Farmer duck

Once upon a time there was a duck who lived with a lazy old farmer.

The duck did all the work and the farmer stayed in bed all day.

First, the duck fetched the cow from the field.

‘How goes the work?’ called the farmer. The duck answered, ‘Quack!’

Next, the duck brought the sheep from the hill.

‘How goes the work?’ called the farmer. The duck answered, ‘Quack!’

Then, the duck put the hens in their house.

‘How goes the work?’ called the farmer. The duck answered, ‘Quack!’

The farmer stayed in bed all day and got fat but the duck worked all day and got fed up. The poor duck was sleepy and weepy and tired.

The hens and the cow and the sheep got very upset because they loved the duck.

So, they held a meeting under the moon and they made a plan for the morning.

‘Moo!’ said the cow. ‘Baa!’ said the sheep. ‘Cluck!’ said the hens. And that was the plan!

Early the next morning, just before dawn, the farmyard was still.

Then, through the back door and into the house crept the cow and the sheep and the hens.

They tiptoed down the hall. They creaked up the stairs. They squeezed under the farmer’s bed and they wriggled and jiggled about.

Suddenly, the bed started to rock and the farmer woke up.

‘Moo!’ said the cow. ‘Baa!’ said the sheep. ‘Cluck!’ said the hens.

They lifted his bed and they banged and they bounced the farmer about and about and about until…THUD! They bounced him right out of the bed and chased him down the stairs, mooing and baaing and clucking around him.

Down the lane … ‘Moo!’ Through the fields … ‘Baa!’ Over the hill … ‘Cluck!’

The following day, the duck woke up and waddled wearily into the farmyard. He waited to hear, ‘How goes the work?’ but nobody spoke.

Then ... ‘Moo!’ said the cow. ‘Baa!’ said the sheep. ‘Cluck!’ said the hens. And that told the duck the whole story.

So, the duck and the cow and the sheep and the hens all set to work happily on their farm.

As for the farmer, he was never seen again!