…because there’s a duck nesting in my garden again!

The first year we had ducks nesting we were like concerned parents. We’d be constantly checking to see if she was OK, wondering if we should put water and food out, on the look-out for cats all the time, panicking if she’d left the nest and hoping she was coming back and just generally worrying. Since this is the third year now we’re a lot more laid back about the process. We just leave her to get on with it. She knows what she’s doing and she doesn’t need us to do anything other than stay out of her way.

In fact the only thing we need to do is keep an eye out for when the chicks hatch since there’s no way for them to get out of the garden unless we leave the gate open! Shouldn’t be long now.

That’s not a question I ever thought I’d find myself asking but from just after I got out of bed this morning I’ve been wondering exactly that. It seems that a not-quite-fully-matured swan has decided to call my front lawn its home for the time being and has been splitting its time between cleaning itself, sleeping and flapping it’s impressively large wings at my good lady when she came back from the shops!

I was planning on cleaning and vaccing my car today but I’m not entirely sure our new visitor would be happy about that:

Since I don’t get very close to swans all that much I forget just how big the things are – that neck’s about as thick as my arm! According to our neighbours it’s been there since at least 8am this morning so I’m expecting it to wander off and get some food / drink at some point (according to the advice I’ve read you shouldn’t feed swans on land as it encourages them to seek out food from people which brings them into contact with dogs and other tricky situations). Still, it doesn’t seem too bothered about me and was happy to demonstrate swan yoga to me with my camera pointing:

I’m not sure what it is about my garden but it really does seem to attract all sorts of interesting animals such as the ducklings we had last year and long may it continue. But I don’t fancy having to battle my way past an angry swan every time I want to go out to the garage or head off to work!

My dad has had a cat named Sparkie for the last five years, since just after my mother died. Sparkie’s been his constant companion and given him purpose, routine and been someone to talk to who never talks back (only meowing back which is much nicer) for all that time.

We’ve had a few cats over the years but Sparkie was originally brought up on a farm before my dad got him from the cat protection league so was a bit of a wildie, fighting off the local cats, bringing in mice from time to time and jumping up on every surface in the house. Whereas my dad’s getting on a bit Sparkie’s always been full of youthful exuberance in the way that only a young cat is, which I’m sure has been good for my dad. I took the following picture of him a couple of weeks ago when I was home and he was just his usual lovely, entertaining self and being very friendly:

Unfortunately a few days ago little Sparkie died. Cut down in the prime of his life at the age of around 8 it all happened very quickly in the end. It’s such a shame as he was a wonderful cat with a fantastic personality and he did my dad no end of good – I don’t know how my dad would have coped over that last few years without him. But the real shame is that I could never thank him for being there for my dad when he needed him because he was a cat and wouldn’t have understood the positive impact he had – he was just being himself. So thank you Sparkie, you will be sorely missed.

Fresh from watching our duck taking her chicks away we continued our weekend by attending the annual Skipton Sheep Day. This event is held on the first Sunday of July every year and it took us several years to actually attend. Every year since I moved to Yorkshire I'd see the sign a couple of weeks before Sheep Day and realise I was away that weekend and couldn't make it. Then a couple of years ago we made sure we were around to attend and it was well worth it. From the sheep shearing to the owl demonstrations to the duck herding (yep, you heard it right). It was a wonderful afternoon although I forgot to bring my camera. Not so this time! Cue some more cute duckling photos (I've seen more ducklings this weekend than in a year):

Last year we were away on Sheep Day (as usual) but this time our friends were staying with us so we just had to take them along. Since there's been rather a lot of rain lately it came as no surprise that it torrentially rained most of the day. However the skies cleared as soon as the sheep dogs came out to show us their stuff. Since Sheep Day takes place in the middle of the high street, there isn't enough room to demonstrate them herding sheep so ducks and geese have to suffice instead.

This was very entertaining as they really didn't want to play along – they were like naughty children – and the sheep dog had to work twice as hard as it should have!

After the ducks and geese were herded and cajoled into their pens it was time for some good old-fashioned sheep shearing. Instead of using the high-tech electric shears they demonstrated the old-fashioned ones which involved wrestling the sheep to the ground, holding it fast and carefully giving it a short back and sides with a pair of giant scissors. I think it's one of these things that looks easy but in fact requires a certain knack to do!

What's surprising is that the average fleece is only worth around 35p which gives you an idea of the fine margins farmers work under these days. Sounds like a tough way to make a living if you ask me. Anyway, there was also a farmers market (where we spent a bit of money) and some sort of show going on but the thunderstorms were coming back and our friends had to head home so we left. But we'll be back next year for more – and if you're anywhere near Skipton on the first Sunday in July I suggest you go along too!

I was fast asleep this morning, probably dreaming about tornadoes, when I was rudely awoken by the sound of mayhem in my garden. As I was jolted fully awake I realised it must have been the duck nesting in our garden as I could hear incessant quacking. Looking out of the window was such a lovely sight – it was our duck leading her flock of newly hatched chicks around the decking!

Since it's Saturday morning we knew we didn't have to go to work and could finally follow them around to see where they go. After letting her chicks frolic around she herded them together, somehow instructing them to rally underneath her and then spent around an hour keeping them warm while having a bit of shut-eye:

Then, with the flap of a wing, she decided it was time to move on and she started leading them in a line at a fair pace down our street with us and our friends (who were staying with us) in tow:

They were absolutely adorable and once other neighbours spotted what we were watching they came along to enjoy the spectacle. The duck then led her chicks down a cul de sac – much to our puzzlement as it was not towards water – and then proceeded to have a drink stop at a pond in one of the gardens. After that we decided to leave her to it and not interfere with what she was doing – it was clear that she had a plan.

And with that our duck and her chicks walked out of our life. I hope we'll see them again soon! 

So just to recap, last year we had a duck nesting in our garden and she had 14 chicks. Then a couple of months ago our duck came back and reared about 16 chicks. My good lady missed the new chicks as she went to work that morning without first doing a duck check (you should always do a duck check in the morning) and she was gutted. However, a couple of weeks ago I saw something swooping out of the sky from the corner of my eye and you'll never guess what it was… It was another duck! She landed in the garden and walked over to the same patch (just behind the lavendar) and nestled down on her newly created nest!

So that's going to be 2 lots of chicks raised in our garden this year in a plant bed measuring about a metre deep by 4 metres wide! Unbelievable. I guess we're getting a reputation in the local duck community as a safe haven for rearing chicks. I'll make sure this time I take the morning off when they hatch so I can get loads of pictures and some video of them frolicking around and formation marching to water!

Since moving to a Mac I copied all my old documents, photos and videos across to their new home. This gave me a chance to have a good trawl through the last few years of my life which has been quite interesting. One video clip that made me laugh was the following one of my guinea pigs fighting over a stick of celery a few years back:

Whitie (in the video) lasted a good 8 years and sometimes when I rustle a bag of salad I can still hear her squeaking (if you tune out my inane cackling you can hear her in the video). So many happy memories!

You know, I’m sure I don’t sound that Scottish now. I think my accent may have softened after years of living in Yorkshire…

My friend Ade was on assignment taking photos of black and white cows (strange but true) and since I was there and we found a field full of the beasts I rattled off a few shots. My favourite of the lot has to be this one:

Since I'm much better at taking photos than coming up with witty taglines, does anyone out there have a suggestion for a caption?