Relaxed Farming - our farm in your classroom

There is nothing like an early morning run and stretch. This morning may have been damp, dark and miserable but the geese still underwent their usual routine of running around, flapping their wings and screeching to all who wished to hear (which due to the volume of noise, had to be us and most of our surrounding neighbours...). Letting all our animals out in the mornings is rather delightful as you get to see them all eating, drinking, stretching, running and generally shaking off the night-time slumbers and so getting sorted for the day.
It is also a wonderful chance to check everything: those animals who don't greet the new day with quite their usual enthusiasm can be a cause for concern. Animals are very good at disguising the fact they are not feeling well. They do this for two main reasons: one because they don't want a predator to realise they are unwell and so try to eat them and two because if the other animals in their groups see they are unwell they may pick on them. The reason they may pick on them is also to do with predators. If a group of animals contains one that is poorly or injured then that can make the whole group more vulnerable to predators because they cannot move as fast or because the unwell animal needs more food. In a 'domesticated' setting such as a smallholding or farm, the issue of predators is not such an issue but the animal's natural desire to protect themselves will still be there in some form.
These three chickens are looking a tad scrappy but all of them are undergoing a slight moult: entirely normal for this time of year but still a reason to keep checking, more on this tomorrow...