Sheeps and Peeps Farm

Sorry for the long absence, but as you can imagine we have been pretty busy. This season’s lambing is winding down, and it has been a very stormy one.  We have had a few days of sunshine, but the most intense days looked more like this…

Easter afternoon

We were going to tell you about the hour and a half spent pulling a gigantic 16 lb lamb that had one leg bent all the way back (we lost the lamb but saved the ewe)… the heartbreak of coming into the barn early Easter morning and finding one of a set of twins that could not be revived… the fact that all 14 lambing jugs were full twice in spite of a steady rotation of ewes and lambs to the field… the hours spent making sure every ewe had hay and water and every lamb had a full belly… the triplets dramatic birth at the very bottom of the hill in the farthest corner from the barn… the fact that every birth is a miracle…but instead we will share this…

Scenes like this make it all worthwhile… there is nothing as beautiful lambs in the field…

Here it is… the birthing of the lambs of 2011 (at least the first 39…)

And when we say little, we mean a little activity.  Only one more ewe gave birth yesterday.  Boy, are we hoping for more than that today, although weatherwise it is another very wet and soggy day.

Anyway… Rosey Posey blessed us with beautiful, healthy twins – a ewe weighing 11 lbs 2 ozs and a ram weighing 11 lbs 10 ozs.  They are out of our wonderful older ram, Liam.  Rosey is a veteran mama so everything went very smoothly.  They are Border Leicester – Coopworth – Wensleydale crosses.
Here’s hoping that the weather settles down this afternoon and we can get some of the older lambs out of their jugs and into the field… fingers crossed.

Yesterday was another slow day – first-time mama, Havva, had a beautiful ewe lamb weighing 11 lbs 5 ozs.  It took us about half an hour and a lot of patience to get her and the baby into a lambing jug, but we finally did and they are doing great!  The little lamb has a lovely fleece.  She is what one might call a true farm flock breed – Coopworth x Blue-faced Leicester x Border Leicester x Wensleydale x Cotswald.  We can’t wait to see her fleece this fall!

(We will try to answer everyone’s questions from yesterday’s comments, later today.  Have to get back to the barn… there’s a little activity…)

Lambing is still moving along ever. so. slowly.  So slow, in fact, that Erma gave up her preaching perch

We are delighted, however, to welcome to the flock, Hestia’s twin black ewes out of Aragorn.  They are Border Leicester – Coopworth – Wensleydale crosses.  The first weighed 9 lbs 14 ozs and the second 7 lbs 14 ozs. 

It’s funny how things work out – last year all the lambs were white until the 28th one was born – this year 4 out of the first 8 are black.  Oh, we do so love our black sheep here on the farm!

Yesterday… on a day that could only be described as being fit for ducks…

while everyone took refuge from the weather inside the barn…

while Larry and Jack paced the corral like nervous relatives in the waiting room…

then, maybe half an hour later, Hannah, had twin Border Leicester rams; the first weighing 12 lbs 7 ozs and the second weighing 10 lbs 4 ozs.  They are out of Aragorn.

Things are moving slowly – we are bracing ourselves for what is sure to be the
lamb-storm yet to come.