yaklady

Jo, you're so hard on us!!!

Windy, thank you for your help, and Grampa, thank you for your potential help! When I smell the flesh burning, I'll think of how the rotten yak treated me before the contract went out on his life. That will bring a smile to my face. Take that, you foul yak! As for the scrimshaw, hiloboy, mind if I send the horns to you???? Kathy

Antlers make great burnishers. I've even seen them all polished up with wooden handles, as is you'd need all that! I use a small antler with a fork in it.

Wow, Clay, I didn't know you went to Australia! The rings look like they could be made of leather putty. Can you get putty that smooth by sanding it on the outside? Looks like a challenge to me! Kathy

Try www.hardwareelf.com

Some of you guys have experience with antlers, how about horns? I have two yaks horns that need to be polished. They're right off the skull at this point. What's the best way to go about making them pretty? Kathy

To me it is a paradise, even if I do have to put up with more snow than most people do. We don't live as high as wild yaks do, but my yaks are at 8500 feet and are doing quite well there. I know of a lot of yaks being raised on the plains east of here, and they seem to be doing well, too, at around 5000 feet. Some people have them in New Mexico and Wisconsin, and there's a herd back east somewhere. If yaks really do have trouble at low altitudes, you would think those would be the ones. Mine are happy no matter wha the weather!

Guess what? A friend of mine saw the same show and recorded it for me! I haven't had a chance to watch it yet, but it sounds like they do the same thing that I am trying to do. Maybe the show will give me some ideas.

Flying foxes are big fruit bats. They "hang around" in the trees in the garden. Don't stand underneath them! If you go just before dusk, you can watch them taking off for the night. That looks cool against the city skyline. Be careful not to get locked in the garden. They close the gaits at 6:30. The garden is behind the oprea house. When you go to the Blue Mountains, take some back roads, and you'll see a lot more wildlife. That's what I enjoyed most there. Get out and do some walking too. It's beautiful there.

I missed that one. We're kind of primitive up here in the mountains, and have no Discovery channel. That sounds like a dirty job that I would like. What did they say about yaks?

I don't know about their leather laws, but be sure to climb the Sydney Harbor Bridge while you're there, and go see the flying foxes in the Royal Botanic Gardens and go up to the Blue Mountains. I had a great time down there! Kathy

Good job, Marlon! I really like the way you do your initials. Kathy

Yaks can be pets if you work with them right from the beginning. I have seen people use them for packing, and some even ride their yaks. The bull that sired my bull is very friendly and well behaved. His owners can go out to the pasture and brush him. My yaks don't live at my house, so I can't put much time into them. They're just pasture yaks for the sake of keeping my mother's land agricultural. My main source of income will be in selling the calves. Wool will be an income when I figure out a way of collecting it. I am quite fond of yak meat, so if I end up with a bull I can't sell, well I know he's tasty! Hopefully I will make some money with them. If not, at least I enjoy them. Kathy

Crystal, Really I was refering more to puppies with the ugly and smelly! But now that you mention it, I do want to protect my investments. However, I think the adult yaks will do a fabulous job of that. The bull chased my brother out of the pasture when he was trying to take pictures! I like the adults just as much as the kids. Vaccinations come at weaning time. That's something new to me. Hopefully I'll figure it out! JW, those are the most beautiful cinches I have ever seen! You should post them on Show Off, too so everyone will be sure to see them. Where did you get the yak hair? Billy, you southerners sure say funny things! I haven't heard much pooting from the yaks, but they sure burp a lot when they're eating yak snacks. Kate, a pregnant yak is very subtle. The first one didn't show at all. The second one was fat, but she's still just as fat. Other yak ranchers have said the same thing. All of a sudden, there's a baby! Cows and horses give you a little more warning. Proud Grammyak

There's no way I would have gotten the color that close by "winging it"! I hate to think what mine would have looked like.

Sorry, I'm not a "fella", but I'm gonna respond anyway! You've got the blue jay color down pretty well, but you missed one thing, the shaft (some people call it the quill). On a blue jay, it's white at the end where it comes out of the bird for about a 1/4 of the way, and it's black from there to the tip. Have you made many feathers? ClayB puts them on buffalo. Maybe I should put them on yaks. Kathy

I'm not entirely sure what a "poot" is, but if it's on a fat baby, it's got to be cute! If puppies would stay fat and cute, I'd have one of them, too. It's a shame that adorable little babies have to grow up big and ugly and smelly. Guess what, I have a second baby yak now! This one is all black (the color is called Imperial) (That sounds impressive, doesn't it?), and is just as cute as the first. The first one gave away his secret, and I now know it's a boy. Maybe this is baby sister. Proud Grammyak

The yak pasture is on three sides of my mother's house, so yes, she can se them. I talked to her about that, but so far, she's just not catching it! I need to take a day off and just sit there and watch. If you PM me with your mailing address, I could send you a handful of yak wool. It ain't much, but you could see what it's like. It's some I picked up out of the pasture. Kathy

I have never used Jeff's templates, but I do have a maker's stamp and pro petal tool that he made. They are of the highest quality, and I would recommend his stuff to anyone. I think I would like th acrylic templates, they would not ever scratch your leather. Kathy

Did you draw the pattern for this one, too? Very nice.

Good job! You've got a good start in drawing up your own patterns. Keep it up and you'll go far with it. Kathy

G'Day, Mate! My farrier is from Melbourne. He says it's the prettiest city in all of Australia. Is it true? Good to have you here. Kathy

The little yaklet is doing great, but I still don't know what it is! The problem is, they are on my mother's acreage 18 miles away from here. I don't get to see the yaks all that often. I would believe that the wool is similar to a musk ox. It is very soft and the items I've seen made from it are light and warm, like you say. If I can get a hold of some, I'll send it to you to try out. I'll keep you informed on the gender when I find out.

Clay's jealous because he's not 29! Really it's pretty easy to stay 29. Just change your birthdate every year. Are your grand kids as cute as my grand yak? Kathy