Yesterday afternoon I saw (with a certain amount of alarm) that Sheila my big fat old pig was building her winter bed, for hours in the afternoon she went about the barn stealing hay and straw and sticks and anything she could gather into her mouth lumbering back to her new corner out of the drafts to build her two story bed. Her winter bed is always high up off the floor. But I watched with gathering alarm as she began a winter bed. It is after all ONLY October!
So sighing myself, I gathered up my army of help and we carried out extra straw and old hay as bedding for all the other pigs on the farm. Sheila has a built in barometer and it must have been dropping. She feels the cold coming.
We attached the half door to Manu’s house, stuffed it full of straw, added more straw to the Plonkers hut, pushed all the dry bedding into a corner of the gilts pen, and gave Tima and Tane some extra warm bedding.
When I went out in the night to check them: both the little gilts (Molly and Tahiti) had quite disappeared into their hill of straw, Sheila and Poppy were cuddled up in Sheila’s new bed and Tima and Tane as usual had their heads covered in straw and their big fat bums out in the air like babies sleeping on their faces. Manu had said thank you very much and was curled up in the back of his hut, snoring gently. The Plonkers had thrown themselves on top of their straw and were fast asleep.
Sheila grunted a good night as I left the barn. She is such a doll. I love that big fat pig.
Why is it a surprise to me that winter is, once again, on its way.
The lovely thing about this shot is the two calves, Little and Difficult, who both recovered from deeply grave states with scours and pneumonia, and here they are drinking their warm evening milk with gusto, after a day out in the fields grazing like real little cows.Their bellies dropping into a perfect pear shape. And look at those lovely clean bottoms.
I hope you have a lovely day. This is my hope for you every day. that you find some loveliness.
Love celi
The Kitchen's Garden 
58 responses to “Listen to Sheila”
Oh, winter coming already! How amazing the way animals sense the seasons. Sheila is one wise pig.