Still alive!

It's me! I'm still alive - not been eaten by Edward & Tubbs - yet! I tell you, the way Edward's carrying on, I shall be glad to tuck into his tasty little body! Ahhh, not really, but he is a little villain. He tries to eat not only everything I take into their pen with me (spade / mucking out bread tray - yes, I know, but it's a lot easier than a wheelbarrow / stool - I take that in with me to sit with them for a while to watch them / bowl that carries their food), he also likes to tuck into my toes & anything else on my body that he comes into contact with! I've managed to avoid his teeth so far! He's not doing it maliciously (I don't think!), I think he just likes to have a chew on stuff. I did make the big mistake of going to see them after I'd showered & had slathered that Palmer's Cocoa Butter stuff all over me (my poor little southern jessie skin needs a bit of moisture in the bleak northern winter) and I hadn't thought about the fact that it smells quite chocolaty & sweet & both of the little buggers tried to eat me!! I wont be doing that again in a hurry! They shall get me stinking of dogs as I generally do (working in the kennels, remember) - they seem to leave me alone that way!

Bless Tubbs, she's so sweet - she's really my little pal & follows me around - she comes to the gate as soon as she hears my voice & she sniffs at me while I give her a little scratch. Edward (when he's not being a terror) is lovely in his own little way too - he'll let me do pretty much anything as long as he's got his snout in some food. I can't wait to see them when the sun starts shining, enjoying being outside & rooting around.... Roll on Spring....

The weather's not been too bad in the last week or so actually - it's been a bit changeable, but generally fairly mild. A week before the holidays, it was absolutely bitter - the outside taps were all frozen and the frost didn't thaw for days. It made kennel work pretty difficult. It's no fun hosing down dog runs with hoses that are frozen solid! It's just a bit grey & miserable now. At least the piggies are not cold - they're like little hot water bottles if you put your hand between them when they're sleeping. And they always sleep nose to tail - it's so cute.

It's been a busy Christmas, not helped by the fact that we had a massive power cut on Christmas day. The power went off at midday and didn't come back on until 8:30!!! As romantic as it sounds, reading by candlelight is not my idea of festive fun! Thankfully, we had planned to eat late (although the gates were locked, we still had a full house as far as dogs were concerned & so there was still quite a lot to do before we could relax) and the meat hadn't been put in the oven. If it had, it would have all been ruined! We had to make do with cold meat sandwiches & boiled water for tea on a little camping stove! Very pre-war.... We ended up having Christmas lunch on Boxing Day. Consequently, I feel quite confused now when asked what day it is!

I still haven't taken any more photos of the wee ones - I will do that soon, I promise. I need to sort some more batteries out for my camera first.

It's now bedtime though and I can feel another cold coming on. I don't seem to be rid of my earlier one & keep taking my zinc & vitamins! Darn this winter weather....

Bye for now. Old Year's Night tomorrow. Can't believe the year's over already. Where does the time go??!

VP x

T.F.I Friday!

My back is much better since I last posted. My father in law is a trained osteopath & he managed to click me back into shape. Hurrah!

The kennels are gearing up for Christmas now - my in-laws own a boarding kennels (mostly dogs, some cats as well) and I work there. It's a small business & aside from John (I can't keep calling him my father in law, it takes too long to type), I'm the only other member of staff. I love my job - until July last, I'd always worked in an office but was fed up with the stresses that brings upon you & John needed a hand, so I found myself offering my assistance. Anyway, Christmas is obviously a busy time of year and we had a few more 'inmates' arrive today, more expected tomorrow & Monday and then by Christmas Eve we're full. There are some lovely canine & feline guests here at the moment - I shall take some photos and post them tomorrow....

Back to Edward & Tubbs... They seem to be sleeping quite a lot at the moment & I don't think it's because they're poorly as when they're up & awake, they're fine - maybe it's just the cold weather & the fact that they're still babies... I'm going to the farm shop tomorrow (the same place I got them from), so I shall ask them if this is normal. I'm sure it is, I just want to check though... When they are actually awake, they're definitely a lot more settled than they were a week ago. As soon as they hear me come into the barn, they're at the door looking up to see what treats I'm bringing them. Little pigs. Oh yeah, they are! Ha ha!

Jack's built them a trough, because I feel that a lot of food is going to waste scattering it on the ground. I'll still put some on the ground because I know they like to root around, but at least if they've eaten what's in their trough, I'll know they've eaten enough. I might be being over cautious here, but while they're so young, I want to make sure they're getting all the food they need to stay healthy. He put the trough in yesterday & we put some food in it. They just looked at it & then carried on eating from the ground. I sat in with them & tried to coax them towards it with some apples (what I now know is their most favourite treat!). They came close, but still wouldn't put their noses in the trough, so I thought I'd leave the apples in it & come back to see if they disappear.... They most certainly did (no surprises there!), but there was still a lot of other feed in the trough, so I sat in with them again and they came closer still, but still wouldn't eat from it. I had other things to do around the kennels, so I left them to it & the next time I went in, Tubbs was actaully standing IN the trough, munching away! Poor little Edward couldn't get a look in! I guessed they'd sort it out between themselves & sure enough, next time I went in, Edward was in it! Ha ha! They're so funny, I could sit with them all day....

We're going to check the ground on the old potato / bonfire patch tomorrow to make sure there are no nasty bits of metal or anything that could harm them lying around & then they're going to venture outside! Hopefully this should keep them a lot more amused than they have been to date. I shall report back to let you know how it goes.....

Ta ta for now, enjoy your Friday evening!

VP x

How do you clean out your pigs with a bad back??!!

I've done my back in. Cosmic.

Concerned mammy

I was a bit worried about the amount of food I've been giving Edward & Tubbs so I asked for some advice on the accidental smallholder forum (which, I have to say has been invaluable since deciding I was going to rear pigs). Turns out that in the cold weather, with them being so young I need to feed them more! I thought I was giving them too much! As soon as I read this advice, I ran out with the bowl of peelings I'd been saving for tomorrow's feed! Don't want my babies starving!

They're absolutely fine though, I'm sure. I really think they've got bigger since Saturday! At this rate, I shall be feeding small hippos come January! I will keep their feed up though until the cold weather's done it's worst.

Jack (the handyman) has made a fab shelving unit above their sleeping area. Looks like they're sleeping in a 4-poster bed! It not only acts as a little roof above where they sleep (making them feel more secure & warm), but I can keep my spare straw bales on top of it. Cushty.

We had some memebers of James' family round last night and we all trooped into the barn for some cooing over the wee bairns - everyone loves Edward & Tubbs and they're all saying that I'll never be able to send them to slaughter, but I honestly think I will. Although I love them and am growing attached to them, I know why they're here and am feeling surprising calm about the whole thing. I'm actually looking forward to tasting their meat and want to make the best I possibly can of them. Ask me that again next summer..... It's only been 3 days after all!!

Tried them with bananas today - they were a bit unsure at first, but next time I went in, they'd eaten the lot. They had a couple of whole potatoes too (ones that had gone a bit iffy for human consumption) and they went mad for them! Almost as mad as apples send them! They really are so funny, Edward is a real roughty toughty boy - he started trying to eat my welly today, little sod. Tubbs loves me now I think. She rolls over to let me rub her tummy when she's having a little snooze. She loves a little scratch behind her ears and a rub on her neck. Ahhhhh.... She almost had a finger off earlier though when I dropped the apple I was holding for her. Must watch out for that!

Funnily enough, Hugh's on the tv now with Delia, one of his (I'm sure no longer as this is an old repeat) Saddlebacks. She's helping him find truffles. I really hope that my father-in-law changes his mind about letting them in the paddock. I'm sure under supervision they wont do TOO much harm & I know that they'll love it. For now though, they'll have to do with the old potato patch - I think I shall let them venture out there this weekend. I wanted to settle them in first before we let them outside. I'm not sure if that's the right thing to do or not, but with this cold weather and their trauma at being taken from their mam, I thought it best for them to stay inside for a week until we all get to know eachother better....

Anyway, gonna sign off for now - have company again tonight and I'm onto my 2nd glass of wine, so will no doubt go on and on and on if I don't say goodbye at this point!

VP x

I'm in love!

Edward & Tubbs are adorable!! Although he's a lot smaller than her, he's a lot more inquisitive and is more than happy for me to give him a scratch and stroke his back & tickle behind his ears. She will let me too, but she flinches away from me a little bit still - I'm sure by the end of tomorrow I'll have them both cracked.

So much for pigs pooing in one area - they seem to have doodied all over! Luckily for me, the poos are still the size of a small dogs, so I just pooper scooped them in dog poo bags. Seemed like a sensible idea to me. My father in law thinks I'm mad.

They were all buried in their straw when I went into them this morning & I'm sure they wagged their tails when they heard my voice! I'm their marmie!

They absolutely LOVE apples. They go MAD for them! Literally. They'll eat them from my hand too, which is fab! I do make sure my fingers are out of the way though - they can certainly munch through them pretty quickly! I think I shall be getting a lot more 'over the top' fruit from the whoopsie counter at the supermarket when I next go. The windfall apples are not going to last too long it seems! They also had some celery and onion tops today.

I know I sound like a pathetic mother, but they really are very cute and so funny - they seem to want everything that the other one has, just like dogs really. If one is drinking, the other runs over to join it. If Edward is coming up to me to have a little sniff, Tubbs'll follow, albeit a little tentatively.

I think I've got far too much straw in their pen - I might have to have a bit of a re-arrange tomorrow....

Meet Edward & Tubbs!

The piglets have finally arrived!! I went for them at about 10:30 this morning and it was quite hilarious watching them doing their best not to be caught by the farmer and his wife. Hilarity quickly turned to trauma when they were hoisted by their hind feet and squealed their little heads off until they were quite literally dumped into the dog cage I'd stuck on the back of the pick-up. They they turned to look at us with a look of total shock on their faces and I felt so sorry for them and vowed never to have to pick them up like that unless I really had no other option.

I felt really bad for their mum after they'd left her - she was quite stressed and frantically tossing her straw around all over looking for them. It was awful. I hope if I ever breed pigs I can make the piglets' departures less painful for the sows.

It turns out I have a boar & a gilt - the boar is a lot smaller than the gilt - he had a bit of a troubled start to his little life and the farmer was contemplating putting him to sleep, but decided to give him a second chance and although he's smaller, he's putting on weight nicely now and there's nothing wrong with him. He's quite obviously the runt of the litter though, so I think he'll be my special little boy.... We've decided on Edward & Tubbs as names.

I got a supply of straw and some barley and pig pellets to get me started and off I went, pigs in tow, wondering what I was letting myself in for...

On arriving home I was absolutely petrified that I might drop one and got James (my other half) to carry them under his arm to the barn. They didn't squeal once! When they were put in their new home they still had a look of shock and were shivering! I wanted to wrap them up in blankets and take them to the lounge with me. I was given 'that' look when I mentioned this and realised I was being a bit of a wimp....

I scattered some pellets on their straw and put a few apples in with them and watched them for a bit then thought I should leave them to de-stress for a little while. I couldn't leave them for very long though and within 10 minutes I was back in the barn, laying on their straw with them and coaxing them gently. They seem to like being stroked on their backs and behind their ears and haven't tried to bite me, but they still seem a bit freaked out by the whole day! I left them again (for a little bit longer this time, honestly) and when I went back in they were happily snuffling around for pellets and munching on their apples! They're soooo cute!!! And they make the most hilarious noises when they're eating and mooching about.

It's my day off tomorrow and I can't wait to get back in with them - I've said goodnight to them for tonight, I guessed they must be tired after what's turned out to be probably their most eventful day yet. When I left them, they were happily snuggling down in their straw and they let me tuck them in a bit without flinching away from me. Ahhh bless....

We're ready!

Well, everything's all set for the arrival of my first pair of Saddleback weaners. The barn has been arranged so that they have a cosy sleeping area with insulation (!) so that they're not too cold. I think that Jack, our handyman is more concerned for their welfare than I am! I've collected up the last of the windfall apples and have some yoghurt and over the top bananas too as a little 'welcome home' treat. These are going to be two totally spoiled pigs....

I'm collecting them from the farmer at 10:30 tomorrow and am sure I'll have a pretty restless night's sleep tonight through over excitement! There's a little bit of worry there too, but I'm trying not to think about that too much. I've lost a good bit of sleep since it was agreed I could keep them already worrying about them going to the abbatoir . I've been told that the best thing to do is not think about that until the day comes. Apparantly it's ok to cry too - I'm sure I shall be in floods. But I'm not supposed to be thinking about that am I?!

I had a moment of panic last night when I read that ragwort is poisonous to livestock, but I then found out that we don't have any. Phew! This is going to be a a bit of a steep learning curve methinks!

Buddy (our dog) knows there's something going on - he's in for a big surprise tomorrow!