BACK TO BUSINESS
We need some kind of update I think after that break in transmission due the breakdown in communication with Molly the sow which sent me into a bit of a spin. So here goes. 
My hand hurts and is still a bit swollen but is getting better fast. I was down for a few days but my energy has returned and once I have finished this course of bloody antibiotics bombarding my system I will feel better. I am hitting probiotics hard but this low grade nausea drags a girl down. Molly is still a bit stand offish but not aggressive. So I think our relationship will repair post-attack.
John has sown oats and barley ( basically whatever I had laying about ) in the Rathouse paddock, the Middle Field and Pats Paddock. Of course the chickens are thrilled to bits! 
The Quack House ( thank you to ‘someone’ who suggested that name ) is still in transition. I will line the floor in a tarp – ducks are very messy in a wet way so being able to drag the whole mess out and dump it once a week is very appealing. Plus I have a tarp already and stall mats are expensive. John will put windows in the doors so they get the sunrise sun. They need light to trigger laying.
This ( below) is a rather interesting shot or an awful one I am not sure. You can see the babies sleeping in the red light. For the first time yesterday evening all the piglets were out drinking vigorously at the same time. It seems to me they have been slow to really start up.
As usual yesterday being day three I raised the piglets hot light slightly and gave iron to the sleepy ones. This was a painful job with my left hand being so awkward and trying not to upset Mama Molly further.
Hopefully now being day four? they should start drinking for longer and put on some weight. The wind is not blowing anymore either so their outside door is open again. Light and air are so important to little beings. There are still eight.
Aunty Del and Tia are doing well. Both udders slowly growing – we are on the last of the hay but they have been grazing the West Bank which I closed in the middle of last summer. Today John will begin to electric fence off the growing fields, creating a corridor so they can safely get to the Dairy Mistress field where the second field of standing hay awaits without grazing the other fields along the way.
The pasture is growing at last but most of it will not be ready to graze for at least 6 weeks. This time of year is a tough time for feed. This week if it looks warm I will also top sow some sorghum into some of the grazing fields to try and get some good feed started.
Farm food of any sort is hard to come by at this time of year.
The ducks are laying eleven eggs a day now and the chickens almost three dozen so my weekly paycheck begins. I have also begun to sell the big hogs.
I hope to finish the asparagus mulching today – that job was interrupted by my incident with Molly. I will just work slowly down there – the asparagus might start popping up soon. The asparagus is an important spring revenue.
I will take the big truck this morning and go off to buy more feed. My hand and back are holding me back a bit but I can still drive.
The new chicks are doing very well. In the next few days they will move from the brooder to the bigger enclosure. They are lovely fat wee chickens.
I think that is all?
It is misty outside this morning which is nice for my guests. Misty mornings are my next favorite after sunny ones.
I hope you have a lovely day.
Celi
40 Comments on “BACK TO BUSINESS”
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thekitchensgarden 
Oh celi, I hope your hand gets better real quick, and your back too!!….are the ducklings due any time soon, as I know there was a bit of a mishap with delivery, but my memory is poop, so can’t remember what was going on with them. Have a lovely weekend xx
The ducklings are due the first of May. So we will be way ready for them by then I hope
So very glad that things are returning to normal with you and that Molly seems to have moved beyond open hostility. Having John more available right now must be encouraging when life’s misadventures slow you down.
It certainly means the heavy jobs are getting done properly as opposed to quickly on the odd weekend. But John will not be rushed so the spring work has taken him by surprise
I am glad you are healing. The meds help it happen faster, though with their unpleasant effects. Sending best thoughts, in lieu of being able to step up & lend a hand.
I have taken the bandage off for a few hours this morning – while I am inside- I am a firm believer in AIR on a wound. Hopefully it helps – it is still mucky and swollen – I can’t bear to look at it.
Oh I am with you about the antibiotics, they always make me feel worse than the ailment they are supposed to be curing. Finish the course! I think Tima might decide the Quack House should be hers on her return. Onwards … Laura
Tima is so bossy.
Since a brown egg is not necessarily healthier than a white egg, as you mentioned last week, what should we look for when buying eggs at the store? I know your hand must be very sore and taking photos or writing must even be awkward right now. And cooking for guests and..and…and. But farm life goes on. [Newborn piglets always look like they come out covered in velvet. ] have a lovely weekend.
I literally never buy eggs in the states. And the regulations for organic free range eggs are very dubious. But I would look for organic cage-free free range etc etc . At an organic conference the speaker said that researching the brands does pay off. Maybe we should make a list and the fellowship can help with the research. There must be a company who produces real free range nutritionally high eggs. Or go to farmers markets and talk to the farmers.
This is a very good question. Let’s think about how to get the right answer.
We have had a couple of brands of eggs here recalled, all cage eggs I think. I haven’t looked at it closely as I either have my own….although 2 eggs every few days don’t go far…. buy from a local lass who has has lovely free range chooks, or the farmer’s market. I heard on the news yesterday there’s a concern about salmonella in the recalled eggs……very scary!
Our first asparagus stalk popped up yesterday and we plan to eat it today!!! That is always very exciting! Good to have an update of the farmy and know all is going well and that you are healing! 🙂
I am two weeks behind you as a rule so I had better get busy down the back.
Sorry about your hand. Very annoying, I’m sure. The update was good for getting us all back on track. As I was reading, I was wondering about your worker team. Are you lining up some able bodied help from that website?
Speedy recovery and best of the new spring season.
Now that John is retired he will do most of the helping. I might have a girl coming in May / we will see
Yes nothing quite like a misty morning. Lovely and a bit mysterious. Well I know you are making light of the bite but it’s no light matter. Pain and nausea—the absolute worst combination. Hope you take good care of yourself and heal quickly. Especially hope the pain disappears quickly.
The wound still being swollen concerns me. Please go back to have it checked next week if it is still swollen and tender! Pour some hydrogen peroxide on it and slather it with antibiotic cream.
Yes. I am looking after it. I have an appointment for a check up next week.
Good! 👍🏼
You know your pace for your body…. stay hydrated more though please. How did Boo react to Molly’s attacking you.
Thankfully Boo was in the house – it it would have been a bloodbath
yow- that would have been horrendous…..don’t want to even think about it.
Nor do I!
Do take good care of your hand. Bite wounds are always something to be extra watchful of, teeth and mouths are dirty. Be careful about hydrogen peroxide, it can actually drive infection deeper into a would, it’s fine to dab around the outside edges but not poured into wounds. I did have an odd experience with a bite wound, I, like you, find having a wound exposed to air helpful, and while the bandages were off (it was a kind of messy wound) and trying to put some ground ginger into a recipe I was making managed to spill a good dusting onto the wound – it did burn but that knocked the infection right out and stopped the gloppy mess. The doctor was surprised when I went for the wound check and he asked what I’d done and was surprised when I explained. Still, do keep using the hand even if it hurts, keeps it from stiffening up. I avoid antibiotic whenever possible, they are so overused but in this case it makes sense.
Running a Quack Den on the farmy. Hmm.
I’m glad you’re recovering from your encounter with Molly. A bite is bad, but at least she is not another Charlotte.
And there you have it!!! A Quack Den!
I am so sorry your hand is still very sore. Please take care of yourself. Sending good vibes and a wee prayer for you that all will be well soon.
Peace and well being
Diana
Chuckle! Myself, I would have called it the Quacker Box… Ceci, I’m confused here. I thought I read that Molly had eight piglets, but three of them died during the night…so I thought she had only five now. Apparently, she had eleven to start? Oh, and thank you for the link to Instagram!
Yes – she had eleven
Good news – I’m glad you are feeling better!
As a child I remember the local farmer’s wife putting a honey poultice on an badly infected wound, clearing it up within days. This was raw honey from her own hive, and I know that there’s now medical-grade manuka honey available for the same purpose. Perhaps if your infection persists it might be worth investigating? It’s good to give the wound air, and to use the hand gently, but if you do too much you will slow its healing progress. Your back needs care too. There’s a lot to do, yes, but only one Celi.
At least you were healthy to start with, that will help for wound and post-antiobiotic recovery. As well as airing the wound getting good vitamin D into your skin and in moderation via your eye is beneficial. If your can find some form of the homeopathic remedy Arnica to take orally rather than topically it will help with healing the deep tissue bruising… the G.O. has taken plain Arnica and a trauma blend after his shoulder surgery and mended very quickly. Good morning from a beautiful sunny Sunday morning here in our little valley ♡
Sorry to hear about the attack! I can only imagine how disturbing that would have been. Have you ever given the piglets fresh soil to root in when they are kept inside? We have done that with good success as a way of giving the piglets some iron and stimulation. Make sure that it is soil that hasn’t been exposed to pigs or other animals in recent years to prevent potential transmission of disease. Just dump a small bucket of soil on the floor of the pen and watch them play in it. When doing this we never had to needle the piglets with iron.
Yes. I do that and isn’t it great- I had only one this time who was really slow- he was not going in to drink so I gave him a shot iron / all the rest were right into their soil ( from the vege garden) I have to replenish daily – also I add sweet iron to the soil For an extra boost.
Don’t mind the wound being swollen at this stage but being ‘mucky’ does not thrill! Hate antibiotics and having had to use them a number of times am allergic to most and no longer sensitive to others. At least you are not that !! Bow I DO believe in what Kate is suggesting: ask your doc and get one of your kids to send over some top-grade Manuka honey stat !! It has pulled people off the death bed !! And glad you are using probiotics . . . thanks for bringing us up-to-date with the farmy . . . and bestest . . .
I do hope you heal quickly, such a pain in the back side to have to favor a body part! Maybe a little ginger tea ( or better yet a ginger cookie!) would help with the nausea. My step daughter swore by the tea when she was undergoing chemo though the police officer who stopped her for speeding did raise an eyebrow when he saw the baggie of it in her purse!
I soaked a very infected swollen hand (thanks to an injured and scared cat) in warm water with 10% hydrogen peroxide 2 or 3 times a day for at least 5 days. It was very soothing after that first dunking. It worked very well band I had the antibiotics also.
Try some candied ginger for the nausea. Take care, c. x
oh my…may your hand heal quickly
Good to have an update, still worried about you though…