When I was a boy I had a hamster or two, the odd gerbil, a couple of ferrets, a canary and a tortoise that ran off. My Grandma used to complain that the house was like a ménage à trois. I think she meant a menagerie (a collection of wild or unusual animals)! This leads me to the post today - more animals at the farm.
New members to Hereward Farm this week include Charles and Camilla, a pair of Aylesbury ducks. This breed originated from Aylesbury in Buckinghamshire just north of London. By the 18th century raising white ducks in Aylesbury had become popular due to the demand for white feathers as a filler for quilts. Over the 19th century selective breeding led to the Aylesbury duck. The ducks were bred on farms in the surrounding countryside and local residents would obtain fertilized eggs and raise the ducks in their home as a source of extra income. In 1873 the Pekin duck (the “Aflac duck”) was introduced to England and this marked the decline of the Aylesbury. Even though the Pekin was thought to have a poorer flavor than the Aylesbury, the Pekin was hardier and cheaper to raise.
The Aylesbury was one of the first domestic ducks introduced into America from Europe. It is considered a superior meat breed. It has a white skin where most other ducks have yellow skin. Hens lay 35-125 white or tinted green eggs annually. The Aylesbury is considered “slow moving and exceptionally tame”. The Pekin duck did the same for the Aylesbury in the United States as it did in England. Like our American Guinea Hogs, the Aylesbury is listed as “Critical” by the American Livestock Breeds Conservancy (ALBC). In 2000 the ALBC census of domestic waterfowl found only two primary breeding flocks with 50 or more breeding birds existed.
Cats - Lazy or Smart?
Believing that the cats are being over-fed their feed ration has been reduced. The hope was they would take the initiative and kill more rodents. Unfortunately, the cats are either smarter or lazier than they were given credit for (or both). The cats now simply walk into the pig pen and help themselves to the pigs’ feed.
This pig can't be that hungry - only two feet in the trough!
If there is one place I would not want to find myself it's standing between a hog and it's feed. This cat has perhaps found an even less desirable position. Brave or stupid? The pigs don't seem to mind them being in their paddock but they will chase them away from their food.
Baby Rabbits
The amazingly fast growth of the baby rabbits is captured in the following photos. After only two weeks the babies are almost as big as those being sold at the feed store. These are New Zealand / Californian crosses.
Approx. 1 day old
1 week old
2 weeks old
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