Relief!

"Well, that's a relief" said Tony after we'd finished successfully weaning Precious's piglets on Friday afternoon. "I only had to carry three of them into the trailer!" and off we all went feeling jolly pleased with ourselves that the whole task (from hitching up the trailer to catching piglets in their pen, handing them over the fence to willing hands who then put them in the trailer and then unloading all the piglets into their pen in the barn and unhitching trailer again) had been completed within such a short time. Linda happily went off to feed Tea and we three retired to the house for a congratulatory drink.
The horses were relieved not to have to share their field with the piglets, Gunner was relieved not to have to round them up anymore and Precious was totally nonplussed by the whole thing, tucking into her food with hardly a glance to see what was going on around her.
Relief sow style.

Some things are just that simple.
Sometimes.
It being Sunday, I was a little late going out to feed breakfast this morning. "Piglets are nice and quiet in the barn" I thought to myself as I made the horses' breakfast.
"Probably enjoying a bit of a lie in too" I mused as I filled a bucket with their food. Took it out to them, calling "Wakey, Wakey piglets, breakfast time" and poured it into their bowls outside their pen. "Strange" I thought to the hollow nothingness coming from the barn. Peered into their straw. Nothing. Had a harder look, willing them to be hiding (for why? I can't imagine) under their straw.

Then it dawned. I know - but the mind was just wanting them to be 'There'.
Soon as I noticed The Dog wasn't with me I knew. He'd found them. I went slowly in the direction of the field. Sure enough: there they all were. All neatly tucked into the corner of Precious's pen - innocently looking up at me as they waited for breakfast. "I thought you were my friend: How could you do this to me?" Precious's look seemed to say to me. I went back to the house and told The Boss the good news. He gave me a knowing look (it had been a warm night and I'd left barn doors open wide never thinking the little fat piggies could squiggle under the one hurdle that wasn't doubly secured with a reinforcing pallet.)
By the time I returned to feed breakfast they were everywhere again - in the other pens, in the hen house, around the field. Everyone yelling - "Where'd these little blighters come from again???"
"You said it was too easy" I said to Tony when he came round later in the afternoon to help us re-wean the weaners "So we decided to let them all out and again and have another go!" Linda, unusually, wasn't amused.
I had given everyone short rations in the morning in the hope they'd be a bit more amenable at tea time. We quickly caught the first two piglets  - tucking into their food they weren't expecting to be picked up.  The remaining 7 became increasingly illusive and really tested our ingenuity, expecially when they ran in with the young boars. "I must have a rest" gasped Tony as he rushed, red-faced to collect another piglet from over yet another different fence and take it to the trailer.... (Well - we didn't want to make it easy for him again!). The last little gilt ran so fast at a hurdle that she got her head stuck in it and gave us all a few nasty moments until we managed to release her. Precious meanwhile just carried on eating her tea.
The remainder of the herd were well and truly noisy and excited. As an exercise in quietly catching piglets it was not our finest hour.
When they were finally all safely (and securely) esconced back in the barn we breathed a communal sigh of relief.
Then we went back out to the field to round up three girls who are leaving us tomorrow. It didn't go as smoothly as we'd have liked, the boss of the three giving us a few nasty moments when she decided not to load into the trailer with the other two but instead had a little run around. With a deft move from Tony at a critical moment though she got the message and joined her mates and tucked greedily into a good helping of tea.
More sighs of relief.
Three of us retired to the house for a refreshing drink while Linda carried on with the Tea ceremony.  Peace gradually returned;  everyone settled down.
Relief.