J has a 1oo gallon water tank in his paddock with a floating water heater. I end up filing the tank about once a week; trying to pick the warmest weekend day as it makes handling the hoses (from the frost proof spigot in the barn) easier. Given the latest freeze wave of -18 F temperatures, I held off until the balmy +20 F forecast for today. And found myself without water. Frozen spigot. Ugh. I enlisted DH on an emergency bucket brigade from the house. Gunga Din! Bring Water!!
This freeze up is my own fault. I neglected to plug in the heat tape that the previous owners had wrapped around the spigot. Did fine in the previous cold snap so thought it could go without. Hopefully with warmer temperatures and a night with the tape plugged in, all will be restored. Otherwise, I will be carrying 2 buckets of water from house to barn every night. At least my arms would become freakishly strong as a result.
To add to the fun, the cats were equally uncooperative. They have shown little interest in the arctic wasteland outside the barn doors up to now. They typically stay in the warmth of the heated tack room while the doors are open during chore time. Naturally, in the middle of the bucket brigade, curiosity struck. We spent half the time shuttling curiosity seekers back into the barn and finally temporarily locked them in by blocking the cat door with a bag of grain.
Mama is under house arrest as we believe she either arrived ‘in kitten’ or is an exceptionally exuberant eater. We are waiting a few more weeks to see which before scheduling a spay. In the meantime, she is not allowed visitors (is something of a Jezebel). Little Kitten k. is under house arrest as we have roving coyotes at night and she’s not savvy enough to stay clear of trouble.
k. has either found a stash of catnip in the arena or is taking up martial arts training. She’s here, she’s there – all you see is a flash of grey tail or two intense eyes watching you from underneath a stall door. Perhaps she is watching Bruce Lee videos during the day?
Tags: antarctica, chores, ninja cat, spigot, water
