I will admit that I am a person that uses food to solve problems --- My question is "does everyone" or is this something I should be working on? I think the part I really need to work on first is not trying to fix, what I perceive are other's, problems by feeding them. (especially when I most often use not so healthy food).
A few days ago when I had cabin fever and assumed the sheep and Beau had barn fever I was going to take us all for a walk trying to be good and use exercise instead of food to solve the problem. Unfortunately, the wind created a scene like the pictures you see of the snow blowing across the Artic ice and no one was interested including me. So I did the next best thing --- I offered food. I usually give a few handfuls of grain for a treat but I felt something more exciting was called for so I offered slices of apple. Hildegard was vaguely interested all the others sniffed and turned up their noses and this was a good MacIntosh.
On the sheep forum last fall, everyone was talking about what their sheep ate and how they cleaned up the last of the garden harvest. Not my sheep. They are so picky. What is really funny is how different they all are. Beau will eat slices of peach or apple occasionally, and the other day tried water cress. None of the others would consider a nibble and when I offered it to Beau again he declined. We have water cress growing in our spring and one of my neighbors feeds his to his chickens and calls it chicken salad. I guess it isn't llama salad or sheep salad.
Most of the sheep will eat pumpkin seed but not Hildegard and not Beau. Sarah and Annie love it when I bash a pumpkin open and they will eat the pulp, stringy stuff, and seed. The others like their pumpkin seed from the health food store. (good for natural deworming)
The other day I was eating a dill pickle and offered it around. I remembered when my brother Bill offered one to my daughter Wednesday when she was very young. He wanted to see her make a face but, to his surprise and mine, she loved it. So does Annie! Sarah nibbled a bit and the rest looked at me like "what are you thinking?" but Annie chomped and couldn't get enough.
Usually they give me that "what's wrong with grain" look--we want grain. I give them a great natural mineral mix that smell like seaweed. Hay has good nutrition and grain in moderation is O.K. so why do I think they need fruit and vegetables? It has to be the mental aspects of food for me but why must I impose that on them?
Can't wait for the pasture to be clear of snow again but that isn't going to be anytime soon and we might get --You Guested It-- more snow Monday.
Excellent! Not the snow part.
ReplyDeleteAnd why do I think my cats need a different kind of cat food every day? Same brand, different flavor. We think our animals are human or at least have human traits. We need variety, they probably don't.
ReplyDeleteSome of my favorite memories are around food. Sitting around the dinner table with all nine of us, visiting and spilling milk; Bill and I ordering hot beef sandwiches when we ate at a restaurant during our summer vacations; Grandmother making oatmeal in the morning when Gail and I would spend the night; Aunt Helen's chicken, mashed potatoes and green beans and the favorite story of John getting on Aunt Helen's table and eating all of the green beans. And who can forget the lobster boil for Mom and Dad's 50th at Sue and John's.
ReplyDeleteAnd yes, I eat when I am stressed, lonely or bored. Probably because of the good memories food brings to mind.
I have the opposite problem. I tend to ignore food, get busy and forget to eat. I often forget to eat something, but will drink coffee with milk all day long.
ReplyDeleteI try not to eat wheat, since it can give me migraines, so eating can be problematic for me. I just tend to skip it but then I am so hungry at dinner that I tend to overeat.
Comfort for me is a big mug of green tea with honey-lemon-gensing or a tiny glass of almond sherry after dinner, sometimes with a tiny almond cookie.