Around The Farm, Mid-April

It's March 14 and I figured it was time for a pictorial farm update, beginning with a comfy cow. She was resting beside the hay bale feeder and chewing her cud. The day was rather warm in spite of the snowy field you see behind her:

Two of my girls, Gracie and Violet. Gracie, the cow on the left, has developed a swelling on her belly near the navel area and I've worried that it might be a hernia. You can see it in this photo, though it sometimes looks more pronounced. But it doesn't seem to bother her and there isn't much I can do anyway but keep an eye on her:

Amy resting blissfully in the springtime sun:

Does it seem as if all these cattle do is eat, poop, and sleep? Yes, it often seems that way to me too:

Inside the house, the dogs were no more ambitious than the cows. Here, Clover, Seamus, Fergus and Daphne shared the floor beside my chair at the computer:

Draco and Madeline rested together at the foot of the stairs:

Fergus and Clover shared the kitchen floor pillows and squeaky toys:

Another friendly collection of lazy dogs - Daphne, Fergus and Seamus:

Inside the chicken coop (the hens have still not been able to go outside), my 12 miniature (bantam) hens are laying 8-11 eggs per day:

Several of them are feeling broody and wanting to raise a clutch of eggs but I haven't let them. I may change my mind, though, as the weather improves. The problem is that there is only one nest box which they find acceptable and I often find two or three birds crowded together in it:

My little rooster has gotten quite feisty and will now attack my boots. He crows all day long:

And this is what I see each day when I enter their coop to refill their food and water and to collect the eggs. They have now begun going outside again during the day: