fairwether farm
Remember last time I’z said I fell in the water…. well I’z had real fun this mornin… tiz cold and ground all white… Mama Clare says frost …tiz very cold on my feet… but fun to run around and slide on grass…
Now I’z found that I’z can walk on water..Mama Clare says frozen pond. That tiz silly… water is funny……..tiz cold but I’z play on the pond….an I’z see things in the water…
I’z had a big adventure this mornin…and lucky I’z got 9 lives…(human Clare says).
She wondered what I’z did when I came home all wet..
Well…I was lookn at da sheeps and it was still dark (6am) and I’z want a drink from the sheeps trough…it haz water for sheeps…an I was walkn around the top… it was wet…n I fell in da water….bbbbbbbbrrrrrrrrrrr cold…I not like….I have to climb out…cold stuff…I no like…I go home….warm and human Clare wipe me with towel….mmmm heater on…I get dry…so much fur to clean…I tired now………
Hi tiz me agin…. I’z very pleased with myself…I’z can come and go now all by myself..(don’t have to wait till humans open the door)…I’z can use my special door…cat size…
Tiz a long story… first I used special door with string up…was good…I climb out all the time.. happy kitten…then the humans shut the door and I try and try to push my body to open it…I meow at it…it not open…I sit by it…nope…
Humans have to open it for me….mmmm then one day I watch Louie…he pushed it with his nose…he open it and come inside to see me…mmmm I can do that!!! Next time I’z outside I try…it open when I push my nose and foot on door…happy cat.. I’z inside…yeh…
Ok…so how’s I get out? mmm not workin… cant push body against door…….mmmmmm I think about diz some more…
(Next day)…mmm tiz raining…humans show me door open (secret is when blind is up door is open, when blind is down door is locked)…mmm I’z been shown door open, human swing it for me…mmm put head and foot on it…….yay is open…me go through it……..me’z happy cat….. now use door all da time…….
I think Louie very clever cat cause he show me…he’s older than me…I’z 8 months……..he’z 10 months…
bye…back soon with more tales tails no tails…hehe I’z a Manx…
Hi t’z Nico again… hope you liked my post about my friend Louie…he’s cool to play with. Did you see him in the ‘firebox’ photos? Mama Clare took a photo of us two playin around before the guests arrived…
My humans went out in their ‘noisy box’ (the car) with a …. wire thingie (trailer). I didn’t want to go..but I like to have a look inside the noisy box when not making a noise…
Well this mornin…we’z go n feed the sheep with the new …feed box… tiz good for the sheep cause the sheep nuts don’t go on the cold ground… an the new feeder for hay means that the sheep can eat nice warm food. I thought it was a great place to play…n I haz a look in the box but sheep eat all the nuts…
I’z a big help with the sheeps…I like to run around with them…they like me…
Well that’s my mornin…I’m off to play with Louie now…bye….
It has been a long autumn and now that we have snow on the mountains, lovely balmy days of sun and frosty mornings we can be forgiven if we think winter is here.
Since we celebrate Christmas in the summer months there is a small tradition (by some people) to have a mid-winter celebration (or sometimes called Yule) here in the southern hemisphere… so Saturday, being the 20th of June we had a mid-winter feast with friends from the West Coast, New Zealand.
We sat outside by the firebox (Nico as well), had cheese, nibbles mulled wine and good conversation then inside for a stew of venison, cranberries and vegetables with fresh bread and salad. Next a mid-winter cake (smaller version of my Christmas cake) and other beverages to add to the celebration. In the morning I cooked up waffles, bacon and fruit for breakfast with coffee and tea.
An all-round great mid-winter festival and one that I will remember.
I have a bestest friend called Louie…he lives in the house through the big trees. When I have had my breakfast I go and see if Louie is allowed to come out to play…
Louie’s humans are good… they let Louie out in the morning and we play – tag you’re it, paw paw through the fence, who can climb the biggest tree and other cool games…
Humans don’t like Louie going in my cat door though, they tell Louie “go find Nico”, cause I’z outside playin….
I play with Louie all day till I have ‘cat nap’ in the afternoon, my human Shepherd Clare says “I broke the cat” cause is sleep in weird positions, tiz funny.
Then we play in the evening till it’s time to go to bed…
Last night Louie creeped in through the ‘cat door’ (he is very clever…I’z still learning this) and sat on the floor while we played…paw paw and tussle on the floor….human Leigh (dats his name ‘she’ calls him) was playing with da water and eating bowls… human Leigh let Louie stay for little time before saying he must go home…(to his humans..)…Louie says to me ‘meow’ (means thanks for play Nico, I go home now..). bye…
I is Nico…..this is my story. The human mamma – “Shepherd Clare” told you how I come to live with her and other human.
https://wordpress.com/block-editor/post/thebirchesspringfield.com/1483
Now I will tell you wot I do in my life on the farm as Shepherd’s Cat. My new life started when I got to the farm….oooo lots of new things to see and smells…waz a very happy kitten……I haz lots of toys…
I went outside in the ‘big world’ ….tiz huge…. has forest n (Shepherd says paddocks) grasses n mices n rabbits.
When it rains… or is cold I’z stay indoors and play…humans gives me toys…n boxes..
I start my day by helping Shepherd Clare feed da sheeps…I like to visit with them… they are my woolly friends…I’z good with da sheep…I’z help…
Iz big now and allow outside at night time…though Mamma worries when I don’t come home till late….(7pm)…
Next time I’z tell you about my best friend…Louie he lives next door…
We would like to think the world will go back to ‘normal’ once the virus is eliminated (or contained) but I think we need to be prepared to accept that things will not go back to the way they were. New Zealand has taken a cautious step out of level 3 to level 2; that means we can visit family and friends and perhaps do some of the things that we use to do. For us things will be the same; we socialise with friends and family and have small gatherings in our homes and clubs.
We hear now that in the last week of June we will probably go to level 1. I will look forward to seeing my friends at the Spinning and Weaving club and seeing more of my family in the weeks to come.
The isolation period – March 26 till now (26 May) has been been an interesting time on the farm. The first week we had problems with the septic tank, the second week issues with the electricity, then in the ensuing weeks, the tank had issues again, the oven decided to breakdown – we have had more problems during this time than at any other time.
June and winter…
With the colder weather coming we are gearing up for lambing in the coldest winter month – August. I will pack a birthing kit with the necessary equipment in case we have trouble with any of the mums or lambs; unlike the last lambing season (2018) when I did not have anything and luckily we did not have any particular trouble. I have grown in confidence around the sheep and they accept me in ‘most situations’ but of course birthing brings its own challenges. I intend to create a ‘birthing-holding’ area inside the sheep barn so that the mothers can come and go, and I can contain a mother with their lambs if I need to. Luckily Gotland Pelt sheep are very good at birthing on their own and raising their lambs, but I need to be ready in case things go bad.
I am hoping that we will have a quiet winter period with time to clean up from autumn and prepare for the colder winter months.
I hope you all continue to be safe and well…
The next time we chat it will be winter and all the glory that the season brings…… maybe snow…… definitely frosts……new ideas for spinning…..new plans for the farm…..news on what Nico the ‘shepherd’s cat’ has been doing…
Take care ….
The projects I started during the lock-down have been many and varied; the finger-less gloves, the jersey, and the grey cushion for the house.
I have now completed a dark grey cushion cover in a basket weave. This fleece is from one of the foundation ewes, Chocolate. She was the only dark grey sheep at the time and I liked the soft fleece, so had it spun up commercially back in 2018 and recently decided to knit it up into another cushion cover because of its colour and texture. I am very pleased with the results; it compliments the house very well.
My projects continue to grow – no pun intended – as I have many more 2019 fleece to either sell or knit up into items. Soon it will be time (July 2020) to shear the flock again, pre-lambing, so I need to keep going with the fleece I have in storage.
I intend to try my hand at felting and also dyeing soon, but that will have to wait until I can return to the Spinning and Weaving club in Christchurch.
The other fleece I have started to spin is Bob #3, he has the lightest coloured fleece of all the flock, he is also the largest of the sheep, but a real sweetheart to be around.
As the spinning gets underway I will post a photo of the wool, and the results of the knitting project (as yet not sure what I will do with this wool).
Cheers for now and look forward to chatting with you all again soon….
We had some good news today….. New Zealand is going to our level 2 at the end of this week. For us, this will not mean a great change in our life, as we are isolated by the fact that we live in a remote area away from the city. It takes us 45 minutes to drive into the city of Christchurch, 45 minutes to our local supermarket and 30 minutes to buy our milk from the farmer. We have approximately 300 people living in the settlement of Springfield, Canterbury, and although we have neighbours around us, we do not see them on a daily basis; but they are there if we need them.
Level 2 for most of New Zealand though, means that they will be able to go to the malls, church, shops, movies and cafes etc. For me, I will enjoy getting a hair cut and maybe a coffee or takeaways, other than that nothing much will change for us, as we do the farm stuff anyway on a regular basis and only go out occasionally. I will though, look forward to seeing family and friends again.
This has been an interesting time, and I know a lot of you will have experienced similar things. Last weekend, with the lifting of some restrictions, we went for a drive to the beach (still 45 minutes for us) and took a picnic coffee with us. The people out walking passed by and we talked about the beautiful day, the weather, or other mundane topics, but we all felt a kinship with our common issue. I hope that in the days to come we do not lose that sense of camaraderie. It would be nice to think that we had more sense of community than perhaps we did before.
Of course farm work continues….. the ram, Tuppence, went back to the owners as he (hopefully) has done a good job and we will have lambs in the spring. The flock are settling down again after his stay. It is good to be able to hand feed them all again without worrying about him being the aggressive little ‘boy’ that he had become.
Nico continues to help with the farm, keeping an eye on the sheep and lazing in his bed afterwards as he’s ‘tired’ from all the farm work he has to do, (well checking out the stockyards to make sure there are no mice is hard work, talking to all the sheep to make sure there are none missing is tiring…. no wonder he wants a nap, all that counting makes me tired too).
Take care everyone, and in the days to come, I will show you what else I have been doing on the farm.
silva kurls 