December 2003

Phew!

50 turkeys is our limit! They take next to no looking after and are a delight to be with, but the dispatching, plucking, dressing and delivery is a mission, which we have once again accomplished (just the two of us) but has left us somewhat depleted on the energy stakes!

December started off pretty much like any other month. The animals are in and so we're on winter routine, feeding hay and silage to the cows, laying new bedding a couple of times a week, scraping out the yards, pumping out the sump so the back yard stays drained and all that...

A new addition at the beginning of December, and a testimony to our growing business success is our refrigerated van. We bought it from a farm nearby who used to use it for farmers markets and local deliveries and now has a very posh farm shop - Thornham Farm shop in Seend if you're passing, well worth a visit. We've had a couple of clashes on demand for the Shogun, our towing vehicle, when Mark's needed it to tow horses and I've needed it for a farmers market... the van has a tow bar, problem solved... and it's fun to drive and looks very professional. We've had various helping hands with removing the old sign writing and will get around to putting our own on... well... soon... we hope!

Our friend Alistair joined us for our Helping Hands weekend and he and Mark spent two days erecting the cold store we bought back in March. Although it's not fully functional, it served as a good, clean, cold enough, rat proof place to store the turkeys as they were prepared. We're in touch with a refrigeration engineer who can come and commission it for us after Christmas so we're on the way to being able to hang our own beef and prepare more of our own produce.

From mid month onwards, our lives stepped up several gears. The days were filled with turkey transformation, from the feathered creatures in the field to delicious centrepieces for 46 Christmas celebrations. The job is hard on us, physically and emotionally, but as with last year, although we recognised we could have passed it on to someone else, we felt that the birds knew us and the farm and at our hands they would experience less stress. With the help of Lorraine's training at Peels last month, it all went very smoothly and now our field lies quiet. There were some funny sights for which I wish I'd had a video to hand. At one point we had turkeys being rounded up by pigs and pigs being chased by geese. One goose actually got her beak onto the rump of a pig and was hanging on for dear life. wings a flapping, whilst the pig cavorted and pirouetted around the paddock after turkeys trying to shake her off!

On the 22^nd December at 8pm, Lorraine was quietly dressing the last of the turkeys in the barn when the cows broke out in a chorus of "moo-ing" with great gusto. In the midst of the noise there was a quiet "bleat", the sound of a new born calf and the chorus announced his arrival. I downed tools and went to find a soggy little package, steaming in the chill of the evening, being licked and nuzzled by his mum, Pattie. Isn't it amazing... this is her first born and she instinctively knows what to do, how to do it and it all happens in perfect timing. This is the first calf sired by Prospect, our ex-breed champion bull and we're very excited to see how he develops. The next day, he was up and about and looking VERY beautiful and fluffy. The cycle of life and death just goes round and around.

Christmas was a peaceful and restful time for us... we hope it has been one that you have enjoyed too. We once again give thanks for our lives here, for the opportunity to interact, learn and grow with the beings in our care and especially at this time of year we are grateful to the spirit of turkey for the gifts of joy and celebration.

Happy Christmas.