Piglets running between the pond and the woodlot. Can you spot the little devils?
By Tuesday the boar piglets had spent two days and two nights on the loose. We were still worried about them getting eaten, but at least we knew they were alive. We had seen them in the distance on numerous occassions. It was like those Western movies where the cowboys ride off in the distance. Only this time it was our boar piglets, shadows on the horizon, rapidly propelling themselves along with their impossibly short legs.
At some point we got relatively comfortable with the whole situation. These pigs knew a whole lot more about what they were doing than we did. They were loving it. So we decided to let them come to us. Rather than seek them out we set up a dog crate and put some feed and water in it. We placed it next to the sows and tied some string to the top and bottom. The string extended out and was placed behind the well-house. The crate door would be pulled shut and the piglets would be ours again. At least that was the plan.
Each day the piglets have been "free-ranging" we've noticed that they like to stop by and check on the girls early in the morning and right around dinner time. In the heat of the day they can be found relaxing in various woodland hiding spots and cavorting around the ponds. But when it starts to cool down they get bold and come visit their lady friends.
Piglets outside their favorite hiding place, right along the neighbor's fence line
So Tuesday night I'm just wrapping up work and getting ready to help Sweetbreads with evening chores. I head into our bedroom to put on farm clothes and I decide to take a peek out our window into the wooded area where the boars have holed up. It's in this area where we know they tend to sleep. However, when I look out I see no piglets. Instead, on the other side of the fence, I see our neighbor's donkey. That's weird, his donkey has NEVER come over to our fence before. Not once. I hear the jackass all the time. Usually at about 3am when it decides to Hee-Haw bloody murder. But I'd never seen it. Interesting. Nice looking donkey.
The donkey saunters up to our fence, peeks over into our compost bin and meanders on down the fence line. Just opposite him one of our piglets pops out. Yes! This will be the opportunity we've been waiting for. But wait, the piglet's not on our side of the fence. Oh crap. There goes the donkey!
Donkey sees pig. Pigs sees four large sticks with huge hooves racing towards it. Pig squeals off into the pasture, donkey closing in on it's curly little tail. Around in circles they went until at some point our little piglet popped back onto our side and the donkey settled down. Whoa. Half terrifying and half hilarious. Well, mostly hilarious, but still a little terrifying.
I guess you know you're in the country when your neighbor's donkey chases around your runaway piglet. I tell you what though, I bet you could make a lot of money if you could get a donkey to chase a piglet at a rodeo.
And thus the piglets made it another day.
