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Some thoughts on living and working in France and conversations with my sheep! |
| This is a journal of the present but will also include reflections on the past 15 years which is the time I have been living in France.I hope it will generally be upbeat and amusing but as it is real life there will be some sad times aswell.I dont know yet how to include WritingML tags so my Journal will be unspiced for the time being! This is the first item I have posted in my Portfolio so I hope it will get better as I become more relaxed. |
| Still having problems sleeping, although the past few nights have been a little better so I am hoping that my Homeopathic remedies are starting to have some effect. I haven't had the energy to do a Blog entry, but I hope that soon I may get round to finishing my Pig story . I am going to England for a few days before Chistmas to see my children and grandchildren and so won't be able to log on for the time I am away.  I want to wish everyone on WDC a very Happy Christmas and fruitful New Year.  Hope you like the seasonal photo although I'm afraid the birds in question are no longer with us. Everybody say Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaagh. But be assured the end was quick and painless. ** Images For Use By Upgraded+ Only **    |
| I should have finished the Pig story by now but I suffer with insomnia and recently it's been getting worse. Some days I am just too tired to think straight. Two weeks ago I saw a Homeopath/Acupuncteur and I am on a three month course of Homeopathic remedies. It always takes a while for natural remedies to start working, and quite often you feel worse before you feel better. I am going through the feeling worse stage at the moment. I am hopeful that in a week or two the remedies will start to kick in. In the meantime I will do what I can and hope that those of you who have made kind comments about my blog entries will still pop in from time to time to see whether I have managed anything new. I really do need to improve my typing aswell as it takes me ages to do just a short entry.  Again the lack of concentration makes it harder. Anyway enough moaning. Back soon I hope. |
| Oh dear, half way through this entry on Pigs and I press the wrong button. Oh I do hate computers Off I go again. In the Spring of 1997 we decided to have a Pig. Other half liked the idea so why not. As with all our animal acquisitions [as you will know from previous items] first thing is Buy a Book. Pig Breeding by Numbers seemed to fit the bill so off we go. We found a local farmer who kept free range pigs and he had a litter due. We asked various locals about keeping pigs and they all agreed that as we were having them from 8 weeks old we might well lose one. So we decided to have 3, one to eat, one to keep for breeding from and a SPARE!!!!! We collected our 3 piglets in April and the first thing we learnt about pigs is that they squeal as soon as you look at them, and if you actually touch them it's as if WW3 has started. It's quite unnerving as it sounds like a Slaughter house. The race we had chosen is a local breed which comes in a variety of colours. Daisy is the spotty one,Maisy the black one and Rosy the pink one. ** Images For Use By Upgraded+ Only ** ** Images For Use By Upgraded+ Only ** These photos were taken when thy were about 3/4 months old. We started with them in an old stone pigsty and as soon as they were used to us we started putting them in a small courtyard outside during the day. As you can see from the photos we had no health problems at all, and very quickly had 3 very hungry mouths to feed  This meant that we would have 2 pigs to eat. At about 4 months old we fenced off a large enclosure in one of our fields using electric fencing, made a temporary shelter using straw bales and corrugated iron sheets. Then came the tricky problem of how to move them. They still didn't like to be touched so we ended up herding them into a stockbox and driving them into the field. We were then able to drop the ramp over the electric fence and drive them straight into their new home. And very happy they were too. They spent the whole Summer ploughing the ground up and eating vast amounts of food. With the promise of free range pork all our friends were delivering all their food scraps,at times we felt like Oxfam,but the pigs revelled in their varied diet. And as it got hotter they would have their daily bath 3 pigs and a hose pipe is a delight to see.But all good things must come to an end and the time arrived to call in the BUTCHER. We are lucky in having a retired Butcher who comes to the farm to slaughter for our own consumption. Now the BOOK comes on the scene. Having never dealt with a pig before we did not know what to expect so we read the book. It appeared that we would need a very large oil drum full of nearly boiling water and the means of lowering a large dead pig into it in order to remove the bristles. This gave me nightmares as I could'nt for the life of me see how it could be done. And how was the Butchter going to kill the pig, the book said with a sharp knife, and I could imagine the noise the pig would make.. I had many sleepless nights until the day came. We had put one of the pigs back in the pigsty and the most difficult part of the whole operation turned out to be putting a rope on the pigs back leg. We then lead her outside with a tempting apple and the Butcher used a Captive Bolt gun to kill her instantly. No pain no squeals just dead. And to get rid of the bristles he used a gas powered very large blow torch. I had spent days worrying for nothing because of that Book. We ended up with the most delicious pork I have ever tasted from what had been a very happy pig right up to the end. The same fate was reserved for the second pig. And that left Daisy our spotty pig that we hoped to breed from, but thats another story. |
This is in response to a comment made on my last blog by alfred booth, wanbli ska   I hope it was tongue in cheek but just in case it wasn't I thought I would give you a first insight into what it's like to be a Shepherd. At the moment we have just 65 ewes and no lambs. So far this year we have had them shorn, this takes four hours of hard labour. Each ewe has to be turned on her back and presented to the shearer he doesn't move so the sheep have to brought to him. Each ewe weighs about 70/80 kgs. My husband and I do this by ourselves. The night before the shearer comes we have to get the ewes into our barn and this is not always easy as they tend to have minds of their own and it took us several hours before they were safely tucked up for the night!! Wormed all sheep twice, again all have to be got into the building. Feet trimmed once although we have recently had to trim some feet again. This is done in the sheep turner but we still have to manhandle the ewe into the turner. This Summer we have had a drought so we have been very short of grazing. This meant we were having to feed hay in August. And filling their water troughs every day. And the sheep escaped a few times as they tried to find some grass. So fencing on more than one occasion. Hay making in June we make small bales which are easier to handle especially for me but bringing them in and stacking them is really hard work. And never believe anyone who talks about the fun of frolicking in the hay it scratches like hell !!!! And I suffer from Hay fever but that's another story. I think I have perhaps mentionned the lovely October we have been experiencing but even that has caused us problems with the sheep. We have had 6 ewes with Fly strike i.e. maggots that burrow into their flesh and literally eat them alive, if not caught early the ewe will die an awful death. Luckily we spotted all ours quickly and they all fine now, but this is only because we check them carefully every day. This takes time!! And with any animals they cannot be left, so no spur of the minute trips away for us. And I am responsible for their well-being, only yesterday we bought two of the ewes down to a home paddock as they have been losing weight. I am not sure what the problem is yet but they will stay close at hound while I keep an eye on them. Then of course there is the work on maintaining the fields in good condition, rolling, harrowing, topping to name but a few jobs. These are all the easy jobs because I haven't mentionned LAMBING!!!!! I could use a lot of words to describe being a Shepherd but CALM & SIMPLE aren't amongst them. What I can say is that I wouldn't have missed the last 15 years for anything, and we are only retiring from sheep to give us more freedom. We are not stopping working entirely. Well I feel much better for getting that off my chest. My next blog will be about Pigs before sharing some of my sheep memories.  |
| We have just come back from a long weekend at our house near Carcasonne, it was good to get away even for a few days. As always we have to get our friends to come in twice a day to look after the animals. So we don't like to be away for long as it seems like an imposition on them, although they always insist that they don't mind. We took some odds and ends of furniture and bits and pieces to start what will be a long process of packing and clearing the house. We have not even had an offer yet but it seems sensible not to leave it all to the last minute. It also makes it easier to keep the house tidier if there is less clutter!!! Now we are back home and feeling just a bit sad that our move to pastures new is as far away as ever. I am trying to motivate myself to get on with a writing project that I have started but it's hard. I often read how writers can't find enough time for their writing but in my case at the moment I have too much time!!!!!! Since we are semi-retired from farming there is much less to do either with the animals or on the land and instead of having too much to do I feel a bit lost with too much time on my hands. I have to make an adjustment in the way I spend my time and so far it hasn't been easy.Why are we never satisfied with what we have? I do know how lucky I am and I am just a bit down after the weekend. On a more positive note, and I am most of the time, there is an abundance of mushrooms in the wood, more than I have ever seen before. Perhaps another indicator of a hard Winter to come. I have picked lots of Parasol mushrooms and yesterday I found a treasure trove of Ceps. This is a much sort after mushroom so I was delighted to find them. I have stored some in olive oil to enjoy in the winter months, the rest we had sauteed in butter with some pasta. It seems that even when I feel a bit down I only have to take a walk in the fields or woods to see something to cheer me up. And it's free and on my doorstep. I have noticed in some of the other blogs that I visit that several of them have been talking about relating their memories. As so often happens I stumble across the very sentiment that has been on my mind. This blog was meant to be the Musings of a Shepherd so I need to get back to my original idea before I forget all that has happenned to me over the past 15 years. So if you can bear with me watch this space. And now for my first emoticom!!! I hope it works.!!!! |
| Every morning the first thing I do is to walk my dogs in our woods, we have about four hectares and it is probably what I shall miss most when we move. This morning was no different but I just thought I would take the time to describe what I saw. This summer we have had another drought and the wood has suffered again, many of the smaller trees have died and will need to be felled, as our heating runs on wood this is not a problem. Also the grass died back and the wood was quite depressing to look at. Over the last few weeks we have had a reasonable amount of rain and the grass has come through and it looks greener and healthier. However the overall impression is of a wood under pressure, we hope that a couple of years of normal weather will restore the wood to its former glory. When I first came to France I did a Forestry course in order to learn how best to manage our wood. Since then we have been progressively thinning out the weaker trees to allow the better trees to thrive. The soil is quite poor so it is important to reduce the density. We have also aimed to leave wild areas where the wildlife can be undisturbed although with the local hunt this is not always possible!! So on any morning it is possible to see deer, red squirrels, hares, wild boor,and a wide variety of birds. This morning I was just pleased to enjoy the peace and quiet, a few birds singing, a tractor in the distance probably ploughing, and to see what was new. Today there were plenty of Parasol mushrooms and the berries on the Holly trees are beginning to turn red. There are also lots of fruits on the wild Crab apple and Medlar trees. I think an old proverb says that when there is a lot of fruit on the trees then the winter will be hard. We have not had a really cold winter for a long time so perhaps we are due one!! I really enjoy the changing seasons and could not imagine living anywhere without the four seasons. Each time of the year has for me something to commend it but the wood is at it's most beautiful in the Spring. But it can also be magical on a cold Autumn morning when the hoar frost highlights the spider webbs, the droplets of water glinting like jewels in the pale Autumn sun. Because I have a limited amount of time left to enjoy my mornings in the wood I want to make the most of them. I take lots of photos and have started to write down things that inspire me. If ever I feel depressed then a walk in the woods is an excellent pick me up. I know how lucky I am. |
| My last entry was on 15th May it is now 17th September and I have been telling myself to get back to my blog for sometime.What has kept me silent for so long? Partly the feeling I had nothing much to say and a fairly life changing decision we took in April. We have put our farm on the market and are intending to retire to the house we bought last year. We had already decided last year not to have any lambs this year and in view of the weather we have had this year we are very relieved. You might think that with less to do with the animals I would have more time for writng and other leisure activities. However when you put your house up for sale you suddenly become aware of all the jobs that need finishing!!! And you have to keep the place clean and tidy which has never been one of my favorite pastimes. This can leave you with the feeling of being in limbo. Having made the decision to leave then everything you do has that at the back of your mind. To date we had have plenty of interest for our little piece of heaven but no offers and I have come to realize that life cannot revolve around viewings and I made a conscious decision at the end of August to get back to normal. I'm not totally sure what normal is anymore but I do know that it's very easy to get sucked into a downward spiral of inactivity when there are less constraints on how you spend your time. For this reason I have set myself a number of targets. One of these is to get my blog back on track, another is to do some more reviewing. I know from some of the blogs I read that I am very lucky in the life I lead although I to have my own family problems. I think you just have to get on with life as it presents itself. Making the most of every day is how I am trying to approach my life at the moment. I expect to add a blog perhaps once a week with some reminiscences of my years as a sheep farmer and whatever is happening on the home front. |
** Images For Use By Upgraded+ Only ** Over the last couple of days we have been foot trimming, worming and dagging all of our sheep. The photo shows our sheep turner, complete with sheep to model it, which is probably the most useful piece of equipment we have bought over the past years of farming. When we first started we had to physically turn each sheep over, then trim their feet which required leaning over the animal, this was back breaking work and very tiring. As the size of our flock increased it became our most dreaded job. At a Sheep show we visited we saw a sheep turner being demonstrated, it seemed to be the answer to one of our most difficult jobs. As these pieces of equipment are quite expensive I decided that I needed to try it first to make sure that it was as easy as it looked. As was always the case 10 or so years ago I would be the only woman asking questions or demanding demos, so it was with some trepidation that I stepped up to the man who was handling the equipment. I could feel all the farmers looking at me as he showed me what to do. I succeded in pushing the sheep into the turner and then pulled the various levers that lock the ewe in position, and then with a bit of effort I managed to swivel the ewe back into the work postion. It was after that demo that we bought our own sheep turner and could not imagine having to do 70 or more ewes without it. Admittedly we still have something of a struggle to get some of the bigger ladies in, we really must put them on a diet!! However you can see from the photo that once they are in they are quite calm and it actually makes trimming their feet much quicker for all concerned. At the same time as the pedicure they also received a routine worming, this is carried out three times a year. The least pleasant of the jobs we had to do was the dagging, this involves cutting away "dirty" wool from around their tails. Luckily there weren't too many and they will all be shorn in a few weeks time. Dagging is neccessary at this time of year to avoid "Fly strike" a very unpleasant problem that can occur before shearing. Basically a particular type of fly lays its eggs in the wool and these turn into maggots which feed on the animal. They can also affect their feet which is why we have to keep them trimmed. Often the first indication of "Fly strike" is when the ewe becomes depressed and stops eating and often moves away from the flock. It can take several weeks of care to get the animal back on form so it is obviously better to avoid the problem if at all possible. I am glad they are all done now as my husband has gone to England for the week and I don't want any nasty surprises while he is away. |
| Yesterday was Market day in our nearest town,about 15 kms from here. We try to go each week as it gets us out to meet people and we like buying local produce whenever we can. French markets are always worth a visit wherever you are in the country as each one will have its own unique flavour of the region. Our local market is spread throughout the centre of the town with two main areas of stalls. The first and largest part is in the front of the Town hall[a fine XV1th century chateau]the stalls here are mainly clothing,footwear,handicrafts,leathergoods and a few miscellaneous goods. The second area includes the Market hall which is also a fine building, the stalls here are devoted to food. Fresh fruit and vegetables complete with dirt! Locally produced cheeses[mainly Goat's],butchers vans with their home reared meats and charcuterie,Oysters fresh from the coast and of course the rotisserie with the devine smell of spit roasting chickens assailing the nostrils. It's such a civilised way to do the shopping, the stall holders always have time to pass the time of day with their customers, you know that you are helping the local economy and will quite often meet up with friends for a coffee or a glass of wine in one of the bars/cafes. It is also an excellent way to pick up ideas for writing. Sitting at a pavement cafe watching the world go by is a very pleasant way to spend time. It is interesting to see the groups of men[ retired farmers] who can out talk any women I know, I suppose for most of them who come from isolated farms this is their main opportunity to catch up on the news/gossip. You see very few young people,other than tourists, presumably because they are at work. We feel lucky that we now have a bit more time to enjoy the pleasures of the weekly market. |
| Every morning I take my two dogs for a walk in our woods. At this time of year the ground beneath the trees is carpeted with Bluebells. It is a truly beautiful sight and a wonderful way to start the day and I just wanted to share the experience. The simple pleasures offered to us by Nature are pretty hard to beat. ** Images For Use By Upgraded+ Only ** I hope this inspires anyone who looks in on my blog. I haven't really decided what direction my blog is taking yet but I don't think I am the only member of WDC with this predicament. I am still feeling my way and would ask for your indulgence while I choose a direction! |
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... as long as you occasionally moan here. I do check in but I've been overwhelmed this past month. My bronchitis is getting better and my spirits are okay today. Some days that is as good as it gets. Get thee well.