I recently added a second level onto my ex pen. The pigs only get little bits of time in it so it takes awhile for a full rotation of the caviary—they’re cautious at first-- but I think they’re all comfortable in it now.

Today it was a turn for Posy and her two half-grown sow offspring. They were in there a little over an hour—about the time it takes me to completely clean a few cages, water and feed everyone and clean up.

Well had they had me laughing so hard. No one’s done this to date. Usually they NASCAR in circles around the lower level, and every now and then one will venture “upstairs,” check it out and come back down. I have a Texel sow who likes to nap up there after exercising, probably because it’s covered in fleecy fur rather than the toweling on the base level.

Well today—and all three of them did it the same way at least once I’m pretty sure— the pattern was zip in a circle around the hut “downstairs,” then run up the ramp at full speed, spin around at the top and zip back down again, another lap around the hut and back up the ramp and repeat. They were all doing this at once—and Posy is 2 1/2!   

They had the fleece at the top of the ramp all kicked up they whirled around so fast. Every now and then someone running up would run into someone coming down and it’s a tight squeeze, but they barely paused the MPH. OMG I was in stitches.

I cleaned pigs, carried out two 50-lb tubs of litter, then carried in a bag of shavings and four 40-lb bags of pellets and that was it. I'm pooped. The other six bags of pellets, 50 lbs of chicken feed, 100 lbs of cavy-lets and one bag of shavings are gonna have to wait. This is why I don't use the pickup. My RAV is like a mobile feed shed LOL.

I was very happy to see my Teddy sow Alyssum had the single baby I knew she was carrying.

Alyssum is nearly all white with red and black eye patches. She has excellent conformation and coat, which is why I kept her despite her being mismarked. She's almost 2 and has had some nice babies. Allium, her daughter, is a very nice brindle who had babies a couple days ago.

I noticed this baby looked all white so I picked him up. If I didn't raise primarily roans I'd probably never even think to look, because Alyssum is a TSW, not a roan. She had been bred to a roan though. So I checked his teeth. Twice. Damn! NO teeth at all. I examined his eyes. They didn't seem unusually small, but were very red underneath, almost like a cherry eye. He was very docile, but then again he was only a couple hours old at best. Definitely a lethal. He was immediately euthanized.

I felt bad for Alyssum. She is a very good mom. One of Allium's three babies is a golden agouti, a color I don't care for and never keep, and to top it off he has a pinstripe blaze. Definitely not a keeper. I plopped him in with Alyssum. He immediately snuggled under her. What's he care? She's got two teats!

Alyssum seemed a bit taken aback. I'd removed a familiar-smelling white baby and gave back a dark funny-smellng one. Better clean all that off him, she apparently thought, LOL. He got a good tough-love cleaning for awhile but she seemed to accept him.

Later she went to the front of the cage and left him behind and he cried a bit. I think he probably missed having sibs around him. But he'll be well-fed. Then he went to find her and she stopped eating and went back to him. I guess they've bonded pretty well. Gotta love piggies for that. On any other day they might beat the pants off another sow, but give em a newbie and instinct kicks in and they'll clean the heck out of it and snuggle it. Of course this isn't 100 percent with every sow, but close enough that I didn't have to watch these two for very long.

I probably should have back-bred Alyssum but I just didn't get around to it. She'll have a bit of a break.

What's nice about this arrangement is that even if I forget whose kid this is, being as how he (or she, I haven't actually sexed it) is a mismark, it'll go for a pet without a pedigree anyway so it doesn't matter. I WILL make note of it though.

I had a mom die after giving birth last year and I gave her baby to another sow to raise. She'd had all boys and after they left home I kept the two sows togehter and I had to continually check and remember whose baby it actually was. You think you'd be safe raising mostly tri roans and brindles but this past year I've had several look very much alike. I had to tag all the suckers at weaning before I mixed them up. I even noted a couple ear tags on my Web site as another backup.

Or maybe I'm just getting old, LOL.

So what does everyone think of our new Web site?

http://NYSCF.net

Our company, VentureWise Design designed and maintains it for the club in our free time. I think it looks very professional and contemporary. I still have a lot of little details to tweak though, and since it's done mostly on "free time" (THERE's an oymoron, eh?) everyone has to be more patient. But since it does represent VentureWise we try always to do a professional job, and not take TOO long.

I got the Auburn show photos up last night even though I had a rotten headache and didn't need to be staring at the computer after 8 hours of it, steady. **Pats self on back** Hee hee, such a martyr.

I just got an e-mail that tomorrow night I have to copy edit a business magazine. Uck. I actually like the work but it's nice on those nights I DON'T have to edit, and the 'zine is I think the longest publication I regularly edit. So it can be hard to fit stuff in sometimes.

On that gallery page, I think I am going to delete all but the first row and maybe add directions that you click on the thumbnail to go to an album--is that obvious or do you think it needs directions?

Then I'll add an album or two by year of some past shots that are all over the place on my harddrive right now.

And I gotta get working on that breeders directory! I want to link it both here and to the NYSCF site.