Boo loves snow and has no interest in any discussion about cold that may result in the curtailment of his outdoor ventures.
We have snow again. Just a few inches.
It blew snow showers all day yesterday, so the north doors had to be closed. Sheep hate to be locked inside but the barn would be filled with snow if I did not shut their big door. Mama has shown real signs of good strong recovery in the last week. I think she is almost back up to speed. Just in the nick of time too. Bad winter is coming to give us ‘the bash’.
Last night it was forecast to go down to -3F(-19C) – and by Sunday we will be at -14F (-25C) with a bendy tree. These temperatures are pretty extreme for our neck of the woods. And though I am not concerned for our wooly flock…
I am concerned for our Pigs. They do not have wooly coats. Though the Hereford breed does have quite long coarse hair and are known for their hardiness. Everyone is fat and healthy though and that is a good start.
Once again today Sheila picked up her bowl and carried it (full of food) into her bedroom to eat. Too cold out there in the snow evidently!
I can’t wait until she does this when I have a camera in my hand.
Today I will continue to line her bedroom with straw bales so she sleeps down in a draft free space. She will have two blankets and both she and the plonkers have a heat lamp that they sleep under. But I don’t know. Minus 14 with a bad wind is freaky cold for a piggie.
Queenie and Daisy also have deep beds. We scoop all around the two areas designated for sleeping. They are not fed where they sleep so they don’t tend to loaf about and make a mess in there, well not too much, so on either side of their big pen are two big deep straw filled spaces. I keep clean straw on top. In these temperatures when they poo it immediately freezes. So it is easy to take the manure out in these frozen piles (unless it hits the concrete floor then it is there for the duration) but I can keep their straw beds clean. They always sleep in the same place. In their own corners, so Daisy has the super size extra king and Queenie (of course) has a Queen sized bed.
When it thaws we do a big clean up and start all over again.
I hope you have a lovely day.
Your friend on the farmy,
celi
The Kitchen's Garden 
57 responses to “The real cold is coming”
I have a little idea of the cold you are experiencing, C, but only a little. My power went out last night and it was below freezing and terrible winds. I was afraid my nose would freeze as I tried to sleep, but couldn’t. Could it be time for insulated barns? Unheard of on a farm, I know. Visualizing everyone warm and cozy on the farmy. How are the bees?
Pigs in blankets have a different meaning in our house – whole sausage sarnies! In fact I just had one for my lunch and was thinking of you and Sheila …
Yes BRRR! I thought of you when all this nasty weather news started coming in. We are also going to get some freaky cold down this way.The plumbers are going to have plenty of work. I feel like your piggies should be ok. I also had trouble with getting yesterdays post. Wrap up and get braced.
I’m so happy to see the sparkle in Mama’s eye again! I hope you all stay warm and safe during this bout of extreme cold. Love that Sheila.
Ok silly me.I was able to go back a read yesterdays post. Great words well written. Sparrows wings on your/my cheek is a lovely picture. Also check for kittens in the dryer.Yes I did. 🙂
Oh NO! I will remember that! Glad you found me.. c
Check out Walter’s Sugar Mountain Farm blog, he keeps pigs in very cold temps, and usually has lots of good info on most aspects of keeping pigs. Sounds like you are doing all you can for the pigs, building an extra wall out of straw to keep out draft sounds like a good idea.
Yes i read him regularly, he is an inspiring fellow! I would love to have his back country so i could just let them go and be free to live like pigs!! c
I have never experienced anything close to those temperatures. I admire your sangfroid and I have a feeling that your sang will be very froid indeed. Bon courage:)
survival is not for the weak !! Go team C !!
Lots of hot tea !!
All I can sing these days is “Baby It’s Cold Outside.” 🙂
Stay warm!!!
Oh, yes, the cold is coming. Up here in Minnesota, our temps will be even lower than yours. Yesterday Embarrass in extreme northeastern MN recorded a low temp of minus 46 degrees F. Today it’s warmer here, but wicked windy. This is our one-day reprieve.
This winter storm really is ringing in the new year! Stay warm!
Oh my, it’s terribly cold here too and I’m glad your farmie is surviving well. One thing is that it likely won’t snow or rain when it is this cold, so that’s a plus!
Stay warm, my friend! And all my friends on the farmy! The wind is always the worst enemy, then couple it with the cold you have brutal times!
Linda
http://coloradofarmlife.wordpress.com
Lovely heart warming images. I misread a previous blog of yours by putting the comma in the wrong place in my head: The sun, rose white and cold …
The image of cracked bleeding dry hands jolted me back to my childhood, as lots of your writing does. Not me but my best friend had bad eczema. The talk of lanolin brings me back to my rousie days in the shearing shed, greasy hands, trying to throw the perfect fleece every time, loving the challenge but every body part aching, ‘Hotel California’ rocking from the wireless, piles of baked treats at smoko time. Back in school a few days later, the bliss of physical rest and annoyed I missed the lesson on ‘The mitochondria’, annoyed because the concept seemed so fascinating.
This is just a glimpse of the wonderful feeling/thoughts you writing and images give to me.
Thank you and belated Happy New Year to you and all of your loved ones.
We had our cold temps last month at 20 below zero F. Hopefully that was the end of it. Without snow on the ground those kinds of temps are killers for trees and pipes. I know the sheep love the cold but I feel sorry for Sheila. I know you will make her comfortable no matter what. All kids love playing in the snow,….even animal ones. Must be the higher metabolism in youngsters. When we were kids we played in freezing snow all day and loved it. I, too, would love to see a picture of Sheila carrying her dish inside. So smart is she! Say, how about some cuteness? Missed seeing Marmalade for a few days. Daisy is beautiful and Mama is looking so good.
Working on the cuteness, she spent all day with the builders yesterday.. c