Station: [5] Livestock Barn

Whew! I'm safe here in the livestock barn. The cat never comes in here; he finds it way too whiffy. Too many animals, too much stench. I, on the other hand, absolutely adore it in here. Hay and straw everywhere, and an especially handsome vaulted ceiling: a cross vault resting on the surrounding walls. But most importantly, lots and lots of animals! Allow me to make the introductions: Rosi, the pig...

... She’s a German saddleback pig. A breed that fattens up in no time. Because that's what's most important to the farmers. And it’s why Rosi is not allowed to move around too much, because all the exercise would mean she'd lose her layer of fat. Next to her are the cows...

... and on the right are our two horses. 

During the day, the horses have to help out in the field, and when they return to the barn in the evening, they’re delighted to be fed an extra large portion of hay in the two racks on the wall.

And my entire enormous family, in other words, my parents, my brothers and sisters, my cousins male and female, aunts and uncles once and twice removed ... we all live tucked away in here, amidst the billowing hay. It's lovely and cosy, you can always find a grain or two ... and this space, in particular, is very practical because, look: the floor is a little lower than the brickwork floor. The farm has what's called a deep-litter system, so the humans don’t muck out the bedding at all during the winter. They just add another layer of straw on top. At some point, that really does cause a stinky problem. But it’s okay for us, we’re happy with all the hay, and the whole gang spends a nice, toasty winter in here. Am I right, peeps?

Plus, in the spring, the farmer has a big pile of manure to spread on the fields as fertilizer. At that point, we scamper back outside as well. Incidentally, rabbits, ducks and chickens are housed at the back of the barn. And there are also sheep and a pony in here. So we certainly never get bored. Neither do you, eh, Rosi?