Precious Open Day

There we were on Saturday morning, rearranging the furniture and generally getting organised for the Open Day: and there was Precious collecting all manner of branches and sticks and leaves and hay and rearranging the furnishings inside the ark.

"It'll be today or tomorrow" said The Boss "she's just getting everything organised"

And then at breakfast time on Sunday she was at it again: so much so that I broke a load of low hanging branches off one of the ash trees in the Poultry pen and dropped them inside Precious' area: in no time at all she'd scooped them up and lumbered over to her ark, where she busily arranged them to make a cosy nest. And when she wasn't arranging the nest she was grovelling around in her wallow in an effort to cool down. The Boss says when the young ones are imminent, the sow's body temperature rises by a couple of degrees...... So, the time was definitely drawing close.....

And we continued to busy ourselves with arrangements for the Open Day. Guests arrived: supped, chatted and chewed and visited pigs. Precious attended a couple of the 'Meeting the pigs' sessions but then retired for a Siesta. We thought.

When almost everyone had gone home Linda went to feed the porcine herd...... and excitedly (slightly Big Grin on face), though really quite restrained nonetheless, strolled back to where a few of us were just finishing off the odd glass or nibble and quietly said:

"Looks like eight or nine! Just like that. No fuss or jumping around. Just "Possibly five or six white and two or three red" so we all carried on chewing and sipping and said "Well, fancy that: isn't that nice...." and then agreed that we should "leave Precious to it" - well, that's a lot of little bodies to get used to all in one go........ Anyway, I think she decided "Two's normal (that's what she had last time) but everyone else says 6 or 7 is normal so I'd better have them too"!!!!

She's been very protective: her nest includes a wonderful straw stack in one back corner and when she's out eating or wallowing the little ones tumble around on and in and over it. I was trying to get close enough to take some photos yesterday but, after a few moments, Precious came across and poked her considerable snout between my knees and very gently - but firmly - pushed me away from the ark. So fuzzy pictures is all we have for now...... But I'm sure she'll let me get closer later in the week......