Annabelle

The first week I moved here and walked the grounds, my first thought was.......I, at last, can get ducks and chickens! Annabelle, is one of the first fowl that has been here since that time 8 years ago. I brought her home,a tiny bit of soft yellow fluff, with two tiny orange feet......along with two other little ducks. As the years have passed.......there has been many new broods of chickens hatched out here and purchased, along with other small amounts of ducks. Time and predators have taken a toll on the barnyard..... dwindling down the group, but somehow, Annebelle has survived it all. She has two drakes to keep her company.....and I am thinking about a new "box of quackers" to get in the spring. Annabelle has been the one to teach me every thing there is to know about ducks. What they like, what they don't like. I am amazed at how resilient ducks are. When the rain is pounding down and the chickens run for cover, the ducks are out in it all, splashing and running their bills into the mud, having a party. When the pools are frozen over and the water is icy, the ducks jump on top of the ice, breaking into the freezing water and plunging underneath. I am not sure how much longer Annabelle will be with me. I keep the drakes separated from her during the day, because they are just too rough and she doesn't get the chance to eat or relax in the pool. She gets with them at night only. She limps now as she waddles about, but she still loves to do the "duck things" that she has always done. Out of all of the ducks I will raise through this journey, it will be Annabelle that will remain in my memory.