Running With The Runners

Every day, mid- to late afternoon,
we do afternoon chores.
Typically it is a chore time that is shorter than the others.


We feed the goats their chow.


Who's that hiding behind the Christmas tree?


Why it's Sissy.

We see you, Sissy.

We have become a depository for our neighborhood's discarded trees.
They are a great treat for the goats.
And when the needles are gone and the branches dried out,
they make excellent back scratchers.


When the longer days of spring arrive and the goats begin to shed,
the trees help to remove clumps of winter fur.


Goats are fed, then chicken eggs are gathered.
For some reason, at the time of year when most chicken owners typically 
see a slow down in production, ours tends to increase.


I suppose it is because the new layers that were raised in the summer
begin to lay their first eggs.
We have a glut of eggs right now.
If you need some... let me know (locally).


One of the most challenging afternoon jobs is finding the runner ducks and
herding them home.
We like to get them safely tucked in their yard before the sun begins to sink.
If we wait until tuck-in time, we may not be able to find them...
and for some reason, they have not yet developed the good sense to return
home every night at dusk.
Perhaps with time...

So, we go searching... every inch of the farm,
and the neighbors' properties.
Their wanderings prompted our neighbors to put up this sign.


I love it!!
Looks just like them!

Silly ducks... here they are at the next-door neighbors...


on the far side of our upper pastures.
With a little encouragement,


they go running towards the barn...


across the lawn....


down the hill....


and into the safety of their yard.


Success!!
Til tomorrow....

Yesterday we took a trip to the city to go to the
Pennsylvania Farm Show.
(I know... weird... to go to the city for a farm show!)
We went with our little people.



Although home is a "farm show" in itself,
we got to enjoy some animals that we don't see on a daily basis!


Not to mention the milkshakes...
which the kids said were delicious!


Comments

colleen said…
Those silly Runners. I can only imagine how many steps they get in the run of a day...and how many you get!!
How long before you have some alpacas at your farm? Think of all that beautiful wool!
Now that I think of it... all your knitting? And you don't have a few alpacas!

littlemancat said…
Love those runner ducks!
My parents used to take us to the Farm Show. I remember how it always seemed to be when there was snow, a threat of snow, or the aftermath of - yep -snow. It was a wonderful time. I remember getting all those little free samples of such things as DeKalb corn pins.
It looks as if the littles enjoyed themselves!
Mary
Dee J. Hartman said…
Loving this post, as well as all the others! Going to the farm show reminds me of when Davina entered her entomology project and received a 3rd place ribbon among the thirty-some entries!
This N That said…
It's a good thing that the runners all stay together. The farm show is the farm in cages! I bet it was fun with the kids. Everybody that goes from here hangs out in the food court. Big draw. Enjoy the sunshine today.
I could use some eggs;) You said "local"?
Anonymous said…
Enjoy your posts so much...kiddies and animals. So refreshing and renewing in these stressful times.

-Eileen in Fla.