a few). I still plan on attending some of the local shows (hopefully) and will stay in contact with everyone that I know. I need prayers and lots of them right now.
When things get settled down for me, I will start posting again.

Just wanted to let you all know that you are all in my thoughts and prayers.....I haven't forgotten you!

A quick update

2009-08-05T15:29:00.000-07:00

I haven't blogged in a couple of days, so I wanted to make a quick update....work is going ok---I'm tired however! we have been working 9 hours a day this week (will possibly have to work saturday as well). It's only wednesday and I'm exhausted. I work on an assembly line and we have to make production---this means work as fast as your hands can go with only one 20 minute break and a 30 minute lunch. Not complaining (much) cause I will be doing the happy dance next Friday when I get my check and see the overtime on it! We sure need the extra money right now.

In other new, my sister purchased me a domain name and web hosting site from webs.com. I spent about 2 hours on it last night trying to figure out how to work it!!!!! OK I WILL ADMIT THAT I AM A COMPUTER DUMMY...with that being said, I never could figure out how to start out with a blank page. They have several hundred templetes I can use, but I thought I would try and design something myself....haha---I may have to go with a template! I'm not even sure how to use most of the tools that they offer, so it may take me awhile to finally get my new site published. On the good side of this aventure....I will learn how to use my computer! I have decided to wait until I have a day off from work before starting on the site....that way, I can play around with it all day. Everyone, please wish me luck......

All the critters are doing fine. Hopefully I will have a few bunnies sold this weekend. I really need to cut down on the numbers that I have.

Hope all is well with everyone.......

The Minis

2009-08-01T17:36:00.000-07:00

I took some new pictures of the minis today and I thought I would share. They look alot better now that they have shed their winter coats....Petty Cash is starting to look like a little stallion now instead of a bear cub! I am going to try and update their pictures on my website....however we know how that goes----sometimes I can get geocities to work for me and sometimes not. I think that I am going to go with godaddy.com for my new website and hopefully within the next month or so, I can get started. It will be a challange for me to build a website (Dustin and help from others, did my site that I have now). I'm also thinking about changing the name of the site....however I've been BL's Bunnybarn since 2005 and it's also a registered rabbitry name with the ARBA. If I do decide to change it I was thinking of "The Mini Farm". What do you guys think? Should I keep my old name or change it, or does anyone have any suggestions? I have a couple of ideas on how I want it to look----just may need some help getting it done. I may even consider having someone build it for me.....if the price is right.

I have completed my first week at work and let me tell you.....I'm not an early bird!!!! I miss sleeping in until 9 am. I shouldn't be complaining cause at least I'm not working nights. I like the job, but I know I'll never be rich working at Asmo, so I am still planning on going to real estate school when I can fit it into my schedule.

In rabbitry news, I bred 5 does yesterday. I haven't been able to get China Doll to take yet and it's fustrating....I really want babies off of her! She won't lift and refuses to even look at the buck. I will keep trying her though and hopefully I haven't waited to long to breed her. We didn't have the chance to pick up the A/C unit, so the bunnies are still hot....hopefully we can get it in the next week or two.

Not much other than that going on....just wanted to let folks know that I'm thinking about them....until next time.

Back at work

2009-07-26T16:26:00.000-07:00

Tomorrow I will be back at work. The temp. service called me and offered me a day shift position at Asmo. I have worked there before---last year---so I will be familar with what I will be doing. The hours will be Monday-Friday 7am til 3:30pm. I like that schedule much better than the nights!! The temp. service doesn't know how long the job will last, however at this point as long as I can draw a paycheck....I'm happy. I will be putting real estate school off for now (due to the work schedule), but hopefully in November, I can sign up for the weekend classes---JY Monk doesn't have a weekend shedule until then, otherwise I would start taking them now. I have been trying to figure out a budget for us, so that we can get some money in a savings account before winter---work slows WAY down for Pete at that time of the year. I have never been good at budgeting money or for that matter saving it....if I have it in my hands, I want to spend it!!!! but I am going to really try hard for the next couple of months to see if I can do it----I know in the end I will be doing the happy dance knowing that I have some extra money.
We had Trace's Birthday party yesterday and it turned out pretty good.....lots of kids. Dustin came and that is the first time I've seen him since Christmas. He seems to be doing ok and Trace was excited that he showed up.

All the critters are doing fine. We had someone who was suppose to come and purchase a Thrianta today....however they never showed up-----gotta love those kinds of sales! Other than that, I have no news to report.

Hope all is well with everyone!

ITZY

2009-07-23T16:48:00.000-07:00

Here is the picture I promised of my little girl Itzy. She is so cute and very sweet. Trace and I already have her eating mealworms and crickets from our hands. We spend at least 30 minutes a night playing with her (she sleeps all day). She is starting to be more calmer when we pick her up. I have spent hours on the internet trying to learn all that I can about them....they seem to be amazing little creatures. The lady I got her from, still has 2 of her sisters that need homes, if anyone is interested. I couldn't find the kind of wheel that is recommended for them at our local pet store, so I'm off to petsmart on Friday.

Trace and I spent most of the day cleaning cages and pulling weeds in the garden...started at 10:30 this morning and it was around 4:00 when we finished, but now everything is nice and clean and smells good. We found an a/c unit for the rabbitry and will be picking it up on Sunday....I know the bunnies will be alot happier in the cool air. We are hoping move out some more rabbits pretty soon. I'm trying to cut my herd in half.

All the other critters are doing well and seem to enjoy being fat, dumb and happy!

I can hardly wait until the next rabbit show....I think it will be in Fletcher and we always enjoy staying the weekend with Mrs. Kitty and her family.

Hope that everyone is doing well and you are all in my thoughts and prayers.......

An eventful few days!

2009-07-19T17:37:00.000-07:00

Friday night Kristen and hubby came to spend the night. I somehow got SEVERAL viruses on my computer and Thanks to Kristen, we got some of the bugs worked out. I know that I will have to buy a new computer soon (more like tax time). On saturday morning we went to the Feed Bucket in Statesville for a "parking lot animal sale".....can I please say "WHAT A WASTE OF TIME". I sold one kitten and GAVE AWAY 11 rabbits! There was hardly anyone there and the way that they had us set up, we weren't even close enough for anyone to notice what was going on. No signs out front or anything. Keepe did sell a couple of bunnies and we did get some free samples of dog food ( I was afraid to get too many....long story as to why). I also came home with a pair of white-tailed Japanese bathams----which I plan on showing. I named them Romeo and Juliet. Saturday night we had the Taylorsville rabbit show. I never write down my results (shame on me), but I remember that Bogart, our 2 month old chestnut was DQ'd for having a light colored toenail. Judge said that it may darken as he gets older.....let's hope so. China Doll won BOB in show A and took 2nd in show B (can't figure that one out, but oh well). The Thriantas did not do all that great---however both does just came off of litters and none of them were in show condition. In the youth show, the Judge was going to pick Trace's chestnut doe for BOB, both then had to DQ her because she didn't have a ear number (Pete forgot to tattoo her). It was a long night and I was ready to come home at 10:00.....however that didn't happen. It was after 2 before we got home and settled everyone down. I did aquire a new pet....a baby hedgehog! She is 3 months old and I'm calling her Itzy-----she is so cute! I have spent some time on the internet to learn whatever I can about them. I'll post pictures of her later.

I would like to say congrats to everyone that placed in the show and again I would like to thank Kristen and Tim for their help with the computer and bunnies.

Hope all is well with everyone.......

New Addition

2009-07-11T18:03:00.000-07:00

Yesterday we went to the McGinnis's to pick up our new English Lop doe....she is SO cute and has such a personality! I decided to name her Diva. She is 9 weeks old and her ears already measure 19 inches long. Dewy seems to be "smitten" by her, so I know she was the right choice. I am looking to add another pair. I have promised myself that if I start raising the ELops, that I will not have any more than 6 in the rabbitry....I believe that is a number I can handle and will stick too!

I sold 11 bunnies on Friday----all of the Cals. and 4 very ugly wooly babies! I still have several more to go....however I now have a couple of empty cages and less mouths to feed. We cleaned the rabbitry today and scrubbed all the water bottles and feed dishes....this event took us all day. I'm exhausted!!!!!!

In other news, Keepe has a live litter of Hares and we are so excited. We are going to help them promote the breed and have been placed on the waiting list. Pete will work with the Thriantas and Hares and I will stay with the JW and now the ELops. We hope to get Trace into showing one of each breed in youth.

I hope all is well with everyone else and I want you to know that you are in my thoughts and prayers!

Also posted a picture of Trace and his BFF Trip....that dog just won't stop growing!!!!

Finally!

2009-07-09T18:28:00.000-07:00

Finally I was able to figure out how to get my geocities pagebuilder to launch....I was able to update a few pictures and some text on the homepage----however, it froze up on me again and I couldn't finish. I'm thinking it maybe my computer ( the poor thing is going on 7 years old!). I quess I need to buy a new one at income tax next year---that is unless I become a millionaire this year and can afford to get one....don't see that happening. I don't know why I'm complaining about it though cause geocities is shutting down and I'm going to have to move my site anyway!

In other news, I found the realtor school that I want to attend. JY Monk. They are one of the best in the nation. They have a school in Hickory and classes start next week----however I'm not quite prepared, so I plan on taking the class that starts on 8/23. I will be going on tuesdays and wednesdays from 9-5. The class is completed in 5 weeks and then I will take the state exam......I'm already nervous! thank goodness my sister has already been through the classes and will be able to help me (there is so much to learn). Everyone wish me luck in this new adventure.

Dewy is MUCH better. I had purchased some top-fill likit bottles last week ( I only bought 2) and I just happened to notice that he had not been drinking as much water as the other bunnies.....I thought it was because he wasn't feeling well. I put my finger to the tip to see if it was clogged or broken and the thing poked me really hard! I immediatly gave Dewy back his old water bottle and he went to drinking like crazy.....drank half a 32oz bottle before he stopped. He then started eating. The poor thing was dehydraited! I told Pete what I had discovered and he said "well, don't buy anymore and we are not putting in the automatic water system next year. Let's just stick to the water bottles we've been using." Thank goodness I made this discovery before we spent the money on the auto system cause the ones I've seen all have those type of nibbles. Any way, Dewy is back to his old self and I'm feeding him extra to put the weight back on him. I have learned another lesson! I also found an EL doe---also from the Mcginnis's , just out of different bloodlines and hopefully we will be picking her up this weekend.

The Cals. have been sold. The man that is buying them will be here Friday (if he doesn't change his mind....don't think he will cause he has called me several times about them) to pick them up. I will miss them, but we haven't done anything with them other than feeding, haying and watering. Pete wants to concentrate more on the Thriantas and we are trying to locate another buck that has a different bloodline other than what we have. We are planning on showing a couple of them at the Taylorsville show...it's been awhile since we've had them on the table.

Trace is now home and things are back to normal........WHERE DID ALL MY PIECE AND QUITE GO!!!!!!

Exciting News!

2009-07-06T18:55:00.000-07:00

I have decided that I'm going back to school. I was talking to my sister today about what we wanted to become "when we grow up". She has decided that she is going to school and get a degree in construction management and she wanted to know if I would be willing to work on her real estate website (she is a realtor on the side) while she is busy with school and her job working for the military.....I have helped her before and really liked it. I then commented on the fact that I might be interested in becoming a realtor as well. She told me that she would send me the links to some schools in my area and I could have her books----she also agreed to pay for my schooling!!!!! I can take a 6 week class and become a realtor. I'm so excited. Of course it's not as easy as it sounds----lots of class work, studying and tests----I'm not real good in math, however I feel that I can handle the rest and since she has been selling real estate for awhile now, she said she could help me. I know that the housing market has been down for awhile, but it is slowly picking up and by time I'm out of school, it should be better. I could also go into property management and new construction. Now all I have to do, is get my ducks in a row and get registered in school. I will keep everyone updated on how this goes.

In rabbitry news, Dewy is not doing well. I don't know what is wrong with him. He has not eaten in 2 days and feels very skinny. I have given him hay and he nibbled on it. I also pulled some fresh grass for him and he did seem to like that. I am trying to keep the rabbits cool...alot of them have went off their feed and I have been blaming it on the heat. I don't know what to think about it. I will keep a close eye on him and hope that he gets better soon and starts eating. I plan on getting him on oats in the morning. If I need to, I will bring everyone into the basement until we can figure out a way to keep them cool. We have also decided to cut WAY down on the rabbits. I will be going through the herd in the next couple of days....I plan on keeping only the best of my stock ( I will also keep some of the older ones we have retired and I can't bring myself to sell) and everyone else will be finding new homes---hopefully----I would even be willling to give a couple of them to a breeder who is wanting different lines then what they have for FREE. If there is anything in my rabbitry that you may be interested in, just shoot me an e-mail.....at this point, I open to all options.

I took a picture of Tinkerbell this afternoon with Trip's bone.....she tried to bite me before I snapped the shot and you can tell how happy she is about having her picture taken....I thought it was cute though and I posted it for you guys to see.

Hope all is well with everyone else----you are in my thoughts and prayers

Back at it!

2009-07-03T18:20:00.000-07:00

Well, it happened.....last night was my last night to work at Elmer's Glue. They laid off all the temps. I knew it was coming----just didn't want it to happen. Now, I will be looking for a new job (not that I haven't already been doing this). There is not a lot of work out there. I really want to go back to work for the state (in corrections) however the nearest prison, is about an hour or so from us. I'm not sure I could afford the gas to drive back and forth. I don't think I want to move again (cost way to much money) unless my sister decides to go ahead and buy property out that way----she has put everything on hold for the time being----so, now I am stuck with the question "what am I going to do now?" I know of several folks who are in the same situation....they are scraping pennies just to try and get by. I did file for unemployeement for the time being and that will help out some----not much. Last time, I filed I only recieved $80.00 per week. This fed the animals and gave us a little gas money, but that was it. Thank goodness Pete still has his job. Shingling roofs in the heat gets to him though and he is tired all the time (however, getting a nice tan). I've thought about going back to school----don't know if that will work or not, can't afford it----and I know of alot of people who have degrees and are standing in line at the unemployeement center looking for work. Hopefully soon, things will break for us and the ecomony will pick up......we can only hope and pray.

The animals are all doing well and the mini's seem to like the new pasture. My legs are getting better....they are such pretty shades of colors at this point. We don't have any plans for the 4th of July and I'm missing Trace pretty bad. It was nice to have some peace and quite for a couple of days, however I'm over that now and just would like him to be home. I read on yahoo that Hartzell stock will be for sale....man, I wish I could afford it cause he has some really nice bunnies! however, I am happy with the stock I have purchased at much better prices. I think I have several that will do well on the show table. I'm so looking forward to our next show and hopefully we can talk Keepee and hubby into staying the night with us....we like having them visit.

Other than the above, nothing to report. Until next time......

Feeling Better and random pics

2009-06-28T13:43:00.000-07:00

I just wanted to let everyone know that I am feeling better and the swellling is starting to go down in my right leg. I have added a photo of how it looks after 3 days (sorry the legs are so white). I did learn a very valuable lesson---ALWAYS BE CAREFUL AROUND ANIMALS NO MATTER HOW WELL YOU KNOW THEM, CAUSE ANYTHING CAN HAPPEN----.

We were finally able to purchase some electric fence tape for the mini horse pasture and Pete got it put up today. Cash is a dummy and ran into it several times before he figured out that it hurts! Now that the project is complete, the dogs have their fenced in backyard....both me and the dogs are happy. I can now walk through the house without a herd under my feet. Pete took a picture of Trip enjoying himself one last time on the sofa before he got "booted" to the yard. He has grown ALOT in the last week. It has been 3 years since we have owned a big dog---what was I thinking!?-- he eats about 20lbs a dog food in a week----my small dogs eat that a month!. He misses Trace. I'll be glad when he gets home....he sent me a picture via cell phone of the fish that he and his cousin caught while on a camping trip with his grandfather. I quess he is having a good time....I haven't heard from him in 2 days.

In rabbitry news, we have 10 Thrianta babies and several JW babies that are ready for their new homes. We plan on attending the Taylorsville show on July 18th and can deliver them there, if anyone is interested. We still have the californians that we need to place as well. There are 7 of them and I will let all of them go for $50.00. I still haven't found a used A/C unit yet and we are in great need for one....the fans are blowing hot air and the water bottles won't stay frozen long enough to do any good----

I hope all is well with everyone else and you are staying cool in this heat....until next time.

Not feeling so well

2009-06-26T14:17:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, while feeding Piper, I noticed a horsefly on his neck and like a stupid idiot, I just slapped at it....boy, was that the wrong thing to do! He wheeled around and kicked out with both back feet catching me on both of my thighs----it broke the skin on both legs and sent me flying! I landed on my butt and when I tried to get up, I fell back to the ground. I had to crawl closer to the house (I couldn't feel my legs) so that I could call for Pete to come and help me. Pete carried me inside and immediatly put ice on my legs. We thought about going to the hospital, but without medical insurance, that thought soon faded. I have been taking lots of asprin and rotating heat with ice. The left leg is doing better (brusied but ok) the right one has me a little worried. Pete bent my leg for me, so we know that it is not broken, just badly bruised. I stayed in bed for most of the day...only getting up to limp to the bathroom (luckly we had some cruthes in the basement) and I'm getting around a little more. It is my weekend to work...however that is not going to happen! I can't stand on my right leg at all and only about 5 minutes on the left. I called into work to let them know what has happened and hopefully I will be back on both legs by the end of the weekend. I can't blame Piper though....I know sudden moves freak him out. I should have told him I was going to get the horse fly and then he would have expected what was about to happen.

other than the above, things have been pretty boring around here. hope all is well with everyone else.....

Best Night Ever!

2009-06-20T19:14:00.000-07:00

Last night, I got to go see my dream man in concert! My sister purchased 4 tickets to Keith Urban and Sugarland.....the show was awesome. I couldn't do anything but cry when Keith came out on stage. I LOVE him! His song "making memories of us" was mine and Pete's wedding song, so that again brought the tears on.
I would like to say a huge "thank you " to my sister for making my night.
Today we just kind of chilled....Pete did mow our butt high grass though, so now the yard looks really nice. I am trying to decide what kind of flowers I would like to plant in the flower bed in front of the house. I moved the rose bushes, so it looks bare. any suggestions?
Maggie(the mini mare) tore down all the brand new fence we just recently put up, so now Pete is complaining about the money we are going to have to put out to re-fence....I told him that's what you can expect when you have animals. The mini's have been moved into the back yard for the time being which means that I can't let the dogs out....I have to take them all out on leashes----anyway, Trip is very playful and loves to run in the yard. Since he can't at the time, he has decided that Bella is now his new squeaky toy. He likes to put his paw on her head and hold her down to the floor so that he can chew on her! I am forever resucing her from him and she stays covered in slobber....my poor baby! the other girls are smarter than her and stay far away from him. I have discovered that he doesn't like cats. He tried to eat one of my kittens the other day and if I wouldn't have had the leash on him.....he would have killed it. I am working on getting him use to them---they are not afraid of dogs and are always looking for an oppertunity to rub against the hounds.
The bunnies seem to be doing ok, but I need to find an A/C unit fast! It gets way too hot in the rabbitry . I have fans going, but all they are doing is blowing the hot air around.
On July 18th, the feed bucket in Statesville is holding a small animal sale. They called us and wanted us to bring some bunnies ( we will have plenty!) you can also bring goats, sheep, chickens and what ever small critters you may have. They will also be having a rabie clinic.....so if anyone is interested, just shoot me an e-mail and I'll give you all the details.
Not much else going on......

Until next time....

Introducing Trip

2009-06-16T18:30:00.000-07:00

Sorry I haven't posted in awhile, we've had alot going on. Trace is out of school for the summer and we have been trying to plan a trip for him to see my dad in Louisiana. Finally we got his ticket booked today and he leaves out on the 23rd of this month. He also recieved an early Birthday gift.....Trip is an AKC registered German Shepherd. He just turned 5 months old and is a BIG boy. His mom weighs 85lbs and his dad weighs 100+ lbs! He is the biggest GS I think I've ever seen!!!! Trace plans on using him as a stud dog when he is old enough.

I am still working as of now, but there has been talk around the plant, that there will be a layoff in the next couple of weeks. Hopefully the temp. service will send me some where else or I can find a permant job by then. I can't afford not to be working! Pete is still working when the weather is good, but we know how that goes.

We have decided to sell all of the Californian rabbits. We aren't doing much with them and we could use the cage space. I am asking $75.00 for all 12 rabbits. If you know any one interested, just let me know. I also have several Jersery woolies and Thrianta babies that are ready for new homes. I need to update my website, however I haven't decided if I am going to buy a domain name or try and find a free web hosting since geocitites is shutting down soon.

All the other critters are doing fine and enjoyed the cooler weather that we had today. I am also posting a picture of Bella....my little princess!

I have a friend that has some doxie puppies for sale. Some are short hair and some are long hairs. One of them is a long-haired dapple male (he is BEAUTIFUL) She is asking $250.00 for them, if someone is looking for a new pup. You can e-mail me and I fill you in on all the information.

We have put a hold on the land search at the moment....I'll let everyone know when we proceed with our plans.

Hope all is well with everyone and you are in my thoughts and prayers.....

Back in the Saddle

2009-06-06T20:12:00.000-07:00

Today was a busy day. First we cleaned rabbit cages and Pete added chicken wire to the bottom of the meat shed....that way I can put the baby chick on the ground and not worry about it getting out or something getting in. Next, we cleaned off the porch and I took off the trash. We also cleaned the house from top to bottom....it was nice to get so much accomplished.

After all the work was completed, I decided that I was going to ride Piper. I was a little nervous cause it has been 2 years since he has been ridden. I told Pete to get the camara and take some photos before he had to call EMS....I just knew he was going to throw me sky high! To my amazement, he didn't buck or act up in any way. He was not to happy about the snaffle bit that I had on him, so I may try a hackamore and see if he likes that better. Last time I rode him, I used a side pull and he seemed to do ok other than the fact that I could not get him to neck rein....this is something that he really needs work on. I plan on riding him at least 30 minutes a day on my days off of work----hopefully it won't be long before I feel he is ready to leave the pasture and start on some trails. I'm so excited to be "back in the saddle"!

In other news, Tibit had a black and white kitten last night. Thank goodness she only had one. Her and Bejing have decided that they need to raise the 3 kittens together ( Tibit took her kitten to where Bejing has hers and piled it in) They take turns grooming and nursing them....strangest thing I ever saw. I didn't know that cats would share their kittens with another....I learn something new everyday! I'll post pics of the kittens in a day or two.

Hope all is well with everyone. you are in my thoughts and prayers......

On a quest

2009-06-02T19:09:00.000-07:00

Well, I have decided that I would like to find an English lop doe.....so now I'm on a quest to locate her. I don't know a lot about shipping rabbits, so I would like to find one locally. I plan on contacting Jay first to see if he may have anything available. Wish me luck! I am also on the search for a white japanese batham hen....if you know of anyone that raises them, please contact me.

Today was beautiful, but awful hot. We put out frozen water bottles for the rabbits....however everyone was still panting pretty hard ( the dogs didn't even want to stay outside today). I am looking for a used window unit to put in the rabbitry and hopefully I won't loose anyone to heat this summer. The bunnies are not eating all their pellets like normal and at this point, I'm blaming the heat.

I spent 2 hours grooming Petty Cash trying to take off his winter coat. He looks better, but I think I will need to continue to groom him over the next couple of days. Once he is slicked off, I will post some pictures of him. I also spent some time grooming Maggie and sitting by the koi pond in the shade. Piper will recieve his grooming first thing in the morning before it gets too hot!

The dogs have been scratching like crazy the last couple of days, so I made a trip to the vet's office today and purchased some k9 advantage.....everyone got a dose and hopefully can get some rest from the fleas. I am going to pull the pool out for them tommorrow....Marti loves the water!

All else is well.....you are all in my thoughts and prayers!

A new snuggie

2009-06-01T19:02:00.000-07:00

I ordered Bella a snuggie and she loves it. I think it will help her sleep better at night. She sleeps in the bed with us and she is constantly scratching at the covers and makes about a million circles ( in both directions) before she will settle down....in a few minutes, she back at it again. The snuggie is sort of like a sleeping bag....she can dig her way around untill she gets comfortable---hopefully I can get some sleep now! Pete says that she is spoiled so rotten that she stinks when she walks into a room! I think he is just jealous cause he didn't get one!

All the bunnies are doing fine and Pete cleaned the rabbitry today....everything smells so nice! I am thinking about adding an English lop doe to the barn.....it's a hard decision cause I already have 3 breeds and looking forward to getting into the Belgin Hares as well. I just love those big ole ears on Dewy and he is such a ham. If I do decide to venture into the EL's, I think I will contact Jay ( the judge) about getting a show doe. This is something that I need to sleep on though,....I'll let you know what I decide.

I haven't heard anything from my sister about the property yet, so that is still in limbo.....I wish she would hurry up and let me know what she wants to do. I have ants in my pants at this point!

If anyone is looking for some babydoll sheep, let me know....I can hook ya up!

Other than that, not much going on...I'm looking forward to having the next 2 days off from work. I have alot of stuff around the farm that needs to be done.

Hope all is well with everyone and you are in my thoughts!

Ups and Downs of my day

2009-05-28T23:44:00.000-07:00

It's 2:50 am and I can't sleep so I thought I would tell you the ups and downs of the day.

Let's start with the ups:

Mom and I went and looked at a property today and fell in love! It has 12.75 acres of beautiful fescue grass, a large barn, a creek that runs through the property, two seperate pastures that are fenced and a singlewide mobile home. It is in a great school district and only 15 miles from Hickory. I took pictures and sent them to Sherri to review.....now I'm waiting on a response from her. Hopefully that won't take too long, however I know that she is quite busy and sometimes it takes awhile to hear from her. I posted a picture so you guys can get a general idea. Oh! I forgot to mention that the 10 acres next door could be for lease or for sale.

Downs:

I went to pick up my paycheck and the temp. service shorted me 10 hours ( 8 of them was for overtime). I about had a fit in the office and went off on the lady that runs the place. She said according to her records, she was correct on my hourly amount......I disagreed and told her that I know how many 12 hour days I have to stand on my feet packing glue bottles! She gave me the "ole brush off " and I stormed out of the office. Mom and I figured it up and they owe me $200.00. I plan on going to the boss at Elmer's first thing when I get to work on Friday and ask for a copy of my hours that they send to choice personnel. Monday I will be sitting in front of Trudy demanding payment or I will be going to the labor board. This is the second time they have shorted me on my money ( they did correct it the first time---a week later). I don't work for free and if they don't pay me, I'll be looking for another job.....well, I'm already looking for another job because I hate working nights, but this incident is going to make me look harder. I'm so mad that I'm still seeing red and I think that's why I can't sleep tonight. I had some bills that I needed to take care of this week and now can't because of them SOB's!

In other news, I finished reading the second book in the twilight series....can't wait to find out what happens next!

Website updated

2009-05-27T14:12:00.000-07:00

Pete has been very busy updating the website with new pictures. I've been working so I haven't had the time to do it, so I apperciate his help very much. It's been raining here off and on for the last couple of days, so the pictures of the horses are taken in the wonderful mud! I will try to get better pictures when it dries up some.

In rabbitry news, we have 33 babies that are now ready to wean.....thank goodness I have extra cage space! I think I have several that will be showable. I have some older stock that I need to move out, so if you know of anyone needing starter bunnies.....send them my way.

We went and looked at one of the properties that we thought we may be interested in. It was disappointing. Mostly wooded. We don't mind SOME trees, but this place was all woods. I still have a couple others that I will be checking into this week. I know that it will take some time for us to find our "perfect" place.....I'm just so excited that I want it NOW!

I have to work this coming weekend, so we won't be going to the Columbia show. I'm not sure when I next show will be, but that's ok cause most of them are either with litters or in molt.

Just wanted to say" I'm thinking of you all and hope that you are having a good day"

What A Day!

2009-05-23T18:59:00.000-07:00

Last night Kristen and Tim Drum came to stay with us. We had a great time...enjoyed playing with the animals and putting steaks on the grill.
This morning we all headed out for the Taylorsville show. I'm not exactly sure what all of our results were( I never write them down...quess I should start), but I can tell you what I remember.
China doll placed BOG which will give her 5 legs now, Trace won BOS with Mellow in show A and won BOS with Joe Glo in show B. Dewy(my English lop) won BOS in show B.
I sold 3 bunnies and came home with 3....not what I had planned, but oh well.
I want to say Congratulations to everyone that placed well their class. It was really hot in the showroom, but other than that, it was a good show. I had the chance to visit with alot of my rabbit buddies ( one of my favorite parts of going to the shows)and a chance to meet some new folks. I wanted to come home with a ferret, but that didn't happen and now I'm glad because I was reminded how much they stink. I won some "much needed" new pillows off of the raffle table and a really nice picture frame.
We came home, unloaded the bunnies, fed the other critters, said "good-bye" to the Drums and are now lounging around trying to unwind from the day.

Hope everyone else enjoyed their day as much as we did ours!

Kittens

2009-05-19T15:50:00.000-07:00

We now have kittens.....I found them under the rabbitry today. I had discovered that Bejing was nursing so for the last 2 days, we have been on the hunt for them. There are 2 of them and their eyes are open and they are wobbling around. I moved them in the house so that I can keep and eye on them. We are planning on spaying mama cat now. As soon as I can, I'll post pictures of the cute little boogers.

As I was telling you in my last post, we have decided to look for some land for our horse rescue. I talked with Sherri today and she wants me to set up an appointment to look at one of the properties that we have in mind. I will try to get that done in the next week or so. It's a beautiful piece of land with a pond on it and I'm familiar with the area----It's really nice! This is just the beginning process of our plans, so we have alot to get done. Everyone is so excited and we can hardly wait----I know it's going to take some time though so I need to take a chill pill! We are thinking about bringing in some extra help once we get the place up and running....we already have a couple in mind and hopefully things will go well for all of us.

We also discovered that Maggie, the mini mare, likes sweet tea. Mom and I was over petting them and Maggie stuck her lips down in my mom's glass of tea....the little gal drank the whole glass! Pete said we should just add tea bags to the water trough and she would be a happy camper.

In rabbitry news, Pete took some pictures of the babies yesterday, so I thought I would post one. Hope all is well with everyone.

until next time and God bless

First time

2009-05-18T17:53:00.000-07:00

Wow! this is pretty neat. I have a blog on my website, but I thought I would try blogspot to see if it is any better.

We have a show coming up, so while feeding the buns, I had to look everyone over to see how I could show....pickins are real slim. My best does have litters on them and all the bucks seem to be molting right now! I have several nice babies, but none of them are old enough to show. I finally picked six that will hopefully do ok......I quess we will have to see at the show.

My sister has decided that she wants to purchase some land (at least 20 acres) where we can all live and start a horse rescue program. I'm in love with the idea......I LOVE MY HORSES! She has given me the job of locating the property and setting up the viewings with the realtors. I have started the search and so far, have come up with a few that we may be interested in. I don't know when I will have the time to go look at them with my work schedule and all, but I'll make it happen. Sherri, my sister, would like this to be up and running within the next two years. We have alot to do to make all this happen. I'll keep everyone posted on how this goes.

Pete placed some water plants in my koi pond today and it really looks nice....I will have to post some pictures when it is completed.

other than the above, not much going on. I can't wait to see all my bunny friends this coming weekend!