The ewes were bred starting the 18th of October. So, we will start watching for lambs to drop around March 12. I'm so excited! However, I may have gotten carried away, or rather the ram got carried away, because we have the propensity for 7-21 lambs.
One by one, the ladies line up to flirt with the men across the driveway. This year the grass is so tall you can't even barely pick out the rams amongst it. We will be breeding in November! Until then, keep it rated PG!
My husband sheared a couple of hoggets by himself, but he ended up doing adaptive shearing with me where he would tip and shear belly wool and get legs started, and then stand them up, and I would finish shearing the rest of the sheep from a sitting position while he held them. It was definitely a team sport.
The barn was finished a couple of weeks ago and we have been busy moving in and getting the stalls situated. It's definitely not going to be the Taj Mahal, but it is functional and the animals are glad for the shelter. Especially tonight, as we are going to have negative temperatures with a - 20°F windchill.
I just want to say, there are just some things you can't do yourself. This crew has worked hard all week on the barn, and it's almost done. We wouldn't have been able to erect this structure by ourselves in under 60 days!
(This is not just a picture of a potty. This is a picture of the future site of my new barn!) The sheep get a barn for Christmas! And the horse, too. It's a pretty good present for me as well! I'm starting to get excited.
Bruce did not treat us well. I'm from Montana and I haven't even seen a blizzard like that before! We got about 8 inches with some 3 foot snowdrifts. The animals definitely suffered from the wind the most.
The sheep have experienced their first, second, and third snowfalls. They don't seem to mind being coated with "powdered sugar". I keep telling them it's not a big deal. I think I'm coaching myself, not them.
I have seen my first yellow leaves of fall... (I think depression is setting in!) As the weather cools, I am gnawing my nails worrying over the coming winter, thinking about how few cold-weather clothes I even own, and agonizing over how much more hay I need to bring in. I am feeling this strange sense of impending doom. I know, really melodramatic, right? Well, I haven't had fall or winter for nigh on 13 or 14 years. Give me a break!
