Winter Farm Chores

Here’s a little look at life on the farm these days. During the week, farm chores start before the sun comes up, but on the weekends the boys let me sleep in until 7:30 before they sound the alarm. A braying donkey is one of those things that gets your attention based solely on the fact that you can’t figure out what in the hell that noise is or what on earth could be making it.

It’s amazing.

So, I’ve settled into a nice routine for chores twice a day. In the morning it means rolling out of bed and putting my Carhartts and hat on over whatever pajamas I happen to be wearing, and then hauling water out to the barn…

haul_water

The boys go through about 10 gallons a day, and since they like to mix a little straw in with their water I always rinse out the water bucket in the morning…

changing_water

Then it’s mucking time. It’s hard not to be a little humbled when you start your morning shoveling shit, which I sometimes like to think of as “harvesting fertilizer”.

mucking

I joke about the shit-work, but I actually don’t find donkey manure unpleasant. That’s weird, right?  I mean, listen, it’s not like I want to dive face-first into a pile of it, but there are far worse things a girl could have to shovel in the morning.

Every couple of days I spread a little more clean straw for them as well.

bedding

Then it’s feeding time!

feeding

The hay I’ve got is a little rich for them, so I mix it with some straw as a filler. Right now they’re primarily eating hay (about a bale a week) but come summer they’ll just graze in the pasture.

And then, the best part of farm chores…

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Donkey hugs!

I make sure I’m spending a little time with them every day, just giving them some love. Parker is all in for hugs and being brushed, but Doc is still a little hesitant about things… he comes up to me, but keeps his ears back, which I believe is donkey for “I don’t know about you, lady, but I think you might have a carrot in your pocket.” Or, alternatively, “that is a ridiculous hat…”

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Eh? Dude may have a point.

But despite the fact that they’re still getting used to everything, the boys are still great with visitors. Especially pretty ladies like my Aunt, Grandma, and mom…

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And I found out late last week (when I was finally in the barn during the daylight) that they also had a visit from the farm fairies…

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Who, apparently, made a couple of new brushes to welcome their new friends home…

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I usually keep a sharp eye on those farm fairies to make sure they stay out of trouble, but this little gift was a surprise even to me.

That’s the thing about donkeys and magic… you just never know what’s going to happen next.

11 Responses

  1. Totally unrelated- how are you doing on your “Nailed It” project? Cant wait to see how awesome that looks!

  2. I’d like to request more donkey posts and updates as they make me happy.
    The fairy thing… I feel like I missed the train on this one. Cute, but I’m not getting it! Help?

  3. Things are really magical there! Love that the fairies leave the big house and visit the donkeys. Really sweet.

  4. The lush fur, those bright eyes…It really shows that you’re taking good care of your four-legged friends. Good job. 🙂

  5. I love your blog! I have been thinking about getting some mini donkeys… since you adopted babies the first time around and now the two rescues, what is the best route? I hear donkeys remember everything. I would love to rescue some but the babies are so cute and can be trained. Any advice? Thanks!

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