It's All About Technique

It was inevitable. Lambing was going too easily so Eudora decided to liven things up a bit. As I called the flock up to the barn for the nightly lamb count I noticed her in the upper pasture obviously pushing. My binoculars didn't help so I hobbled up to her. The lamb was stuck and needed human hands to free it but Eudora fled as I approached. I decided against the flying tackle approach to catching her and herded her up to the barn. It seemed to take forever. Once penned,Eudora stood for me but I couldn't kneel down to get my hand in her to grab the lamb. My knee not working was so frustrating at this point. When I put a halter on her, Eudora dropped to the ground in surrender. With no other option I had to lie beside her with my head at her butt. Not exactly the best angle to pull but it worked! I got my hand in the free the lamb's long legs and out popped a huge ewe lamb. Her head was swollen and red from being trapped and compressed but momma loved her the instant I plopped her under under mom's nose. Mission accomplished! As I felt satisfied and relieved that all was well I realized I couldn't get up! GGRR. As Eudora licked her ugly baby I rolled through the straw and manure to pull myself up on the feeder. Vertical never felt so good. The baby's name is Swan, hoping that's what she'll turn out to be after starting out as the ugly duckling. with one more BFL ewe to lamb, I'm hoping we return to easy lambing 2012.

Shepherding By Binoculars

Almost finished lambing. The ewes have been very cooperative, lambing easily as I sit here on my veranda with my leg propped up watching my flock through binoculars. My veranda is getting bigger with each week I sit on it but walking the pastures on crutches isn't easy. It's been a strange year. Warm weather, fewer sheep, a hay surplus and a barn full of ram lambs. The Shetlands have not even come into the barn to lamb. As soon as I can catch the babies, I install a bright red eartag so when I scan the field with my field glasses I can spot a newborn minus a tag.

The Blues have all lambed at a decent hour but even Icy who always has twin ewes has twinned ram lambs. What's up???? Hopefully I will have a collection of F2 Heddon Valley and Mossvale Masterplan ram lambs for sale at the Wooster show on Memorial Day Weekend.

March Madness Shepherd Style

Love watching the BFL lambs playing on what else.....the manure pile. Lamb count 22 BFL and 9 Shetlands.

So far 3 of my Shetland ewes have surprised me with ram lambs at feeding time in the morning. This morning it was apparent that Moira was going to lamb. She refused to come in to eat and meandered around the pasture looking for the perfect lambing spot. Finally after watching her for hours, Moira had 2 little black lambs scrambling under her. I'm so anxious for a ewe lamb but I can't get down the hill to her on my crutches to satisfy my curiosity. Binoculars will not reveal the sex of the 2 little imps bouncing around beside momma. When it began to rain, I expected momma to bring them to the barn. Well, I was so wrong. Moira and company are still out in the pasture despite the raindrops. Moira looks up at me in defiance. It's a Shetland standoff and she's winning.

Fourth set of triplets

Fourth set of triplets arrived yesterday. All surprisingly small but one especially tiny. Although spunky and hungry mom has decided that 2 lambs are plenty. After working with momma all night, tiny one became a bottle baby this morning. Thank goodness that some shepherds like bottle babies because this little girl went to a new home this morning. I hated to say goodbye but getting out for bottle feeding this year is rough.

Counting to Three

When I fist got interested in BFL sheep ewes to purchase were few and expensive. I bought Isabel from Kelly Ward and couldn't wait for Isabel's first lamb in 2005. My heart broke when I found Isabel's first newborn bouncing around the barnyard. She wasn't the beautiful BFL lamb that I wanted but a BFL/Shetland cross.....a mule. Somehow her father had managed to jump the fence and breed Isabel without asking my permission. Molly named the lamb Jamie after her favorite gymnast and Jamie was like a spunky gymnast and although she amused me I was so disappointed. Jamie has made me regret that disappointment every year when she delivers triplets that need no extra human intervention. She's the perfett mother demanding that the lambs stay with her at all times. She can count to three and knows if one lamb is not with her. On the other hand, Lillian my other mother of triplets still has not counted beyond two and all I do is collect the abandoned baby and get him to his mother. Such fun watching different mothering styles.

Lambing 2012 Continues Sloooowly

These F2 Mossvale Masterplan (Scotty)ram lambs are racing around with about 12 others as we wait for the bulk of the BFL ewes to lamb. It's the waiting game and the midnight walks to the barn that make lambing an interesting time of year. This year I'm hopping to the barn on crutches since I managed to fall off the ladder to the hay loft. Luckily it was a soft landing on hay and straw and a sleeping piles of cats so only my knee was damaged. The ewes do not like the sound of my crutches as I clump,clump through the barn. They don't realize it's Mom. Feeding hungry pregnant ewes is dangerous enough without worrying about them knocking my crutches out from under me. Knee should be better by the time lambing ends. Good timing!!??