Today at my Bedford, New York farm, we're expecting clouds and rain this morning with possible snow showers this afternoon. With higher than usual temperatures, it's been a dreary, wet, and muddy winter so far.
I always enjoy seeing the beautiful snow covering the landscape this time of year, but one group who seems uninhibited by all the rain and mud is my gaggle of geese. They have a long, heated shelter in one corner of their enclosure, but they rarely stay there. Instead, these comical birds prefer to gather in the mud-filled patches and play in their pools. And they always come running to greet any visitors that pass by.
Here are some photos, enjoy.
Many of you know, my geese have a large yard located right outside my stable. It is near the peafowl pen and two Silkie chicken enclosures. This area of the farm is a popular stop when friends and family come by.
We haven’t had any accumulation of snow so far this winter, but these birds don’t seem to mind. They enjoy being out in the rain, flapping their wings and walking through the mud and muck.
The do have a heated shelter in the back of their pen, but they are rarely there except when the hens are nesting on eggs.
They love to gather close together most of the time. And do you know, a group of geese on land is called a gaggle. This is because when geese get together they can get quite noisy and rowdy.
And, while the term “goose” may refer to either a male or female bird, when paired with “gander”, the word goose refers specifically to a female. Gander is the term used to identify a male.
In flight, a group of geese is called a skein, team or wedge. On the water or flying close together, a group is referred to as a wedge of geese.
I have several goose breeds. Here is my pair of Chinese geese. The Chinese goose is refined and curvaceous. The Chinese goose holds its head high. Its head flows seamlessly into a long, slim, well-arched neck which meets the body at about a 45 degree angle. Its body is short, and has a prominent and well-rounded chest, smooth breast and no keel. Mature ganders average 12 pounds, while mature geese average 10 pounds.
Their bills are relatively long and slender, with a large, rounded, erect knob that attaches to its forehead.
Look closely at the Chinese geese in the back compared to the others in the foreground. The Chinese geese most likely descended from the swan goose in Asia, though over time developed different physical characteristics, such as longer necks and more compact bodies. The Chinese goose is a very hardy and low-maintenance breed.
Most domestic geese also have larger back ends than their wild counterparts and stand more upright.
Everyone asks about the Sebastopols. These birds are considered medium-sized birds. Both males and females have pure white feathers that contrast with their bright blue eyes and orange bills and feet. Sebastopol geese have large, rounded heads, slightly arched necks, and keelless breasts.
And what is most striking is the plumage. The plumage of the head and upper two-thirds of the neck is smooth, while that of the breast and underbody is elongated and well-curled. Here’s one flapping its wings. Though domesticated breeds of geese generally retain some flight ability, Sebastopol geese cannot fly well due to the curliness of their feathers and have difficulty getting off the ground.
This is my pair of African geese – a breed that has a heavy body, thick neck, stout bill, and jaunty posture which gives the impression of strength and vitality. The African is a relative of the Chinese goose, both having descended from the wild swan goose native to Asia. The mature African goose has a large knob attached to its forehead, which requires several years to develop. A smooth, crescent-shaped dewlap hangs from its lower jaw and upper neck. Its body is nearly as wide as it is long. African geese are the largest of the domestic geese. These two African geese are often found together in the yard.
And if you follow my blog regularly, you may recognize the Pomeranian guard geese – the oldest of my gaggle.
Waterfowl don’t need roosts – they are very happy gathering together and sleeping on the ground.
Geese are grazing birds which means they eat a variety of different items. They eat roots, shoots, stems, seeds, and leaves of grass and grain, bulbs, and berries. They also eat small insects. In addition, I fortify their diet with a mix specifically made for waterfowl.
And, I like to give them lots of vegetables from my gardens. They love to pick at them during the day.
While both ducks and geese love water, geese don’t require a pond or large swimming pool – they swim much less than ducks and are content with a small dipping pool where they can dunk and clean their noses and beaks.
Here’s the African goose at one of the pools getting a drink. When drinking water, geese will use the bill to lift the water into the mouth, and then toss its head back to let the water run down its throat.
And here’s Phurba filling a pool. On this day he said he just filled the pools an hour earlier, but the geese already played in the pools and dirtied all the water.
This is Bear. He was incubated and hatched right here at the farm. He is about two years old and is very attached to the humans, but his “affectionate” pecks can sometimes a bit insistent.
And these buff-brown geese are Toulouse geese. On this breed, the bill is stout, the head large and broad, and the moderately long neck is thick and nearly straight. Often suspended from the lower bill and upper neck is a heavy, folded dewlap that increases in size and fullness with age. The body is long, broad and deep, ending in a well-spread tail that points up slightly. And thanks to their honks, these geese make excellent guardians. They can scare off any animals on the ground and they’re great at spotting aerial predators, such as hawks and falcons. These three are taking their turn in the chicken enclosure guarding my many hens and roosters. What is your favorite breed of goose?
As many of you know, I am an avid horseback rider and love to go out for rides on my Friesians. An important part of riding is making sure the horse has a well-fitted saddle. A horse’s comfort and happiness as well as a rider's proper positioning all depend on the fit of the saddle. An improper fit can cause a rider's weight to be distributed unevenly, which can result in pressure points, rub marks, and soreness on the horse's back. Saddles should be checked once or twice a year.
Yesterday, second-generation saddle fitter and owner of Synergy Saddle Fit in upstate New York, Trish Baker, came to the farm to check my saddles and make adjustments where needed.
Here are some photos, enjoy.
This is my stable tack room where we keep many saddles, bridles, and harnesses. All the equipment is stored on specific racks when not being used.
We also keep equipment in my stable manager’s office. Everything is always ready for the next ride.
Here’s the patriarch of my stable, my handsome Friesian, Rinze. Rinze is first to get checked.
Rinze is taken out of his stall and safely secured to cross ties so saddle-fitter Trish could check out his back and top line. A horse’s top line includes all the musculature that runs from the poll, down the horse’s neck, over the back, and into the hindquarters.
Trish has been saddle-fitting for more than eight years not including her time apprenticing under her mother who is also a master saddle fitter. Trish’s company, Synergy Saddle Fit, is located just outside Albany, New York.
Here is Trish from the other side of Rinze – focusing on the structure of his middle back. She also makes sure Rinze is standing square on stable, even ground.
Next, Trish places the saddle on Rinze’s back without any saddle pad. This is my saddle and the one I use most whenever I ride.
Trish feels closely and uses her fingers to measure the space between the saddle and where it sits on Rinze’s back. She also feels the padding of the saddle to determine if it needs any adjustments. Some of the signs that a saddle doesn’t fit correctly include one that sits too far forward or too far back, a saddle that is too short or too long, too wide or too narrow, or a saddle that has too much space underneath it causing “bridging.” This means the saddle makes more contact at the front and back but not under the middle.
Trish wants to adjust the saddle slightly. The saddle is taken off and brought to Trish’s work station in the back of her car. Here she is pointing to the hole of the saddle where it is flocked, or filled with padding material.
Under all the leather that makes up a saddle is the tree, or the wooden form. That tree is padded with wool – either real sheep’s wool like this or synthetic wool.
Occasionally, the saddle may need more wool or slight adjustments to make sure it is still padding the tree correctly. Trish’s main tool is a flocking iron, which is used to insert wool into the hole of the saddle.
Trish uses her other hand to feel how it is sitting once inside the saddle.
What one doesn’t want is an “egg” or balled up wool inside the saddle. This makes the saddle uncomfortable. The wool must sit flat and cushion the saddle properly.
After flocking the saddle, it is placed on Rinze once again to re-check its fit.
Here, one can see that it sits quite level and straight on Rinze. A small adjustment like this could make a big difference to a horse. Rinze will be much more comfortable on our next ride.
She also rotates the stirrups – this is good to do a couple times a year to ensure equal wear.
Rinze is all set and quite proud of himself. Yes, Rinze, you get a cookie.
After examining the others, Trish recommends changing a saddle out for one that fits the horses better. Trish checks all the other saddles to see which is best.
The front of the saddle should sit behind the horse’s shoulder blades, allowing good swing motion. The back of the saddle should also be the right length. And the saddle itself should rest nicely on the back. This saddle looks good on Hylke.
Bond is up next. He is a 14-year old Friesian with an excellent and friendly temperament. In the end, all the saddles were in good shape and very few adjustments were needed.
And here I am on my steed, Rinze – ready for a ride. A well-fitting saddle gives the horse freedom of movement without any discomfort. It also helps the rider to find a correct and more effective riding position. If you ride and have your own equipment, don’t forget to have your saddles properly fitted – it’s good for both you and your trusted mount.
This time of year, my outdoor grounds crew is very busy with woodland maintenance chores around the farm - we call it "cleaning the woods."
A lot of these tasks are best done during winter when the trees are bare. The team is able to cut dead or broken trees, knock down weeds, brambles, and thorny barberry bushes, and pick up the many fallen branches. Everything is gathered and placed into neat piles along the carriage roads, so at the end all the organic debris can be chipped and spread right back into the woods. Any desirable tree trunks are set aside and cut up for lumbering, and rotten or irregular trunks are reserved for the tub grinder - everything is always put to good use.
Here are some photos, enjoy.
In winter, it’s nice to be able to see through the woods to the hayfield beyond. This full and babbling stream is just off the main carriage road into the woodland.
But such views wouldn’t be possible without regularly scheduled general maintenance work. Every year, my outdoor grounds crew spends several weeks “cleaning” the woods. “Cleaning” the woods allows us to reuse and repurpose a lot of natural materials – and it makes the area much prettier.
Here is a section of the woodland where the trees are dense. At some point, some will be taken down to make room for younger specimens.
Here is an area that is also not yet cleaned. Clearing this area, removing dried twigs and other branches will help reduce the chance of fire by creating a natural firebreak. There are many brambles, weeds, vines, and useless seedlings growing in all the woods. These must be whacked down so there is room to plant and cultivate seedling trees that will be beneficial in the woodland. I often ride my horse through the woods to see how my trees are doing – clearing makes this much easier to do.
I instruct my outdoor grounds crew to remove all the underbrush to be composted or chipped. These are thick invasive thorny plants that are also cut down.
The woods are full of these prickly vines – one must be very careful when walking.
Trees that need to be taken down are marked with red spray paint, which is very visible from the road.
All the dead, damaged, and diseased trees are taken down. Here, Domi secures a rope around a log that was cut down and needs to be moved.
For various light trees, the crew is able to use a pulley around a strong upright tree to help pull the cut tree out.
Here is the tree getting pulled out and placed into the pile by the carriage road.
Domi uses the fork lift on our Hi-Lo to move heavier trees into place.
Pasang cuts the smaller limbs off the big trunks to make this process easier.
He uses this STIHL battery operated chainsaw. This tool uses a strong 36-volt Lithium-Ion battery. It is significantly quieter than the gasoline-powered chainsaws and starts instantly with the squeeze of a trigger.
These chainsaws are portable and very light – great for carrying through the woodland.
This area of woodland is looking better already.
After the larger logs are moved, Pasang starts picking up the more manageable branches.
Any other branches that fell during storms are also picked up.
We try to be very neat when doing any chores on the property. It is easier to stack all branches for removal or chipping in the same vicinity, so when the big machinery is brought in, these piles can be chipped right back into the woodland.
Here is an area that has been cleaned – look how pretty it is. One can really see the beauty of the landscape. Clearing out dead or overgrown vegetation will also allow remaining plants to receive better access to water, sunlight, and other nutrients necessary to thrive.
And then young, strong seedlings are planted again. Trees are so important – they provide habitat and food for birds and other animals, they absorb carbon dioxide and potentially harmful gasses, and they release oxygen. Keeping the woodland “clean” is one way I can give back to the Earth and help create a more sustainable planet for my grandchildren, and for everyone.
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