June 3, 2008: Duck Herding and Shearing
Kenny got a new job this week. We thought we'd try him on ducks and, well, he took to it like a duck takes to water. The first time we tried him, he was a little bit perplexed by a flock of ducks in an overgrown field. He had a try with geese too, and wasn't sure about them. The next day we had another go on the ducks; this time on a manicured lawn and a smaller number of ducks. Kenny loved it. He is a very curious dog and the ducks seemed to really peak his curiosity. He has now joined Meirion Owen's 'Quack Pack' team and will be travelling the country doing duck herding demonstrations and corporate team building days. For those of you who don't know Meirion, he is the 'go-to' guy for the World Trial (the brains behind the event), a Welsh National winner (1989) and 5-time Welsh team member. He is no slouch with dogs - and ducks! The 'Quack Pack' is one of the busiest teams around, and now with the handsome and personable Kenny, we put tongue-in-cheek and say the 'best' team! It is going to be hard to see Kenny go to a new home but we could not have found him a better home...and we'll get to see him regularly, if he can fit us into his busy schedule.
Kenny's new employment.
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This week we also got to help out during shearing. Shearing at Brynberllan, where we live, is a family affair involving Nora and Mike (farm owners), 2 shearers (one being a neighbour; the other being Mike and Nora's son, Alun) and various shearing assistants - Mike and Nora's daughter, Maria, daughter-in-law, also called Maria, 4 grandchildren (ages ranging from about 1 to 12), the neighbour's children, Kelvin and Angie, a few dogs (Kenny, Jet, Ness and Sally, the West Highland terrier), and a couple of nosey chickens. It also involves much laughter, a few antics, a bit of shearing, and a heck of a lot of food!
Nora is a champion baker...wedding cakes being her forte (along with Welsh cakes)...and she is a super all-around cook. After not much work (OK, Angie was off training dogs when everyone else was hard at work), everything stopped for lunch. Lunch was a huge...and we mean HUGE...plate of the most delicious Welsh lamb roasted to perfection, mashed potatoes, peas, carrots, and lashings of gravy and mint sauce, followed by berry pie, and washed down with endless amounts of tea and lemonade. We literally rolled out of the house and back to the shearing shed.
With so many assistants, the work was spread around quite nicely with everyone pitching in to do something - loading the chutes, rolling fleeces, sweeping the floor and generally trying to work off lunch. Kelvin had a go at shearing the last ewe. It seemed to take forever for him to complete the task, especially compared to the real shearers, but finish it he did. Three of the grandchildren also got a go at shearing. Having your father teach you to shear sheep is like having a parent teach you to drive a car...better left to a driving instructor! We tease!
Kenny had his first introduction to working in the pens and he did not disgrace himself, while Jet got to take the flock back up the road to their home field after being shorn. Jet loves nothing more than to get into behind the drove, and she'd take them all the way to Scotland if asked.
After Jet's work was done, it was back to the house for some more banter and more food...sponge cake, lemon tarts, custard and jelly, welsh cakes and other mouth-watering morsels. It was a feast of the highest magnitude. We rolled out of the house for a second time in one day. Food and shearing seem to go hand in hand so if you're ever in need of a good meal, volunteer to help out at shearing time. But volunteer in Wales. Shearing time in Scotland last year involved fewer workers, a heck of a lot more sheep, much more work, a lot less banter, and the food was non-existant!
