Leah

Mostly, this blog is about food, specifically the food I and you make from Green Fence Farm products. But sometimes the blog is about the farm and the souls that make it work. Leah, on the right with her sister, Lily, to the left, was one of those; today Nick pays tribute to her:

Leah, our Great Pyrenees sheep/goat guardian dog, died recently. She was an amazing dog—a gentle giant with an old soul. Despite a long history of hip dysplasia, she performed her duties wonderfully, without complaint. She asked for nothing—except for a bear hug or to sit on your feet. Several ewes were her friends—sitting together. Leah, during lambing time, would always find a ewe giving birth in the woods and lay protecting her in a most vulnerable moment.

Her greatest joy was for a person to sit on the ground so she could lie on top of them. She would have made a lousy pet—a big hairy, slobbery, ottoman sized dog—but as guard dog with hundreds of years of breeding she was well suited for her work. As we laid her to rest near a burial spot for past sheep and goats—so she could continue to perform the work she loved-- a flock of geese flew by in a seemingly memorial fly over. I’d like to think that her nemeses, the pack of coyotes that prowl the woods nearby, stood in silence for a moment to honor a fallen adversary. It will be hard to find another Leah—but her sister Lily will need another partner. I found more coyote tracks outside the perimeter fence and possibly a mountain lion track. The fight goes on—Leah would want that.

Nick