Belladonna Meets the Ewes

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Sunday morning presented the opportunity to introduce Belladonna to the grown-ups, since we had the ewes in the barn paddock.  She is constantly exposed to the lambs, but has not spent much time off-leash around them because of both their age-appropriate tendencies to run and chase; not good habits for a guard dog.  But around the ewes, she was much calmer and displayed a great natural inclination to sit and observe while occasionally investigating a new sight or sound.  All in all, the five hours Bella spent with the ewes was a great success, and we will continue her exposure this week with the ewes that were not moved with the breeding group.
Bella was particularly enchanted with our old girl.  Curly did not back away at all when she approached, and this certainly intrigued Bella.  She spent a lot of time slowly prancing up to Curly, tail wagging wildly.  Then she would suddenly spin and run away, looking back over her shoulder as if to say, “Catch me, catch me, if you can!”  Quite entertaining. 

Groundwork for Breeding

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We began laying the groundwork for breeding season this weekend.  We brought all the ewes back over to the barn paddock, and reviewed their health and lambing records with a critical eye.  We then made culling decisions, one of the hardest and least pleasant tasks leading up to breeding.  But tough decisions must be made, and once they are, the ewe is silently thanked for the joy she has provided with her unique personality, for the contributions she made to the flock and for the memories she has given our family.

We then began work on the breeding ewes.  We are so grateful for the deck chair that we purchased several years ago.  It makes these tasks so much easier.  Lucy was the first victim lucky ewe, and her best friend, Minerva, seemed quite concerned; offering her support during the entire process.  To get the ewe into the chair, we get on each side of her, back her up, position her legs, gain leverage and (as gently as humanly possible) tip her into the deck chair.  This can become quite comical with some of the larger ewes, as we are a bit on the petite side, but with tactical positioning and leverage, eventually we have been able to tip even our largest rams.

As we catch each ewe, we do a quick FAMACHA test.  Next, we clean and trim her hooves.  This gives her a good foundation for the extra weight she will be carrying come spring time.  Most of the ewes are quite content lying in the chair, and Lucy, although this was her first time, acted as if she was at the spa – stretching and pawing at us when we paused and turned to pick up a different tool.

The final task in breeding ewe preparation is crutching.  We use blade shears to trim away the wool in the area surrounding the vulva.  We feel this is necessary in our long wool sheep to ensure that a greater percentage of the ewes are settled during breeding season, and indeed we have had very few open ewes.
After two long days, we were very happy to finish just before twilight on Sunday.  We managed to get all the breeding ewes moved over to the paddock on top of the hill, near the ram paddock, for flushing.  We seem to running a little behind with everything this year, so it feels really good to be one step closer to “The Turning In of the Rams’.

Autumn Lessons

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One of Autumn’s lessons is to carefully watch your step as you go about your daily chores

but Autumn’s greatest lesson is to gently remind us to look up… lift up our eyes
”Climb the mountains and get their good tidings.  Nature’s peace will flow into you as sunshine flows into trees.  The winds will blow their own freshness into you, and the storms their energy, while cares will drop off like autumn leaves.”  — John Muir

Sunday Muse

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Oh I’d like to go back
To that old country church
To hear the songs of praise
How the people would sing
It would make the rafters ring
At that old, that old country church

Shall we gather at the river
The beautiful, beautiful river
Gather with the saints at the river
That flows by the throne of God

Oh I’ll never forget
At that old country church
How the Glory of the Lord came down
And the children would smile
As they shouted down the aisle
Of that old, that old country church

In the sweet bye and bye
We shall meet on that beautiful shore
In the sweet bye and bye
We shall meet on that beautiful shore

Then on Sunday I’d see
All my friends dear to me
At that old country church
When it came time for prayer
Everybody would be there
At that old country church

 Leaning, oh yes I’m leaning
Safe and secure from all alarm
Leaning, oh yes I’m leaning
Leaning on the ever lasting arm

Now the years have gone by
And so many have died
At that old country church
But they are on that other shore
Where they will sing forever more
As they did at that old country church

   — “The Old Country Church” – Lyrics by J. D. Sumner

Bovine Pleasure

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Scarcely a day goes by that Beef Cake and Betty Lou Moo Moo fail to bring a smile to our faces.  They now come trotting down the hill to the gate to greet us.  We then all climb back up the hill to the feeder where they are treated to a little sweet feed.  The feeder is placed at the top of the hill so that it is near their wonderful watering trough.  It was in place when we bought this property, and is snuggled into the little shaded gully.  Sometimes the simplest things bring one pleasure – Betty Lou, Beef and this lovely watering trough are often bright spots in the day.

Autumn Views

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Late summer was so dry that as fall approached, the green leaves began to fall from some of the trees.  So, after weeks of worrying whether there would be any fall color at all; we feel so blessed to be surrounded with an abundance of autumn beauty.  Many leaves are now beginning to fade and fall, but here and on Flickr are a few of our favorite ‘Autumn Views’ from the past couple weeks.