Shearing - Round One

After scrubbing our first scheduled shearing because of a winter storm (winter storm 'Stella' which I have pictures of....in the phone...) we did get the first group of forty-one shorn yesterday.  We went through the flock and used the oh-so-scientific method of choosing those who were oozing out from under their coats the most.

"What do you mean our butts are sticking out?  That's an awful thing to say."

We had penned those sheep the night before and gave them a very light feeding of hay so that full bellies wouldn't be more of an obstacle than necessary.  We moved ten or so at a time into the shearing area.  The sun came out periodically and it was much nicer than some shearing days have been.

Mickey, waiting his turn.

Snubby, looking a whole lot smaller with all that wool off.

The sheep waiting their turns watched with varying degrees of concern.  Most eyes and ears were on us.

The fleeces this year seem much bigger and even prettier than usual.  We did have early hot dry weather last June and managed to put up better hay than in the past few years.  Coupled with the lack of weeks of deep cold I think the sheep put a lot more energy into wool production over the winter.  The thirty gallon trash bags I put each fleece in were very inadequate in several instances.

Mickey's sister, Minnie.  That's a lot of sheep to reach around.

Salsa

One of the Cotswolds - maybe Oleander.  We invested in a lot more sheep coats and put jackets on everyone, including all the Cotswolds, when we started feeding hay last fall.  So far, so good.  The ones we've shorn so far had no cotting although the curls initially looked kind of flat.  I think they'll perk up after being flopped out onto the skirting table and moved around.  Regardless, the wool is spotless so that's a huge plus.

 Who's that faded moorit?

It's Carmel, whose fleece was dark last year like her face.

She's faded in the span of a year to a warm sand color.

Great crimp and very long for the grade - close to five inches.  I think I've found one of our entries for the Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival's fleece show and sale.

That's five weeks from now - yikes!

International Hug a Sheep Day!............Was Yesterday

And I knew it was and hugged a lot of sheep but didn't get the post up until now.  Maybe we can think of it like the Twelve Days of Christmas and make it last.  After all, every day is a good day to hug some sheep!

Salsa got a hug.......

So Gem and Snubby had to get one too.

Two hugs at once.

And Peanut gets her own hug.

And Brick and the other boys get hugs too.

https://www.daysoftheyear.com/days/hug-a-sheep-day/https://www.daysoftheyear.com/days/hug-a-sheep-day/So if you didn't get to hug sheep yesterday you still have time - like sending a thank you card, it's never too late!

The Routine

This time of year, when the sheep are fed indoors, chores become a structured routine and boy, do the sheep learn it!  While Andy starts mixing up the grain ration (everyone gets some now even though nobody's bred because the hay isn't the greatest) I go through each pen and pull the leftover hay stems out of the feeders and scatter them for bedding.  The pens with youngsters and old grannies and special cases, like Snubby, get better quality hay but also get grain too.  By the time I move on to the next group Andy is doling out grain and putting hay in the feeders.  We have the flock broken into five groups based on age and body condition and it just makes things less of a madhouse to have smaller groups contained so there isn't a huge stampede when the grain goes down.

The largest group is made up of the biggest, most robust adults and we shoo them outside entirely while servicing their area.

"C'mon, stop lollygagging!  We've been out here five minutes already!"

Fawn:  "I don't think she's really trying - she's just standing there."   

Salsa:  "Yeah.  I sense no urgency at all!"

Snowflake:  "I will stare at you with my yellow sheep eyes.  It's bound to make you move faster!"

And when the bail on the bucket falls and makes a clink sound .......you can practically hear the collective gasp of anticipation.

Clem was keeping one of the inside groups company.

"I'll just sniff this cat for a minute.  Ahhh, I can feel the tension falling away............"

"We've tried an intervention - it didn't work.  She's a cataholic.  So sad to see right in broad daylight.  Before breakfast, even."

And then the morning feed gets distributed.

"She'll be back.  She always comes back.  They can't resist me."

And that's about as exciting as it gets here in winter.

The "Un"-Breeding Season

For the first time since.... let's see.... about 1987 we aren't going to breed any ewes this year.  We certainly aren't giving up sheep (we have coughcoughmorethanevercough) but we decided to declare a moratorium on creating any more, at least for a year.  There are several reasons, none dire, but we both need a break to catch up on things.  I need to make a dent in this mountain of accumulated wool.  Andy needs to put a new roof on a chunk of the house, make repairs (or just finish started projects) in house and barn, we still have 2 standing silos that we'd like taken down (they have to be cleaned out first) and breeding season, lambing season and growing the youngsters eats up a lot of time and mental energy.  Further, I always seem to keep back several more lambs than I intend because they're friendly or just what I want fiber-wise or bottle babies or been nursed back to health or good quality for breeding stock or whatever. Add to that the fact that it's getting harder emotionally each year to send loads of lambs to slaughter.  Andy pointed out that if lambs from this spring stay in the flock and live their usual double-digit lifespans he'll be into his 70s by the time they go to greener pastures and I think he'd like to not be putting up hay and handling big animals by that time.  We aren't selling any of the rams so we can always rethink things by next year when we've hopefully gotten caught up on at least the big jobs.

The rams are acting rammy with each other but not making a big fuss.  There's a little more pushing and shoving and growling at each other but very little head butting.  They already have a pecking order and there are no ewes anywhere near them to get thoughts stirred up.  This morning they were all standing in the sun (sun! yay!) waiting for us to let them into the larger pasture.

Nigel is one of our home bred Cotswolds.  He carries color and can throw colored lambs when mated to colored ewes.

I still haven't replaced that dratted ear tag but he's not going anywhere.......

Neville is our other home bred Cotswold but he has all white genetics in his background.  His fleece also has smaller curls.  He's super sweet tempered, politely standing next to you until you rub his back and tell him he's a good sheep.

One of my half-British boys from our AI venture several years ago.  I like his square back and rump.  His fleece is very lustrous but lacking in curl, having loose waves instead.  I've been working to get both that shine plus improved curls.  That's one of the most intriguing things about having your own flock (or herd of anything) - trying each year to get the right blend of his traits plus her traits to produce offspring better than either parent.

Here is Titan, left, and BB (aka Mr. B) on the right.  Titan is a colored Cotswold from Break Loose Farm.  He's not as friendly as my homegrown boys but he's certainly not aggressive.  (Middle guy is another half-Brit of ours. Small locks and quite white but not so much luster.)

Wee Little Guy, who was a very sad orphaned lamb who is now a big love bug.

Castillo, also sweet and with really cool hair.  ;-)

The ewes seem rather put out that there are no manly men around.  Mickey, a wether about 3 years old, will talk dirty to them but there isn't much action involved.  The good part of our 'un'-breeding season is that the whole flock can still go out to pasture.  Granted, there isn't much grass left but at least they can get out of the barn and sit in the fields and get some fresh air.  We fill the hay feeders every night and by morning most of it is gone so they're getting plenty either way.

It was so warm (to them) that they all came in off pasture at midday to have a drink and stand in the shade. They saw me in the barn and came storming in, probably thinking I was going to open a side gate and let them into another pasture.  Three days in a tired pasture creates boredom apparently.

"Hey, what's everybody looking at??"

Soon we'll have to really bring them off pasture for good.  Coats will go on and hay will be the only item on the menu.  I love seeing them right now before they get hay trash on their faces and covered up by the coats.

Lots of Cotswold curls.

And not Cotswold.

And lots of sheep with character.

Bunny

Flopsy

Daisy (chewing)

Ashes and Tuxedo

 Angelica

Nugget

Bacardi

Tiffany

Minnie

Matilda

Salsa

Fortune

Lovey

Madeline

Fuzz

Kim

Yup, everyone has a name.  Maybe with more time next spring I'll be able to post everyone's baa-ography.