Back in the Saddle, Kind Of

For about a week now, I've taken over mid-day duties of four silly donkeys and four silly chickens.  I feel a little embarrassed revealing I drive out to the donkey gate -- with a brand new knee, slipping and falling is not an option -- and then rely on my handy cane for support on the uneven ground of packed down snow. (I have no need of the cane elsewhere)

The first day I went out, I joyously greeted those little faces and asked, "Did you miss me???"
The response: "Do you have any treats?"

Little buggers.

No, Luigi does not feel emasculated in his pink blanket, although it may be handed off to Sugar or Spice when theirs arrive.

After a couple of days of getting my chore legs back, I ventured to shovel out new feeding places to throw hay.

Gabby discovered the off-the-beaten-track pile first and Spice and Sugar queued up.  Spice's patience was short-lived and Sugar moved up in line.

After a minute she joined Spice and Luigi and Gabby feasted alone.  She is a little diva!

I do so love seeing my babies, but I do not have nerves of steel and sometimes the jostling makes me anxious.  They may be "miniature" donkeys but there's still a good 300-400 lbs available to tip your balance.  Putting our their supplements is the hardest part; they
l-o-v-e it and clamor to be first.  I have to hustle my bustle out of the way.

And now for the BIG news.

We welcomed three new hens into the fold.  Pardon the photo quality.  As we've done before, they are segregated in a dog kennel until we're more sure everyone can co-mingle.

 The black is an australorp while the white girls are white amberlinks.
I'm mulling over names.  Considering Lily Marlena staying within the singer theme (Ruby Dee, Emmy Lou) and white = lily, Blanche (French word for white is blanc), and Audrey for the australorp.  But those are only mullings.  I also had Lulu in the back of my mind, germane to nothing.

If you check back to the November 19 entry you can see how cute the girls were early in their lives.