Warm Cozy Hay Beds

Today is definitely a day to spend in the sunshine. Sunshine OUT of the north wind. So glad that chance gave us a south and a north paddock. In the winter this little stretch is shielded from the coldest winds and bathed with midday sun.

While cleaning up the back paddock I came across some straw that would make a great ‘sleeping bag’. I have a love/hate relationship with straw beds. When it is c-c-c-c-cold I love to make up a warm cozy bed for the herd. When it snows, or rains, or if I leave it too long … it is a real pain to try to clean up. It freezes into the ground and sometimes doesn’t budge until April or May. Today I couldn’t resist. And then I had to push Bella from behind – almost such that her back feet went up in the air in resistance – to get her onto the straw. She was sleepy and not in the mood for moving. But then within a minute she put her nose down and discovered where she was.

While I worked I looked back… the sight of her smooging into the hay will be enough to keep me making hay beds this winter!