Merry Christmas!

"We wish you a Merry Christmas, we wish you a Merry Christmas, 

we wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year..."

Santa is flying around the world; his reindeer working as hard as they can and people wake up to presents and joy. In our stable everyone wakes up to Monty and his backup caller. From being a one-man show, Monty has inspired young Eric to join in on the morning calls. Eric has his father’s gusto and strength but unfortunately, so far, he seems to be tone deaf. He just yells a lot as his answer, to the older man in the lead. Not the nicest way to wake up on Christmas morning. Mindy, Mandy, Molly and My are giving then stern looks and all the hens step aside, thinking not so Christmassy thoughts about the two callers. My input is to provide corn, as that stops the noise.

There's something magical about animals at Christmas. They seem to sense the pace slowing down, the songs in your step and the fact that stockings are being filled with goodies, just for them. The four M's get an extra grooming, hens popping in to help out with clearing away any leftover wool and Monty takes a break from being, Monty. We think of friends no longer with us and Molly distributes extra hugs, as it’s a special morning. We don't have to do any big seasonal cleaning, just a normal tidy up and the day can start. The animals always live in clean condition. But with decorations up and some music on, even cleaning feels festive. And then the day begins...

Credit: Dasha Dimitrova

Mr. Chip likes his Christmas tree, his treats and the fact that everyone is at home. When all of his people stay in one place, that's his sort of celebration, right there. His dearest person is missing this year but as I keep telling him, he's here, in our hearts. Mr. Chip probably can't hear so much of the music playing in the background but he can certainly smell the food cooking. He helps out by tripping us up by standing on our feet, staring intensely at the food and by commenting loudly when it all gets too exiting. 

He also joins us at the graveyard where he greets everyone, in his shy, friendly way. The graveyard still provides a squirrel or two to chase and that is probably high quality seasonal entertainment for a terrier. "Candles lit and squirrels stressed, we can go home to a nice lunch ", he then tells us.

The birds, living in the forest get their Christmas treats early in the morning, as the amount of daylight is limited. They need to eat as much as they can in the short time available in order to survive the long, cold nights. Our own squirrel friends are not forgotten and will probably put on even more weight, over the holidays.

My dear husband is singing, cooking and generally being himself. Clearing snow and checking roads and doing what needs to be done, even at Christmas.

I feel, as long as the reindeers keep flying, my husband keeps singing and the animals are happy there is hope. Hope for happiness to all and everyone and that good things will happen to the world at large.

We want to wish all and everyone a Very, Merry Christmas!, from all of us at Stoneback farm.

Text by Nina

Next blog post on the 3rd January 2016!



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Christmas Greetings

Merry Christmas to you all!
Love and Best Wishes from all of us at
Stoneback Farm.

Christmas around the corner.

Not long now, before Santa Claus arrives and Molly can't wait! As sheep don't really have much use for small trinkets, Molly suspects that her stocking will contain something eatable. That, in her book is a perfect beginning of the festive season.

The hens are a bit cool about the whole thing. Decorations in the stable are fine, as long as they can reach them. First I try out places for a few bits and pieces and then the hens come along and finish the job. This means that most of the decorations end up hidden in the hen house. So I have to see that some festive cheer can actually be seen by our dear sheep, throughout the holiday season.

This year I thought to make some decorations for the hens, mainly using seeds and straw. We will see how it goes. That way I don't have to worry that Lina ends up eating satin ribbons. She would, if she could get hold of them... I also learned, last year, that decorations should not be up before the night before Christmas, so they might stand a chance of seeing Christmas.

I cleared out everything from the henhouse, filled it with new, clean sawdust, straw and hay as to be sure it stays fresh through the colder months. That plus dusting the whole stable and washing the walls took up half a day, but it looked wonderful when its was finished. Having hens anywhere near a clean, tidy area means that within 24 hours, it all looks the same again. Homey, they tell me, but at least without all the dust. The hens now have a big wooden box full of sand for bathing in and nibbling at, and we have extra sand to fill up with, later in the year. Hens need sand for digesting their food, as well as for keeping clean and healthy. As you can tell, we are getting ready for winter and for Santa. (I will try and have a small Christmas tree for the hens this year. We will see how long it lasts...).

Credit: Dasha Dimitrova

I decided not to support the palm oil industry, after visiting Durrell zoo last summer. As many of us do, I knew about the rainforest and the animals, but looking into the eyes of a beautiful orangutan makes it more real. So since August, our home has been a palm oil free zone. It's appalling how many food products you can't buy if you avoid palm oil. It's also surprising how healthy you get! As a dear friend pointed out to me, the stuff you do eat tastes better. And it's true! Palm oil is not only killing the rain forests, it's unhealthy to eat and should be avoided at all cost. I noticed that our cookies tend to be a bit boring, the chocolate of higher quality and the baked goods from small, local bakery's. In order to use palm oil, the taste has to be killed with something else.... Boring cookies it is and now we have our home made ginger bread sheep cookies to eat. Made with real butter! So next time I meet an orangutan, I can honestly say that I'm trying to help out.

Mr. Chip is looking forward to the holiday season, he tells me. People tend to eat more, children spill food and there are presents. "What more can you want, being a dog with an healthy appetite?". There is also a nice smelling Christmas tree in the house.

Last year I went out in a tiny snowstorm to find a Christmas tree for our home and one for our sheep to nibble on. I found a beautiful, lush tree for us, and a wonky, bushy tree for our stable friends. I was in a bit of a hurry and Mindy, Mandy, Molly and My got theirs first. They were very impressed and started munching away. When our tree had thawed my dear husband asked if I was feeling all right? I was a bit miffed by the question until I saw our tree. No wonder the four M’s were pleased. Our Christmas tree was wonky, bushy but beautiful all the same. And it got a bit more decorations than we usually put up. It still smelled as nicely as the one being eaten by happy sheep.

This year I am apparently not collecting our Christmas tree. But I already know which one the sheep will get. It's a beauty.

P.s. Mr. Chip went to a specialist to show his leg. As long as we can manage with his leg being slightly loose in limbs and ligaments we can carry on as usual. An operation may loom in the distance, but fingers crossed.

Text by Nina

Next blog post on the 27th December.


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Where did the daylight go?

The days are getting shorter as we are weeks away from Christmas. This makes looking after our hens a very mathematical challenge. Monty likes to stand at daybreak and call the world to order. The fact that no daylight turns up before nine in the morning makes him confused. This means that some mornings you can hear him tooting away at 6am, some mornings you wake him up at eight. When that happens he gets very embarrassed and overcompensates and his voice brakes. Monty has grown a lot this autumn and is now a handsome cockerel but he still tends to sound like Tarzan, at times.

Having a chick in the house is fun but when it's a mixed breed it's difficult to know if it's a boy or a girl. With our Little Beep it's been a guessing game, back and forth, back and forth and when we finally decided that it's Lisbet we were happy to add a hen to our flock, so to speak. So to show us how wrong we usually are, Lisbet grew massively in one week and Eric it is. To really drive home the truth, Little Beep's voice broke so now our little chick sounds like a beeping drum. We have two cockerels in the house and all we can do is hope for the best.

Credit: Dasha Dimitrova

Monty does not seem to mind as he follows Lina around, telling her what a beautiful hen she is. This takes up most of his day and Lina is getting used to it, a bit. She pecks him when he walks too close to her but most of the day she is fine with it. Last night when I said goodnight to them Monty was not in his usual place, on his bed in the sheep pen. I looked for him, thinking he might have fallen down in to the hay (he can do that...) but then saw that he was in the hen house. First time in his life Lina had invited him to lay next to her and he was stock still, trying not to rock the boat. It just goes to show that persistent flattering can work, eventually. So we just have to hope that Lina accepts Eric for the little boy in the group he is and that Monty is too much in love to care. And that's Cows Will Fly!

Feeding our hens is another math challenge. They start eating when daylight brakes and stop in the dusk. This means that we have to serve dinner an hour before the sun goes down or they go to bed hungry. Lina is the only hen that eats in artificial light and she is still giving us an egg every other day. But as we want her to stop and have a winter break, there is only a dim evening light on in the stable for now. This light is for the sheep and they turn in early too, so it's lights out and nighty night at seven, seven thirty in their house. By then the hens have slept for hours, dotted around the stable and some even in the hen house. Wishing Mindy, Mandy, Molly and My a good night has to be done in a whisper or Eric wakes everyone up, asking if it's morning and what's for breakfast. I guess he is a teenager...

Our dear sheep like autumn and the cosy atmosphere it brings. Due to constant warmth and stormy weather, winter seems to make us wait, this year. We spend some time indoors, chatting and fixing. Mindy loves her hens popping in for a visit, Molly steals their food and all is well in their world. We just wish the rest of the world would get there, as well.

Text by Nina

Next blog post on the 20th December.


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Animal Stories

I love it when people tell stories about their animals, present or past friends. That look in their eyes of faraway memories. That haunted look of someone telling me what his or her horse did yesterday. I remember those stories for a very long time. My brain works very well with my heart on those occasions. Tell me a story about what some people did and I forget the story before it's finished. I guess it's what you really care about...

We have had some hunting dogs and some fox terriers in our family that by now seem like old friends. The Finnish hunting dog is of a very kind nature and a true friend, so those you've had one as a family member are never forgotten. Fox terriers just get up to so much mayhem, when used as hunters, that the scars on your heart are permanent. Animals do that to you.

Stina, the first family dog my sister and I got to know was amazing. Born into a family of Champion dogs, American ancestors and as posh as they get.... she was a catastrophe on legs! Nothing stopped her. Once she fell of the back of a truck we were playing on for some reason. She did not even limp. Stina ate rat poison, vomited half a kilo of salt and poison and survived. She ended up on a block of ice, out on a brook in the spring, tipped it over and almost drowned - brave friend saved her that time. The stories go on and on... Her biggest accident was when she went off on her own to do some elk hunting and got kicked in the eye. She managed well with just one eye, after that.

I never forget the story of our friend who got into trouble over a runaway rabbit. It was the funniest story, told very well and just a perfect example of what animals do to us. We love them; they know it and carry on doing exactly what they feel like doing. This, all in the safe knowledge that when they get into trouble we will be there to help. Mr. Chip is a perfect example. By day he is the king of the world, by night he sleeps on our legs because it's a little dark. I have not felt my legs in the night for months - I can't move them in case I disturb the little fella.

My dear husband cracks me up with stories about Shaky, the family goldfish. And it's a fish! For this weeks picture I thought that maybe Dasha, our brilliant artist friend, would like to paint one of her animal memories. 

"During my childhood, when I was about 5 years old, I saw the turkey cockerel for the first time, when my parents and I were visiting my grandma in the summer. A have to say, that first acquaintance finished up with me up a tree, after the turkey-cock chased me! He did not like new people in his yard at all. However, a few days later I tried to become friends with him, feeding him with sunflower seeds. And finally he accepted me... And I was delighted by his colourful feathers and amorous comb" Dasha Dimitrova

I do know that if asked, our animals would all like to be in the picture. Molly would insist, as she has started a new job this autumn. Self -selected, Molly is now the official ambassador for all the sheep - in the world. When we get visitors, Molly steps forward and greets them with very royal manners. It's a bit surprising at times, but we can live with it. It's just that she looks like a rugby player and stands on your feet, to get closer.... You never see ambassadors do that. But she means well, bless her.

I did not bring up Elvira, the worlds kindest dog, in this text, as I would never stop. Elvira gets her own week, later on. For now, take care and remember to start thinking of Christmas presents for all your furry, feathery or maybe scaly friends. I'm making Christmas stockings for all and everyone. Small ones for the hens, otherwise they will think that I got them sleeping bags and move in.

P.s. A lovely Christmas present this year to a loved one could well be an adopted animal from Durrell zoo. They make a lovely gift out of it. And it helps saving animals, all around the world. Have a look at their web site, you will enjoy it!

Happy Independence Day to our Finnish readers.

Text by Nina

Next blog post on the 13th December.

Feel free to share your own animal stories on our Facebook page or at our email stonebackfarm@gmail.com  

The neighbours

We have started feeding the birds in the forest, as the weather is now colder. This means that the early bird catches a seed or two, before our red squirrels wake up and feast. We are only in November and the squirrel community is already sporting very shiny coats. There might be a weight issue to be dealt with if snow does not arrive soon. Our little red neighbours are warm enough not to burn off all the calories they consume so branches are groaning where they land. I think they all attended Scout meetings when younger, so they are prepared!

The white tailed deer association around our parts seems to be doing well; we see a lot of them every morning. Deer, in general, are flighty, nervous animals but the ones visiting us must have realised that there is no need to run past our yard. Once they met our four sheep, had a nervous breakdown and had a calming nap, they were fine.

The first meetings were funny to watch. Mindy, Mandy, Molly and My plodding along, tummies round with food. Around the corner comes a sleek, slender and much bigger animal. Our four M's backing away slowly, heads down, while the deer stands frozen to the spot. “I’ve never seen four balls on legs before and reversing ones at that”, the dear must have exclaimed. Then it shot off into the forest faster than anything should be going in such tricky terrain... But word spread about our four woolly balls being friendly so now we have regular visits from the deer population. And they keep our sheep from wandering into the farmer’s fields.

                                            Credit: Dasha Dimitrova

Elks pop in too. They are much bigger animals and clearly more smelly creatures, according to the four M's. When Mindy and her friends moved to us she informed us that they would be explorers. Mindy would lead them and they would be brave creatures of the world. So off they plodded, on their merry way to our postbox. This made me a bit apprehensive, as cars go past on that road, some with considerable speed. So I followed the brave ones.

They did well at first. All in a row, head to tail, keeping up a brisk pace and clearly enjoying themselves. By the last bend in the road, just minutes from their goal, it all went wrong. Mindy started sniffing and at the same time a huge elk stepped out in front of them. Never have I seen sheep move so fast. Turning on the spot and shooting past me they bolted for their home. The poor elk did the same and it is impressive how agile these big animals can be.

I later asked the four explorers about their next trip but apparently they had taken early retirement. Not once have they walked all the way to the postbox and hopefully it will stay that way. Less stress all around, I think.

It's good to have slightly smelly neighbours. I hope they will all enjoy a safe, good winter with lots of food available for them, to keep them warm. The four M's leave hay out for them and that's nice. No hard feelings in our yard.

Text by Nina

Next blog post on the 6th December.


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