Another day dispatching poultry for the freezer. We no longer do it ourselves but employ the services of Stephen Burrows, a licensed slaughterman.
It never gets easier, in fact it gets harder. Our numbers today were six turkeys, 15 ducks and two cockerels. The ducks were more difficult emotionally as most were female.
We are going to miss the sight and sound of the ducks in particular, watching them flying around the smallholding and perching on the roof at night.
We are now left with 76 birds in the poultry paddock: 15 ducks, 11 turkeys and 50 chickens, plus the 8 rhea and 8 geese.
Not quite winter numbers!!!