#she had lots of treats veggies and hay

[bobit-shotaro]

💖 We celebrated Baby Shotaro’s 2nd birthday a few days ago 🎉🥳🎊😘🎁

[hogwartslegacyreactions2]

Can I have a reaction to Hogwarts Legacy students and professors to a female hufflepuff MC who owns a chinchilla

They have the softest fur on the planet

Only eat hay and special pellets ( no fruit or veggies in their diet) they can have certain dried herds and flowers though

Sorry about all the chin facts I own one

My little girl is all white with dark grey ears and some grey on her face and base of her tail with the pinkest noise

Please and thank you

A/N: I've had the honor of petting one once, they are the softest creature in the world ❤️ Thank you for the reference photo ❤️❤️

HLC REACT TO F!MC HAVING A CHINCHILLA

SEBASTIAN SALLOW: "What in Merlin's name- no, forget Merlin, what in the world is that??" He squints and looks real close at it. Gets right up in the floofy rodent's face. So close that the chinchilla sniffs his nose back. He huffs and gives a little smirk. "Adorable...just like its owner." He throws a cheeky wink at MC.

OMINIS GAUNT: He trusts MC wouldn't put anything terrible in his hand when he was asked to hold it out. He feels the light weight of a small soft creature on his palm. He brings his free hand up to lightly pet it and he smiles. "It's quite soft, MC. Is this another one of your beasts?" He doesn't give the chinchilla back for quite some time, they even take a nap together.

ANNE SALLOW: "I've never seen anything like it!" She gazes in amazement and holds out a treat MC gave her to give to it. She's very curious about the chinchilla; where it came from, how long has MC had it, etc. She hopes MC brings it with her every time she visits.

IMELDA REYES: "Is that a rat in your pocket or are you just happy to see me?" MC's chinchilla was indeed hanging out in her pocket. She tells the same joke every time MC is around in the hope she'll get to see the baby. She doesn't lose her mind over its cuteness but she wants to pet it every time it's around.

NATSAI ONAI: She sneaks extra snacks for the chinchilla all the time. She also lets it sleep in her robe if MC is busy. She loves pet sitting. She's also fascinated by the chinchillas tiny hands, they can grab things??? Like a people??? Weird.

GARRETH WEASLEY: He's never seen fur like what the chinchilla has. He's very curious if it has any unique properties. Don't worry, he would dare take a pair of scissors to such a precious creature, but when MC is cleaning its cage, will she spare a few furballs?

LEANDER PREWETT: He struggles to maintain his composer when MC is carrying around the little fluff ball all curled up in her arm. It's. Too. Cute. It's unfair how cute it is! When MC lets him hold it for the first time, he cries. He's not allergic, his eyes are sweating. Stop pointing it out.

AMIT THAKKAR: His only hang up with the chinchilla is that it chews on everything. All of his books have teeth marks on them from the chinchilla sneaking a nibble when no one was looking. Nevermind his quills, parchment, shoes, and even his wand. Is nothing sacred?? He's gained the habit of watching it like a hawk when MC brings it around.

EVERETT CLOPTON: "Hehehehe, Levioso." Whoosh the chinchilla is in the air and very confused. Any retaliation from MC is worth it. It's funny watching the little chinchilla get so confused by suddenly leaving the ground.

POPPY SWEETING: She has to cover her mouth to muffle the squee that escapes her as to not draw attention, but she is losing her mind. The chinchilla is the absolute cutest thing she has ever seen and that is saying a lot. She steals the chinchilly away every chance she gets, straight up runs off. Her chinchilla now, bish.

~~~

ELEAZAR FIG: He doesn't mind pet sitting when MC is out and about for extended periods of time. He and the chinchilla get along quite well. However, when he himself gets buried in work sometimes he loses track and has to go digging through his office to find where the chinchilla scampered off to.

MATILDA WEASLEY: "As long as you follow the pet guidelines set by the school, your unique pet is welcome. That said, this is quite the curious creature. How did you acquire this?" She studies the chinchilla and gets it a little pat.

CHIYO KOGAWA: "Cute." Is all she says about it. She's not a big pet person. Nothing personal.

AESOP SHARP: His initial reaction is just a dismissive "hmm" when MC shows it off, but later on, if the chinchilla escapes, it finds its way to the dungeons and into his classroom where it sits in his lap and he mindlessly strokes its soft fur. It's very therapeutic. Would want to pet again.

ABRAHAM RONEN: "A chinchilla! Holy guacamole those are rare in these parts. Where did you get it?" He examines the chinchilla closely and rubs its ear.

MIRABEL GARLICK: "Oh my, aren't you just the most darling thing I've seen!" She excitably comes over the chinchilla and bounces in place when she gets to pet it. "Oh! It's so impossibly soft!" She orders seeds of plants native to Western South America and grows a few just for MC's pet.

MUDIWA ONAI: "Well, this is one unique creature. I see you two have a very special bond." She delights seeing the chinchilla.

BAI HOWIN: She reminds MC to keep plenty of fine dust available for their pet to roll in. "Scotland gets a lot of precipitation and moisture isn't good for their coats. Keep them dry and healthy." She hands the little chinchilla a pellet.

DINAH HECAT: She smiles as she pets it. "I had a chinchilla when I was little. Stole it from a merchant who wasn't too good at taking care of his merchandise. Nursed him back to health. Had him for twelve long years. Good years..." She tears up a little, but makes no fuss of it.

CUTHBERT BINNS: He doesn't really notice. Thinks the chinchilla is an extra small puffskien or something.

SATYAVATI SHAH: "No thank you, I do not wish to pet your chinchilla. Please finish your star charts." Doesn't even look up from her work.

PHINEAS NIGELLUS BLACK: "Ew, take your fat squirrel and get out of my way. I have important business to attend." He walks away with his nose in the air.

[bobatelevision]

i had to put my sweet baby down yesterday...

on thursday morning he was fine, eating and drinking fine. nothing out of the ordinary. thursday night he seems to have trouble breathing, he had discharge around his eyes, and kept making these pained noises I've never heard him make before. he had no appetite and wasnt drinking water. i bought some critical care to try force feeding him but he wasnt accepting it at all and tried to give him a mix of pedialyte + water to get him fluids and he accepted some but not a lot. i thought he maybe had some upper respiratory infection and maybe needed antibiotics, so i started calling some veterinarians in my area.

it was really late at night too so i called around and had such a hard time finding a vet to treat him bc most of the animal hospitals either:

-serviced guinea pigs

-their exotic vet wasnt in that night

-serviced guinea pigs but was closed

i was scared to even go to sleep that night bc his conditioned looked so bad, i didnt think he would even make it to the morning. but he managed to survive the night, so i called around again and was able to find a vet about 40 min away that could take him. we enter the hospital and they immediately take him in and i was in the waiting room. the doc comes out to talk to me to explain what was happening.

he had a stone in his bladder that was blocking his urethra and he couldn't urinate. bladder stones can be very life threatening bc if an animal cant pee, it can develop an infection (sepsis) and even get a heart attack. when she examined him, everytime she palpated his bladder he would be in pain, so they gave him a pain injection. they lead me into a room to explain what his treatment would consist of, and i was fucking shocked.

nearly $5k for his surgery and treatment, i couldn't fucking believe it. the worst part is there really was no plan b on his treatment that wasn't euthanasia. i felt so fucking sick, but i had to think on it more. i thought about maybe calling other animal hospitals but i already had a lot of trouble trying to find anyone to treat him at all, and even if there was a miracle situation where i could afford his treatment, it would not guarantee that he wouldnt fall ill again. on top of the fact that guinea pigs are really fragile creatures and dont have very long life spans. the procedure is incredibly invasive and could put so much stress on his little body. i didnt want him to be in more pain than he really was.

so i made the tough decision on putting him down, because i didn't want him to suffer any longer. i'm so heartbroken bc although i knew we would part ways one day, i didnt imagine it would be so soon. we spent past 3 years together, i adopted him mid pandemic bc being stuck in a different country from the rest of my family is incredibly isolating. i gave him so much love and spoiled him so much. he ate veggies & hay to his hearts content, would start cui-cuing at the sound of a bag being opened, he got to sleep in the largest and comfiest pet beds. he used to sleep on my nap while i gamed or watched shows. he was very skittish with people, except for me bc he knew i would give him the world. i'm feeling so defeated rn. i stayed with him til the very last moment, he was very sedated but soo cuddly in the last hour. the only thing to bring me peace of mind is knowing he was relaxed and in no pain in his final moments.

he doesn't know the amount of people that love him around the world, even as far as Australia. he had an impact on many people. all my irls and my online friends absolutely adored him. even my mom, who is deathly afraid of rodents, thought he was so cute and precious bc of how fluffy he is. his departure left a huge hole in my heart. when i got back home, i bursted into tears looking at his empty enclosure. im so used to him jumping around and getting quirked up when he hears me enter my room. i just cant believe i'll never get to see him, or hold him, or even feed him again.

Rest in Peace, my beloved Taro.

I love you so dearly, you may very little but you had a very huge heart.. and appetite. You will always be missed and I hope you are enjoying large quantities of lettuce in cui cui heaven.

[bunposting]

hi bunposting, new zealand rabbjt anon here- unfortunately i have suffered a loss recently. the doe that i’ve raised and loved for the last three years died suddenly a few days ago without any reason as to why. logically i know that as prey animals, rabbits don’t show illness until they’re basically on deaths doorstep, but it’s been a hard time anyway. she was a wonderful mother, very sweet and full of personality, and with some really great genetics that led to me making sale at a couple livestock shows with her kits. i’m missing her a lot but trying to focus on my other two rabbits.

which leads me to adding my own experience onto your other post:

first things first, you are totally right that the huge amount of hay/veggies is ridiculous. both to balance with their feed and to buy that much fresh produce

my rabbits get hay if i remember it. so like once a week at most. i’ll give them a bit more if i notice there’s a lot of hair in their poop to help get their guts moving a bit more, but that’s really it. hay is expensive as all get out and since they’re fed a complete diet it’s not necessary as a daily requirement, just a treat. and i never give them hay when their babies are out of the nest box. i’m raising them for meat and hay is filling with few calories, aka the kits will gorge themselves on hay all the time and not gain any weight

i do give them fruit and veggie treats pretty regularly, but i never go out of my way to get produce especially for them. it’s always leftovers from the kitchen. bananas that have gone soft, lettuce heads, strawberry tops, watermelon rinds, whatever. they enjoy a treat, and we have less food waste, so win win! they’re our little compost bins!

but the main thing is that despite what aras/hrs wants everyone to believe, rabbits can totally have a lifelong diet of pellets and only pellets with no problems. the veggies aren’t requirements, just fun treats to add on top of an already compete diet. i’ve always fed my rabbits this way, and i’ve never had a single GI issue

(some may say ‘well what about your recent death’ and while i can’t 100% rule out a GI issue and will likely never know the true reason for her death, that just seems like the least likely option for her personal situation)

Hey Anon! Sorry for taking so long to reply, it's been a busy week.

First of all I'm so sorry about your loss. It's so heartbreaking to lose any animal you love, let alone one you raised. It's obviously a bit too late now, but I'd be on high alert for any other sudden deaths in your rabbitry, especially if you're somewhere where RVHD2 is active. If there are more that die suddenly and unexpectedly, I'd recommend talking to a veterinarian about next steps including how to get the remains tested for the disease. Rabbits sometimes do die without much warning for other reasons (heart attack, heat stroke, undetected cancer, etc.), but you definitely have to be careful now that RVHD2 has spread to places it hasn't historically been able to spread much to.

Everything else you said totally tracks though. Feeding kitchen scraps to your rabbits can be an awesome way to reduce food waste, but (as I'm sure you know) it's super important to do some research first and make sure that the scraps you have are safe for your rabbits to eat/what quantity of those scraps are safe for your rabbits to eat.

[sourwormsaresour]

Headcanons on the type of pets La Squadra would own?

Holy shit this was too fun to make, especially with giving the pets names.

Sorbet and Gelato have their own Crusty-White-Dog™ that's a Maltese Terrier named Armani. The dog hates and barks nonstop at everything deemed threatening (aka, everyone and particularly the rest of La Squadra) and yet those two will claim she's the sweetest thing in the world. True to her name, they deck her with Armani branded clothes, either specially made dog fashion or they had a DIY done to make it look like an Armani outfit- down to the bright pink leash she wears dripping in the Armani logo. She eats the finest dry kibble and only drinks Ferrarelle Sparkling water; she will know the difference if you switch it up. She's the epitome of "I demand pets but only do so with your eyes" to everyone. Despite loving Sorbet and Gelato the most, she demands all their attention on her and she will cockblock those two if she catches them being affectionate to each other instead. Despite having a nice bed, she always sleeps between the two of them and will whimper if they kick her out of the bedroom so they can get intimate. Those tear-stained eyes always look like they've seen everything, despite being constantly babied by her owners. If Armani could, she would kill everyone.

Risotto, the biggest man in Vento Aureo, has a little Syrian hamster he called Ace. He thought that a pet with a shorter lifespan would allow him the perfect balance of having a pet but not being very attached to it compared to pets that live longer- he was wrong. If you ever come into Risotto's office as he worked, either you are greeted with Ace running around in his green hamster ball, walking around Risotto's desk as he worked, or running in the hamster wheel behind the desk. Ace's tank is an old Aquarium tank Pesci gave to Risotto that is now full of soft bedding, toys, and Risotto frequently cleans it. There are days where Risotto just spends hours watching his hamster walk around the room, eating little treats, and staring at Risotto with its beady eyes. It's gotten to the point where you can't walk into Risotto's office without noticing a lone sunflower seed or piece of bedding on the ground that Risotto didn't notice until you pointed it out. Every time Ace passes from old age, Risotto buys a new Syrian hamster and calls that one Ace. He hasn't kept track of how many hamsters that came and went so far, but treated every one of them as if they were the first Ace. He takes pictures of Ace doing the most relatively boring things and will share them with his members.

Illuso got a Sulphur-crested cockatoo named Scapino as a joke. He thought they didn’t require much attention but later felt bad when he found out that they need specific proper care. He proceeds to care for it as if it was his child. Illuso taught his bird how to speak and swear at people, specifically swearing at Formaggio and occasionally at Ghiaccio. This man will shower his bird with the best treats (expensive nuts, dried fruit, chicken bones) and has a special bar for it to perch on when they're in the shower together. This bird has free reign all over Illuso's place and wears a little anklet thing to verify that it has an owner should it escape. The two of them have spa days together and it’s one of the most wholesome things in the world to witness. Scapino will actually join Illuso on missions too, staying in the mirror world the whole time, and it provides him some comfort from his social anxiety. Sometimes Scapino sits on his shoulder as he walks. Illuso trained it to stay and hide in the mirror world so that it wouldn’t fly away or blow his cover when he’s working. But the bird will fly around in there and will watch anyone that’s getting murked in front of him with no remorse and commenting on it too. Imagine you’re dying in the mirror world and your last moment is this fucking bird looming over you going “night night, motherfucker”. JESUS CHRIST. 

Prosciutto used to be on the whole “pets are unnecessary” train but he had considered looking at breeders for the best quality dog. And then one rainy day he found an abandoned Portuguese Water Dog puppy in an alleyway and at Pesci’s insistence took it in. Turns out the puppy was bought by a rich family for their kid but then abandoned when the kid wasn't interested in it anymore. Prosciutto insisted that the dog was going to stay for one night and then sent to the pound first thing in the morning. It's been years now and the little dog is now a big fluffy good boy named Pon Pon. The second biggest chunk of Prosciutto's paycheck is for this dog; I'm talking grooming services with paw-ticures, an all-organic raw diet, the nicest beds that even a human would wish they can sleep on. Pon Pon is properly trained with all the basics and tricks, because Prosciutto doesn't want to deal with a misbehaving dog, but it will use puppy eyes against the old man now and then. He give you the best smiles if you call him a good boy and if you glance at the right time you can see Prosciutto smile for a brief moment. Had he lived longer, he would have made Pon Pon famous on Facebook like Boo the Dog. Prosciutto will also not admit that this dog has helped him get laid a few times, because every person he did bring home always got a kick out of Pon Pon.

Ghiaccio has a pet snake- an albino ball python named Bianco. Ghiaccio was also on the “pets are unnecessary” train too but mainly because he can't stand loud pets (i.e. Illuso and Sorbet and Gelato’s pets). When Risotto suggested he get a snake, Ghiaccio looked into it, researching and meticulously setting up the proper enclosure  and found himself going to a local reptile expo to find Bianco for sale. He’s fascinated by his snake to say the least, and would use leftover containers or Tupperware for Bianco to spend more money on proper equipment or food. Ghiaccio is really involved in online reptile forums and frequently debates with people on topics such as the best substrates to use, whether live rodents are better than frozen, ethics of breeding certain species, etc. He often gets worried when Bianco becomes picky and Ghiaccio would spend sleepless nights trying to get his baby to eat. Ghiaccio would walk around with his ball python wrapped around his neck or lets him slither around in his room under supervision but he mostly leaves him alone in the enclosure. There are times where he would claim he has the best, smartest pet and everyone just rolls their eyes like “yes the white fettuccine that got stuck in a toilet paper roll an hour ago is so smart”. But they let him rant about it. It’s kind of cute to say the least.

Pesci is the definition of people whose entire LIVELIHOOD is making his room into an aquarium. His room is full of strictly maintained, cleaned, and decorated tanks full of various types of aquatic animals. I’m talking Dwarf Puffers (Antonio, Portia, Jessica, Bassiano, and Solanio), Albino Gold Axolotls (Moe, Larry, and Curly), Red Ear Sliders (Franco and Ciccio), Clown Fishes (Browser, Mario, Toadstool, and Koopa), Brazilian Sea Horses (Tom and Jerry), a Blue Betta Fish named Valentina in a 30+ gallon aquaponics tank that grows a variety of plants each season- to name a few. He rebuilt his entire room to keep everything running and even had Melone help him set up timers for lighting and temperature control. Pesci will cry if you somehow made the pH level off by 1 or did not care for his animals properly when he’s away. He’ll even lecture you about bad tank setup. He's a prominent member of the aquarium  community in Italy and will regularly redecorate each tank to suit the year and mood. This is where he’s spending his cut on the 20 million lira job: caring for his mini aquarium room. He occasionally gives away his pets’ offsprings for extra money (he doesn’t breed but sometimes he ends up having a ton of baby animals he can’t take care of) and would have been a YouTuber for his fish content. Now that I think about it, Pesci reminds me of my mutual @nexter2nd. Please go follow them.

Melone has a Holland Lop bunny and you cannot change my mind. He actually had a pet bunny growing up, another Holland Lop named Echo and Grep, and his current one is named Sudo; all three are named after UNIX commands. He has a large dog crate he diy-ed to be a roomy enclosure in his room for her that he cleans frequently but also allows Sudo free reign of the room when she wants to go out. Because of his job, he makes sure all his wires are covered so his bunny isn't tempted to chew them and watches his bunny diligently whenever she roams around. Easter time is when the denim jacket, pastel bows, and flower crowns come out and Melone makes sure to take a lot of photos. He also housetrained his bunny and taught her a few tricks, similar to how he trained Echo and Grep years ago. Sudo is spoiled in terms of getting a lot of pets, new toys, and feasts on the finest veggies and delicious hay. Melone also makes sure the first thing he teaches his Juniors is to not harm the bunny. Surprisingly, he's against breeding Sudo and has her neutered. This is mainly because he doesn't have the time to breed and raise more bunnies but also he hates the idea of selling the grown bunnies off afterward. 

You know that Formaggio has a cat: the little Russian Blue cat named Sweetie Baby. Sweetie Baby was a kitten that he found outside his home. The little thing was the sole survivor of its litter and nearly starving to death, so he took her in thinking he will bring her to the shelter when she recovers; that cat now lets him live in HER apartment rent-free. Despite feeding her cheap dry food and constantly shoving her into bottles, he treats her like a queen otherwise. He will dress her up in little outfits (much to her annoyance) and often would be too aggressively affectionate towards her. Still, there are moments where she would cuddle with him during the later nights and allow him to put on one iced-out bow he just spent a quarter of his paycheck on. Walking to his apartment and even the backdoor of La Squadra’s HQ means carefully walking through the stray cats mewling at your feet, because Formaggio will feed any cat he sees. Initially, Risotto wanted the cats gone, but then he finds out the cats doubled as security when he watched some robber attempting to break in but getting their eyes scratched off instead.

[surveys-at-your-service]

Survey #367

“i should warn you that you may fuck me, but chances are i’m gonna fuck you over”

Where was the last place you went for vacation? The beach. When was the last time you wore makeup? Halloween. Do you watch soaps or drama series? If so, which ones? Not currently. What’s your favourite tomato variety? I hate tomatoes. What was your very first pet like? Dad had a dog named Trigger when I was born, but I have no memory of her, so I'm excluding her. I consider our first family pet to be Chance, a cat my mom took in after finding her literally in the trash. She was... god, incredible. She was a loyal friend, and I can imagine no greater mother than she was (she legit fought off a rottweiler head-on to protect her kittens). She was so smart, so gentle, and just simply amazing. I'll always miss her. What was the best school project you remember doing? Looking back, despite the fact it TERRIFIED me before, that would be my senior project presentation. It was about snake misconceptions and fallacies, so I made a slideshow to present to the special ed class. I made drawings for them to color, word searches, all that kind of stuff. They were just the sweetest and seemed really into it. What’s your favourite type of fish to eat? None. What kind of an old person do you think you’ll become? I really... don't like thinking about this. Like I'm weak enough now at 25, I can't imagine how my, say, 60s would be. I hope and just about pray that my physical health will improve, but I'm just going to exclude that part entirely from this answer. Personality-wise and such, I have a feeling I'll be the quiet and sweet kind, the one that loves her (hopeful) spouse like crazy, and comes most alive on Halloween if I live in a place where children come trick-or-treating. I imagine I would LOVE that. I'd love to be the type that goes on morning jogs to help stay spry. Which well-known person’s death shocked you the most, if any? Steve Irwin and Chester Bennington might be tied. Both were so, so sudden. Steve was like, invincible to my childhood eyes, and when I heard about Chester's death, I thought it was just a sick rumor. Two amazing people that died way too soon. What’s the craziest colour you’d dye your hair? That would depend on personal opinions. I want to dye my hair LOTS of colors though, if that tells you anything. What’s the coolest hobby one of your friends has? Uhhhh. Idk. Name a video game you can play over and over again: Shadow of the Colossus. It's a pretty short game if you know what you're doing, and it's super relaxing to me and just so goddamn pretty to look at. Every time I've played it has just been a pleasant experience. Do you like meatloaf? Yeah, it's fine. How about Meatloaf? I know who he is, but I've never really listened to his music. Do you take time to do charitable work? If so, what do you do? No. ;_; Especially with all the free time I have, I really should... What is something that will make you laugh instantly? Okay, don't ask, but if I for a SECOND see that commercial of Mr. Clean dancing while he's cleaning, I will die because of memories. What is something you hope you will never inherit from a specific relative? Diabetes. It runs heavily in my family. Name a movie you wouldn’t watch solely based on its name: The Human Centipede. No. Thank you. Have you ever played in a stack of hay bales? No. What’s your dearest souvenir? The stuffed moose I got at Cabela's during a visit to Ohio. I named him Brownie, and he was my "childhood plushie" we all have. Is there a lot of graffiti around your neighbourhood? Not in the actual area I live in, but there are DEFINITELY places where it's a pigsty of distasteful shit. Have you ever made your own soda? (Soda Stream doesn’t count!) No. Do you have a hobby that forces you out of the house? If so, what is it? Nature photography. Have you ever been part of a theater group? No, that stuff doesn't interest me. What’s the most ecological thing you do? We recycle, and I also use metal straws. Would you stop eating meat, if you had to raise and slaughter it yourself? Absolutely. There is no fucking way I could do it. What’s your favourite board game? Why do you like it best? I like Clue just because of the mystery-solving factor, and I think it's kinda cool how you can think ahead and use other's findings to your own advantage to win the game pretty early. Besides English, what other languages can you speak? Some German. It's gotten pretty weak with neglect, though. Besides English, what other languages can you read? I can read German well. What thing/person/happening has made you the happiest you’ve been? This is a complicated answer that I just don't feel like elaborating on. What’s the most freeing thing you’ve ever done? Letting Jason go. Have you ever had a restaurant dish that was made with bugs? If not, would you even want to try one? No, and I'm not interested. Have you ever tasted birch sap? No. How about the young buds/shoots of spruce trees? No. Which edible flowers have you tasted? Honeysuckles. What has been your worst restaurant experience? Well, it's a fast food restaurant, but lemme tell you about my vegetarian encounter with Burger King. I ordered their veggie burger. Which they have. It's not a secret. These idiots gave me a bun with tomato and lettuce, and I think mayo on it, after sounding confused when Mom was ordering for me. Mom went back in there of course to tell them, and oh god was the manager pissed, lol. I got my veggie burger in the end. What’s the most immature, adolescent thing that still makes you laugh? Some sexually inappropriate jokes can still get me sadly, lol. Have you ever had a life-threatening condition? If so, what was it? Not literally, but boy do I think depression counts. Do you ever compare your life to somebody else’s? If so, why? Y E P. I can't tell you why, I just... do it. I look at other's successes and am just like, "Why aren't I there yet?", and beat myself up about being a failure. What is a food item or a dish you absolutely cannot stand? Brussel sprouts, asparagus, runny eggs, many other things because I'm just mega picky. Have you ever had a custom print done on a shirt? If so, what was it? Just the spray paint kind that vendors like to do at the beach and stuff. I don't remember any I got, though. What does your favourite mug look like? It's black with a Markiplier quote on it, given to me by Sara. :') Do you ever read other people’s survey answers? Yeah! Friends', anyway. I love learning all the obscure things about them. Do you like daytime or night time better? Why? Daytime, specifically early morning, because it's better for my depression. Are you more comfortable as a leader or a follower? A follower that isn't afraid to speak up when I'm really against something. What is your favourite song right now at this very moment? I've been really into "7empest" by Tool lately, and the synthwave edit of "Voices" by Motionless In White. If you watched The Fresh Prince of Bel Air, who was your favourite character? I don't remember it well, but I think I liked the butler. Was there even a butler? Who was your first online friend? Emma. :') Do you have any plants in your home? No. If you wear makeup, what’s the most outrageous colour you use? I only ever use black. What was the last photograph you took? My cat being adorable while sleeping. <3 Have you ever submitted a video to Funniest Home Videos? No. What was the first sport you learned how to play? I want to say soccer? I absolutely hated it. Do you have a headache at the moment? Yes, actually. I've really been attacked by the Covid shot side effects. Are your parents still together? No, thank god. What was the last hot food you ate? I made a chicken and I think pesto (some Italian noodles, idk) Healthy Choice bowl for dinner last night. Have you ever seen a meteor shower? No. :( Do you ever feel afraid people will question your sanity? I'm sure people have before, and back then? Rightfully so. Which X Factor audition(s) was/were your favorite? Never watched it. Were you a straight A student in spelling and grammar? Always. It's so weird how it's gotten worse with time since leaving school, even though I write... Were you a straight A student in math? Yeah, no. I usually got Bs or Cs. What is your favorite shade of yellow? Pastel. I don't really like yellow. What is something you want to accomplish before you turn 30? Have a stable job. Are you afraid of getting yelled at? YES. Do you feel a connection to the moon? It's not something I think about, so not really, but I do believe all things in the universe are connected in some way. We are simply a part of nature, as all else is. What does your heart long for? Contentment in who I am and where I am in life. I know I also miss being in love. Do you know what your purpose in life is? We have no innate purpose; we make our own, and I want mine to be to show others that there is always hope for yourself in yourself, and also to spread the message of love of all animals. Did you decorate a pumpkin this year? Last year I didn't. I really should change that this go around. Have you ever seen a fox? Yes! They're a kind of rare sight here sadly, so when I had the opportunity to photograph a fox tragically as roadkill, it was a photographic experience I won't forget. God, I wanted to pet it (I obviously didn't), but I did talk to it about how beautiful (s)he was as I got some shots. I never had a harder time leaving one of those angels I've taken pictures of. Do you find Halloween fun or scary? FUN!!!!!! Is there anything about Halloween you find offensive? Not at all. What do the trees look like where you live? I mean, there's a variety, but the staple that you see literally everywhere are pine trees. What is your dream vacation? Somewhere with mountains, clear lakes, cool weather, beautiful and various wildlife... What was the best vacation you’ve been on so far? Disney World as a kid. What is the best class trip you’ve been on? The zoo in the 5th grade. It was the one occasion I got to see meerkats. Did you like field trips when you were a kid? I lived for them. Do you find museums boring or interesting? I find science museums to be very, very fascinating. Art ones are great, too. What are three issues you are passionate about? LGBT rights, the pro-choice movement, and wildlife conservation, to name a few. Would you ever wear a shirt with your country’s flag on it? No. I'm not patriotic enough at all. What size is your bed? Queen. What’s a medicine that makes you sleepy? When we were experimenting with my Klonopin dosage, I learned that 3mg was enough to knock me on my ASS. Do you like bath bombs? I mean they're pretty, but I wouldn't waste money on 'em. Who are your favorite small YouTubers? Yikes, a looooooot. But this also depends on what you think qualifies as "small." Most of my favorite "small" YTers are tarantula keepers or sub-1M let's players. Who are your favorite big YouTubers? Markiplier obviously, Snake Discovery, Good Mythical Morning (even if I don't watch them anymore, they are veeery dear to my heart and I will always support them), Sam & Colby... Again, there's a lot. When you don't watch TV and YT instead, you really get attached to a lot of them. What was your favorite girl group when you were growing up? Would you believe me if I said Pussycat Dolls? haha Do you like Disney movies? Um, DUH. Were you ever in the popular crowd? No. Have you ever used an outhouse? UGH, at like childhood sports games, yes. I could NEVER nowadays, oh my god. Could you possibly write a successful novel? I think I have the creativity to, but not the dedication. Are there any foods that make you gag? Beans, for one. I just canNOT with them. It's a completely involuntary reaction. Have you ever had blonde highlights in your hair? I think I did? Who was the last person you video-chatted with? The lady who was seeing if I qualified for TMS therapy. Do you think sleeve tattoos look trashy? Definitely not, I love those. If you had to get a portrait tattoo, who would it be of? I don't actually want one, but if I did, I'd go to a serious professional to get THE Darkiplier smile. :') If u know u know. Do you have any stickers on any of your electronic devices? No. Do you think half blonde/half dark brown hair is attractive? It looks great on some people, but it's not my favorite combo.

[lovelyvitamin]

back at the barnyard | lee minsoo

➳ pairing: barnboy!lee minsoo x fem!citygirl!reader

➳ genre: fluff

➳ word count (according to my google document): 1.3k

➳ warning(s): none, just average writing skills

➳ synopsis: minsoo invites you to his family farm for his one week vacation and to finally introduce you to his grandparents, but he’s a little worried about how you’d react since you’ve lived in the city all your life.

➳ a/n: inspired by mayniac twt. read lost in translation for clear skin~

Minsoo couldn’t resist holding back his smile as he stepped off the train with both of your belongings. The scenery is all too familiar to him as he took in his surroundings and he let out a breath he didn’t realize he was holding as he finally made it home. The train ride was too long for his liking and he couldn’t wait to get back to his family’s farm and introduce you to everyone.

“(Y/N), cabs here usually take a long time. Let’s sit over there while I call for one.” Minsoo looked back to where you were, only to see that you weren’t there. Panic began to rise in Minsoo’s body and he was about to sprint off to look for you when you emerged around the corner with a satisfied smile gracing your features.

“Sorry, I had to use the bathroom.”

Minsoo let out a sigh and with furrowed brows he beckons you over to him. You mentally prepared yourself for the earful you were about to receive from him.

A huge banner with the words “Welcome Home Minsoo!” graced the entrance of your boyfriend’s family farm. You turned towards him to see that he had on the most boyish smile and you mentally cooed at how innocent he looked. Minsoo almost jumped out of the cab when it came to a stop and if it wasn’t for you, the one who was holding his hand throughout the entire ride, he probably wouldn’t have remembered that he needed to pay the driver for driving both of you out all the way out to the countryside. You gave the driver an apologetic smile and bid him a thank you as you stepped out.

Minsoo had grabbed both his and your belongings from the trunk of the cab before bowing down towards the driver (who in response shrugged him off because he’s “dealt with worse”). Minsoo finally turned towards his family before running up to his mom and pulling her into a hug. Warmth filled you up as you watched him reunite with his family once again.

“Minsoo! I’m so glad you’re doing great! How’s the city treating you?” The man that had asked him that brought down his hand and clapped Minsoo’s back. You couldn’t help but slightly wince as you saw the look of pain flash before his eyes at his father’s actions.

“Great! Really great, and actually… I wanted to introduce you all to someone very special to me.”

Minsoo turned around to where you were awkwardly standing and waved at you to come over. Shyness took over your body and you hurriedly made your way over so as to not take up too much time. You smiled at his family and politely introduced yourself. You’ve met Minsoo’s parents before since they live a few miles away from the city, but meeting his grandparents was completely new and you were worried that they wouldn’t like you; however, that thought soon dispersed when his grandma pulled you into a sudden hug.

“It’s so nice to finally meet you! Minsoo won’t shut up about you over the phone, so it’s nice to actually see you and not having to hear him ramble on and on.”

From your left, you heard the small screech Minsoo let out and you couldn’t help the giggle that escaped from you upon hearing this information.

“Let’s head inside. You both must be awfully tired.” Minsoo’s grandpa led you inside with everyone else, leaving your screaming boyfriend behind with both of your luggage.

You’ve learned a lot about Minsoo the moment his mom prepared you a cup of tea. Firstly, he was literally raised in a barn. Ever since he could walk, Minsoo never left the barn house and instead, opted to play with the animals, until his dad got a job in the city. He and his brother moved out with his parents and they’ve resided in the city since (except for his grandparents). Secondly, every vacation that both Minsoo and Minsung get, they always come to the farm no matter the circumstance. This you found very endearing because it shows the love Minsoo has for his first home (even if he won’t admit it).

“Minsoo, give (Y/N) a tour of the place. I’m sure she’d love to meet Betty.”

You thanked his mom for the tea and headed out with Minsoo.

The walk was silent but it wasn’t awkward; but you could feel the tension radiating from your boyfriend. Minsoo hasn’t said anything, but part of him was worried that you’d react differently about his farm life. He’s glad that you’re enjoying yourself, but he’s not sure if it’s going to last any longer. He soon intertwined your hand in his as he began the first part of the tour.

“This is the field, we don’t really grow too many things here. Just some fruit and veggies. Fun fact: Grandma is known for her homemade fruit jam and apple cider. The vegetables are mainly used to feed the animals.”

You let out a sound of acknowledgement and you couldn’t help but to imagine a younger version of Minsoo pick strawberries with his grandma. You let out a giggle at the thought as he pulls you behind him and continues the tour.

“This is the barn house. Just so you know, we are a non-breeding and slaughter-free farm. Granny loves these animals with her life which is why she takes such good care of them. And with that, our tour has come to an end-”

“Aren’t you going to take me inside the barn house?”

Minsoo blinked at you. You both stood outside the barn house staring at one another. It soon started to upset you when you realized that Minsoo didn’t want to take you inside for whatever reason. Without warning, you sprinted towards the doors of the barn house and unfortunately because of Minsoo’s slow reaction, you made it before him and headed inside.

“(Y/N), I’m not sure if you’ll even like this place so can you please come out?” He said as he walked inside. He realizes that it smelled foul and soon he’s jogging up to you.

You stopped to turn around at the sound of his footsteps and Minsoo was very close…

Only to slip on the hay and fall on his bum.

You laughed at this and went towards him to help, but unfortunately for you, that barn house wasn’t just going to embarrass Minsoo. You looked down at your shoe to see that you stepped in something not-so-pleasing and silently winced as you realized that you were wearing your white slip-ons.

With a sigh, you helped Minsoo up from the floor and let him take you out to clean your shoe. You had walked out of the barn house towards the water pump nearby to clean your shoe. Minsoo sat you down and he pumped the water out in order to rinse your shoe off.

“I didn’t think you’d like the inside of it. That’s why I didn’t want to take you in there.” You frowned at this as you immediately connected two and two together.

Minsoo was very nervous about taking you to his farm and part of you knew why, but now that he’s in front of you and admitting it, you couldn’t help but feel a little hurt.

“Minsoo, remember when I asked you if you were raised in a barn? You looked like you were ready to fight. You love this place and anyone who can’t respect this part of you is stupid. I mean, yeah it does stink a little, but if it means I can see you this happy, I don’t care.”

Without warning, Minsoo tackles you into a hug and it would have been sweet if he hadn’t pushed the both of you into the mud puddle behind. With a laugh, you both got up and headed inside the barn house in order to be introduced to Betty, Minsoo’s cow.

©lovelyvitamin | do not translate without permission, do not upload anywhere else

[arcadiaoaksusedbooks]

Event: Fountain of Youth

As his mother took a nap, Balor took her phone and tapped around the address book for a certain number. It should be about noon where she was in the world, he just hoped his aunt would pick up the phone when it rang. It ran about three times before going straight to camera mode.

“Hai, moshi moshi~!” Alora chirped with a high pitched voice. She had on sunglasses, a sunhat that didn’t flatter her at all, wearing a tank top and jean shorts while sitting in a grove of pink trees. All of this, along with the audio, took Balor a couple seconds to respond.

“Mushy mushy?” he greeted back with confusion, making his aunt laugh.

“That’s how you answer the phone in Japan. How are you doing, Balor? You’re just in time for my flower viewing picnic.”

“...what?” he asked flatly. Alora turned the phone to a small square shaped box with various foods Balor didn’t recognize in them. There were several more boxes nearby, unopened, as his aunt listed a bunch of foods and words he didn’t know. He was mostly tuning them out until Alora tilted her phone to bring her face back into view.

“...but you didn’t call to see what I brought on my picnic. What’s up with you and mom?”

Finally. Balor slumped in his seat as he tried to explain.

“My birthday is coming up--”

“Yep! I’ve got you a ton of stuff from here that I think you’re gonna like a lot.” Alora chuckled. “But you can’t have any of it until the end of the month, okay?”

“--but what I want most is a sibling.”

Alora paused before suddenly bursting out laughing. This just made Balor feel worse about his thoughts, and he slumped harder. Alora recovered after a few seconds.

“Booger, that’s up to your mom and pop, not you.”

“Everyone says that!” the young troll growled.

“Okay, well, why do you want a sibling so bad? You lonely? Need someone to share your toys with? Need someone to take the blame when you eat all the condiments from the freezer for the third time in a month?”

“No! I just want my mom to be happy!” Balor blurted out loudly. “She’s super sad and distant all the time, and all I really want more than anything else in the world is to just see her happy and smiling again! She’s always happy around babies! So I want her and dad to make more babies so she’s finally happy again!”

He felt like crying after that outburst and he wasn’t sure why. It also made Alora go quiet. She moved herself to lean against the tree, no longer smiling or teasing.

“Balor, you’re a kind and caring kid. You’ve really inherited your mother’s generous spirit.”

“BUT?!” Balor spat out, daring his own aunt to continue. She didn’t seem threatened at all.

“Wanting someone else to be happy for your own benefit is pretty selfish. I know you love your mom, and you want her to be happy or make her happy, but if you’re just doing it for your own peace of mind, well, that’s not a very kind thing to do.” This made Balor pause and start to wipe tears away. “Besides, it’s your birthday this month, not hers. You could save the ‘make mom happy’ wants for next month when it is her birthday, alright?”

“Yeah...” Balor groaned. “She’s just been sad a lot lately. I don’t like seeing her like that.”

“Something happen?”

“I don’t know. We don’t talk much anymore, or do anything together.”

“Have you asked her?”

“No...” Balor mumbled, hiding his face.

“That sounds like step number one to me. Ask her what’s up and what you can do. And think about what you’d like for your own birthday. Maybe ask in a passive way what she would like for her birthday, then focus on that when your celebrations are over. How does that sound?”

“I guess...” The whelp continued to mumble. Alora made a thinking face before smirking a bit.

“Is the adolescence kicking in finally?”

“...what’s that?”

“It’s the stage between childhood and adulthood. Most trolls sit through it for a good two hundred years. It makes you moody and indecisive, aggressive and not wanting to do anything people tell you.”

“Mmmmmph!” Balor grunted, making Alora chuckle.

“Sounds like you’ve got it tough. Double the reason to tell your mom about how you’re feeling. She can’t help you if she doesn’t know.”

“She treats me like a baby whenever I talk to her...”

“....have you told her that?”

“Whenever I do, she backs off and... stays backed off. Like she can’t help.”

“I think she’s just trying to give you space. You’re a growing boy, and as a Shardborn troll, you’re growing waaaaaay faster than a normal troll. You look and sound about a hundred and ten, and it’s your FIRST birthday coming up! You’re going through a lot in a very short amount of time, and it’s gonna be a couple hundred years until it all catches up. Or at least until you’re considered your average troll. None of that is your fault, and you’re Nadia’s first child. She has zero experience raising a kid, human or troll. You’re both working through your trials together, so you need to tell her how you’re feeling and what’s going on, and she needs to listen.”

Balor tried to listen, feeling more and more miserable as Alora explains, sounding pretty serious for once.

“....sometimes I wish I wasn’t Shardborn.” Balor grunts.

“Hey, I know it’s hard.” Alora sympathized. “But it’s not all bad, right? I heard you went to the zoo the other day and got to pet an elephant, ride a camel, feed some goats and chickens, watch a wolf howl..... you wouldn’t have been able to do that if you were still a diaper wearing baby, would you?”

“No.”

“Or explore your woods. Or get your own floor of a wizard’s tower. Or know magic that makes even your mom jealous. Would you rather not have any of that until two hundred years from now?”

Why did Balor hesitate? What made him wish he was just a normal troll? He did like doing all of those things, he liked who he was, but at the same time he hated feeling this way. And if being a quickly growing Shardborn troll was the price he had to pay to have all these wonderful things in life but feel so confused and horrible....

“No. I like doing those things now.” he said numbly.

“I know Elisi is visiting, and she’s raised at least fifty Shardborn trolls in her life. I bet she knows exactly how you feel and what’s going on. Why don’t you ask her, I’m sure she can help you out better than I could. And you know you can tell her anything, right?”

Elisi was one hundred thousand times more protective than Nadia was, and was terrible at keeping secrets. So was Alora, but at least the former Gumm Gumm didn’t judge like her sisters did. Balor wasn’t sure how to talk to Aunt E without feeling like a baby again.

.....wait.....

He felt an epiphany grow rapidly in his thoughts, and just barely kept his excitement at bay. He had the most AMAZING IDEA!

“Okay. I’ll do that.” he agreed to Alora, hoping to end the call soon. He had a lot of work to do. “But thanks for talking to me, Auntie A.”

“Anytime, booger.” Alora chuckled, which just made Balor frown again.

“...stop calling me booger?” 

“Anytime, shitbird.” Alora teased. “Anything else going on that you wanna chat about?”

“Nah. I need to go ask Auntie E about some stuff. Can I call you back later?”

“Sure. I’ll be out here for the rest of the day, having my cherry blossom picnic. By myself. I’ll send more videos with stuff I found I think you’ll like. Cheer up, my dude, okay?”

“Okay.” Balor nodded. “Have fun in Japan. Love you, Auntie.”

“Love you too, kiddo. Ja ne~!”

“Jaw-nay...” Balor wished awkwardly, and the call hung up. Quickly and carefully leaving his mom’s phone where he found it, he rushed off into the woods.

There was a lot to gather in a short amount of time!

-------------------------------------------

Moon up, Nadia and Elisi were just finishing dinner. Nadia was in a turkey mood and Elisi helped with some potato gratin and steamed veggies. Both were chatting about their day so far, things they wanted to catch up on, and plans for the rest of the week. Disneyland was in the cards, but it was going to get busy closer and closer to the weekend.

The conversation got a bit more hushed when it came time to talk about Balor’s birthday present.

“I’ve been hard at work on it for a week.” Nadia giggled in hushed tones. “Glasswork isn’t what it used to be. Now it’s just a matter of what to put in the tank.”

“How big is it?”

“Sixty gallons so far. And I’ve made an oval shaped one just in case. I think it’s a nice shape.”

“Fish prefer corners.” Elisi explained. “So the rectangle one will be better. Gods, it’s been ages since I last tried to raise fish. I’m sure someone at the pet store can give better advise than me.”

Nadia smiled brightly. Balor loved fish so much, so it was natural to assume his own fish tank with plenty of fish to care for would be perfect. He wouldn’t be so lonely, and maybe the pestering for baby siblings would stop for a month or so. By then, she’d be ready, maybe...

There was a thump in Balor’s room, which sounded like him falling out of bed. Again. Elisi chuckled.

“Speak of the handsome little devil.” she chuckled. “Want me to tell him dinner’s almost ready?”

“I’ll get him.” Nadia insisted, stepping away from the stove to Balor’s room. Elisi let her go to start putting turkey meat and veggies onto plates. Not even a minute goes by when the shriek rose in pitch up and down the tower. 

Elisi dropped the plate to run for it, immediately spilling food and porcelain all over the kitchen floor. She bounded up to the third floor of the tower to try and find her sister and nephew, ready to beat whatever startled or hurt them. The second she stopped in front of Nadia, she looked around frantically for the fight waiting for her. There was none.

Nadia was crumpled on the floor, with a look of horror, hyperventilating as her body commanded her to shed tears and cry. Balor was nowhere to be immediately seen. Elisi’s nerves started to freeze up. Something terrible happened and she couldn’t pinpoint what.

“Nadia?” Elisi asked in a frightened whisper. Nadia looked up to her older sister, and slowly raised herself to her knees, holding a cloth bundle in her hands. Something wriggled in it, peeping for attention. Elisi slowly came foreword, and moved the cloth away to see what Nadia was holding for dear life.

It was a baby Yateveo pup. No bigger than Nadia’s palm. Tanned in color, eyes still unopened, moving his head around and peeping for food. Some familiar horn jewelry was shuffled from the movement and clambered to the floor, with no owner to wear them. Or at least, the owner was now too young to wear them. 

Elisi was still not sure what was in front of her. Where was Balor? Who or what was Nadia holding? Before Elisi could instinctively call out for her nephew, a parchment of paper and a glass bottle caught her attention on Balor’s bed. She walked to it to investigate. The bottle was bone dry, and smelled sweet but strong. The paper had Balor’s handwriting on it.

Mom,

You’ve seemed really sad lately. But really happy when you have babies to take care of and watch over. I grew up from being a baby, so you stopped being so happy. So I changed myself back into one. I’m sorry if I scared you, but this way, you can raise me like a normal troll and I can grow as one. So we can be a normal family again, and you have a baby to take care of if dad won’t give you one.

I love you, mom. All I want is to see you happy every day again. Being a baby again is the only way I can do that. It’s all I want for my birthday.

See you again in a couple hundred years,

Balor, Son of Angor

“Balor, what the fu--” Elisi exclaimed as Nadia again shrieked in horror. Neither had any idea what to do now. Both were panicking. 

Tiny little Balor peeped louder and louder until he started to cry in despair. He was so hungry.

[headspacedad]

Writer Nonnie and dammit, ok so what can buns eat? Safe foods I mean, I'm guessing most fruits and veggies? Can they eat things like pancakes and pies is what I'm asking because the bun in this story is a BRAT but I wanna make sure bun can actually EAT those types of foods. I mean I guess as a treat? But not like a giant pancake maybe tiny pancakes? I can probably google this but I trust your words.

hey there, WN!  Rabbit questions!  Well, rabbits actually have pretty picky digestive systems.  Especially when you consider that when living with humans they have access to a lot more variety than they’d get in the wild and that variety isn’t always good for them.  Rabbits need a lot of roughage in their diets, their digestive systems are almost always active (laying your head against a rabbit tummy almost always reveals little rumbles and grumbles and glunk noises going on in there and that’s a good thing!)  If a rabbit’s digestive system stops for too long things inside of it start to harden and cause blockages and that’s a dead bun if you’re not very fast about reacting.  Recently Fizz had a hair blockage (rabbits get hair balls but unlike cats they can’t cough them up so it has to go all the way through).  She stopped pooping and eating and her mom had a very small nervous breakdown when she realized what was going on.  Much to Fizz’s disgust she ended up getting force fed CritiCare mush and water with a syringe every hour.  Blessedly, Fizz started eating after a few hours of all that liquid softening things up and things started clearing out so it wasn’t a major emergency but what goes into a bun can have a huge impact on their health and very quickly.  All that said: small amounts of fruits, more amounts of veggies, some pellets and HAY!  Lots and lots and lots of hay.  Fizz has timothy hay, oat hay, alfalfa hay and meadow hay currently (because she is spoiled).  Think of rabbits as very small horses really.  For the most part, what your ponies eat in your story your rabbit would probably eat too.  I do sometimes give Fizz a pinch of uncut oats and she has been known to steal a nibble from my saltines from time to time but for the most part, carbs are out for buns. 

That was a lot more than you asked for.  So - embedded links aren’t working I guess but here’s a list of healthy and unhealthy foods for buns (some types of avacados can be deadly to rabbits for instance)

https://petcentral.chewy.com/rabbit-food-list-what-fruits-and-vegetables-are-safe-for-rabbits/

[futuregws]

Aww I’ve thought about getting guinea pigs myself! I live in apartments so I’m not allowed to own pets but piggies are small and I figured omg they’re soft and I researched how to take care of them and they like to cuddle to! I was just over the moon. Any tips on taking care of them? Like what foods, how to clean them? Are they loud? You think I can’t get away with having one? Lol your babies are adorable🥰

So guinea pigs are very loud at least mine are one of mine sounds like an alarm when she starts making noises lol now to clean them they shouldn't take baths and if you do give them a bath it should be once every 3 months, and never put water on their heads now with the cage you have to clean it quite often bc they poop a lot so every like 3 days maybe depending on the size of the cage, with food I don't know every thing that they can or can't eat do I do recommend also searching before you give them something if they can or not eat it, but one thing I do remember very well is that they can not eat raw potatoes like EVER its really bad for them, and their diet is supposed to be all hay available to them all day and maybe a bowl of veggies for example in the morning and then you can give them some throughout the day, and then fruit you should give it to them like once or twice a week, and the treats for them shouldn't be as often, and also I know I'm talking way to much I don't even know if you're gonna read all this but something that bothers me when people do so I think I should mention don't lay the piggies on their back it's bad for them and also don't touch their belly and always pet them in the direction the fur grows, and one last thing since I never had to deal with apartments not allowing pets I'm not sure if they would allow guinea pigs but they are really small so maybe try and ask someone

[marblefeet08-blog]

Chef Summit 2018

FTC Disclaimer:  This trip was sponsored by Certified Angus Beef® Brand in conjunction with a social media campaign through Sunday Supper LLC.  All opinions are my own.

Earlier this month Alexis and I were thrilled to attend Chef Summit 2018 at the Certified Angus Beef® Brand's Culinary Center.  Chefs from all over North America came to

get hands-on butchery lessons and break down a side of beef,

see the level of dedication and care that goes into producing the Best Angus Beef, and

gain a better appreciation of under-utilized cuts to use for delicious and profitable menu items.

Here is some of the fun that David Dial (Spiced...One Dash At A Time), Cindy Kerschner (Cindy's Recipes and Writings), Alexis and I had while getting to learn side-by-side with the chefs. 

Day 1

The first day was a reception followed by a dinner prepared by the talented chefs of the Culinary Center. 

Because the event started in the early evening, Alexis and I drove up instead of flying.  This allowed us to enjoy a casual drive through the slightly mountainous Kentucky/Tennessee border, rolling horse country of Kentucky, and the bucolic countryside of Ohio.

Tara opened the event with a session about the history of the brand.  Fun Fact: The Certified Angus Beef® Brand all started because a rancher got a flavorless, tough steak at a restaurant.

The brand began as a desire to foster quality beef.  This program was built on a foundation of quality specifications formulated by a meat scientist.  To this day, quality is the key to their pull-through marketing strategy.

Waste not, want not.  The chefs use trimmings from the Meat Lab to create tasty beef sausages. The tasso is a beefy spin on a spicy Cajun ham that we have made at home, and it was my favorite of the bunch.

Melon wrapped with cured beef - the salty and sweet combo worked well together. 

Shut the front door!  Poke-style cap steak on taro chips.  The very rare cap steak was lightly coated with an array of Asian flavors, and the crisp chip brought the texture.  This was my favorite dish of the appetizers, and I'd love to serve this at an Eggfest or cooking demo.

The Culinary Center's Lead Chef, Ashley Breneman (Cutthroat Kitchen, Chopped Grill Masters Napa, and Master Chef), talks us through the variety of dishes that they created for us.

Shaved Teres Major Flatbread would be a fun shared appetizer or an entree.

Pasta made with a luscious smoked chuck roll that was straight up comfort food.

The real show stopper, for me at least, was the Osso Buco-style Beef Short Ribs. I love beef short ribs anyway, but the presentation just makes it that much better. These were fan-freaking-tastic.

After dinner, Matt Shoup and I checked out the Culinary Center's dry aging and meat curing cabinet. They are lucky we brought our small car and not our truck or this cabinet "might have disappeared".

That's the funky stuff!  There was some 55 day dry aged beef in here.

Day 2

We hit the ground running in the Meat Lab the next morning.  I've gotten to experience the Meat Lab once before for Grill Talk but we were only breaking down primals then.  This time we were breaking down a half steer.  

I don't mean that we watched someone break down a half steer.  Each team of 4 or 5 people had our own side of beef to butcher. 

Ain't no party like a Meat Lab party.

The morning session opened with The Science Behind The Sizzle™, explaining how each of the 10 science-based specifications ensures a flavorful eating experience.

I harp on the 10 Science-Based Specifications because they are the important difference between Certified Angus Beef® Brand and other Angus brands.

Then the fun really kicked in! Diana Clark, Meat Scientist, took us through breaking down a side of beef, step-by-step.  I'd be lying if I said I wasn't intimidated.  What's the best way to get over being intimidated?

To get over intimidation, you jump right in when they ask for a volunteer during the demonstration. And as fate would have it, I got to saw off the bone-in brisket.  I love brisket. 

I did that!  Can you see the brisket flat and point layered in there between the bones and fat? I have to say this gave me a better appreciation for and understanding of that glorious cut of beef.

David Dial got right in there too.

As soon as they showed us a step, we would go back and repeat (or attempt to repeat) that step on our steer.

At the lunch break, I was able to "IRL meet" Chef Gavin Pinto.  One of Chef Gavin's many roles is hosting Certified Angus Beef® Brand's Facebook Live videos like this one about smoking beef.

One of our lunch recipes was Shredded Certified Angus Beef® Chuck Roll Philly Cheesesteak with Parmesan Truffle Fries. 

I was a big fan of the chuck roll this weekend after having it in three different dishes.  It's like a cross between brisket and chuck roast. Beefy, tender, and luscious.

Asian Zing Stir Fry using Certified Angus Beef® Clod with Steamed Rice and Stir-Fry Veggies.

To move the large pieces of beef around, the Meat Lab utilizes a ceiling mounted rail system of suspended hooks.

Diana watching some of her students practicing what she demonstrated.

The class is an experience in understanding where the individual cuts come from and how its location affects the taste, tenderness, and appearance of the beef.  An example of this would be how the chuck eye and rib eye are right next to each other, so the chuck eye is close to the same palatability of the ribeye but usually at a much cheaper price.

First, look at the marbling of this skirt steak!  Second, did you know that the skirt steak is the steers diaphragm? 

Two of my teammates, Matt and JJ, fabricating smaller cuts.

Matt did the Osso Buco treatment to our beef ribs.  I can't wait to try this at home and create a recipe with it.  

After a long day in the Meat Lab, we were treated to dinner at The City Square Steakhouse.

Day 3

The third day started bright and early....well at least early, I'm not sure how bright I was...at Atterholt Farms.  This family farm owned by two brothers is a seed stock program (breeding for other ranches) with 50-80 head depending on the time of year.

This farm has 700 acres for the cattle, feed hay farming, and crops such as soybean and corn.

We learned that raising cattle to earn the Certified Angus Beef® Brand designation is no accident.  I was amazed at the planning and forethought that goes into it. The Atterholts start with artificial insemination.  Here's the quick takes of what I learned about that process:

Ranchers get a bull semen catalog that lists statistics about prospective bulls and their expected progeny differences.  This lets them select the ideal bull for meeting the 10 specifications.

Bull semen costs about $20 a vial which is good for one attempt.

Bull semen can be frozen and lasts indefinitely so it is possible to breed using semen from a champion steer that has been dead for years and years.

The Atterholt's success rate with A.I. is about 60%.  

They target the same calving date each year (during January - March) so about 285 days prior to the cow's last calving date, they attempt the A.I.

The month after A.I. attempts, any cows that go into heat (meaning A.I. didn't take) are placed with a "clean up" bull to attempt normal insemination.

Page from a bull semen catalog. It's kind of like Match.com for cattle.

The tag on the ear has 3 numbers.  The large middle number is the cow's ID# with the first number being the last digit of the year the cow was born (in this case, 2015) and the next three digits are just the order of birth, so this was the 25th calf in 2015.  The top number is the mother's ID# and the bottom is the birthdate.

Expected Progeny Differences are statistics that let the rancher know the genetic worth of a prospective bull and the probable traits of its offspring.

The calf on the left is Ferdinand.  He is a "bottle calf" meaning his mother rejected him and wouldn't care for him so the Atterholts had to bottle feed him, requiring a lot more resources and effort.  Murphy, the dog, loves Ferdinand.

This shot was taken in June....not February.  It was just a cold snap.

After the ranch, the chefs had a session on marketing while we bloggers got a tour of the facilities.

Certified Angus Beef® Brand headquarters has a wonderful set up for their photography and video productions.  The prop closet alone is a food blogger's dream.  

They have kitchens every time that you turn around.  I think they had a total of 4? This is the kitchen that they use for their FB Live videos.

I found out that the Certified Angus Beef® Brand is a great employer to work for.  They have an onsite physician, psychologist, and a lawyer for the staff to utilize for their personal needs! I was seriously impressed.

G-schedules are specifications set out by premium brands for the USDA graders to determine if the beef they are examining meets the premium brand's requirements. There are hundreds of them.  Certified Angus Beef® Brand's schedule is Schedule G-1 because they were the first such program in the country.

Me, Alexis, David, and Cindy in one of the many kitchens.

Cook-off

The last part of the event was the cook-off using the 5 teams.  We had to pick one of the cuts that we trimmed out on Day 2.

Scoring was based on taste, texture, appearance, presentation, and cost-effectiveness.  You also got bonus points for using more obscure cuts of beef.  We went with the mock tender.

We had access to farm fresh produce and anything in the pantries and freezers.

I was on a super-talented team, it was fun just getting to watch them in action and help out. Jorge, Matt, and JJ were rock stars.  I need to learn to cook with their speed and efficiency.

With 5 cook teams, you can imagine the kitchens were crazy busy.

Alexis shredded smoked chuck roll for her team's dish.

We used the mock tender for this Cuban-style tartare with a red-eye gravy aioli, crispy fried potatoes, a sous vide egg, and blue corn Johnny cakes.

I forget the description for this one but I know that it used the inside skirt steak

Smoked chuck roll ragu.  They smoked the chuck roll for 4 hours and then braised it to finish.  This was my personal favorite of throwdown recipes.

Thin sliced coulotte, blackberries, radish, fennell and Fresno chiles. 

The winning dish was Soy Braised Beef Belly Bao Buns with Pickled Cucumbers and Onions.

Here is the costing sheet for our dish.  You can see how using these lesser known cuts really boosts the profitability of a menu item.  Use beef tenderloin instead and you have a much different bottom line.

Before we knew it, the Chef Summit was over and it was time to bid the Culinary Center farewell.

Source: http://www.nibblemethis.com/2018/06/chef-summit-2018.html

[rainhorn6-blog]

Greek Dip with Hummus and Tzatziki

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This Greek dip has so much flavor, with a layer of smooth, savory hummus, a layer of cool, herby tzatziki, and toppings like feta cheese, chopped fresh cucumbers, sweet tomatoes, and briney capers and olives.

This post is sponsored by Stonyfield. All opinions are my own.

If you’ve had hummus—and I’m guessing you have—you know that it’s a chickpea purée with savory, slightly nutty flavor. Here I’ve paired it with Mediterranean staples like yogurt (tzatziki), feta, and fresh herbs to make one fragrant and flavorful Greek dip.

The rich hummus layer is balanced and brightened by the zippy yogurt tzatziki layer. If you’re not familiar with it, tzatziki is a mix of yogurt, grated cucumber, fresh mint, dill (optional), and garlic. It’s fragrant and refreshing and happens to be an excellent match for the toppings I use in this Greek dip: creamy crumbled feta cheese, chopped cucumber and sweet grape tomatoes for freshness, and briney capers and olives.

What Kind of Yogurt To Use for Tzatziki

Since the yogurt is the base of tzatziki, it matters which kind you use. You want a thick and creamy Greek yogurt with a smooth, mild tang. That signature tang is part of what makes Greek yogurt taste brighter and fresher than other kinds of yogurt (it’s also much thicker than traditional yogurt since it’s strained), and I really enjoy it, but sometimes nonfat Greek yogurt, specifically, is a little too tangy—so tangy that it flat-out overpowers other flavors and yogurt mix-ins. But not Stonyfield nonfat Greek yogurt. Stonyfield’s nonfat Greek yogurt is creamy and perfectly balanced, rich and refreshing without any sort of dominating tartness. When I first tried it, I went back to the fridge to check the container, thinking I had gotten whole milk yogurt by mistake—that’s how rich and creamy it is.

“Organic” Makes a Difference

Last month I took a three-day trip up to Vermont with Stonyfield—the brand whose yogurt I bought for the first time thirteen years ago, just after I had lost 135 pounds and started caring about what kinds of food I was putting into my body. And before I left for the trip, my best friend asked me if I was planning to tell the Stonyfield team that I was their number one consumer in 2006 and 2007 (and beyond, but we lived together in those years so she saw firsthand how obsessed I was with their yogurt). I laughed at the time she asked, but then yes of course I told them.

Truth is, there are three things I’ve always liked about Stonyfield’s yogurt: the taste, the simplicity of ingredients, and the fact that all of their yogurt is organic. Those first two are easy and understandable, but the third—the organic piece—is something that I didn’t know as much about as I thought I did, until I got the chance to explore the organic dairy farms that produce the milk Stonyfield uses to make their yogurts. Like a lot of us I’m sure, my concept of “organic” was more of a list of things that organic foods DON’T have.

NO toxic persistent pesticides NO synthetic fertilizers NO GMOs NO artificial growth hormones or antibiotics in the animals NO artificial colors NO artificial flavors NO artificial preservatives

There’s a lot more to it. During my time in Vermont, I visited two dairy farms: Wonder Why Farm and Molly Brook Farm—both of which are certified organic. You might have heard by now that when it comes to food, the word “Natural” has no regulated definition. “Organic,” on the other hand, is defined and regulated by the USDA—and that certification means a lot. From the land on which an organic product is grown to the producers growing it, from the post-harvest facilities preparing the product to the processing and handling facilities transforming the product, each step must be certified to federal organic standards. Once an operation is certified, organic producers and handlers undergo annual reviews and inspections.

Organic Milk from Organic Cows All certified organic dairy products come from cows that are pasture-raised. The organic milk in all of Stonyfield’s products comes from family farms with an average herd size of 75-90 cows.

The organic standard requires that all dairy cows get 30% of their Dry Matter Intake from pasture and actively graze at least 120 days a year. The farmers feed their livestock only organic feed, hay, or pasture and maintain conditions to accommodate the health and natural behavior of the animal. The animal welfare is the piece of the organic label that mattered most to me. I loved that visiting these farms allowed me to see these cows being treated well and hearing from the farmers that, as long as they come in to be milked regularly, the cows are free to pasture as much they like. (Bonus: when cows are actively grazing on pasture, their milk contains 62% higher levels of omega-3 fatty acids than conventional milk.)

Organic Farming and the Environment

Organic agriculture is based on practices that not only protect environmental health, but also strive to improve it. Organic farmers enrich soil and control pests with crop rotation, cover crops, beneficial insects, and compost. By prohibiting the use of petroleum-based fertilizers and absorbing carbon dioxide from the air, organic agriculture helps to reduce our carbon footprint and combat climate change.

My Takeaway

Stonyfield has integrity, a kind of integrity you hear about all the time from businesses and brands, but don’t often see put into practice. It’s clearer to me now than ever that they really do think about the impact of everything they do—from the care they provide to the farmer families and their cows to the ingredients in their yogurt, the packaging it’s in, and how it gets to our grocery stores. I can’t applaud that enough. They make me feel good about the products I’m choosing—especially the yogurt I’m giving to James (he’s a major fan of the YoBaby Veggie purple carrot flavor)—and I like knowing that when I buy their products, I’m in some incredibly small way supporting a greater wellness for all of us.

Print

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This Greek dip has so much flavor, with a layer of smooth, savory hummus, a layer of cool, herby tzatziki, and toppings like feta cheese, chopped fresh cucumbers, sweet tomatoes, and briney capers and olives.

Author: Andie Mitchell

Prep Time: 40 minutes

Total Time: 40 minutes

Yield: Serves 10 1x

Category: Appetizers

Cuisine: Greek

Scale 1x2x3x

Ingredients

For the Tzatziki: ½ medium cucumber, peeled, halved lengthwise, and seeded 1 cup Stonyfield plain nonfat Greek yogurt 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil 1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh mint leaves 1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh dill 1 small garlic clove, very finely minced Pinch salt Pinch freshly ground black pepper

Hummus and Toppings: 1 (10-ounce) container prepared hummus ½ medium cucumber, peeled and chopped ⅔ cup Grape tomatoes, quartered 2 heaping tablespoons capers (from a jar of capers in water) ½ cup kalamata olives, pitted and chopped 2 ounces feta cheese, crumbled (1/2 cup)

Instructions

Using the large holes on a box grater, grate the cucumber. Wrap the grated cucumber in paper towel and squeeze gently to remove excess moisture.

In a medium bowl, mix the grated cucumber, yogurt, olive oil, mint, dill, garlic, salt, and pepper. Cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes. (The tzatziki can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 2 days.)

Spread the hummus on the bottom of a large shallow bowl, layer the tzatziki over the hummus, and sprinkle the toppings over the tzatziki: chopped cucumber and tomatoes, capers, olives, and crumbled feta cheese. Serve with pita bread (cut into triangles) or pita chips.

Nutrition

Serving Size: 1/3 cup

Calories: 134

Sugar: 4g

Sodium: 431mg

Fat: 10g

Saturated Fat: 2g

Carbohydrates: 9g

Fiber: 1g

Protein: 5g

Cholesterol: 6mg

Did you make this recipe?

Tag @andiemmitchell on Instagram and hashtag it #andiemitchell

Source: https://www.andiemitchell.com/greek-dip/

[moleasia4-blog]

Chef Summit 2018

FTC Disclaimer:  This trip was sponsored by Certified Angus Beef® Brand in conjunction with a social media campaign through Sunday Supper LLC.  All opinions are my own.

Earlier this month Alexis and I were thrilled to attend Chef Summit 2018 at the Certified Angus Beef® Brand's Culinary Center.  Chefs from all over North America came to

get hands-on butchery lessons and break down a side of beef,

see the level of dedication and care that goes into producing the Best Angus Beef, and

gain a better appreciation of under-utilized cuts to use for delicious and profitable menu items.

Here is some of the fun that David Dial (Spiced...One Dash At A Time), Cindy Kerschner (Cindy's Recipes and Writings), Alexis and I had while getting to learn side-by-side with the chefs. 

Day 1

The first day was a reception followed by a dinner prepared by the talented chefs of the Culinary Center. 

Because the event started in the early evening, Alexis and I drove up instead of flying.  This allowed us to enjoy a casual drive through the slightly mountainous Kentucky/Tennessee border, rolling horse country of Kentucky, and the bucolic countryside of Ohio.

Tara opened the event with a session about the history of the brand.  Fun Fact: The Certified Angus Beef® Brand all started because a rancher got a flavorless, tough steak at a restaurant.

The brand began as a desire to foster quality beef.  This program was built on a foundation of quality specifications formulated by a meat scientist.  To this day, quality is the key to their pull-through marketing strategy.

Waste not, want not.  The chefs use trimmings from the Meat Lab to create tasty beef sausages. The tasso is a beefy spin on a spicy Cajun ham that we have made at home, and it was my favorite of the bunch.

Melon wrapped with cured beef - the salty and sweet combo worked well together. 

Shut the front door!  Poke-style cap steak on taro chips.  The very rare cap steak was lightly coated with an array of Asian flavors, and the crisp chip brought the texture.  This was my favorite dish of the appetizers, and I'd love to serve this at an Eggfest or cooking demo.

The Culinary Center's Lead Chef, Ashley Breneman (Cutthroat Kitchen, Chopped Grill Masters Napa, and Master Chef), talks us through the variety of dishes that they created for us.

Shaved Teres Major Flatbread would be a fun shared appetizer or an entree.

Pasta made with a luscious smoked chuck roll that was straight up comfort food.

The real show stopper, for me at least, was the Osso Buco-style Beef Short Ribs. I love beef short ribs anyway, but the presentation just makes it that much better. These were fan-freaking-tastic.

After dinner, Matt Shoup and I checked out the Culinary Center's dry aging and meat curing cabinet. They are lucky we brought our small car and not our truck or this cabinet "might have disappeared".

That's the funky stuff!  There was some 55 day dry aged beef in here.

Day 2

We hit the ground running in the Meat Lab the next morning.  I've gotten to experience the Meat Lab once before for Grill Talk but we were only breaking down primals then.  This time we were breaking down a half steer.  

I don't mean that we watched someone break down a half steer.  Each team of 4 or 5 people had our own side of beef to butcher. 

Ain't no party like a Meat Lab party.

The morning session opened with The Science Behind The Sizzle™, explaining how each of the 10 science-based specifications ensures a flavorful eating experience.

I harp on the 10 Science-Based Specifications because they are the important difference between Certified Angus Beef® Brand and other Angus brands.

Then the fun really kicked in! Diana Clark, Meat Scientist, took us through breaking down a side of beef, step-by-step.  I'd be lying if I said I wasn't intimidated.  What's the best way to get over being intimidated?

To get over intimidation, you jump right in when they ask for a volunteer during the demonstration. And as fate would have it, I got to saw off the bone-in brisket.  I love brisket. 

I did that!  Can you see the brisket flat and point layered in there between the bones and fat? I have to say this gave me a better appreciation for and understanding of that glorious cut of beef.

David Dial got right in there too.

As soon as they showed us a step, we would go back and repeat (or attempt to repeat) that step on our steer.

At the lunch break, I was able to "IRL meet" Chef Gavin Pinto.  One of Chef Gavin's many roles is hosting Certified Angus Beef® Brand's Facebook Live videos like this one about smoking beef.

One of our lunch recipes was Shredded Certified Angus Beef® Chuck Roll Philly Cheesesteak with Parmesan Truffle Fries. 

I was a big fan of the chuck roll this weekend after having it in three different dishes.  It's like a cross between brisket and chuck roast. Beefy, tender, and luscious.

Asian Zing Stir Fry using Certified Angus Beef® Clod with Steamed Rice and Stir-Fry Veggies.

To move the large pieces of beef around, the Meat Lab utilizes a ceiling mounted rail system of suspended hooks.

Diana watching some of her students practicing what she demonstrated.

The class is an experience in understanding where the individual cuts come from and how its location affects the taste, tenderness, and appearance of the beef.  An example of this would be how the chuck eye and rib eye are right next to each other, so the chuck eye is close to the same palatability of the ribeye but usually at a much cheaper price.

First, look at the marbling of this skirt steak!  Second, did you know that the skirt steak is the steers diaphragm? 

Two of my teammates, Matt and JJ, fabricating smaller cuts.

Matt did the Osso Buco treatment to our beef ribs.  I can't wait to try this at home and create a recipe with it.  

After a long day in the Meat Lab, we were treated to dinner at The City Square Steakhouse.

Day 3

The third day started bright and early....well at least early, I'm not sure how bright I was...at Atterholt Farms.  This family farm owned by two brothers is a seed stock program (breeding for other ranches) with 50-80 head depending on the time of year.

This farm has 700 acres for the cattle, feed hay farming, and crops such as soybean and corn.

We learned that raising cattle to earn the Certified Angus Beef® Brand designation is no accident.  I was amazed at the planning and forethought that goes into it. The Atterholts start with artificial insemination.  Here's the quick takes of what I learned about that process:

Ranchers get a bull semen catalog that lists statistics about prospective bulls and their expected progeny differences.  This lets them select the ideal bull for meeting the 10 specifications.

Bull semen costs about $20 a vial which is good for one attempt.

Bull semen can be frozen and lasts indefinitely so it is possible to breed using semen from a champion steer that has been dead for years and years.

The Atterholt's success rate with A.I. is about 60%.  

They target the same calving date each year (during January - March) so about 285 days prior to the cow's last calving date, they attempt the A.I.

The month after A.I. attempts, any cows that go into heat (meaning A.I. didn't take) are placed with a "clean up" bull to attempt normal insemination.

Page from a bull semen catalog. It's kind of like Match.com for cattle.

The tag on the ear has 3 numbers.  The large middle number is the cow's ID# with the first number being the last digit of the year the cow was born (in this case, 2015) and the next three digits are just the order of birth, so this was the 25th calf in 2015.  The top number is the mother's ID# and the bottom is the birthdate.

Expected Progeny Differences are statistics that let the rancher know the genetic worth of a prospective bull and the probable traits of its offspring.

The calf on the left is Ferdinand.  He is a "bottle calf" meaning his mother rejected him and wouldn't care for him so the Atterholts had to bottle feed him, requiring a lot more resources and effort.  Murphy, the dog, loves Ferdinand.

This shot was taken in June....not February.  It was just a cold snap.

After the ranch, the chefs had a session on marketing while we bloggers got a tour of the facilities.

Certified Angus Beef® Brand headquarters has a wonderful set up for their photography and video productions.  The prop closet alone is a food blogger's dream.  

They have kitchens every time that you turn around.  I think they had a total of 4? This is the kitchen that they use for their FB Live videos.

I found out that the Certified Angus Beef® Brand is a great employer to work for.  They have an onsite physician, psychologist, and a lawyer for the staff to utilize for their personal needs! I was seriously impressed.

G-schedules are specifications set out by premium brands for the USDA graders to determine if the beef they are examining meets the premium brand's requirements. There are hundreds of them.  Certified Angus Beef® Brand's schedule is Schedule G-1 because they were the first such program in the country.

Me, Alexis, David, and Cindy in one of the many kitchens.

Cook-off

The last part of the event was the cook-off using the 5 teams.  We had to pick one of the cuts that we trimmed out on Day 2.

Scoring was based on taste, texture, appearance, presentation, and cost-effectiveness.  You also got bonus points for using more obscure cuts of beef.  We went with the mock tender.

We had access to farm fresh produce and anything in the pantries and freezers.

I was on a super-talented team, it was fun just getting to watch them in action and help out. Jorge, Matt, and JJ were rock stars.  I need to learn to cook with their speed and efficiency.

With 5 cook teams, you can imagine the kitchens were crazy busy.

Alexis shredded smoked chuck roll for her team's dish.

We used the mock tender for this Cuban-style tartare with a red-eye gravy aioli, crispy fried potatoes, a sous vide egg, and blue corn Johnny cakes.

I forget the description for this one but I know that it used the inside skirt steak

Smoked chuck roll ragu.  They smoked the chuck roll for 4 hours and then braised it to finish.  This was my personal favorite of throwdown recipes.

Thin sliced coulotte, blackberries, radish, fennell and Fresno chiles. 

The winning dish was Soy Braised Beef Belly Bao Buns with Pickled Cucumbers and Onions.

Here is the costing sheet for our dish.  You can see how using these lesser known cuts really boosts the profitability of a menu item.  Use beef tenderloin instead and you have a much different bottom line.

Before we knew it, the Chef Summit was over and it was time to bid the Culinary Center farewell.

Source: http://www.nibblemethis.com/2018/06/chef-summit-2018.html

[bullmiddle5-blog]

Chef Summit 2018

FTC Disclaimer:  This trip was sponsored by Certified Angus Beef® Brand in conjunction with a social media campaign through Sunday Supper LLC.  All opinions are my own.

Earlier this month Alexis and I were thrilled to attend Chef Summit 2018 at the Certified Angus Beef® Brand's Culinary Center.  Chefs from all over North America came to

get hands-on butchery lessons and break down a side of beef,

see the level of dedication and care that goes into producing the Best Angus Beef, and

gain a better appreciation of under-utilized cuts to use for delicious and profitable menu items.

Here is some of the fun that David Dial (Spiced...One Dash At A Time), Cindy Kerschner (Cindy's Recipes and Writings), Alexis and I had while getting to learn side-by-side with the chefs. 

Day 1

The first day was a reception followed by a dinner prepared by the talented chefs of the Culinary Center. 

Because the event started in the early evening, Alexis and I drove up instead of flying.  This allowed us to enjoy a casual drive through the slightly mountainous Kentucky/Tennessee border, rolling horse country of Kentucky, and the bucolic countryside of Ohio.

Tara opened the event with a session about the history of the brand.  Fun Fact: The Certified Angus Beef® Brand all started because a rancher got a flavorless, tough steak at a restaurant.

The brand began as a desire to foster quality beef.  This program was built on a foundation of quality specifications formulated by a meat scientist.  To this day, quality is the key to their pull-through marketing strategy.

Waste not, want not.  The chefs use trimmings from the Meat Lab to create tasty beef sausages. The tasso is a beefy spin on a spicy Cajun ham that we have made at home, and it was my favorite of the bunch.

Melon wrapped with cured beef - the salty and sweet combo worked well together. 

Shut the front door!  Poke-style cap steak on taro chips.  The very rare cap steak was lightly coated with an array of Asian flavors, and the crisp chip brought the texture.  This was my favorite dish of the appetizers, and I'd love to serve this at an Eggfest or cooking demo.

The Culinary Center's Lead Chef, Ashley Breneman (Cutthroat Kitchen, Chopped Grill Masters Napa, and Master Chef), talks us through the variety of dishes that they created for us.

Shaved Teres Major Flatbread would be a fun shared appetizer or an entree.

Pasta made with a luscious smoked chuck roll that was straight up comfort food.

The real show stopper, for me at least, was the Osso Buco-style Beef Short Ribs. I love beef short ribs anyway, but the presentation just makes it that much better. These were fan-freaking-tastic.

After dinner, Matt Shoup and I checked out the Culinary Center's dry aging and meat curing cabinet. They are lucky we brought our small car and not our truck or this cabinet "might have disappeared".

That's the funky stuff!  There was some 55 day dry aged beef in here.

Day 2

We hit the ground running in the Meat Lab the next morning.  I've gotten to experience the Meat Lab once before for Grill Talk but we were only breaking down primals then.  This time we were breaking down a half steer.  

I don't mean that we watched someone break down a half steer.  Each team of 4 or 5 people had our own side of beef to butcher. 

Ain't no party like a Meat Lab party.

The morning session opened with The Science Behind The Sizzle™, explaining how each of the 10 science-based specifications ensures a flavorful eating experience.

I harp on the 10 Science-Based Specifications because they are the important difference between Certified Angus Beef® Brand and other Angus brands.

Then the fun really kicked in! Diana Clark, Meat Scientist, took us through breaking down a side of beef, step-by-step.  I'd be lying if I said I wasn't intimidated.  What's the best way to get over being intimidated?

To get over intimidation, you jump right in when they ask for a volunteer during the demonstration. And as fate would have it, I got to saw off the bone-in brisket.  I love brisket. 

I did that!  Can you see the brisket flat and point layered in there between the bones and fat? I have to say this gave me a better appreciation for and understanding of that glorious cut of beef.

David Dial got right in there too.

As soon as they showed us a step, we would go back and repeat (or attempt to repeat) that step on our steer.

At the lunch break, I was able to "IRL meet" Chef Gavin Pinto.  One of Chef Gavin's many roles is hosting Certified Angus Beef® Brand's Facebook Live videos like this one about smoking beef.

One of our lunch recipes was Shredded Certified Angus Beef® Chuck Roll Philly Cheesesteak with Parmesan Truffle Fries. 

I was a big fan of the chuck roll this weekend after having it in three different dishes.  It's like a cross between brisket and chuck roast. Beefy, tender, and luscious.

Asian Zing Stir Fry using Certified Angus Beef® Clod with Steamed Rice and Stir-Fry Veggies.

To move the large pieces of beef around, the Meat Lab utilizes a ceiling mounted rail system of suspended hooks.

Diana watching some of her students practicing what she demonstrated.

The class is an experience in understanding where the individual cuts come from and how its location affects the taste, tenderness, and appearance of the beef.  An example of this would be how the chuck eye and rib eye are right next to each other, so the chuck eye is close to the same palatability of the ribeye but usually at a much cheaper price.

First, look at the marbling of this skirt steak!  Second, did you know that the skirt steak is the steers diaphragm? 

Two of my teammates, Matt and JJ, fabricating smaller cuts.

Matt did the Osso Buco treatment to our beef ribs.  I can't wait to try this at home and create a recipe with it.  

After a long day in the Meat Lab, we were treated to dinner at The City Square Steakhouse.

Day 3

The third day started bright and early....well at least early, I'm not sure how bright I was...at Atterholt Farms.  This family farm owned by two brothers is a seed stock program (breeding for other ranches) with 50-80 head depending on the time of year.

This farm has 700 acres for the cattle, feed hay farming, and crops such as soybean and corn.

We learned that raising cattle to earn the Certified Angus Beef® Brand designation is no accident.  I was amazed at the planning and forethought that goes into it. The Atterholts start with artificial insemination.  Here's the quick takes of what I learned about that process:

Ranchers get a bull semen catalog that lists statistics about prospective bulls and their expected progeny differences.  This lets them select the ideal bull for meeting the 10 specifications.

Bull semen costs about $20 a vial which is good for one attempt.

Bull semen can be frozen and lasts indefinitely so it is possible to breed using semen from a champion steer that has been dead for years and years.

The Atterholt's success rate with A.I. is about 60%.  

They target the same calving date each year (during January - March) so about 285 days prior to the cow's last calving date, they attempt the A.I.

The month after A.I. attempts, any cows that go into heat (meaning A.I. didn't take) are placed with a "clean up" bull to attempt normal insemination.

Page from a bull semen catalog. It's kind of like Match.com for cattle.

The tag on the ear has 3 numbers.  The large middle number is the cow's ID# with the first number being the last digit of the year the cow was born (in this case, 2015) and the next three digits are just the order of birth, so this was the 25th calf in 2015.  The top number is the mother's ID# and the bottom is the birthdate.

Expected Progeny Differences are statistics that let the rancher know the genetic worth of a prospective bull and the probable traits of its offspring.

The calf on the left is Ferdinand.  He is a "bottle calf" meaning his mother rejected him and wouldn't care for him so the Atterholts had to bottle feed him, requiring a lot more resources and effort.  Murphy, the dog, loves Ferdinand.

This shot was taken in June....not February.  It was just a cold snap.

After the ranch, the chefs had a session on marketing while we bloggers got a tour of the facilities.

Certified Angus Beef® Brand headquarters has a wonderful set up for their photography and video productions.  The prop closet alone is a food blogger's dream.  

They have kitchens every time that you turn around.  I think they had a total of 4? This is the kitchen that they use for their FB Live videos.

I found out that the Certified Angus Beef® Brand is a great employer to work for.  They have an onsite physician, psychologist, and a lawyer for the staff to utilize for their personal needs! I was seriously impressed.

G-schedules are specifications set out by premium brands for the USDA graders to determine if the beef they are examining meets the premium brand's requirements. There are hundreds of them.  Certified Angus Beef® Brand's schedule is Schedule G-1 because they were the first such program in the country.

Me, Alexis, David, and Cindy in one of the many kitchens.

Cook-off

The last part of the event was the cook-off using the 5 teams.  We had to pick one of the cuts that we trimmed out on Day 2.

Scoring was based on taste, texture, appearance, presentation, and cost-effectiveness.  You also got bonus points for using more obscure cuts of beef.  We went with the mock tender.

We had access to farm fresh produce and anything in the pantries and freezers.

I was on a super-talented team, it was fun just getting to watch them in action and help out. Jorge, Matt, and JJ were rock stars.  I need to learn to cook with their speed and efficiency.

With 5 cook teams, you can imagine the kitchens were crazy busy.

Alexis shredded smoked chuck roll for her team's dish.

We used the mock tender for this Cuban-style tartare with a red-eye gravy aioli, crispy fried potatoes, a sous vide egg, and blue corn Johnny cakes.

I forget the description for this one but I know that it used the inside skirt steak

Smoked chuck roll ragu.  They smoked the chuck roll for 4 hours and then braised it to finish.  This was my personal favorite of throwdown recipes.

Thin sliced coulotte, blackberries, radish, fennell and Fresno chiles. 

The winning dish was Soy Braised Beef Belly Bao Buns with Pickled Cucumbers and Onions.

Here is the costing sheet for our dish.  You can see how using these lesser known cuts really boosts the profitability of a menu item.  Use beef tenderloin instead and you have a much different bottom line.

Before we knew it, the Chef Summit was over and it was time to bid the Culinary Center farewell.

Source: http://www.nibblemethis.com/2018/06/chef-summit-2018.html

[electoons]

im worried about ellie she's breathing loud...like i'm sitting about 10 feet away and can hear her, and its kind of slow, and i can't tell if it sounds like wheezing....like a very faint wheeze? she seems to be eating and drinking as far as i can tell, at least she eats treats and veggies but idk if she's eating pellets or hay... i haven't rly been tracking her drinking though. she lays around a lot but she's always done that. and when i pick her up she starts like snorting and wheezing :( im scared but i also have a tendency to panic and blow things out of proportion bc of my anxiety but the breathing is worrying me and idk if this warrants a trip to the vet, or would i just be wasting money?? i took nacho a couple of weeks ago bc he was having sneezing fits and they said he was fine he probably just was getting dust in his nose since they had just turned the heat on in the building. so i paid $60 for them to tell me to dust more often basically. idk like i know its better to err on the side of caution but :( im not exactly rolling in cash. so if it gets worse im fucked bc emergency vets are stupid expensive. and its not a matter of "if you cant afford a pet don't get a pet" bc like? i can afford to feed them and such but health problems pop up and no one expects that to happen you know?

hey bunny owners i need help please can anyone help its a health problem

[awellboiledicicle]

buzzlam replied to your post “buzzlam replied to your post “me: [enjoying puppy bowl] [a vegan...”

Just saying that if it is economically and medically viable, a vegan/plant based diet can reduce animal suffering, the effects of climate change and in some scenarios can aid human health. Being angered about an inappropriate diet for a dog would be hypocritical if not angered by the inadequacy of a primarily grain diet for many 'farmed' animals; it's something to look into if you care about animals- and if you are able to obviously aha ✌️��

ok because im in this kinda mood.

Veganism, in terms of white people tapdancing around doing it, is not good for jack and shit. 

People in southern american are starving to death because white people are going “QUINOA NOW” and I know damn well how immegrant and migrant workers are treated in this and other countries to grow your organic veggies.

Animals being raised for slaughter are treated really fucking well because poorly treated animals do not grow well. Starved animals don’t grow, not milked cows are usually in pain after a day or so, uncared for animals that have been domesticated don’t do too fucking well on their own. Beaten or neglected animals don’t sell well because their meat and product reflects it. I know because my family raised beef cows, we ran a carving & meat smoking shop, and there’s enough dairy farmers up here that I am personal friends with one that took me on a fucking tour.  Dairy farms and others often have working dogs-- which they feed kibble with meat in it. The difference between feeding their dogs and their other animals? Their other animals are made, via their fucking biological makeup, to eat grain as part of their diet. Because grain is a grass. That’s all it is, just the seeds of it. No one is feeding their damn herds only grain, or only one grain and walking away. That would be like pissing in their wallet. They have formulated feeds to make sure their animals get a good nutritional meal, sometimes its grain and meal mix, sometimes it’s hay, sometimes there’s a mix along with grazing time. 

You know who’s a fucking hypocrite in this lil informal info to info pissing match you’ve jumped into? You, buddy my pal. Because i’m suspecting just a lil touch of “i don’t care about the animals i just want to point out i’m better than you because I don’t eat meat” here. Just a smidge. Just like Mt. Everest is a pebble, like that. Because let me tell you--- Being pissed that some woman is looking at her love of animals and thinking her dietary/moral bent should apply to a dog, and knowing it’s stupid and knowing she probably has no real fucking clue because sometimes Foster people have the basic knowledge enough to get a pass and the shelters are packed, along with hoping to high heaven someone explains it to her, all that? That can exist along with knowing damn well what is humane treatment of livestock and inhumane treatment. I am 100% against inhumane keeping of livestock, because i’ve seen it and i’ve gone toe to toe with someone over treatment of horses and cattle and physically blocked a woman from shooting my then 7 year old little brother because he was petting a donkey we were trying to rescue. Because the woman thought he was going to steal the donkey, even though we then rescued him and then shelled out money for the next 11 years because she’d broken his legs over and over again and his feet still aren’t right. I’ve raised rescued baby donkeys that fuckers have starved till they looked spindly and ‘cute’ and we had to get them off the side the road because their buyers realized they were sick. I’ve sat in the animal shelter spoon feeding animals because abusive owners kicked their faces in and this is the only way they can eat and drink. 

So I fucking dare you to say i don’t care about animals and easing their suffering.  Farm animals have a whole list of problems, i’ll grant that-- illness because not a fucking buyer in this country wants them vaccinated against preventable diseases, every time an antibiotic comes out that could make them safer or healthier the whole fucking world loses their minds no matter how safe the thing is, things like that. 

I care about animals. I care about animals more than I care about a lot of my own fucking family, if i’m being 100% honest, and not a fucking person on this goddamn earth will tell me that because I don’t live on vegan shit-- or for that matter, people who i know damn well care their fucking heart out about humans and animals-- don’t care. Because i’ll be damned before you can look me in the eyes and tell me that the people who slave away making sure white people running around playing the morality olympics are less important than animals we’re already working on ensuring the welfare of.

if y’all don’t want to work through this long ass post, i will sum up.

Vegans don’t own the monopoly on caring for animals, in fact the giant pull by white vegans increases the suffering economically and personally on thousands of people worldwide, and also playing That Vegan Recruiter is never a welcome thing and just makes you sound annoying.  Good day.