LOL: Lots of _ _ _ _ lambs!

The flock started lambing 2 weeks ago and we have had 87 lambs born (a couple of twins were DOA) but lots of bouncy thriving lambs. It has gone smoothly and I am down to the last 8 ewes (7 of these will go in the next few days and then we will wait until around April 9 for the last.

As promised I am now posting photos of my Bluefaced Leicester ram "Beechtree Glen Roth" (sire of this year's Mule lambs), and Muleflock 18 Red (1/2 British Suffolk ram) "Sully". We refer to Sully's lambs as Sullicopters (see photo above of one of his lambs---ready for take-off!).

Will try to update more often and share farm/flock/family news.

Ready for Spring, Ready for Lambs!

I've been basically winter hibernating the last few weeks from my blog. The days are getting longer and warmer with some thawing days so we are readying for lambs and spring. I am getting my barn cleaned out and setup this week. I thought I'd preview what we are expecting:

If my numbers are right I should have 39 Clun Forest ewes bred pure. 10 Clun Forest ewes bred to the Bluefaced Leicester ram "Beechtree Glen Roth" for Mule lambs (was hoping for about 15 ewes but the cleanup ram got some of his). 6 Clun Mule ewes should be bred to "Sully", the 1/2 British Suffolk ram lamb acquired last fall from Mark Lelli for our 1st terminally sired bred market lambs.

For the purebred Clun Forest I used two main sires (photo attached). Prairie SAN S32 pictured left (F1 son of Netherlands SAN 125) and Prairie FAF R4 (F1 son of Netherlands FAF 025). Sure was nice of them to pose next to each other for a photo!
I used a Cleanup Clun ram Prairie FAF R7, a half-brother to R4.

I will get photos soon of Glen Roth and Sully. The action should start happening around March 14 and I will have a busy 3 weeks.

Life, Death, and Taxes

With a title of life, death, and taxes how can I say Happy New Year! But it is my first post of 2010 and the title seems fitting. The New Year brings thoughts of all the good things to expect in the coming year from life. Death, well the last of the last year's lambs went to market this month. Taxes, besides paying them I have taken on the responsibilty of collecting them for our Township last month (another interesting event/long story since I've becomed involved in civic life). It feels good to be in the home stretch of the unplanned add-on and it has been a positive for me. I am starting to look forward to the planning of the next couple of months and the start of lambing, so..... more life and the cycle continues.
Since it is still January I will wish all a Happy New Year!
Michele

A Christmas Story from the Farm

This Christmas story begins with a red hen Rachel has named Mary. Mary in fact is our only laying hen right now while we wait on the young chickens to mature. Before the last storm we moved Mary into the barn where she is free range. We just found her nest and where she has been laying her eggs. Rachel has been collecting the eggs. As she collected yesterday she says "I hope Mary lays a Christmas egg." I say why. "So we can have Jesus." It would have to be the immaculate chicken conception since the roosters are penned away from Mary but I did not get into that.
Wishing all a Merry Christmas!
Michele

Shepherd Abuse

It is a fact of life if you are your own shepherd or if you farm you will have the bumps and bruises to show you do some physical labor for a living. Summertime I really should stick to wearing long pants to cover the usual bruise or two I am sporting on my legs. These usually come from catching, weighing, vaccinating, deworming, or tattooing lambs that sometimes catch me with a kicking hoof. This past week with the snowstorm we got about a foot of wet heavy snow. Before the storm came I moved the ram group and pony into the barnyard so they would have some shelter. Once the storm passed, freezing below zero temps were on the way so I worked to clear the snow that accumulated around the livestock gates with a shovel before it froze so I'd be able to open the gates again to get the animals back out to pasture when the time came. I shoveled most of one gate and then pulled on it against the snow to see how much farther to shovel and wham the 16 ft. gate came off the hinge, hit me in the head right above my right eye, and down I went with the gate on top of me. Got back up and tried to put the gate back on the hinges but needed help to line it up. I have a black eye from the ordeal (actually a deep purple that looks like permanent eye shadow). I've had this colorful eye now for a few days and of course people make comments like "I'd like to see the other guy." At least I do live in a rural community so most people do believe my story (I think!). Some people don't ask and just look and you wonder what they are thinking happened. I've decided I'd just like to simply reply "shepherd abuse."

Puppy Grandmother Brag

Ok, so not much about sheep yet but they say Variety is the Spice of Life!

Visited a litter of puppies, the first litter produced by "Ella" a daughter of "Tex" my Cardigan male, CH. Byrnecrest Tri-ed To Tell Ya and "Val" MJ R Mere Valentine HT, TDI.
Ella is owned by Drakewood Cardigans and Drakewood owns Val's father. This litter has 7 lovely marked puppies and I am pleased as her litter sister "Bo" free whelped 10 puppies this summer for her first litter. Bo's litter had blacks with tri or brindle points, and blue merles. Bo is owned by Caernarvon and they own Val's mother, Rhosy. Ella's litter is red/sables and brindles. See photo! No mismarks or fluffy coats in either litter. It makes me feel good knowing the generations will continue through Val's one and only litter. Both Drakewood and Caernarvon have been involved with Cardigans since the 1970's. Love those puppy kisses! Rachel has visited and played with all these puppies and we have managed to come home without one. I guess because she considers "Alfie" her puppy yet (litter brother to Ella & Bo) all is ok!

I am attracted to the reds and many of these pups remind me of Tex, my big red boy, when he was little! I will try to include a photo of Tex at the 2009 Nationals as Best Red dog in the Megan competition. I promised him he is retired so this is his last show pose! Maybe one of these puppies will be in one of these poses someday at a National? I am sure they will be loved by whomever selects them.

Breeder vs. Collector

This subject hit home the other day when Rachel & I were at the Midwest Mini Rex Rabbit Club Specialty showing her 2 does. We had developed a plan over the last few months and acquired these does to complement the buck I bought Rachel for her birthday. The buck is a little over-sized but when shown at the fair we were told by the judge to breed him and find smaller does. So we have a Black Otter buck to breed to a Black Otter doe with a plan to hopefully get a correct sized good quality buck to breed to the Broken doe we have. Sounds simple enough except for the fact at this show they had a silent auction for Mini Rex rabbits. Rachel bid on a Castor Jr. doe which should really be bred to Castor bucks, then was outbid and wanted to bid on an Opal doe which we also do not have the correct color buck to breed to. Of course they are cute and you want them all so then she walked around looking for the "for sale" rabbits. I redirected her to the raffle and gave her $1.00 to buy 4 raffle tickets. Should have looked over the prizes more closely as there were a few rabbits donated to the raffle. Rachel put all 4 tickets in for a black French Lop Jr. buck and fortunate for us ended up not winning. I explained you can be a collector or a breeder, and breeders have and set goals. Collectors see something they like and collect, or search out and collect. She got this when I gave the example of what we want to do with her rabbits and if she tries to buy everyone she likes then we may not have room to produce our own and won't it mean more to you to have bred and produced that "special" rabbit you intended? I told her I have goals for every sheep breeding group I assemble each fall and my flock means more to me because I built it from scratch with 2 bred ewes to start out and I've added important bits and pieces along the way and continue to work at it and the reward is reaching each goal.
The next point is collecting animals is an expensive hobby as they eat too much so best to collect something not alive!
What I did not tell her is I once brought a rabbit home with me from a visit to relatives in Oklahoma when I was about her age so I know where she gets this but the difference is my mother was not the animal lover her mother is and we did not live on a farm.

Signs of winter is here with a little white stuff on the ground and the ewe flock just got arranged in for winter quarters with water heaters.