Well, the storm sure didn’t pull its punches.
As the wind rolled in, I stood on the front porch and could feel the temperature drop by the second—like watching the air change its mind in real time. Then came the chaos: record-breaking winds, buckets of rain dumped in minutes, trees bending in ways they shouldn’t, and the entire property holding its breath.
We’re incredibly grateful to report that all our two- and four-legged residents are safe… but the land, the barn, and a good bit of fencing and structures? Not so lucky. The power went out, and the damage was too much to assess until the rain stopped and the sun peeked out the next day.
🌳 That next day? It was rough.
We started to see just how bad things really were. And in the middle of it all, one of our infamous orange “porch piranhas”—Fluffy Butt (named as a kitten when he looked like a raging orange cotton ball)—had injured his back leg in the storm. Our fantastic vet team offered to squeeze him in, but true to form, Fluffy Butt took off like a streak of marmalade lightning the moment the carrier came out.
The rest of the day was a blur of setting (and buying more) live traps, hauling dry hay, rescuing a mud-soaked silkie, and—don’t ask—getting lost in my own woods. Again.
📡 Power came back on around noon… but the internet? Still MIA.
Oh—and apparently, we weren’t the only ones who noticed the damage. Photos of our battered structures and twisted trees were picked up and featured in local news coverage. So now the Drunken Duck is officially storm-famous. Not exactly the press we hoped for, but we’ll take it.
Fast forward to 3 a.m. Friday—I was up worrying, and thankfully, bam—we trapped the elusive FB. Our vet got him in that same day, cleaned the wound (nothing crushed!), started antibiotics, and while he was under… she removed the ol’ troublepuffs (surprise! one was cryptorchid).
🥴 Meanwhile, back at the farm:
- A silkie was moved into the sick ward with the worst case of mites and lice I’ve ever seen (thank you, mud, for canceling dust baths).
- Dolly the goat stopped eating from the heat, and Starlord the donkey used the opportunity to orchestrate a full-on barnyard jailbreak.
- FB escaped his crate AGAIN Saturday, despite stitches and a drainage tube. Hours of searching later, we found him… hiding behind the barn counter looking like he’d lost a fight with a dust devil. (He hadn’t even left the building.)
- Sunday came with tube feeding a chicken, coaxing Dolly to nibble hay, tending Fluffy Butt’s wounds, and—just as I was about to wash clothes for Monday—the power went out again. No fans. No water.
🌞 Monday & Tuesday brought some normalcy. Site cleanup. Vet follow-ups (FB pulled out his drainage tube en route, naturally). Dolly and the silkie are still under care.
🧂Wednesday, I was up at 5 a.m. to mix spices for this upcoming weekend’s market—no water. No internet. No coffee. Vondell came to the rescue, as always, but the day started rough and stayed spicy (but not in the fun seasoning way).
🌡 As if all that weren’t enough, we’re under a heat advisory all week and tonight we have ANOTHER thunderstorm warning and flood advisory, just to keep things interesting.
💸 The Damage (So Far):
We’re looking at somewhere between $15,200–$40,100 in storm-related costs:
| Task | Low Estimate | High Estimate |
|---|---|---|
| Tree Cutting/Removal | $900 | $3,000 |
| Excavator Rental | $1,100 | $2,100 |
| Barn Roof Replacement | $4,000 | $18,000 |
| New Structures | $2,000 | $2,000 |
| Debris & Trash Removal | $1,200 | $3,000 |
| Barn Siding | $6,000 | $12,000 |
| Total | $15,200 | $40,100 |
If you made it to the end of this wild farm saga and are asking “How can I help?”—thank you. Here are a few ways:
🛍 Visit Us at Upcoming Markets – Check our calendar! That’s how we support the farm, the sanctuary, and all the animals in our care.
🧄 Shop Online – We’ve got herbs, spices, pun-filled gifts, and farm-fabulous merch.
📬 Join Our Brand-New Mailing List! – Get updates on animal antics, storm recovery, markets, and more.
📢 Share Our Posts & Products – Every share helps us grow.
💛 Donate Directly – We’re waiting on our 501(c)(3) for the sanctuary (fingers crossed for approval soon), so donations aren’t tax deductible yet, but they’ll go straight toward animal care, tree removal, and rebuilding.
Thank you for being part of our wonderfully messy, often muddy, beautifully stubborn farm family.
We’ll keep you posted on Fluffy Butt, Dolly, the silkie, and the rest of the wild weather fallout.
—With love, exhaustion, and a little dirt under our nails,
🐓 The Drunken Duck Farm Crew
Gallery of Storm Damage
