Billy was opening electric bills yesterday, and when he got to the one for our back-up pump, his hair stood on end.  Well — it would have, if it were long enough.  Anyway, the bill for that small pump was much larger than it had any right to be.  Usually, it just serves one household; our renter, Manuel.  There was no reason for it to suddenly rise, unless there was a Problem.

Now that well has saved our bacon several times, when the big well was down for one reason or another.  There was no problem with the main well supplying Manuel.  That was just a matter of opening a line to his house.  But if the big well loses power, or has a problem with the pump, we’ve got three hundred horses without water — unless we can use the back-up well.  It doesn’t supply the whole place, but it puts out enough for drinking and toilet-flushing.  So most of yesterday was spent digging up lines to see if there was a leak somewhere, because the small pump was running continuously.  That’s the reason for the big electric bill that alerted us.

There wasn’t a leak, so the problem is down in the hole somewhere.  The pump will have to be pulled, and possibly replaced.  We can’t complain, because that pump dates from 1973.  Forty years is not bad, for any mechanism.

We can’t do anything over the weekend, but Monday Billy will get on the phone and get someone out to take a look.

Just one of those things you might not think of right away, when it comes to running a stable.

To change the subject entirely, boarder Jennifer noticed the problem with Peaches’ personal pool.

So she very kindly brought out a bigger one, so our pup could be a little more comfortable.

She was a little skeptical.

“Are you sure this isn’t a BATH?”

“Hmm . . . not bad.  I think I’ll keep it!”

Just look at that tail.  Peaches’ growth is beginning to slow down — helper Jerry says she’s not doubling in size every time he sees her — but she’s still getting bigger.  She’s taller and heavier than Xena now.

Last night we kept hearing a thud . . . thudity-thud . . . thudity-thud . . . thud.  We both thought it was Peaches scratching herself behind the toilet, but it seemed pretty loud.  Today we found out what she was doing.  She packed her tennis ball into the bathroom, and was dropping it into the bathtub and watching it bounce.  Then she’d jump in and get it, and do it again.  When she got bored, she left the grimy tennis ball in the tub for future reference.

She’s certainly an inventive dog.

We’re just glad it wasn’t the toilet.

Yet.