For each generation, there are some defining moments in history that will never be forgotten.

My children will always have the sad events of September 11, 2001, etched in their memories. My peers and I remember where we were on November 22, 1963, when we heard the announcement that President Kennedy had been assassinated.

For my parents, a lasting memory was the declaration of World War II; my grandparents were deeply affected by the Wall Street crash that preceded the Great Depression.

But hopefully we all have memories of lighter, more uplifting days as well.   

I remember the fervor and enthusiasm surrounding the first recognized Earth Day. It was April 22, 1970 — just as my adult life was beginning and my ideals were taking shape. 

 

The 60s had been eye-opening in regard to the state of our planet. I believe the word “ecology” became widely used during that time. It was the birth phase of a movement that has continued to today.

And once again, it’s time to recognize Earth Day.

 

---

Here’s a brief bio of Earth Day from History.com:

Founded in 1970 as a day of education about environmental issues, Earth Day is now a globally celebrated holiday that is sometimes extended into Earth Week, a full seven days of events focused on green awareness.

 

The brainchild of Senator Gaylord Nelson and inspired by the antiwar protests of the late 1960s, Earth Day was originally aimed at creating a mass environmental movement. It began as a "national teach-in on the environment" and was held on April 22 to maximize the number of students that could be reached on university campuses.

By raising public awareness of air and water pollution, Nelson hoped to bring environmental causes into the national spotlight.

---

The idea seems to have worked: environmental causes have been valued and supported for the past three decades. Whether we call it ecology, green living, or sustainability, it’s a way of life that’s important to many of us. 

 

I was fortunate to grow up in a family that valued the earth and the outdoors. My earliest memories include camping and learning about nature. There were vegetables, berries, and fruit trees growing in our backyard. We recycled before I knew there was a word for it.

I was kind of primed for ecology and green living.

In 1970, I wasn’t a true hippie, but I was “hip” to green trends and swept up by the emphasis on preserving our planet. Though I didn’t partake in demonstrations, I tried to keep ecology in mind. My boyfriend, Jim, shared my interests, and we tried to do our part to “save the earth.”

By Earth Day 1974, Jim and I were young marrieds tearing up the backyard of our rented home (with the permission of the landlord, of course). The reason? To plant our first garden. I can’t put my hands on a photo right now, but I remember the tall cornstalks and the lush bushes of peas and beans. Were we ever proud! 

 

Since then we’ve had lots of gardens, of lots of kinds and sizes, in lots of places and a few different climate zones. In 1986, we got our start raising livestock with three Black Angus beef cows. Growing food, cooking from scratch, and preserving summer produce became our favored way of living. Composting, recycling, reusing, and repurposing are natural companions.

We’ve had some detours, including years in a foreign culture where we were unable to do as much “green living” as we’d have liked. But now we’re back on track, trying to decrease the footprints we leave on this earth. As we use natural resources, we try to replace and replenish in return. We’ve encouraged our kids - and are now teaching our grandchildren - to treat the earth with respect.

We think it’s more important now than ever. And I know many of you agree. 

That's why our lives celebrate Earth Day every day. Trying to stay close to nature, making wise decisions, living sustainably. It's better for us - and better for the earth we live on. 

During my “granola years” as a young mom and even recently as a farming grandma, I’ve been called Earth Mother more than a few times.

But you know what? I don’t mind at all! And I bet you wouldn't mind either. Unless, of course, Earth Father would be more appropriate!

Marie and her husband, Jim, are developing a farm in the Pacific Northwest with their adult children and grandchildren. At The Homesteader Kitchen Marie and her daughter review kitchen equipment and talk about preparing and preserving delicious food. Along with other family members, Marie shares glimpses of country life at Rural Living Today and teaches practical skills at The Homesteader School.  

Two valuable members of our family are our Maremma livestock guardian dogs, Augie and Callie. They watch over our chickens and the people who live and visit within their assigned territory. Though coyotes, bears, and an occasional cougar traverse our property, none of those intruders are allowed within our fencelines. 

 

 

 
Augie and Callie are usually very busy day and night doing their patrols and checking on everyone and everything on the farm. But this week, Augie took the time to write a post for our family’s blog, Rural Living Today. After reading it, I asked Augie if I could interview him for this GRIT blog.

The huge fluffy dog agreed, and we sat down for a chat. Here is what he has to say.

Augie, we understand that the term “livestock guardian dog” applies to a group of dog breeds used for centuries to protect and defend flocks of sheep and goats. Tell us more about these breeds. 

Well, there are several breeds of LGDs (that's short for Livestock Guardian Dogs). Of course, I am partial to Maremma Sheepdogs, since I am one, but the others do a good job too! The most common in the western world are (in alphabetical order) Anatolian Shepherds, Great Pyrenees, and Maremmas. The Akbash, Kommondors, Kuvasz, and Tibetan Mastiffs are also becoming better known outside of the old countries.

How are the LGD breeds alike and different? 

We all have some basic instincts that are the same. We all work hard to protect and defend our stock and our property. But there are differences too. Some breeds bond more to the stock or people, and some bond more to the boundaries they defend. Some are more likely to grow fond of children, and some would rather not be touched and petted very much.

How are the LGD breeds different from other dog breeds? 

LGDs are wired instinctively to do whatever is necessary to protect our charges. We will even give our lives for our flocks and our people. We were not bred to be pets, though we are nice to have around and some of us really like people. We weren’t bred to be show dogs, as the focus on beauty and obedience could distract from our effectiveness on our jobs. We are not herding dogs, though we can herd our stock into a corner to protect them if need be.  

 
Can LGDs be trained for obedience? 

Why yes, we can be taught to sit, wait, come, stay back, and those kinds of things. If we know you are the alpha, we will obey. But our inner instincts will override our wish to obey if we feel there’s a danger. Don’t be surprised if I suddenly take off for the far corner of the property to scare off a coyote. If you tell me to get back when a stranger is there, and I sense you are in danger, I will want to stay at your side. I’m not being rebellious or disagreeable; I’m just letting my top priority and instincts take over until the danger is gone.

How do you LGDs learn your job? 

Well, first of all, we start watching our mothers when we are very young. We will go on patrol with them and they’ll show us how the LGD work is done. Later we learn from other LGDs how to treat the stock, how to be watchful for threats, and how to bark different barks. The other dogs will teach us, train us, and correct us.   

Do you need people to train you too? 

Oh yes, definitely. They should show us our area to patrol and introduce us to our stock and people in the family that we are to guard. They should let us know what is normal and routine around the farm so we will know what isn’t. As puppies we shouldn’t be left alone with stock that might hurt us, or with little critters that we might play too roughly with. If there isn’t an older working LGD to teach us, the humans have to do the training. We will instinctively guard and protect, but we need to know the rules of your farm. 

 
What are the basic requirements of a home for an LGD?

First of all, we work best in a team, so we prefer to have a partner or two. We need clear boundaries—good fences—that tell us what area we are to protect. We need a strong alpha human with time to work with us, making expectations clear and showing us what to protect. On a more practical side, we don’t usually like enclosed houses but we need shelter from extreme weather. We need lots of water and good food—plenty of it, because we are large dogs.

Is there anything else you’d like humans to know about LGDs? 

Yes. Please don’t scold us for barking. LGDs bark! We bark day and night. We bark to warn far-off howling coyotes to stay away. We bark to tell passing deer and bears not to come any closer. We bark to announce approaching vehicles and anything that is out of the ordinary or does not belong. Yes, we will even bark at raccoons and chipmunks. Now, I don’t mean we should be allowed to bark for no reason or taunt the livestock with barking. Correct us for that, but please let us do our job-related barking.

And that reminds me of some good names for LGDs. How about Bob Barker? Sir Barksalot? Barkley? Tree Bark? Almond Bark? Okay, now I’m getting a little out there with names. Better go do my patrol and stuff that I’m good at.

Thank you, Augie Doggie, for the enlightening interview! For more insight into the life of Augie and his sister, Callie, see Augie’s post at Rural Living Today. 

Marie and her husband, Jim, are developing a farm in the Pacific Northwest with their adult children and grandchildren. At The Homesteader Kitchen Marie and her daughter review kitchen equipment and talk about preparing and preserving delicious food. Along with other family members, Marie shares glimpses of country life at Rural Living Today and teaches practical skills at The Homesteader School .   

For me one of the joys of rural life is watching animals. Sometimes I'm very touched by what I see; sometimes I have a good laugh. I’ve also made some interesting observations about how animals entertain themselves, interact with each other, and respond to humans.

Horses play together and fight with each other. They will watch out for each other. In the wild, one stallion will lead and defend a herd of mares and young horses. A lead mare will be his second in command, and they will work together to manage the herd.

This is often seen in domestic herds as well. A stallion will usually have superiority over geldings (neutered males) and mares. However, if no stallion is present, a mare is likely to be queen of the herd. Geldings can also take a leadership role though. We had one gelding who was so protective of his favorite mare that we had him tested to see if any testosterone had been left behind.

The roles of horses can change as the grouping changes. For instance, at our place, when Star was around, King was submissive. But when Star left, King would take over the lead. But passive Bucky was always on the bottom rung of the ladder.

"Just act nonchalant like we don't know they're watching us."

 
Cows don’t really appear to play together much, except as frisky calves. Cows will fight on occasion, which can be complicated if they have horns. Cows don’t communicate much or show a strong hierarchy. Or so I thought.

My eyes were opened by "The Backyard Cow," in which author Sue Weaver reveals the social order of cows. In a herd of cows there is usually a head honcho, who may not really lead per se but gets first dibs at everything. And then there might be a morning hike director who leads everyone out to the pasture. A different evening coordinator brings them back to the barn at dusk.

And cows have a language all their own. Mooese consists of five main syllables used in combination to form six main calls, each of which has a different meaning. Ethologist C.J.C. Phillips has studied bovine communication in detail. (I had to look up the meaning of “ethology,” a new word for me. In case you, too, are in the dark, it is the study of animal behavior.)

"Psst...can you keep a secret?"

 
Chickens don’t appear to play, thought they sure like their dust baths. They will fight over food, roosting space, or for "just because" reasons not obviously apparent. The term “pecking order” came from the hierarchy of chickens. If roosters are present, one of them usually rules the roost, sometimes with the help of another roo or the alpha hen. Where there's no rooster, an assertive hen will take charge. The pecking order can sometimes be tracked from the alpha right down the line to the most submissive chicken.

Roosters have a few different voices for calling their hens to snack time, herding them into a corner to avoid danger, or warning off an intruder. Some roosters let their authoritative status go to their heads and become cocky (another term that came from the poultry world). And even a docile roo can overreact if you wear different boots or carry an umbrella.

Surprisingly, chickens also can have touching relational interactions. We have a pair of banties that are practically inseparable. One, the tiniest breed of the whole flock, is at the bottom of the pecking order. Her best friend, only slightly larger, is at her side day and night protecting and defending her. I have also seen a slender 4 pound hen spread her wing over a much larger 10# hen to protect her from perceived danger.

"In case any of you had a question about who rules this roost..." 

 
Horses, cows, and chickens…that’s about the extent of my experience with farm animals. In the next few months, with a new species on our farm, I expect to make some observations about the social life and communication style of pigs.

Do they utter assorted snorts? Can they wag their curly little tails? Do they share their food?

I’m eager to find out.

Marie and her husband, Jim, are developing a farm in the Pacific Northwest with their adult children and grandchildren. At The Homesteader Kitchen Marie and her daughter review kitchen equipment and talk about preparing and preserving delicious food. Along with other family members, Marie shares glimpses of country life at Rural Living Today and teaches practical skills at The Homesteader School .