Part 1: Chicken/roosters
So before lockdown we noticed a pair of chickens roaming loose on our street.
The first time I noticed them they were on the property across the road from our driveway. I assumed they lived there, although they seem irresponsibly housed. They look very young. Over time, seeing these chickens in varying places roadside and after conversations with multiple neighbours we realise these are not pets. We are worried. Our road is a busy thoroughfare. We think they will get hit by cars. One has already been clipped and has developed a limp.
Their preferred place to sleep is under the trampoline of our roadside neighbour. She feels sorry for them so has been feeding them bird seed. But she doesn't want them there. Not only because of the poop and noise, but because she doesn't want to see them hit by cars. No-one wants to see that. My direct neighbour and I have the same thought - she has chickens already. We just have to catch them and re-home them to hers or our place less than 50 metres from where they like to stay. We use food, we use herding, we even set up a 'trap' of a puppy cage. We try, and fail at this for weeks.
Then the day before we're due to go away on holiday* we manage to herd them up to our place. I drive the car while Murray walks along beside it. We are almost in shock! We've finally done it! We move our falling apart hutch we loaned to our neighbour back to our place (with help from her son) and attempt to get them inside. We fail, and close to dusk one of the chickens flies over the fence, soon followed by the other. Somehow, I manage to herd them back to our place. They walk straight into the hutch.
We now have chickens. The kids have named them Dutch and Snowy
But we're going on holiday. We buy chicken feed. Our direct neighbour who also has chickens is feeding our pets while we're gone, and we aren't planning on going for too long, so it feels ok. We have two nights away from home before we hear Jacinda on the radio saying we're shifting to Stage 3 and will be in Stage 4 in two days time. I decide to pack up and head home immediately so we can prepare.
We get home, and I feel so grateful to have chickens before lockdown. It's something to do, and they're productive. There will be eggs! The morning after lockdown has just begun, one of our chickens starts crowing. Two days later, our chickens are fighting. While we try and deny it for a day or so we realise that, unsurprisingly, our chickens are dumped roosters.
If it weren't for the fighting, we would have kept them until the end of lockdown. We know having roosters goes against council restrictions, but I'm also pretty sure that my brother in Kaiwaka might be able to take them when we're allowed to travel again. I check in with our neighbours to see how bothered they are - they haven't even noticed the crowing. The crowing doesn't start until about 7.30am, so it's not bothering us either. They have become BFF's with one of our neighbours chickens Chippy, and they all hang out together during the day. When they aren't fighting, they are preening each other and cuddly. They are so cute. But the fights are epic, and one day one of them attacks one of our neighbours other chickens.
Chippy is their BFF. She is distraught when they go
I contact the SPCA, the bird rescue and a local animal rescue. None of them are able to help. The council jurisdiction on roosters is the same across West Auckland. No-one can take them. We feel like we have no other choice. I catch our roosters, put them in the cat cages and take them to the vets to be euthanised. This was not the life we envisaged for them. They were wonderful birds that, when not fighting, loved each other and Chippy. They were sweet. They were teenagers. My heart is heavy. Etta is crying. Chippy is mad at us. This was not the plan.
Everything is so much quieter. It's odd.
Part 2: Snails
So a while ago we said to Etta if she saved enough money she could buy a small fish tank set-up (she'd seen one at the Bird Barn for $50). So she saved up. When we got to the Bird Barn to buy the set up she then decided that she wanted to save more money before she bought it. She didn't want to be left with nothing. I said fair enough. About a month later she decided she had enough money and bought her tank. And after getting the water quality about right, we bought a couple of snails and some tepid water guppies. We added a few more later on.
A hillstream loach (not Badger)
The tank has been an unexpected source of entertainment for us all. Especially after we got a Hillstream loach named Badger, which has provided a Where's Wally aspect. This fish mostly hides under a rock, so any time we spot it feels like an achievement. And one of the snails - Red - is the most entertaining critter in that whole tank! It seems to climb the walls of the tank to launch itself into the oxygen pumps' bubbles. And Red is fast! Faster than you'd ever expect a snail to be. It's easy to get caught up just staring at the tank watching for what Red's going to do next.
About a week before lockdown our other snail Moe passed away. We knew they were older snails. They were much bigger than any Red Ramshorns the shop assistant had seen An empty shell remained in the tank. Etta cried. She held a small service. We put Moe's shell into the china cabinet. And then two days later, magic happened. Baby snails. Lots and lots of baby snails. Etta believed Moe and Red had made babies. Moe had left Etta a legacy**.
What's great about this is it is added entertainment during Lockdown! Some days we've counted 14 little baby snails. And they're growing quickly. Over the past week they've got much bigger which makes it easier to spot them (at first they were mere specks of snail). Thinking up names, and options for rehoming them as they get bigger has made for much entertainment for the kids. This fish tank has certainly added some entertainment to our lockdown.
Part 3: Assorted mammals
I'm not sure if this has been a common experience of folk on lockdown but we have certainly seen more dogs roaming than usual. It might just be because we're home more and are walking more. We made our first call to animal control just a few days after the lockdown started after me, Murray and our neighbours all spotted the same dog on separate walks during the afternoon. He had a collar, but no tag. He seemed friendly and harmless. My main concern was for his safety - that he'd be sidelined by the quiet street and meet a car unexpectedly. By the time animal control had turned up, he was was off the street and assumed safely home, which was great to hear.
A few days later Murray comes home from a walk around the block and says a puppy has followed him home. I don't believe him. He is prone to exaggeration and he doesn't especially like dogs. But when he said it was on our driveway, I believed him. I found a very excited lovely wee pup. He'd encountered her two streets away and she literally just followed him home. Given he doesn't really like dogs I doubt he will have encouraged her - he's not a patting random animals kinda guy. It's taken me all kinds of bribery to get any animals into our house.
She was very young, only looked about 12 weeks. I said we should call animal control, but keep her at ours so she would be safe. After 2 minutes of her being outside and chasing the cats and rooster/chickens to the point they flew over the fence, I brought her inside. Etta is phobic of dogs, and after a very excited encounter, Abby was feeling nervous of her too. So we had to keep her between the hallway and bathroom. Murray called animal control. We fed her and gave her some water and took turns giving her attention while we waited for animal control to turn up. After some time, the kids even warmed up enough to give her some pats while we held her so she didn't jump up. She looked healthy and happy and was clearly loved. Half of her claws were painted pink.
Murray told me he wanted to keep her. I reminded him of all the reasons why we couldn't have a dog (and that he'd done the same thing to me when I felt in love with a rescue kitten a month ago). The kids wanted to keep her. She was delightful, but definitely a well loved pet who needed her family. When animal control came he said he had met her before and knew where she lived***. He was so lovely and cuddly, we all felt a little better. We knew she would be going home.
And then recently we've discovered a new cat in the neighbourhood. There hasn't been any in some time, so this was pretty exciting. We spotted this glorious white cat prancing along the fence last week. Then yesterday, we saw their curious face peeking through our ranch slider and sniffing the cat door. I went outside to say hi and they are super friendly and cuddly. I'm not sure where they live or what their name is but Etta has named it Tauntaun after its similarly coloured coat.
* * * * * * * * * * *
I am so grateful for the pets we have at home. They make this time pass so much more sweetly. Even when there are hard days and difficult decisions, it feels worth it. I cannot imagine our lives without them. I'm sure we'll have many more animal adventures in the weeks to come.
* Not to Australia as booked and planned, but close to Katikati after the borders shut down.
** In truth, the snails likely came in on some new plants we'd purchased when we got our loach, but there was no point explaining this to Etta at the time. Now that it's apparent there are two different species of snail and she's over Moe's passing, we have had to.
*** It turned out that he didn't. He probably just said that so we all felt better. Prada did see her owners again the next day though, and now we know where she lives so we can return her if we find her loose again. Her owners had got her JUST before the lockdown was announced and Prada discovered their section was not quite secure - pretty sure that's sorted out now.
So before lockdown we noticed a pair of chickens roaming loose on our street.
The first time I noticed them they were on the property across the road from our driveway. I assumed they lived there, although they seem irresponsibly housed. They look very young. Over time, seeing these chickens in varying places roadside and after conversations with multiple neighbours we realise these are not pets. We are worried. Our road is a busy thoroughfare. We think they will get hit by cars. One has already been clipped and has developed a limp.
We are very accustomed to chicken guests at our place
Then the day before we're due to go away on holiday* we manage to herd them up to our place. I drive the car while Murray walks along beside it. We are almost in shock! We've finally done it! We move our falling apart hutch we loaned to our neighbour back to our place (with help from her son) and attempt to get them inside. We fail, and close to dusk one of the chickens flies over the fence, soon followed by the other. Somehow, I manage to herd them back to our place. They walk straight into the hutch.
We now have chickens. The kids have named them Dutch and Snowy
Dutch and Snowy cuddled up together
But we're going on holiday. We buy chicken feed. Our direct neighbour who also has chickens is feeding our pets while we're gone, and we aren't planning on going for too long, so it feels ok. We have two nights away from home before we hear Jacinda on the radio saying we're shifting to Stage 3 and will be in Stage 4 in two days time. I decide to pack up and head home immediately so we can prepare.
We get home, and I feel so grateful to have chickens before lockdown. It's something to do, and they're productive. There will be eggs! The morning after lockdown has just begun, one of our chickens starts crowing. Two days later, our chickens are fighting. While we try and deny it for a day or so we realise that, unsurprisingly, our chickens are dumped roosters.
If it weren't for the fighting, we would have kept them until the end of lockdown. We know having roosters goes against council restrictions, but I'm also pretty sure that my brother in Kaiwaka might be able to take them when we're allowed to travel again. I check in with our neighbours to see how bothered they are - they haven't even noticed the crowing. The crowing doesn't start until about 7.30am, so it's not bothering us either. They have become BFF's with one of our neighbours chickens Chippy, and they all hang out together during the day. When they aren't fighting, they are preening each other and cuddly. They are so cute. But the fights are epic, and one day one of them attacks one of our neighbours other chickens.
Chippy is their BFF. She is distraught when they go
Everything is so much quieter. It's odd.
Part 2: Snails
So a while ago we said to Etta if she saved enough money she could buy a small fish tank set-up (she'd seen one at the Bird Barn for $50). So she saved up. When we got to the Bird Barn to buy the set up she then decided that she wanted to save more money before she bought it. She didn't want to be left with nothing. I said fair enough. About a month later she decided she had enough money and bought her tank. And after getting the water quality about right, we bought a couple of snails and some tepid water guppies. We added a few more later on.
A hillstream loach (not Badger)
The tank has been an unexpected source of entertainment for us all. Especially after we got a Hillstream loach named Badger, which has provided a Where's Wally aspect. This fish mostly hides under a rock, so any time we spot it feels like an achievement. And one of the snails - Red - is the most entertaining critter in that whole tank! It seems to climb the walls of the tank to launch itself into the oxygen pumps' bubbles. And Red is fast! Faster than you'd ever expect a snail to be. It's easy to get caught up just staring at the tank watching for what Red's going to do next.About a week before lockdown our other snail Moe passed away. We knew they were older snails. They were much bigger than any Red Ramshorns the shop assistant had seen An empty shell remained in the tank. Etta cried. She held a small service. We put Moe's shell into the china cabinet. And then two days later, magic happened. Baby snails. Lots and lots of baby snails. Etta believed Moe and Red had made babies. Moe had left Etta a legacy**.
Badger's sucky side and one of the baby snails
Part 3: Assorted mammals
I'm not sure if this has been a common experience of folk on lockdown but we have certainly seen more dogs roaming than usual. It might just be because we're home more and are walking more. We made our first call to animal control just a few days after the lockdown started after me, Murray and our neighbours all spotted the same dog on separate walks during the afternoon. He had a collar, but no tag. He seemed friendly and harmless. My main concern was for his safety - that he'd be sidelined by the quiet street and meet a car unexpectedly. By the time animal control had turned up, he was was off the street and assumed safely home, which was great to hear.
Meet Prada, one super cute pup!
A few days later Murray comes home from a walk around the block and says a puppy has followed him home. I don't believe him. He is prone to exaggeration and he doesn't especially like dogs. But when he said it was on our driveway, I believed him. I found a very excited lovely wee pup. He'd encountered her two streets away and she literally just followed him home. Given he doesn't really like dogs I doubt he will have encouraged her - he's not a patting random animals kinda guy. It's taken me all kinds of bribery to get any animals into our house.She was very young, only looked about 12 weeks. I said we should call animal control, but keep her at ours so she would be safe. After 2 minutes of her being outside and chasing the cats and rooster/chickens to the point they flew over the fence, I brought her inside. Etta is phobic of dogs, and after a very excited encounter, Abby was feeling nervous of her too. So we had to keep her between the hallway and bathroom. Murray called animal control. We fed her and gave her some water and took turns giving her attention while we waited for animal control to turn up. After some time, the kids even warmed up enough to give her some pats while we held her so she didn't jump up. She looked healthy and happy and was clearly loved. Half of her claws were painted pink.
Murray told me he wanted to keep her. I reminded him of all the reasons why we couldn't have a dog (and that he'd done the same thing to me when I felt in love with a rescue kitten a month ago). The kids wanted to keep her. She was delightful, but definitely a well loved pet who needed her family. When animal control came he said he had met her before and knew where she lived***. He was so lovely and cuddly, we all felt a little better. We knew she would be going home.
And then recently we've discovered a new cat in the neighbourhood. There hasn't been any in some time, so this was pretty exciting. We spotted this glorious white cat prancing along the fence last week. Then yesterday, we saw their curious face peeking through our ranch slider and sniffing the cat door. I went outside to say hi and they are super friendly and cuddly. I'm not sure where they live or what their name is but Etta has named it Tauntaun after its similarly coloured coat.
This is 'Tauntaun'
* * * * * * * * * * *
I am so grateful for the pets we have at home. They make this time pass so much more sweetly. Even when there are hard days and difficult decisions, it feels worth it. I cannot imagine our lives without them. I'm sure we'll have many more animal adventures in the weeks to come.
* Not to Australia as booked and planned, but close to Katikati after the borders shut down.
** In truth, the snails likely came in on some new plants we'd purchased when we got our loach, but there was no point explaining this to Etta at the time. Now that it's apparent there are two different species of snail and she's over Moe's passing, we have had to.
*** It turned out that he didn't. He probably just said that so we all felt better. Prada did see her owners again the next day though, and now we know where she lives so we can return her if we find her loose again. Her owners had got her JUST before the lockdown was announced and Prada discovered their section was not quite secure - pretty sure that's sorted out now.
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