Another Cold Day

Much of my day has been spent with extra chores because of the cold weather.  The water troughs all had a thick coat of ice.  I was able to remove one sheet in a single piece so I leaned it up against the edge of the trough to take a picture.  Sadie was excited about a drink that didn't have to be sucked from the edge of the ice.

One of the goats found a nice warm spot where the sun was reflecting off the end of the chicken shed.  As she warmed up, some little annoying bug must have gotten more active also as she was scratching with those wonderful horns.

So much of the interesting green things to eat have withered away for the winter so the chickens are even more excited about the prep scraps that the Hyatt saves for us.  Chickens are not known for their smarts but they sure have figured out that when one of us comes out with the big black can there will be good eats.   They follow from quite a distance and then can barely wait while we prepare to dump the can.  These are not hungry birds; they walked away from the full feeders to see what I might have.  This load was mostly melon rinds and some slightly wilted herbs.  That looks pretty good when the pastures are dry for winter.

The last thing I did before coming in at noon was to stuff a new bed to go into a dog house.  Mollie, our German Shorthaired Pointer, and Amanda, a cross-breed dog from the pound, share a large dog house that already had a nice blanket but I laid awake in bed last night wondering if the two old dogs were cold.  This morning I found an old sheet, filled it with one of the extra fleeces from the stable and tied it all into a cozy cushion.  I shoved it in the dog house to the delight of Mollie who was the first in.  Amanda waited patiently while Mollie sniffed and then began stomping the bed into place.  As I walked back to fill another trough, I noticed both snuggled down in their wooly new bed.

A cold day makes the simple outdoor chores longer but the sky is still a beautiful blue and it is hard to complain about much.  Especially when I can return to the house to curl up with my cup of tea and a little knitting.