Hermit on the Homestead

I'm looking forward to making a decent photo of these yaks. But I'm still nervous, will they freak out if I bring my camera and get down low, crouching like a predator? I doubt it...but am I willing to bet on it? This is the best I can do so far. Am I ridiculous for wanting to get them fun ear tags ? How would I even put them on even if I got them.  Meanwhile, my yaks sure have a lot of flies around them. Why? Apparently this is a complex issue. There are Horn flies, Face flies, Leg flies, Horse flies, and more. I realize they don't have very many compared to the problematic images on the internet, but they still have more than I would prefer and it must bother them. Cattle and horses are plagued by nasty flies, I have learned. Face flies like to sit—you'll never guess. They like to eat all the secretions from their faces like snot and spit and eye boogers. It bothers them and transfers bacteria and they can get pink eye and things of that nature. Leg flies also are apt

Yay! After much sleepless nights, hand wringing, and brow furrowing, we changed the yaks halters! They were getting so tight they were digging into their noses, and making furless indentations on the back of their necks. I knew they must have been very uncomfortable, but The halters I bought were too big. We had to drill more holes in the strap and even then I wasn't sure if they would fit. We brainstormed how we should do it. Should we tie the yaks up some how? Should we build a make-shift squeeze chute? We had no idea, but we knew we couldn't traumatize poor Rocky again.  I had an idea. Clip them up with the leads to their existing halters like we always do every morning. I thought, let's put the sweet grain they love in a bucket. Then make the nose hole on the halter really big and place it around the sides of the bucket. When they reach in the bucket for the goodies, lift up the halter and then it would be around the nose, all is left is buck the back strap. Then switch

Things are very slowly settling in for these yaks. And by slowly I mean almost in discernible progress. But upon careful analysis, it is progress none the less. I am not not afraid to go into the field and call them to bring them into the coral. No funny business has been attempted and they understand the routine. With the baby, it's nearly impossible for me to be a part of the daily brushing ritual which is sad for me but I'm glad that dad is able to do it. He reports that he is able to hook them up on their leads easily and brush them without much trouble. He can walk directly up to dusty and brush her without being hooked on a lead at all. This is real measurable progress. Amazing.  We had quite the setback with Rocky. His halter is getting tight again so I bought a new one for an adult cow. But in order to try it on, how does one do this? We lassoed him around the horns and tried to put the new one on. But he struggled so much it was terrifying and the lasso tightened so ti