MOST of the family is suffering from coughs, colds, sneezes and diseases, and that includes many of the animals on the farm.

Like us, once our stock is off downhill, they start to go off their food. So when John noticed that many of the calves were not rushing up to get their share of the barley from the troughs a couple of days ago, he knew something was wrong.

Earlier in the week, he and Geoff had cleaned out the main fold yards. From standing on a heap of straw and muck three feet above the concrete of the fold yard, the cattle are now back at ground level. Tractors and scrapers revving in and out of the yards is not, however, conducive to a peaceful lifestyle, and cattle do not like to be stressed. This, rather than the weather conditions is more likely to have brought on the attack of pneumonia amongst the stock, and once John started to hear the calves coughing, he knew he had to act fast.

Within the hour, our vet was on the farm with the necessary treatment. He left John with additional injections, as he was sure that more of the calves would go down with the virus. They did, but a couple of days after the onset of the first problems, several of the calves have started feeding and look much livelier than they did yesterday

John is hoping soon to be able to add to the number of calves we are rearing. Last year was a nightmare. With no stock moving or available, it meant that that section of the business just did not function, and that this year there are few bullocks to sell on. This has left us a year out of step on farm income, and no immediate possibility of getting started again. It is still too early to consider putting any of our stock outside. Our land is very wet, no grass is growing and the weather is unreliable.

Soon John will start getting the yards ready for the ewes to come home. He likes them to be settled in under cover, warm and cosy, for several weeks before they start lambing.

Perversely the one member of the family so far untouched by colds is daughter Bryony. She is expecting a baby in the summer, and so far has stayed supremely well, despite all the rest of us, including her husband, going under with stuffed noses, headaches and sinusitis. She is under a fair bit of stress with her work as a doctor and, having sold their flat to move into a house well in time for the arrival of the new baby, the house sale has fallen through. The family they were buying from have lost the house they were wanting, and have decided to stay put. Bryony and Chris are faced with the situation of their purchasers wanting them out, and nowhere to go. Every house they have been to look at has been snapped up before they can put an offer in.

She has had three scans so far. Babies today will no longer be embarrassed when they are older by the photos of themselves naked in the bath, they will now have to tolerate pictures of themselves in utero.

Updated: 11:49 Thursday, February 14, 2002