Pigs and parties

Last weekend was our housewarming party. The field may not have been to warming with the weather but I think it went really well. The kids loved the bouncy castle and it was good to catch up with so many people. We had Sunday as a work day and had a couple of families with us working hard. Zoe had Rich to help her finish off the pig pen, which was vital as they were arriving on Monday. I had Ben and Calah to help me digging over the beds that are going to be part of the polytunnel. It was great to have other people helping and I think everyone had a good time. We thought we might set up a few work weekends in the future, with food, socializing and a little digging.

Monday was the very exciting arrival of pigs day. I went to get them on my own as Zoe was still finishing the pig house (the roof was not yet felted) and putting the gate in their fence. I went up to Thirsk to pick up the piglets. After being chased around the barn a good number of times we eventually got them into the dog crate in the back of the car. They grunted and jiggled most of the journey home. I let them out into their area and they had a good run around together. They have not left each others side since. After half an hour of getting shocks from the fence they seemed to learn what that was all about and haven't really gone near it since. A good job really as escaped piglets will be extremely hard to deal with.  On Monday evening Zoe and I found the piglets asleep on the grass. We decided they should be in their house and spent the next half hour trying to guide / chase them in. I have to say we totally failed and left them to sleep in the grass. By morning they had worked it out and we found them fast asleep in their pen snuggled up next to each other in the straw.



Since then the piglets have been getting more used to us and getting closer and braver. Yesterday they were having a good sniff of our wellies as the kids and I sat in the run. They didn't seem very keen on the left over salad from the party though which I found a little disappointing. I thought they would hoover up everything, they are pigs after all.

So for the week ahead more piglet settling and a real push to get this polytunnel finally up.