It's Nearly Time

Sadly it is almost time to say goodbye to the two Saddleback pigs I have on the farm at the moment. I have to organise a trailer and get my paperwork in order for tomorrow.

I have just brought the next set of weaners on to the farm which makes taking the older two a little bit easier to deal with because while I am looking after the little ones I am not thinking about the two that have gone. It works for me anyway but it is never something that I look forward to, enjoy or find easy to deal with.

I have never really been comfortable with the killing of animals for any reason and drifted in and out of vegetarian phases in my younger days. I think the first attempt at becoming a vegetarian was after buying The Smiths album and listening to Meat is Murder. Upon hearing Morrisey confirm the killing of an animal was death for no reason and death for no reason was murder my life as a vegetarian had begun to take shape .... unfortunately after many months struggling to find vegetable curry and breakfast without bacon tasty I decided that a vegetarian life was not really for me and so I started to think about how I could eat meat without the guilt trip it carried with it for me personally. This came about by me thinking of raising my own meat as strange as it sounds because that way I could ensure that the life any animal I raised for meat would be controlled by me and I could thereby ensure their life would be the best it could possibly be. In knowing that my pigs are raised the way nature intended without any growth hormones or cruel practices that routinely take place with indoor intensively farmed pigs I reached a place where I was happy to eat that meat.

This aside, the weeks leading up to the date that I take the animals to slaughter I still find terribly upsetting and I find it hard to think about anything else. I consle myself with the fact that they have had a great life that is not offered to many animals destined for the food chain. The first time I took animals to slaughter I realised just how much respect is required for the animal that in the end gives you everything.

So here I am at the saddest point in the journey that is home grown meat. I now need to get the papers and pigs ready so they can be transported.

I need to complete the BPEX forms (these are avilable online at the BPEX site) and email these to the Abattoir. The pigs will need to arrive no later than 10am in the morning. I will load the pigs on the trailer then ear tag them. I have always got someone else to do this for me just because I am a softy but I am going to try and do this myself this time ... lets see!! I will set off at 6.00am to get there before 7am which is the earliest I can unload them and then get them settled into their pen.

So it is a sad day but it is also makes me happy because I am standing for what I believe in and by doing what I do I am making a difference.

The Day After the Night Before and Comedy Capers are Continuing

Well I would like to start off by saying that this morning the pigs were none the worse for their rather unique arrival to Nunnery Farm and after a little supper and a couple of buckets of water they settled down into their new place rather well. This was no thanks to Minnie who had to be brought into the house after repeated warnings about going into the pigs place.
When I went to feed them this morning they just ignored me and carried on sleeping in their house. They have just got up and are now wandering round the grounds checking things out so all seems to be well in the pig department.

OH NO!! It is far from ok

As this Blog is developing I fear readers may think that I am posting more about the antics at Nunnery Farm than the actual attempt at smallholding so if things do not calm down I may have to ration the antics posts in order to actually post about smallholding but they do seem to be outweighing the animal antics at the moment!

I did not manage to install the self-filling drinkers into the 2 fields that the pigs will rotate so they had to manage with buckets last night but I have sorted it now and the pens I thought were finished with until LIBBY the usually rather docile Dartmoor Pony turned savage and took a running jump at the pigs fencing. When she couldn't get her front legs over the pig netting started to kick like mad to try and trample her way into the pigs field. After running back to the house for her halter and a carrot I managed to remove her from the field until further notice.
Both Minnie and Libby have had field privileged removed for the time being for their bad behaviour!

COMEDY CAPERS AT CLOWN TOWERS

And to end it all just perfectly Minnie decides to jump in their field, as if they were not already freaked out enough she chased them for 2 laps round their new home - I shouldn't be surprised if they have packed up and left me by the morning for an indoor intensive pork breeder - I mean they are supposed to have a stress free life living the outdoor way!

At least my flat pack pig ark was constructed in good time!

I mean what can you expect from this crack pot - no help thats for sure!?

Surely this smallholding has got to get easier!!!

I mean Ive got veg to do and all sorts yet - I may have taken on rather a large project!!

I am going to lie down!!!

COMEDY CAPERS AT CLOWN TOWERS

With one hand on one of the pigs back legs I shouted at the poor driver to get out and help me. I must have been quite a scary sight because at once 3 people got out and grabbed a bit of a pig and between us we slammed them back in the Landrover. Not before all the children in the park opposite came running over with all the squealing that was going on and watched the whole show!

I AM STILL IN SHOCK

I had to pull over once they were re-loaded and had to take 5 being too scared to move the Landrover in case of similar manlfunction!

I AM NOW OFFICIALLY ON THE SEARCH FOR A TRAILER

Unbelievably and I don't know quite how myself but I did manage to get the two now completely traumatised Saddleback boys home and into their new area which was completed this afternoon in time for their homecoming!

COMEDY CAPERS AT CLOWN TOWERS

We reversed out on to the main road and set off for the 10 minute journey over a few hills and round a few corners 

THEN IT WENT DISASTROUSLY WRONG

I was driving round a bend in the road when the back door popped wide open. In panic I put my foot on the brakes whereupon two 15 week old Saddleback boars flew 'comedy style' out of the back of my Landrover one after the other.

I DIED

I had stopped blocking the whole road anyway and so the cars started to pile up in front of me and then attempted to go round me and leave me to deal with this alone

NO WAY

I mean I don't know what you are supposed to do in these situations but I was not about to do it alone!!

OH MY WORD THIS BLOG SHOULD BE CALLED THE COMEDY CAPERS AT CLOWN TOWERS

I don't think I could make this up!! If I ever succeed in turning Nunnery Farm into a successful smallholding then I will eat my hat!
I set off with the back of my Landrover completely pig proofed and ready for the journey - a towel on the floor and two sets of baby gates tied together with the pony's halter and stuffed down the back of the front seats clearly marking both our and the pigs travelling areas. It was going well so far.
We arrived after a short journey, baby gates still in place and the guy who was extremely professional just swooped them both up one after the other and hurled them into the back of the Landrover. I was on closing door duties and so thought I did well.