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Speaker 1: Yo, Hello everyone, and welcome to the Animal Tales podcast,

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where you suggest the animal for us to write a

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story about. My name's Josephine and I've got a brand

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new animal story here just for you. There are now

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over one hundred extra stories on the Animal Tales premium service.

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Find out how to join in the text that accompanies

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this episode, and remember for a tiny fee their advert

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free Grace. Kitty, z Jaden and Archie are from England

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and they would like a story with a Welsh cob,

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a sheep, Polish frizzled chickens and a hornet. You can

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learn more about some of these creatures in the Animal

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Facts after the story. Now settle back, relax, and I'll

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begin farm Yard Hornet. The trees and flowers whizzed past

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a blur of green, yellow, and blue. Z ducked and dived,

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dodging branches and sailing past leaves, his wings beating furiously

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as he zipped through the air. The young hornet was

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excited to be flying fast and free. Z took a

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moment to rest, landing on a bramble leaf on the

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edge of the woods. He'd never flown this far before.

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The strange land beyond the trees was all new to him.

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Deep in the woods, Z lived in a colony with

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other hornets. Some had spoken of this place and of

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the bizarre animals that could be found there, filling Z's

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head with wonder, it was something he now wanted to

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experience for himself. He took off again, buzzing across a

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hillside made of a wide rectangle of grass. There wasn't

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a single tree growing upon it. The hill curled downwards

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to several large buildings, objects that Z had never seen before.

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Hey there, called out Z to a passing butterfly. What's

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that down there? That's a farm, of course, said the

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butterfly lazily. What does a farm do exactly? Z asked.

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It's where farm animals live, answered the butterfly. Everyone knows that,

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Z though hadn't known that, so he decided to take

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a closer look. Flying low, Z crossed a fence and

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soon spotted his first farm animals. It was a pair

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of birds, one brown and one white, scratching at the

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dirt as they searched for things to eat. Z had

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never seen birds like these before. They had lots of

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fluffy feathers and a big halo around their head covering

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their eyes. Hello, he said, hovering near by. I'm Z.

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The chickens raised their heads, but their fluffy feathers made

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it difficult to see. Who said that, said the brown bird.

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Show yourself, said the white one. I'm er right here,

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Z said, buzzing closer to their faces. What are you,

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said the brown bird. Are you a bird? Asked the

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white one. No, no, here, let me help, said Z.

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He flew closer, still flapping his wings really hard to

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blow the feathers out of their eyes. It's a wasp,

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cried the brown bird, in fright. I'm not a wasp.

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Z tried to explain, but it was no use. The

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birds didn't fly away, but ran in circles, sending up

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a cloud of dust and feathers. It was such a

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commotion that Z took fright, backing away rapidly, shaking slightly.

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He settled on a fence post just as a new

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creature arrived. This one had a creamy white covering and

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reminded Ze of a cloud with legs. Jadon, what's all

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this noise about, asked the cloud creature. Oh, kitty, you're

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not going to believe it, answered Jadon. The brown bird

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Archie and I have had such a scare. We were

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attacked by a huge bug, wailed Archie. The white bird

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a bug, repeated the animal called Kitty, clearly unimpressed. Why

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is it always some sort of nonsense with you two

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frizzle chickens, Hey, objected Jadon. That time you caught us

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in the feed bins. We really were chasing a ghost, yeah,

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nodded Archie, making his feathery fringe flop about. And I

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still say it's worth standing in the rain to see

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if any fish fall out of the sky. Kitty tutted,

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And what precisely did this huge bug look like? She asked.

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It was a wasp, said Jadon, and a big one,

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at least double the size, added Archie, with red eyes

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instead of black. Kitty shook her head, not believing them.

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They couldn't see past their own feathers half the time. Well,

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whatever you think you saw, it's gone. Now. Just keep

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the noise down, okay. From the fence post, Zee watched

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Kitty the cloud creature trot away, leaving the two frizzled

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chickens to give a shake and begin pecking at the

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ground again. He felt bad for giving them such a fright.

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He certainly hadn't meant to, so he thought it would

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be good manners to apologize. Taking a deep breath, Ze

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buzzed over. Hello again, He called out about earlier wasp.

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There it is, Jadon cried, defend yourself, Archie. The chickens

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jumped into fighting stances, legs apart and wingtips held ready

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to strike. Unfortunately they couldn't see properly, so we're both

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facing the wrong way. Leave us alone, Archie cried, and

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take all your wasp friends with you. I'm not a wasp.

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Ze tried to explain. I've just come to see your farm.

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I've never seen such a thing. Sting did he say?

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Sting screeked Jaden. Look out, screamed Archie, and the pair

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of chickens began running in circles again. Ze felt he

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had no choice but to retreat again, rising above them,

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what's all this racket? Boomed Kitty, the cloud creature arriving

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with urgency. It's the giant wasp. Archie yelped, it's back.

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Kitty looked about her boys. There's no giant wasp, she said.

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I'm not a wasp, said Ze. Kitty looked up to

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see a large red eyed insect hovering over her wasp,

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she screamed, suddenly, all in a panic. This set the

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chickens off again, filling the yard with a flurry of

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feathers and wool. As the three creatures dashed about madly.

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Retreating to a nearby roof, was unsure of how to proceed.

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His visit to the farm wasn't going very well at all. Then,

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directly beneath him, an even bigger animal than the cloud

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creature emerged from the building. It had a long face

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and just one large, hard toe on each foot. What

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on earth are you three doing, asked the giant. Oh, Grace,

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it's terrible, whined Jaden. We've all been attacked by a

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giant wasp. It was horrible, Archie added. I'm used to

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you frizzle chickens creating a fuss, said Grace, but I

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expect more from a sheep. What exactly is going on, Kitty?

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The sheep suddenly felt quite embarrassed. It's true, Grace, Kitty said.

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It was a giant wasp with big wings, red eyes,

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and a huge stinger. Not you too, Kitty, Grace sighed,

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I'm sure it wasn't that bad. It was the sheep insisted,

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we're not exaggerating. Grace shook her large head. I think

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that's quite enough, she said. All your noise is disturbing

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the other animals. Let that be the end of it.

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Up on the roof, Ze was feeling very disappointed. This

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is no good, He said to himself, I still have

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no idea what this farm is. Maybe I'm just talking

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to the wrong animals. This lot behaved very strangely every

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time I try to talk to them. Perhaps there's a

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different creature I could talk to. With a flicker of wings,

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he was airborne again, leaving the frizzle chickens, the sheep,

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and the big giant behind. He zigged and zag up

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the farmyard, hovering over nooks and crannies as he searched

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for someone to talk to. This search took him in

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a big loop, bringing him back to where he'd started.

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There was no sign of the animals from earlier, although

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there was the doorway that the giant had emerged from.

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He decided to take a look inside. The only animals

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he could see were huddled amongst some straw, two frizzle

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chickens and one sheep, with the giant stood beside them.

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I wonder what they're doing now, said Se to himself

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as he dared to get a little closer. The giant

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appeared to be talking. You can't hide in here forever,

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she was saying, We can, insisted Archie, at least until

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we know it's safe. But it is safe, Grace insisted.

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There are no such things as giant wasps. That's right,

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said Z, trying to be helpful. See I'm not a wasp.

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This time it was Grace who screamed, her ears laid backwards,

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and her hoofs pounding the ground. For the third time

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that day, Z was surrounded by panicking, shouting, running animals.

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They tore up the straw, neighed and bleated, and squawked

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and crowed as they filled the air with dust and noise.

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It was pandemonium and all too much for Z, who

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was used to the peace and quiet of the woods. Stop,

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he shouted at the top of his voice. Please, will

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you all stop? Why is that so you can sting us,

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winnied the trembling giant. Ah, so now she believes us,

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said Jadon. Not such a brave Welsh cob pony, now is,

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she added Archie. Look, I'm not going to sting anybody,

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insisted Ze. But you're a giant wasp, said Kitty the Sheep,

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that's what wasps do Ze sighed with frustration. But I

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keep telling you I'm not a wasp, he said, Then

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what are you? Scoffed Grace. I'm a hornet, Ze replied patiently.

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All I wanted to do was look around your farm.

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I'm not buying it, said Jaden. He looks like a

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wasp to me. What are you talking about, laughed Grace.

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You can't see a thing through that fringe look, said

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Kitty the Sheep. Maybe you do look a little different

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to a wasp, but you need to understand that we

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just don't like them. They buzz around your head, Archie said,

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and and on your food, added Jadon. And they can

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sting you, said Kitty. And getting stung hurts, pointed out Grace.

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And you may not be a wasp, but you have

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an even bigger stinger. I do, admitted Se, but I've

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never used it. Have any of you actually been stung

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by a wasp? Well er No, said the Welsh cob pony,

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But we could have been. I don't go around looking

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to sting animals, said Se. And I'm quite sure, wasps

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are the same. If you treat them nicely, they'll treat

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you nicely. That's how I see things anyway. But you

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could sting us, said Kitty if you wanted to. And

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I'm sure any of you could hurt me too, See

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replied You're much bigger than me, and you've got claws

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and beaks and hoofs. You could squish me easily. I

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should be just as worried about you as you are

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of me. But I wouldn't squish anybody, Grace said, I

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could never be so mean, said Kitty. You're a lot

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braver than we've been, said Jadon. Yea, considering you're so small,

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added Archie. We haven't made a very good first impression,

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have we, stated the pony. I think I understand why now,

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said c But I'd still like to learn more about

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your farm. If you're willing to show me, I think

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we owe it to you, said Kitty, with a smile.

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We may have overreacted just a little. Oh, let's take

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the little guy to see the cows, said Jadon. Suddenly,

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and the ducks. Archie suggested, z couldn't have been more pleased.

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What followed was one of the most unusual but very

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special farm tours ever seen. Two frizzled chickens, the sheep

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and the Welsh cob Pony made sure to introduce C calmly,

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making sure the animals understood that they were in no

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danger and that, yes, he looked like a wasp, but

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he wasn't one. Once they were done and Z had

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met every one his new friends, asked what he thought

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of their home. It's very interesting, admitted Z, and very

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different to where I live. I can't say I really

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understand what a farm is for, but I've enjoyed meeting

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every single one of you, and we've all enjoyed getting

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to know U, Z, said Kitty the Sheep. You've not

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been what we expected at all, said Grace the pony.

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I think that next time we come across a situation

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like this, we'll try a little patience and understanding first.

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I'm glad to hear it, said Sea, as a vehicle

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poured into the far end of the farmyard and a

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man and a dog climbed out. What sort of farm

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animals are those two, asked the hornet. I'll tell you what,

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grinned Grace. Come back tomorrow and you can find out

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animal fat. In England, where our story is set, the

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native hornet is not aggressive. They feed on other insects,

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including wasps, so are helpful to have around. Polish frizzled

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chickens have a large, fluffy crest of feathers atop their heads.

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We know they've been around for a long time, as

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they appear in paintings from five hundred years ago. Thank

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you for your suggestions, Grace, Kitty, Zee, Jaden, and Archie.

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We hope that you all enjoyed the story. Wherever you're

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listening in the world, don't forget to look at our

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Animal Tales books over on Amazon great bedtime reading, especially

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if you've discovered the joy of reading for yourself. Make

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sure you join us next time for another great animal tale.

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Good Bye.