First I want to say thank you to all for your kind comments here, emails and on Facebook for our loss of Mac. We have so many friends and family who understand how sad it is to lose a pet and I'm grateful for your understanding.
Now I'm going to share something with you and you may wonder where my brain was. I'm not going to blame it on grief. It was a moment of stupidity and carelessness, but I assure you it was an accident.
On Friday I had folks here looking at some goats I had for sale. I took them on a tour of our farm and while showing them our pigs I decided I should take them some food. I had a bunch of fermented blackberries from 10 gallons of blackberry wine sitting in a bucket in our basement. In the back of my mind I knew I should only give them a small portion of them. In the past I've given 500 lb Roxie lots of fermented fruit without giving it too much thought. She always appreciated it. What I should have considered (and did, but brushed it aside) was I have 3 very lightweight piggies who gobble up everything we give them with gusto. It wasn't long before two of the piglets were tumbling instead of walking. Their legs weren't working at all. Poor Mickey had completely passed out and I couldn't right her for anything. She was completely out of it. I thought I had poisoned her. Wendell recovered more quickly and skinny, sickly little Wassee didn't seem the least bit affected by the alcohol. I think Mickey is a glutton and that's why her tummy is so round.
I'm not exagerrating when I say Mickey was drunk for at least 10 hours. I gave her activated charcoal in Gatorade and kept pumping water into her with little improvement. Later in the evening when I went to check on her I found her stuck in their mud wallow and the other 3 had retired far away from her for the night. I rescued her and carried her to be with them and at this time she could stand on all fours but was still uncoordinated. What a relief it was to find her sober and running around the next morning, begging for food.
I assure you I won't do this again.
Now I'm going to share something with you and you may wonder where my brain was. I'm not going to blame it on grief. It was a moment of stupidity and carelessness, but I assure you it was an accident.
On Friday I had folks here looking at some goats I had for sale. I took them on a tour of our farm and while showing them our pigs I decided I should take them some food. I had a bunch of fermented blackberries from 10 gallons of blackberry wine sitting in a bucket in our basement. In the back of my mind I knew I should only give them a small portion of them. In the past I've given 500 lb Roxie lots of fermented fruit without giving it too much thought. She always appreciated it. What I should have considered (and did, but brushed it aside) was I have 3 very lightweight piggies who gobble up everything we give them with gusto. It wasn't long before two of the piglets were tumbling instead of walking. Their legs weren't working at all. Poor Mickey had completely passed out and I couldn't right her for anything. She was completely out of it. I thought I had poisoned her. Wendell recovered more quickly and skinny, sickly little Wassee didn't seem the least bit affected by the alcohol. I think Mickey is a glutton and that's why her tummy is so round.
I'm not exagerrating when I say Mickey was drunk for at least 10 hours. I gave her activated charcoal in Gatorade and kept pumping water into her with little improvement. Later in the evening when I went to check on her I found her stuck in their mud wallow and the other 3 had retired far away from her for the night. I rescued her and carried her to be with them and at this time she could stand on all fours but was still uncoordinated. What a relief it was to find her sober and running around the next morning, begging for food.
I assure you I won't do this again.
Too funny,Mike
ReplyDeleteI look forward to your updates. They might make me laugh, cry, shake my head or ask myself "what is she thinking", but I am so "in awe" of the life you and Jim have. :) Becky
ReplyDeleteThat is just hilarious. Glad there was no pigs injured or arrested in their drunken state.
ReplyDeletePOOR Mickey. Wonder if she will swear off drinking now. I would have LOVED to have seen one of your famous videos of her. I know you were worried then, but it seems hilarious now. Glad Wassee is doing well. Good to hear that! Your three girls are doing great here. They are fat and healthy and, unfortunately, in heat.
ReplyDeleteSusan