Petal, Gobo, Dash and Digger and most of their acting friends were supplied by an extremely knowledgeable animal trainer (the same person who supplies the Andrex puppy!) and were carefully looked after on location by three experienced animal handlers who were also responsible for their training.

Big Barn Farm itself wasn’t an existing farm but was created around the lovely flint stable block and the huge barn – which also inspired the title of the show. As Big Barn Farm was set on private property unfortunately it isn’t open to visitors.

As well as having ‘on set’ homes, the cast were provided with specially built living quarters and Dash even had a friend come and stay (as donkeys can get lonely on their own) . All of the animal accommodation was approved by our vet who was on call 24 hours a day. The puppies spent their nights in a cottage nearby with the animal handlers. The chickens and ducks must have been happy with their new homes as they were always laying eggs.

The vet was only called out twice during filming; once because Gobo had a bit of a tummy upset and once because one of the piglets was poorly.

Most of the actions required of the animals were natural activities. As soon as Gobo gained his confidence in climbing on hay bales, there was no stopping him! Even Petal became an expert at jumping and Digger never needed an excuse to play!

Any specific actions required by the storylines were prepared for well in advance with the trainers working with the animals to achieve them. Of course, there were plenty of times when the animals would just do their own thing which, where possible, were included in the shows!

As puppies tire easily two identical puppies were acting alongside each other in order to give them rest time. And, as they grow so quickly, half way through filming, the puppies were swapped for two new ones. It was the same with the piglets as they grow quickly too.

A great deal of patience is required when working with animals and there were times when they just didn’t want to do what was required of them – even if they’d been happy to do exactly the same the day before. As the welfare of the animals was foremost, it was either a case of try again later or try something else.

The animals seemed to have great fun racing around the farm and the entire production team became extremely fond of them all - and the red tractor!

It took just over two months on location to film all the necessary material for 20 shows and then a further 6 months to edit, voice and animate them.

The reason there is no list of credits at the end of the show is to allow the viewers to enjoy the closing song sequence in its entirety.