Today, Tarquin did something that was decidedly not male.
Of course, the egg will not be fertile - there is no boyfriend with her. So, the question becomes, what do I name her now? Tarquinette? Tarquinelle? Tarquanna? Oh dear, every day when I get her out for a little cuddle session, I always say things like "Oh he's such a good boy" and other silly nonsense in my best pigeon voice. Now I have to change all that and say "...good girl" instead. This will take some adjustment.In other news, the sheep have been pronounced ready to come home by the vet at the shelter. His opinion is that the skin irritation is a result of all the burrs. So, we will probably pick them up tomorrow. The goat is bonded to the sheep, so she comes too. New names for everybody. I am not fond of Thelma and Louise as names for sheep (Louise is my middle name) and anyway I'm kind of partial to non-human-sounding names for our flock. I'll be working on that.
And the final bit of news - hatching of some incubated eggs began today. Just 3 today. They are, I think, Rhode Island Reds. I ordered some hatching eggs after the holiday losses, and in my anxious and rushed state, I put them into the incubator with the hatch date, but not the variety. So now I have all these eggs with dates but no breeds. Oops. I'm sure they will sort themselves out over time as they feather out.
No news on Stuffin. She really is a bit of a tease. Her back end seems to have gotten narrower, and her tail feels loose to me. I keep expecting some activity, but she feels otherwise. Of course, since this weekend is due to be extremely cold, she will probably decide that is the right time. Any bets?
15 comments:
Glad you are changing the names. My middle name is Louise, too. It was my mom's name. Cute chicks!
pigeon, sheep, goat, chicks,
how will Claire care for them all?
in the Iowa sticks.
How about Tarquilla? The chicks are so pretty, and Stuffin doesn't look nearly as big as the goats at Antiquity Oaks look just before they kid. Maybe she has a while to go yet!
oh i just love all of your animals!
what about 'tarquinisn't'?
ha!
and holy smokes-no pun intended-but the free patches i got thanks to you are a different brand than i have been using- i swear i could smell nicotine when i opened the package. very strong!
i love them! :)
How about Malvarosa and Manchego as names for the sheep (I'm thinking sheep cheeses here) and you could call them Manny and Malva for short.
I think you have officially reached managerie status at this point... at least.
Or you could name one of them Raymond Burr on account of the burrs - I know, lame pun/wordplay humor, sorry.
I am also a big fan of naming animals after vintage pop culture icons. (I've had at least 2 pets named after Steve McQueen)
OOOOOoooo! Baby chicks! I want more baby chicks....
;-)
I so do NOT envy you worrying about kidding in this weather! I hope she holds off until it's a bit warmer. Or has them right as you go out to check on her. No babies here until the end of April...
Wow! What a surprise! Are you sure it's an infertile egg?
I didn't know that other birds, besides chickens, laid eggs, unless they were already fertile.
We had a pair of adult lovebirds for a year and they never even laid one egg.
So does this mean you'll get pigeon eggs on a regular basis? Can you eat them?
How exciting that your new sheep and goat are coming home soon! They don't even know how lucky they are. :)
Darn that Stuffin. Come on and have that baby/ies already! hehe
~Lisa
There was once a ballerina with the name Tanaquil... perhaps your pigeon would like that name?
I love those chickies... I'm trying to convince our lady that we should get some chickies. Kisses from Isobelle.
I adopted a female tortiseshell cat named (drumroll please) - JAKE! She definately knew her name, so we just left it as-it. :) It just became normal to us eventually!
What about the names Malvarosa and Manchego for the sheep? (I'm thinking sheep cheeses here) Then you could call them Malva and Manny for short.
Or you could name one of them Raymond Burr - because of the burrs...I know, lame wordplay humor. And they're gals.
I am a big fan of naming animals after vintage pop-culture icons. I've had 2 pets named after Steve McQueen alone.
Wow - lots of news! Within a few months the poor sheep won't even remember their sad days, and they and their goat will be happily part of your family. Stuffin, come on! Don't worry your Mom so! And Tarquin? Maybe Tarquina? Ask Diane about her friend in Fla who has a white cockatiel named Spike. He was content to be Spike until his mom got pregnant, after which "he" laid eggs! I think there were 3. It was a very tough time - he/she insisted on nesting on them, so the humans had to be sneaky about removing them. And yes, there have been more eggs since!! Nancy
I had a lovebird that laid eggs, so tiny. Make sure your girl is getting extra calcium.
forgot to congratulate you on the new chickies - they are darling!
and Claire, just so you don't think I'm totally farm stupid, I actually hatched chicks when I was the lead teacher in a child care center. I took them home with me part of the time, and the babies bonded with my guinea pig! When they got too big for her, I gave them to a local farmer.
Joanna - another cute haiku!
Michelle - I tried it out, and Tarquilla has stuck!
Lisa - the pigeon eggs are pretty small, but you could eat them in theory. I don't think I will though. Maybe cook it up for the dog! They don't lay that often though. When they do, 2 eggs over a couple of days, and then that's it, for a long time.
Nancy - the guinea pig story is so funny! I had guinea pigs when I was a kid. Love those little furries!
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