The first day of our promised sleety showers which for us, high up here on our hill, turned into quite a bit of snow and for a while made everything look quintessentially pretty and clean. Alas, we know the mud is still there, happily lurking underneath and so we rather hope everything will just freeze for a while and so keep this illusion of unsullied white!! The rhea, who had spent the night outside as usual (why go in the warmth and dry of the field shelter when you can sit on wet grass and become covered in snow) looked amazing as they crunched their way round the top 3-acre field. The white ones seriously disappeared at times. The poultry were singularly unimpressed and most of the chickens didn’t even venture out save one of the Marans, who flew to perch on some dead branches and then stayed there as the snow fell, wondering how on earth she could get back!!
The sheep and alpacas wondered around looking for bits of green to eat, some resorting to the hay instead and the goats and cows simply demanded more hay and water!!
The dogs on the other hand were all in seventh heaven.

And talking of heaven, Salt's response to the steroids was short lived: this evening she has stopped eating again and her breathing is laboured. We don't want to even consider it, but tomorrow may see her taking a one way trip to the vet!