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I’m putting a ‘bookmark’ right here – April 1st – the FIRST day it truly felt like spring. Thank you sunshine. Thank you warm breezes – which turned into very strong warm winds!
The chickens were in seventh heaven. They kept finding great places to dig into warm dirt – and lounge in the sunshine.
I decided to tackle the deep bedding in the donkey barns today. I feel like I now have a good grasp of how to use a combination of wood chips and straw. That has meant far fewer deep cleans. The straw does a great job of catching manure – making it easy to rake up and out. It also lets the moisture soak down into the wood chips. I can find a perfectly dry looking patch of wood chips that cover a very wet bottom layer. The straw and the dry top layer makes a comfy bed for the donks. When I know we are going to have a stretch of bad weather I protect the deep bedding and clean the surface. Only when I see a stretch of sunshine coming do I then go at it and dig down deep to begin again with fresh bedding on the stall mats. The fresh set up isn’t as thick or cozy as the deep bedding can be. But … IT IS SPRING!
Rosie, Jill and Joker spent the entire day soaking up the sunshine on the knoll in the front paddock. It is raised and dries out much more quickly than the paddock itself. I put their hay up there today. They wandered back and forth from it – to the branches for nibbling – to the sand for rolling – and then to a spot out of the wind to sleep. I brush these guys every day. And the almost immediately go and find some good sand to roll in again! Ha!
I almost forgot! Look at this beautiful painting! Our friends Alyce and Ken gifted us with this gem yesterday morning. I was so excited I took down the old shelves, repainted the wall, hung new shelves and the painting and reset up the family photos all in one afternoon! Love that donkeys now greet people at our front door too!
Hope Spring shines in your neck of the woods again soon too!
The Meadow View 