baa lambs

All the lambs seemed to be born late in the season this year. Being on the look out for pet lambs to fatten up I was having no luck at all. Until a few weeks ago a friends mother offered me four boy lambs. We went straight away for collection. they are perfect. Texil breed, good for meat and the fleece will be adequate for textile work. They have settled in quite well. Although a concoction was administered for suspected bloat and they have been dagged to ward of maggot infection. Sheep do seam to need a lot of looking after.

and there is more

The atrocious weather this year has taken its toll on all activities. I even blame it for the lack of fertility! One of our geese began laying at the end of february right on queue. By the look of her first egg it wasn't the easiest of lay. I dutifully collected her first eggs, 1 laid every other day, until we had enough for the incubator and even put a couple under a clucky hen! Unfortunately none of the incubated goose eggs hatched.

Who was joined by another clucky hen and between them gathered 24 hens eggs to sit on along with the 2 goose eggs. Alas none of the eggs hatched and on one of the only hot days we had, a cunning fox in broad daylight, took most of my welsummer hens and the ginger chick. A friend gave us some eggs from a black minorca to incubate. I had some eggs from the ginger chick so the went in the incubator at the same time with some araucana eggs. From 24 eggs only 7 eggs hatched. 1 black minorca, 3 araucana's and the three from the ginger chick. She had run with 3 cocks but her preference must have been the barnvelder. her three postumous chicks are the strangest colours.

Its going to be interesting to see what colour eggs they lay.
Since that incubation we managed to hatch 3 brown leghorns from a batch of 20 and 2 bronze turkey's from 12 eggs. Not a good year at all.

Catch up

After my daughters wedding, lennox the boar arrived on St. Valentines to perform his duties. Alas they weren't performed as well as they could have been. This year Bertha only produced 5 piglets and Gertrude none. Much debate followed as we came to the decision that it was too expensive to keep the sows for breeding. They weren't pets, so with much heartache we took them to slaughter. Gertrude went as soon as we had made up our mind and Bertha as soon as her piglets were weaned.

Bertha's piglets

Life as we know it will never be the same again...in a good way

Neglect of the blog began due to this happy couple when they announced early 2011 that they were getting married in January 2012. At first we were complacement, a whole year to arrange the event. But as time passed by and the invitaions were made and sent, the cake was baked ready to be iced and bridesmaids were measured realisation sank in that we didnt have that much time.

The bridesmaids dresses were dutifully made, fitted, altered and finally completed before christmas.
After christmas I began the Brides dress. It was necessary to redesign part of the frock, due to another announcement, completing just a week before the wedding allowed for minor adjustments.

The cake completed around the same time.




Leaving us all to enjoy a very happy day.

The Boar is Back in Town

Lennox is back to service the girls. He arrived yesterday and though he was on his best behaviour our girls were unbelievably coy. Last year the deed had been done without proper introduction. I think because he arrived on Valentines day they were expecting roses and being wined and dined. Hopefully they will allow him to catch them soon.

Can Pigs Laugh?

My phobia for mice is not getting any better. They are running free and wild all over the place. Living under water troughs, in the pumpkin patch and I thought worse of all earlier this week I discovered a nest in my car! My girly screams could be heard far and wide.
My girly scream resembles the noise that Gertrude and Bertha make when overly anxious for their food they touch the electric fence. I always wince, telling them in a firm voice 'to keep away from the white sticks'.
This morning the shoe was on the other foot. As I confidently stepped over the tape my knee brushed against the tape. Letting out a sharp squeal I distinctly heard a couple of snorts and a rapture of laughter before the duo inquisitively came to check me out. As I gingerly left the enclosure I'm sure I heard them say 'be careful of them white sticks'!

New Homes

At dawn 11th July 2011 the delivery of Bertha's piglets began. 2 weeks later the arrival of Gertrude's. Since then I have been up to my armpits in piglets. What an adventure it has been. What a learning curve it has been. For nearly 12 weeks my life has been filled with care, love, fun, laughter, anxiety, nervous tension, pig poo. Enormous amounts of pig poo.
This week most of the piglets have been relocated to their new homes. The pig pens are looking very empty.
Gertrude and Bertha were reunited, not exactly the Bo Derek and Dudley Moore moment we were expecting. More like a couple of sumo wrestlers vieing for prominent position. An equally matched spa which went on for some time. Now they have settled back into their old order of some you win some you lose, pointless fighting about it.
Now it's all done, back to business as usual.

Ever have one of those days!

One of those days is turning into one of those weeks. The list of 'jobs to do' this week just hasn't been touched. More important tasks arising throughout the day until there are not enough hours left and the day has turned into nearly a week.
The main cause has been mischievous animals. I think the geese have visited every animal in the street, not any of these visits have been welcomed. They have left a trail of disgruntled beasts behind.
Bertha aided Gertrudes piglets in the great escape. Tunnelling from her side of the pen whilst they made an attempt from their side until they both met and a nice piglet sized gap was made so the pint sized porcine's could keep aunty Bertha company.
All this has been compounded by the wind. It has a worrying effect and leaves me exhausted. Some years ago we stayed in France during the Mistral and returned as worn out as we went. This week the constant hummm has been identical. With all this talk of climate change is Northumberland just getting all the rest of the worlds worst weather?

Is this your large marrow?

Today we attended the smallholders club show and had a lovely afternoon with some new friends. We admired their hard work and entered some of our own. Reminding my husband that it's the participation what's important not the winning. He entered two categories, best dressed stick and rock buns. He couldn't hide his dissapointment at not being placed for his rock buns but he was overjoyed at his first for best dressed stick. His was the only entry, table leg was mentioned only once or twice.
I did much better. Third place for heaviest pumpkin and largest vegetable (No it's my courgette). Second for bird photograph, gentleman's buttonhole and ladies corsage. First for fresh flower posy, crocheted item, soft craft, embroidery with silks and the one I am most proud of best hens eggs blue. I forgot to take my novelty vegetable-natural which was a potato in the shape of a duck and I wasn't placed for my potatoes and tomatoes.
All in all a mighty fine result for our first show.

It's a wonderful world

This was one of my most favourite days. If everyday was as good as this one would it still be appreciated?

enough is enough

This windy weather reminded me of a similar weather some years ago. When I arrived home from work I was greeted by a bale of straw and 3 guinea pigs in the bath. When I questioned the culprit she was adamant that it was far too windy to leave them outside in their run. When I suggested she could have put them in the shed, she argued that the wind was far too strong and she didn't think the shed would be safe enough as her dad had built it!
The guinea pigs and straw stayed in the bath for a week. The shed is still standing today!

Not to be left out

Not to be left out there is also a category for birds.
My hens and cockerals have always been camera shy so I don't have a photo of good enough quality of them.

The Geese on the otherhand, inquisitive by nature, will follow the camera as easily as a bucket of food. Talking all the while!

Which one to choose.

 It's the smallholder's show on Sunday and one of the categories is an animal photgraph. I have been going through my photo's to choose an entry. With all the cutie piglet photo's you would think one of those would be first choice for the aww factor if nothing else.

But I keep coming back to these three.

Bertha has always enjoyed getting her photograph taken and will strike a pose at a drop of a hat.

Even when she is not aware that the photo is being taken!!!

be careful what you wish for

When I finished work in February I found the silence at home quite novel. I certainly had a lot to keep me occupied. It was probably a few weeks down the line when I first recognised how much I missed the chat. I had and still have a steady flow of visitors and do my fair share of visiting. But I miss the craick.
I dont miss the recount of weekend activities from staff or the conversations with parent/carers. What I do miss is dancing in the potting shed, playing name that tune, the everyday banter, the stand off's and wind up's.
When I first brought the goslings home little did I know how much they were going to fill that gap. Oh can they banter, wind up and have we had our stand off's. They can carry a tune as well as any one in that potting shed (although my potting shed does not have the same ecoustic quality). They can do a wonderful angel wing dance which makes a welcome change from the same old swan lake we used to do!

A few photo's of Gertrudes piglets

you put you right leg in

does my bum look big in this

what are you looking at?

Super Troupers

Last week my husband told me I was a trouper. I think it was meant as a compliment, only I thought it hilarious.
Last night we decided to take Gertrude and Co. to their pen. After Bertha's lot, we thought we had it sussed. A slow perambulate with bucket of goodies, piglets following not far from mothers call! How wrong we could be. Gertrude galloped knowing exactly where she was going with only one little one able to keep up as the rest explored in a little too much depth the new world. At the sound of mother calling they returned to familiar territory, the stable.With Gertrude and 1 safely in the field and without flacking the rest of the piglets were rounded up and boarded towards mother. Again as they were in sight Gertrude called and again they returned to the stable. After several attempts with the same outcome we decided to resort to moving them via trailer. With 4 piglets on board and the rest running aimlessly around the yard. we took this lot up to mum and sister and safely locked them in the pen. We returned for the remainder, loaded them, unloaded them, herded them back with mum and siblings.

After a quick exploration checking that not much had changed, piglets staying close to mum, we left one happy Gertrude and piglets!
I think I can safely say we were troupers... Gertrude was a trouper, her piglets were troupers, I was a trouper but most of all Jane was a trouper.
It wasn't until the quad refused to go another in a inch, me scratching my head in laurel style, that she broke down in hysterics. I had forgot to reposition the jockey thingamajig and had ploughed a gouge until I had come to an abrupt stop and could move no more. Super troupers!

I'm turning into my mother

Many years ago my mother asked the priest to pass her the condims.... we never reflect on this faux pas but it has been down the slippery slope ever since.
I noticed I had been saying 'whatdoyoucallit' an awful lot and the 'thingamajig' is just out of reach. But I have got my Freud mixed up with Spock! Now Stroppard I can understand because under that calm glowing exterior there is a strop just bursting to come out. So can I just correct that I think Gertrude mothers in the style of Spock not Freud.....not the Vulcan either.

Porridge

Gertrudes piglets have been taking a moist creep food this week. Apart from introducing them to solids ready for weaning it has also been a way of giving them their wormer without any trauma. They look so cute with their porridge noses!

They are becoming more confident and are now joining mum when she has her alfresco tea. Exploring the immediate area but soon come running when mum calls. Hopefully they will be ready to go out to the field soon. All gaps in the fence have been secured so we don't have any copy cat performances.

How heavy is a pig?

The worming programme has begun. One very wet day last week, armed with tape measure and notebook I began to measure. Saving the calculating for the warm and dry I was gobsmacked at how heavy our girls had got. I must admit I had noticed they had got a bit heavy before conception and had held back on how much they got to eat. With all these extra's to feed I have been giving a little more and they look in excellent condition but my how they have piled on the beef. You cant use pregnancy as an excuse I was always told and I think as soon as these little ones are weaned, I say little with tongue in cheek at the moment they resemble staffy bull terriers, They are going on a strict diet of cabbage and water!!!

Did you read the book?

 Bertha and Gertrude opted for different methods of parenting.


Whilst Bertha approached motherhood in Miriam Stroppard fashion.........

......Gertrude much preferred the style of Freud.