It now has a filter and a fountain.
And since it was Friday...
+ it's been long overdue to move their brooder out of doors...
+ they are much too big for that tiny brooder anyhow...
+ we had a spare dog crate that has gone unused for the last 18 months...
I got out the old deck brush & Dawn dish soap and dismantled the dog crate hard wear. Scrubbing bubbles would've been no match for all the filth & spider nests (AND wasp's nest). I was extremely grateful for the "10 foot pole" handle attached to the scrub brush and a high pressured garden hose.
I'm can't stress just HOW extremely!
While that dried, I caulked the seam between the two pond liners, and dammed up the sides a bit while sealing in a couple rocks on either edge. This way we'll have no washouts thanks to their splashing about. (We had no black or clear caulking to use, so please don't judge the gray too harshly. All I care about really is functionality, so no plans on alerting BHG.com or anything here.) From there I "planted" a lilypad & two mini cattails, for some variety & for eventual shade for the koi we plan to introduce.
Then I transitioned them into the dog crate that had their waterer & feed.
At first the bigger space was pretty overwhelming. But then they seemed to be quite at home and decided to christen the new digs with an all out mud bath party!
So cute.
So glad those parties don't happen in my house anymore.
No longer in Mini-Me's room, to be specific.
You should see the muddied state of her mirrored closet doors.
On second-thought, no you shouldn't. Their mess is embarrassing.
(Running for the Windex)
They were so content in their new crate, that even with the door wide open it took a bit of coaxing to get them to come out and discover how close they now are to the pond, not to mention the new amenities. But once they did, man were they happy!
Obviously they've been in the pond before, but it had been several days, simply because I can't catch them all by myself. And by the time Mr LKP & Mini-Me are home from their days, it's too late + too chilly for a dip. However, today brought with it loads of diving + dabbling, and a new discovery: THE waterfall.
Once we've got their house & enclosure built, I will be more at peace with them being able to pond hop without supervision. I'm sure they'll be in Heaven, but until then guess I've no choice but to be a worry wart of a Mama. Might be different if we didn't have coyotes in our yard every night & hawks in the air and trees every day.
While they played for hours today, I planted Alyssum along the cracks in the rocks. We purchased some Irish Moss, however its not made for full sun & considering the only shade we have is the north side of our house Alyssum will have to do for now. Luckily it's safe to be around ducks, which is a relief.
So there's our progress.
I'm sure before too long there'll be another update. :)
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