We hit the ground running when we get to the barn in the mornings, the sun is barely up, the roosters are contemplating crowing and the heron just heading to the pond for breakfast..... but when I open the huge barn door, 6 sets of equine eyes are watching, 6 horses are waiting impatiently for breakfast, each wanting to be first. Quest, our 19 hand Shire gelding stretches his head out of his stall to have his ears scratched, Lady takes the opportunity to scratch her butt on the wall, Hassan ( aka the Terrorist) does 30 circuits of his stall, Charm ( beauty with attitude) the golden palamino boots his door impatiently ( then ducks inside his stall because he knows there will be consequences). Towards the end of the barn, Doc hyperventilates and Apache the paint whinnies. Outside in her pasture, Destiny our beautiful old grey mare does a circuit of her hay feeder and whickers in anticipation.The local pigeon troop line up on the telephone wire watching...waiting for breakfast scraps that will surely come. Lamb Chop in his pen waits for footsteps and standing on his back legs lets out his unique Aaaaaaaagh, ( not BAaaaaa). Multifunctioning, I raise the flags (making sure they are both the right way up ...can get a bit embaressing when they aren't !!!) in their field beside the flag pole, Molly Moo, Dolly and Macho sidle up for the treats they know I will be carrying and the chickens loudly skwaking, follow the wheelbarrow along the fenceline piled up like multicoloured dominoes. In their pen, the rabble of turkeys set up a chorus and line up to beat the buckets to their feeder, Thanksgiving and Christmas luckily far from their turkey minds. The goats are bleating pleadingly to be first, the sheep baaa and fresh from the dew filled pasture, the Black Angus cattle bellow for attention. In the warmth of the barn the 3 cats, Tiger Shy and Lucky check out their food bowls, with a bit of luck they will, by magic have been refilled, mouse hunting is tiring work. The dawn farm chorus fills the air( sorry neighbours !) and only silences when buckets and feeders are empty and discarded. All is calm, all is still, we can take time to breathe again. .....at least it's not raining, snowing., stormy...there's always tomorrow. Take care. M
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