[Hilarysmum]

IMHO Gos are great.  Even the boar will wander along just behind a small bucket of pig nuts.  The sows are so gentle, have never been tossed back over the fence by a Gos sow. 

[carl]

i have had gos ( wonderful pigs) and now gos x berkshires ( lovely also and nearly ready to go). I have ended up with just a single strand of stripey cord run off a decent mains zapper. They don't go near it, but can tell when it's off due to the noise from the unit. Luckily i also have livestock fencing as well. this weekend was a strange one. wild and windy overnight, which spooked everything. i had a squirrel in the sheds looking for food, which when I chased it off set off a chain of events. it knoked over some timber, which flipped up a length of banister I was saving, this knocked the fencing power unit off its mountings and must have stretched the wire further along. the connection came away, but I did not notice. that night something spooked next doors sheep and all 130 of them stampeded through the gate and up our track, round and round the garden,. another neighbour returned from celebrating a 50th and saw all this happening. The chap had  had a few and went to bed, the lady was left trying to raise people to help, but could not be heard anove the noise of sheep and the wind.sunday morning left me wondering where all the footprints and poo had come from. who had eaten all my broccolli?The farmer denied all knowledge, his sheep were back in the field and the poo was too small? my neighbours were still asleep, both sides. my chickens were all fine and the one who was missing the day before was waiting to be let back into the run. The pigs had noticed the lack of zap ( eventually) and were bulldozing round the perimeter. They did not quite escape but were close. Pigs are strong, intelligent and adventurous, maximum security required.

[sausagesandcash]

I'm still laughing (sorry!), great post. If ya' saw it in a hollywood movie, you wouldn't believe it could happen! Sometimes life is stranger than fiction. 

[Hilarysmum]

I can well imagine the chaos. 

Have just had a quick look out into back garden, there in the bird feeder are 7 small tammie cross gos, and mum.  The affronted chickens are throwing murderous looks, the big cockerel is preening up his feathers prepared to go in to battle.  I have to go rescue her before he draws himself up to his full height and goes and taps her on the ankle with his beak. 

She is only returning the compliment as this morning he led a full on raid into her field standing on tip toes to get his head down inside her bucket and running off with her prize titbit a large piece of fresh french stick!
 
Oh well at least its not Hilary!!!

[carl]

animals have a brilliant sense for adventure when allowed and make great entertainment when left to their own devices. The smallest of our cockerels are always the bravest, and are full of amusement. the geese are just daft and the pigs are wonderful, like big scruffy puppies. my neighbour ,kay says she was petrified as armed with just a torch she gamely got them all back in the field. she is about 8 stone and five foot nothing. she says they all flocked to the torchlight and when back in they still swirled round and round in circles.I was very glad she did get stuck in, as she is quite a townie and just coming to terms with living out here.when she moved in they inherited two goats, but got rid sharpish as they scared her. also @ a dozen hens which had to go as she struggled to cope. after she saw my menagerie and me letting her family interact she has now got stuck in. she has 14 chickens in a run her husband made, and with a bit of encouragement from me and the guy the otherside of them, she is coping well. Though her ferets proved a mistake, especially when the male knocked off 8 turkeys from our little flock.Good neighbours are important, especially helpful and tolerant ones.