Hello, neighbors!
Amy from 27900 Quarry, here, with a farm update.
We've
begun to get livestock- chickens, guineas, ducks, and today are adding a
livestock guardian dog. Her name is Pax (packs) and she is an 8 month
old livestock guardian dog from Grantsburg, WI. She has grown up with
sheep, goats, cows, and chickens and will begin her work at our place
later today. She's large and white and is descended from generations of
flock guardians called the Maremma in Italy, the Tatra in Poland, and
the Ranch Mastiff in Spain where shepherds move flocks of tens of
thousands seasonally up and down mountain slopes. Despite weighing 50+
pounds, she will still be considered a puppy for several months and as
such will have a lot to learn. All of these breeds have been selected
not for appearance but for their devotion to their flocks and their
people. Their most special gentleness is reserved for children, the elderly, and other vulnerable people. They are not aggressive nor prone to bite and will go to great lengths to scare off threats rather than fight.
Which
leads us to this email to all of you, our immediate neighbors. We, in
consultation with the shepherd who raised her, will be working
consistently with Pax over the next several months until she can do her
job well- stay home and guard the livestock. We will work with her to
establish the boundaries of her territory and plan to keep her on our
property unless we specifically hear from you that you'd like her to
visit yours. Conversely, we ask that you and your families do
continue to visit us. Pax will learn that you are all friends and are
welcome anytime and she will be especially pleased to see children.
Unfortunately, large dogs which she might perceive as a threat will be
the one exception to our hospitality. So, please leave any dogs more
than 15 pounds at home. We are in the process of clearly defining our
property line, most often with pink plastic ribbons so that we keep her
on our land. If you have any boundary questions, please let us know and
we'll get that clarified right away; we'd like to start her off right. We hope to have a lot of wrinkles worked out within a month and we're hoping for a reliable guardian by late fall. However, Pax comes with a money-back guarantee so if she's not a good fit, we'll take her back.
If you have any problems or concerns at all about Pax, Zed the tuxedo cat,
the poultry, or any of the other changes around here, please let us know
right away. We are so grateful to live in such a great neighborhood.
You were here before we got here, making this such a great place to live,
and we want to make sure to the best of our abilities that our farm
goals and changes don't negatively impact on all of you and your quality
of life. We want to keep this neighborhood happy and strong.
Our
guineas and muscovy ducks have taken a particular shine to the Spohns'
and Jewsons' properties along the water. And Tim and the kids have been
running through your yards shoo-ing them home. If you'd prefer the
poultry didn't visit, please let us know and we'll do our best to keep
them away. On the other hand, if you'd like them to eat your ticks and
mosquitoes as they walk through, they'll happily oblige.
Please do let us know about small problems so they don't cause big problems.
Pax's name is Latin for 'peace' and that's what we're hoping to grow on our farm- peace.
Look for an invitation to come and meet Pax and the poultry gang as soon as Pax is settled in.
Blessings,
Amy, Tim, Anjali, and Mark Reisdorf
27900 Quarry Rd
612-825-2761
