Kimberly J Egan
Bio
Welcome to LoupGarou/Conri Terriers and Not 1040 Farm! I try to write about what I know best: my dogs and my homestead. I currently have dogs, cats, dairy goats, quail, and chickens--and in 2025--rabbits! Come take a look into my life!
Stories (41/0)
Evaluating the Puppies
I would say that most puppies are adorable to the max and these two are maxxed out on the "adorable" factor. Sadly, there comes a time in all puppies' lives that they need to be evaluated and either placed or sold. In the case of this litter, being only two and being a "special case," we decided that we were going to keep both of them. It was just a matter of which girl was going home with Kathleen and which one was staying home with me. Both of us prefer the white and tan coloration for the breed. It is less prevalent than the white, black, and tan (black tri) coloration, so getting a white and tan female--especially one that meets the standard well enough for breeding and showing--can be difficult. I was expecting for both of us to want Goldberry, aka "Goldie."
By Kimberly J Egan9 days ago in Petlife
Hidden Gems at Crickhollow Farm
My neighbor, friend, and landlord, Dan, is a practical man. He grows food on his organic farm, whether it's obvious (tomatoes, okra, berry bushes, fruit trees, etc.) or whether it's obscure (taro/elephant ears). He has tea camellias and knows how to use yaupon to make a coffee substitute. If it's not grown for food, it's medicinal, can be used as fertilizer, or provides wood for his heater. Even so, there are small finds on his 40 acres that pop out and add beauty, rather than practicality to the place. Some of these things, like the azaleas and the camellias, are hidden in the brush that has grown up alongside them. Others, like the boxwood, are tucked away in their own private nooks, waiting to be discovered.
By Kimberly J Egan14 days ago in Earth
Sunshine!
"Sunshine" is the name of the adorable little doeling that I got from JKL Farms last year. Honestly, I've never been more satisfied with a doe that I've purchased. She's a little irascible, as Nigerian Dwarf goats often seem to be, but she's beautiful and--for the most part--she's gentle. Before she arrived here, she had been to a few goat shows. While she didn't earn legs toward her championship, she was deemed good enough for breeding. I was fortunate to get her.
By Kimberly J Egan17 days ago in Petlife
On Breeding Dogs
Riddle Time! How do you make a small fortune breeding dogs? You start out with a large fortune, naturally! Many people seem to be captivated by the illusion that breeding dogs is fun, easy, and profitable. If you love dogs and like people, there is nothing more satisfying (or sadder!) than seeing a new family drive off with the puppy that you've loved for the past nine weeks. No joke: those puppies are both fun and adorable, even if they do become eating/barking/pooping machines at about six weeks of age.
By Kimberly J Egan22 days ago in Petlife
Adding Another Hen
Rooster Roo starts his approach . . . Look casual . . . Look casual . . . If you've read my story "Looking Back at Our Building Year," then you know that I have a free-range chicken flock. I've had a flock of three for almost a year now. A few days ago, Dan sent me another hen who had stopped laying eggs. The introduction did not go well. Rooster Roo saw her from across the yard. His 100-yard dash toward her sent the poor thing into paroxysms of terror. Finally, she allowed herself to be herded toward the other hens--who then proceeded to beat her up. She eventually took refuge under the hay shed, where she stayed for the rest of the day. Obviously, she didn't roost with the rest of the chickens at dusk. We have foxes, owls, opossums, raccoons, and the occasional coyote that hunts in our area, so I didn't hold out much hope for my new hen.
By Kimberly J Egan27 days ago in Petlife
A Difficult Month
February 13, 2024 February is always a tough month. In SW Mississippi, it almost always brings the coldest temperatures of winter. It's not just cold, but it's also dreary, windy, and either wet or frozen. It's hard on people, plants, and animals, so most often Dan and I stay inside when we can, keeping our dogs close to us. Over the years, if we lose elderly dogs, it's typically in February. Two years ago it was Bowser (17 years), one of Dan's farm dogs. Last year it was Itsy (15 years, Japanese Chin) and Millie (approx. 10+ years, a rescue Dachshund). This year was no exception. Last Tuesday, I lost my precious Little Bit and, just a few minutes ago, my wonderful little Joy breathed her last breaths in my lap.
By Kimberly J Egan28 days ago in Petlife
Just What is a "Training Walk?"
Training walks are not part of every dog trainer's repertoire. In fact, I think that Yaddle and I made them up. The concept is very simple. You take your dog for a walk and train your dog during the walk. The more difficult aspect of the training walk is to make the training invisible to your dog or, if not invisible, fun. I started training walks for Yaddle, because of her stress and her brain injury, but any young, stressed, or anxious dog can benefit from them. Keep a training walk short, no more than 15 minutes or so to keep it fun and interesting. If you're planning to walk longer, incorporate your training walk into the longer walk.
By Kimberly J Egan30 days ago in Petlife
- Top Story - February 2024
Looking Back at Our Building YearTop Story - February 2024
Away, 2023--Onward, 2024! So, last year was a building year. More accurately, it was a REbuilding year. In 2023, Kathleen and I found ourselves bottlenecked with our dogs. I only had one goat left and he was a male, which is fine unless you have dairy goats for milk! Dan and I had become dissatisfied with buying our laying hens from other people, and so embarked on creating our own landrace. He and I also re-evaluated what we were doing, gardening-wise, now that he's recovering and feeling more like himself. And, finally, I decided to make another attempt at raising quail for meat and for eggs. Phew! We were busy, even though we didn't seem to be doing much!
By Kimberly J Eganabout a month ago in Petlife
Ushering in the Next Generation
I love Badger, I really do. He has taught me how to be a better dog trainer. However, he's not an obedience dog. He loves to hunt rodents and birds. He loves agility. He loves doing tricks. He actually enjoys Rally. He's eight years old and, even as I'm working with him for off-leash heeling, I know that I'm not going beyond Rally Advanced/UR02 with him. I want to get his UKC SPOT title added this year, but I think we're going to concentrate on his agility training, with an eye at maybe trialing a little at the end of the year. He won't pick up many titles at his age, but then again, at his age he deserves to get out there and have a little fun. He's been a terrific dog for me, despite all of his quirks and vagaries. He's earned a place on my couch for however long he wants it.
By Kimberly J Eganabout a month ago in Petlife
In Defense of "Elvenar"
Once upon a time, I was a true gamer. I had the two-monitor set-up, unlimited Internet access through my cable company, multiple characters across multiple worlds on my favorite games. The first thing I did when I got home was fire up one of the several games that I enjoyed. Over the years, I played Ultima Online, Everquest, Worlds of Warcraft--pretty much any fantasy MMPORG that was popular at the time. On occasion, I'd relax with single-player city building games or virtual pet games like ShowDog.com or PonyIsland (the cute one, not the demon one). I even briefly played Forge of Empires (FOE), a browser-based free-to-play strategy game. I could play a solitary game or I could have limited interaction with other players, so it was a perfect blend of play styles for casual gaming.
By Kimberly J Eganabout a month ago in Gamers
First Dog Show!
If you've followed me at all, you know that I breed my dogs and compete with them at AKC and UKC events. The Teddy Roosevelt Terriers are my own project, but I have a co-breeder for the Toy Fox Terriers. Kathleen and I meet monthly in person to discuss our plans for our dogs and for the occasional conformation show. We also talk on the phone daily (mostly about dogs), so we're always informed about what is happening at each other's place. She keeps most of the females, while I keep most of the males. It's a system that works for us.
By Kimberly J Egan2 months ago in Petlife
Making the Best of a Building Year
This Year is a "Building" Year Whenever a football team has a quarterback that ages out or a new head coach, it seems as if they call the year that follows a "building year." Even if most of the faces on the team stay the same, the transitions may be so great or so many in number that the team isn't expected to win. It is "building" a fresh look and a fresh strategy that will result (hopefully) in a shot at the playoffs during the next season.
By Kimberly J Egan11 months ago in Petlife