Most of you know that I have spent the last 40 years of my life out here in the county living on a back acre. I love the seclusion. I love that I have to give anyone headed out here a detailed drawing and description of how to find my actual driveway. My Garmin ends with my car setting in the middle of the road and the words "You have arrived!", but you have not. But that is just for the humans who do not listen. Animals are another story.
One of my first encounters with the wild animals out here involved my Tulip bed. I planted all different colors across the border in front of my lawn. I was very excited to see them poke their little spikey heads up and waited for the buds to show. Sadly, I went out one morning and the Tulips were gone! I knew where they were and when I looked down into the ground I could see the colors alright. Something had come in the night and eaten them! I could see the yellow and red flower buds below the ground. How sad that made me. I could also see a couple piles of cow droppings (I use the term droppings instead of "piles of cow shit!). We did not have a cow, but the man behind us and over on the next lane did. This was my first encounter with wild animals. I do consider that any animal that runs loose is a wild animal.
I would learn over the years that Foxes would eat my ducks and geese. Also, that a horse would sometimes trot across my property and leap over my back fence. Sometimes when I would return at dusk I would find skunks playing in the yard of the house in front of me. Once a big owl was in the tree right out side my back porch and my cat disappeared that night, never to be seen again.
When the Harveys moved in across the way, they were animal lovers. He worked on the ditch and she at the Animal Welfare. They brought home many animals in the form of dogs, cats, birds, and goats. Never once did their animals invade my space. It was peace on earth. No problems, although one day her blind dog ate her pet chicken. The chicken would squat down to be picked up and when it squatted in front of the dog, the dog just ate it! That was sad.
Fast forward to new neighbors and more goats. Sadly by this time the fences were falling into rack and ruin and goats do not respect anything. They do not understand property lines. While they are meant to "keep the weeds down" it rarely works that way. And so it went.
It became my lot in life to put them back in their pen if I did not want them in my yard. Bear in mind that I am an old woman and if I wanted goats, I would have bought them. I do not and I did not. One morning in utter frustration I put the goats in their pen 3 times before 7:00 AM. I lost my temper with the girl who owned the goats and I explained to her how her goats were ruining my life and my yard. She actually kept them in for 3 days. But then here they came again.
I called the sheriff. It was then that I learned that Colorado is a free range state. If I do not want their goats in my yard it is my responsibility to fence them out! Now understand that I have a full acre here and I park my car in a carport out front. A fence around this place would cost $4,000. It would also entail opening and shutting a gate every time I wanted to leave. I do not have that kind of money laying around and if I did there are many things I could do with it. I like the openness of the front yard. I do not like the goats.
So here I set with the original problem still unsolved. I can not shoot the goats. That is illegal. The fences that could not hold the goats last week are still not repaired. Momma always used to say "Good fences make good neighbors." I understand that. I just wish they did.
In the meantime life goes on here on my little acre. Every day I get a day older and deeper in debt. When the goats figure out a way to get out, (and they will ) I may just wander on down to the bank and apply for that loan. I would love to have new floors, but looks like a new fence may be what I have to have and then the other neighbors can just do the same.
One of my first encounters with the wild animals out here involved my Tulip bed. I planted all different colors across the border in front of my lawn. I was very excited to see them poke their little spikey heads up and waited for the buds to show. Sadly, I went out one morning and the Tulips were gone! I knew where they were and when I looked down into the ground I could see the colors alright. Something had come in the night and eaten them! I could see the yellow and red flower buds below the ground. How sad that made me. I could also see a couple piles of cow droppings (I use the term droppings instead of "piles of cow shit!). We did not have a cow, but the man behind us and over on the next lane did. This was my first encounter with wild animals. I do consider that any animal that runs loose is a wild animal.
I would learn over the years that Foxes would eat my ducks and geese. Also, that a horse would sometimes trot across my property and leap over my back fence. Sometimes when I would return at dusk I would find skunks playing in the yard of the house in front of me. Once a big owl was in the tree right out side my back porch and my cat disappeared that night, never to be seen again.
When the Harveys moved in across the way, they were animal lovers. He worked on the ditch and she at the Animal Welfare. They brought home many animals in the form of dogs, cats, birds, and goats. Never once did their animals invade my space. It was peace on earth. No problems, although one day her blind dog ate her pet chicken. The chicken would squat down to be picked up and when it squatted in front of the dog, the dog just ate it! That was sad.
Fast forward to new neighbors and more goats. Sadly by this time the fences were falling into rack and ruin and goats do not respect anything. They do not understand property lines. While they are meant to "keep the weeds down" it rarely works that way. And so it went.
It became my lot in life to put them back in their pen if I did not want them in my yard. Bear in mind that I am an old woman and if I wanted goats, I would have bought them. I do not and I did not. One morning in utter frustration I put the goats in their pen 3 times before 7:00 AM. I lost my temper with the girl who owned the goats and I explained to her how her goats were ruining my life and my yard. She actually kept them in for 3 days. But then here they came again.
I called the sheriff. It was then that I learned that Colorado is a free range state. If I do not want their goats in my yard it is my responsibility to fence them out! Now understand that I have a full acre here and I park my car in a carport out front. A fence around this place would cost $4,000. It would also entail opening and shutting a gate every time I wanted to leave. I do not have that kind of money laying around and if I did there are many things I could do with it. I like the openness of the front yard. I do not like the goats.
So here I set with the original problem still unsolved. I can not shoot the goats. That is illegal. The fences that could not hold the goats last week are still not repaired. Momma always used to say "Good fences make good neighbors." I understand that. I just wish they did.
In the meantime life goes on here on my little acre. Every day I get a day older and deeper in debt. When the goats figure out a way to get out, (and they will ) I may just wander on down to the bank and apply for that loan. I would love to have new floors, but looks like a new fence may be what I have to have and then the other neighbors can just do the same.
