Weather

Yes, we still have it. Lots of it. Now it’s a bit breezy too. Had to do some emergency repairs this morning to the stakes holding up the cherry toms. We think they will be OK.

Veggies

Doing well. Starting to harvest some lovely toms, cucumbers, melanzane (egg plant), French beans, onions, spring onions, etc., etc..

Of course we are having to water every two to three days but it looks like we may have some rain over the week-end.

Love amongst the animali – part 1

I had to go and shut the chickens in their coop the other night. It was dusk. We try to shut up shop for them a little earlier than this usually.

As I made my way down to the pen, I noticed Freya lying in the garden playing with what looked like an old piece of black plastic. Tossing it in the air and then catching it again. As I got nearer, I saw that the bit of plastic had wings and feet and feathers! The bloody dog was “playing” with Wilma. Aghh.

I issued a sharp command and Freya immediately went running off, tail held high, with a body language that said, “chase me, chase me.” That dog.

Anyway, I picked Wilma up quite gently. She was soaked with slobber. I placed her in the coop where I could only see one other chicken, Na. I suddenly heard a soft clucking sound coming from behind one of the olive trees just outside the pen. I went out and found Doris. She too was rather soggy. She ran into the pen and I picked her up and put her into the coop.

I know Freya’s only a pup – she’s not 6 months yet – but tossing chickens should not be part of her repertoire, particularly as her breed are protecting dogs. We know she does not mean any harm but we find it difficult to explain this to Doris, Na and Wilma. I have tried but they have lousy eye contact and just continue to cluck over me and peck the ground. There’s no reasoning with chickens,…..or dogs.

The next day the chicks seemed fine as though nothing had happened, although I did notice that whenever Freya went too close, they all moved off quite surreptiously. They are still laying well. Phew.

Love amongst the animali – part 2

The kitties are doing well and will be going to their new home in about 10 days or so. We have just started them on proper food yesterday and they seem to have got the hang of it.

They are going to be called Samson and Delilah, so we have started to call them Sammy and Del.

Sammy is a bit of a bruiser, but woossie. Del is petite but is into exploring everything she can. She has a great crush on Freya.

When the cats are out on the porch floor and Freya comes up, Del immediately makes her way over to Freya and starts to touch her paws, tail, nose, any part really. Freya just loves this. She licks Del back and because her tongue is so large compared with Del, Del does a backward summersault. But the little kitten comes straight back for more.

So this is a very delightful scene. Cats loving dogs and vice versa.

As I was getting breakfast ready yesterday, La D took some implements out to the table and announced, “Where is Del?” This was a rhetorical question as I was in the kitchen preparing the coffee and food and, as the saying goes, did not have eyes in the back of my head. None the less, La D seemed to overlook this fact as she announced again, in a louder voice, “Where is Del? WHERE IS SHE?”

We looked all round the basket they sleep in, and all over the porch. Both she and Sammy are still too small to go down the stairs unless they fall. So we went down the stairs. No sign of her.

We went round the back of the house and saw Freya lying in the garden, playing with something.

Yep. It was Del. More imperious commands were issued at the dog, who again went bounding off. You could almost sense the chuckling.

Poor little Del was pretty much unfazed by this. Apart from being covered with the, now, ubiquitous slobber she seemed fine. There was no way she could have got there under her own steam, so Freya must have carried her in her mouth all the way there.

La D picked her up and gave her a cuddle and bough her back to her brother and mum, where she settled right back in.

Yesterday evening, Del and Freya were billing and cooing over each other on the porch again. Quite lovely really as you can see.

One last thing, this morning, La D caught Freya with Del in her mouth just about to go down the stairs again, no doubt for a bit more of cat tossing. We didn’t let them proceed.

Here is a link to some kittie fun.

http://youtu.be/BoLn1PE937U

Ciao, mantenere la fede