Merry meanderings #14 Movin' Two Fat Ladies...

Keeping an eye on piglets - 2008

 "All my pals does know that my second most important job is mindin piggies: whenever there be 'things to do with piggies' goin on, you will find me there in the thick of it.
Yesterday was a case in point. The peeps was off to fetch two young ladies from what they calls a "custodian" - that is a peep who do love pigs and looks after them from when they leave their mummies till they go on their final journey.
There was no way I was gonna stay home, tho' She did try to make me do that. But the sun was not shinin' so I did win the toss and off we did go. It was a long journey, made worse cos of roadworks but eventually we did get 'there'. As usual, the peeps had told the custodian not to feed the piggies for 24 hours. Usually this do make the piggies more amenable to the idea of gettin' in the trailer - they gets bribed with food and we all know how powerful that is as a way of gettin us to do things we might otherwise not do.

Two fat ladies 24-7-15 Wrong side of gate as usual

Well it did not look good.
The piggies was asleep in their ark when we arrived.
"They do sleep a lot" said the custodian as she went off to fetch the feed-trough; "but they always come when they see food!"
I settled down to watch the fun. "Those pigs goin nowhere fast" I said to myself.
I was right.
Linda did go and give them a nudge and slowly they did lumber out of their ark; and slowly they did lumber after the trough.
I larfed tho cos they did not want to get into the trailer - food or no food.
My Person did not larf: she did look at the piggies as if She not able to believe her eyes:
"Goodness, they are huge.. they are so big they look just like the old Lincolnshire Curly Coat pig!"
The custodian lady did look a little embarrassed at this: "Are they really too big?" She did say. She did not get an answer - least not that I did hear and there be nothin wrong with my ears.....
The hairiest lady did lie down and go to sleep; she clearly was not hungry. But the part-still-woolly one was clearly even more not-hungry cos she did drift away, thinkin' to go back to sleep in her ark.
She was not allowed to do that. The peeps did gather hurdles and 'encourage' her to turn back in direction of the trailer. She was very slow to do so.
The hairier piggie, in the meantime, did decide maybe she had room for a little morsel and did shuffle slowly in the direction of the trailer.  Her sisfur did decide to go with her. But when she got close she did change her mind and swing away again leavin the hairy one to shuffle into the trailer, where she did happily spend a lot of time slowly eatin' her food.

Trailer looks a bit small......

And then it did get interestin cos the not so hairy one did not want to go to the trailer. I think I could have herded her in but the peeps not let me (a) cos these piggies was huge (did squish Linda's foot when it got under a trotter) and might flatten me and (b) cos She not want me runnin around on account I runs out of breath easily these days.
The big fat piggie could not run, but if a pig don't wanna go - a pig don't go. And this one not wanna go nowhere. I did watch as the peeps did make a hurdle pen round the piggie and gradually persuade her that she really did want to go into the trailer. It was a very slow  thing to do but nothin faster could be done cos the piggie did take much persuadin.

Two fat ladies finally together in the trailer

If you wanna know what piggies do teach peeps it is Patience. That also why I able to sit still and wait so well - I has been tort by the piggies these past 8 years. Never chase a piggie - it never do what you want then.
I digress.
Back to yesterday
After very much slow patient urgin with the hurdles the fat piggie did get inched, and I do mean inched, into the trailer - without takin a grain of food. The hairy pig had got so fed up, in both ways, that she had long ago lay down and fallen asleep.
The peeps was much relieved when the 2nd piggie did get in the trailer and they did shut the doors.

Just had to check they was both inside.....

I went to make sure they was both inside - the second piggie was lookin to see if any food was left now but the first piggie did hog the lot. Not a grain was there. No wonder she was fast asleep.
So the second piggie did lie down - it was a tight squeeze - and go to sleep too.
Good thing it summer otherwise I don't think the Big Boss could have got that trailer out of the field with all that heavy pig in it....... Anyway, we did all get back in the car for the journey home with the piggies snorin away in the trailer......

Job done - Goin home now.....

It was a slow journey and the peeps did keep their paws crossed that the Big Boss did not have to stop on a hill cos they did not think the car strong enough to pull up from stop... ! But we did get home safely.
And when we wanted to let the piggies out of the trailer to go into the barn... they did not move. When I went with Her to check the anipals before bedtime, they were still asleep. And this morning they were still asleep. And this afternoon too.....
Their custodian lady was far to kind to them - she did feed them till all they want to do is sleep.  And then sleep some more.....
Not like all our piggies here ... but that another story......