Caring for animals. 

Makes it sound like a job, and I suppose it is – but at the same time it isn’t. 

We do it because we love them. No matter the weather, no matter our health. They depend on us and it’s our responsibility to care for them to the best of our ability. 

At the moment, these sweet creatures: the ducks and goats, are a part of our lives. They matter to us. Because they matter, it is second nature to care for them. To get up at the crack of dawn to give fresh water and feed, to milk a goat, (or two), to clean out the duck house or the stalls and repeat much of the process again in the evening. 

It’s a daily repetition which to many would become boring and dull. Not us.

To us, we do these “chores” with love and joy because the animals themselves bring love and joy. They fill us up with their zest for life, their individual personalities and quirks. In the doing of these daily tasks, we too grow with a quiet understanding of how interactions between species work and within this understanding, bonds develop. 

Sometimes down-sizing is necessary in order to recoup energy, or finances, and these are wise choices which are often pondered and worked through while doing chores. This is where farm math can get tricky — attachments are formed, so decisions are never made lightly.

Quietly or otherwise farm chores get done. The ducks more often quack with enthusiasm and dash out for their breakfast or on Sundays come and check out the fresh bedding. The goats, given the opportunity, will climb into the wheelbarrow, chew on the pitchfork handle, chew on the shavings bag, and generally become busy-bodies who are underfoot most of the time. They are delightfully curious, clever creatures filled with personality.

It is during the morning and evening chores we notice changes in animal behaviour and we can isolate or physically check an animal if we feel it has been injured or needs specialist care.

If you follow our Daily Ducks on YouTube, you might have read a comment here or there about Stuart, one of the Cayuga drakes. He limped from the time he hatched.

Now, a year old, we had concerns his limp might be painful and took him to the vet. After a thorough examination, the vet concluded that there wasn’t a mechanical problem with the hip, but rather his leg and limp were due to a birth deformity. We decided to try a course of Metacam, an anti-inflammatory and pain reliever, to make sure sweet Stuart wasn’t in pain and to rule that out as a cause. After a week of giving oral medication, we couldn’t see a difference in his behaviour but are grateful we ruled pain as a symptom out. His best life is our priority.

We know animal care is made up of many things, repeated day after day. Feed buckets, fresh water, clean bedding, gates opened and latched, a hand laid on a back, an eye kept on the one who seems slightly off. 

This is our world, and we wouldn’t have it any other way.

Warmly,

Brin

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Brin writes about the quieter lessons of small farm life – ducks in the morning, goats in the barn, and the slow work of tending a small piece of land. Between animal chores, soap making, and reflexology work, she reflects on what it means to live well, live simply, and discover what “enough” really looks like.