We start again!

So we have now started again!

The Poly tunnel is now moved into the walled garden area...and when the support beam is straightened...will hopefully be complete in time to start planting..we are hoping that the tunnel will be more sheltered now....fingers crossed.

One of the hen houses is now in the Paddock thanks to the two cockerels tearing each others faces off!, and poor hens don't know if they are Arther or Martha!

The ducks don't seem very fussed about all this movement and change...although one of the female duck does like to give another female duck a piggy back now and then.....if you know what i mean ;-)

We are also moving all the fruit bushes and trees into the walled garden too....this in theory will mean that we will be able to plant more fruits and there will be less chance of the goats eating them before we do!, It also means that we can have a couple of bee hives in there too, Ideal for the bees as there will be plenty of flowers to pollinate for them...although we will have to fence that area away from the chickens!

If this all works well...we will hopefully put a nice little seating area in there too...so we can sit and enjoy....although that may be a long way off yet, especially as we are making this walled garden area sound huge! when its actually very small! But again its all trial and error isn't it.

The area where the tunnel and the currant bushes were, will be cleared and fenced off...hopefully before June!...then his nibs will build a shelter big enough for two....pigs! yep we are getting just a couple for fattening up for Christmas!

We did the same last year with a sheep called prudence,

she thought she was one of the goats for a while, she was a lovely sheep, and was very tempted to keep her and breed from her, but i put my foot down on that one.... we want to be goat farmers ...so must stick to what we want and not wavier too far off the path.

when we took her to the abattoir, it was hard...we were sad, but by a few days later when we were tucking into lamb chops...we had forgotten about the sadness...and looked at the money we had saved.

We also turned her skin into a lovely sheepskin rug...so she will always be with us!

As well as a pair of slippers for my son!

There is also a new Goat shelter up in the paddock....well it was a garden shed given to us by a friend who decided that it was no longer of use to them...so perfect for our goats, although the goats were straight into it(mainly as we put hay in it), and they learnt to shelter from the wind in it...the minute it rained they screamed blue murder to go in the Barn! Still they are in for a shock too, soon.

Daisy has been sheared and Banjo half sheared....then its the dusting of Louse powder...which smells like liquorice...Banjo is only half sheared as he is so fidgets so much...we still have to do his tummy area, around the delicate bits down to his legs...also the top of his head...so at the moment he looks more like a poodle than a goat!...but we will win this battle with him, whether he likes it or not!

Thursday coming, Daisy and Banjo are off to their new home, the reason we are getting rid of them is because Daisy was just to keep Rita company...Banjo was a surprise...but neither are of use to us...I don't use their wool, but a friend of ours will and that's where they are off to.

Rita wont be alone though, we are collecting two new goats the same day, they are twin Saanen's, so a smaller version of Rita...Also we will be getting a Billy goat too, but he arrives later when we get the pen ready for him...

Why are we getting a Billy instead of borrowing one?.....well... we did borrow one from our vet...Puck his name was and a real gentleman towards Rita...she was with him 4 times in all, then he died...... we hunted for another one, and found one with a friend of ours....her Billy wasn't so friendly ..in fact he didn't even want Rita to go!...but she didn't take...and we rang to re arrange...that's when we found out he too had died! Poor Rita, she was given the nickname "the black widow!"...none of it was her fault...it turns out that Billy goats go sterile about a month or two before they die...and it had just been bad luck.

It was too late to find another billy now, the season was over, and we couldn't find one we could borrow, but then we were given a tip...the Gamrie goat soap lady had a billy, he was no use as he was related to all her goats now, and he was only two!... so no chance of him dropping anytime soon....we went out to meet her and the billy(sunny), and fell in love with him...so we just have to get the pens strong enough to hold him...then we can collect him anytime we are ready....which also means Rita gets a reprieve.....for now at least...