Those Naughty Little Pigs!

Tonight I was a bit late getting home. The dogs were eager to go for a run, Martin wanted his chow, the piggies needed to eat and so did I. I also had produce to unload from the truck and store in critter-proof bins, and as I have an early morning tomorrow I needed to get the water jugs filled and other preparation done to make morning tasks go smoothly. I methodically worked my way through the list of chores, keeping an eye on the fading light. At last all was done, and I went to close up the barn for the night just as the sun tucked itself to bed.

To close up the barn, I have two choices - I can step over 12 sleeping piggies in their stall in the barn to reach the door (their idea, not mine - they insist on sleeping in the wrong part of the stall!), or I can enter from the field and close the door from the outside. I usually do the latter, and that's what I chose to do tonight.

But just as I swung the big door shut, one naughty little piggy decided to make a run for it - out through the last few inches of doorway into the pigyard. I closed the barn door anyway, and asked the piggy what he was going to do now. He just looked at me and wiggled his snoutie as if to say "You figure it out, Foster Mama....maybe you could lead me back in with a cookie? or ice cream? or strawbewwies??????".

I went over to the gate that opens into the little pig potty area, an area with a piggy door (like a dog door but for pigs!) that would let the monkey back into the barn again. But would he go? No! To the contrary, I no sooner opened that gate than another little snoutie pokes through the flap of the piggy door, followed by two little ears and four little trotters and a round grey body.....and pig number two is out in the big pig yard.

Before I can say "go back to bed", Rob Roy and Derby and Whisper and Fizz and Rickey and the rest of the crew join their brothers. "Is it a party? Are we having a party???? Are we?? Are we????Did she bring ice cream???? Are there treats??????"

S i g h .........the only ones who stayed in bed were Mama Soda and Papa Scotch. And one problem with having ten little piggies bonded to each other and to their human is that they don't threaten easily and nor do they run squealing into the barn when I try to shoo them along. They just clustered around me and raised their snouties high, oofing and ha ha-ing and waiting expectantly for the food that I didn't have!

Eventually I walked back to the house, leaving them standing around the big pig yard wondering what was going on. Sooner or later, I knew, they would make their way back through the potty yard, back through the piggy door, and back to their nice warm straw-and-wool-blankie beds.

But now that it is pitch dark, I have to go back out to close the gate from the potty area to the pig yard to keep them safe for the night. I just hope black pigs aren't lurking in dark corners of the yard, still waiting for Foster Mama to show up with the party food.