Holy Week

Holy Week is a busy time for us. Not only are we lambing,
our family is also active in community events and church.
My son Spenser had the honor of playing Jesus
in the Passion Play this year, and Randy was a guard. It was a big time commitment, but well worth it. Just awesome!

Faye's ram

The birth of Faye's ram brought a much needed ray of sunshine to our otherwise dismal week. It wasn't an easy birth. Faye is a two winter ewe, but this was her first lamb. He was a big boy at 9.5 lb., and it was a struggle getting him out, but at least he was facing the right direction! Singles are nice, because they grow out so well, but they can be impossibly large at birth. A pair of 7 lb. lambs is so much easier on the the mother than a 10 lb. ram with large horn buds. This guy is a big chunk, much like his father Finn. He looks to be white with some spotting on his legs. We haven't decided on a name for him yet. Faye is a wonderful, attentive first time momma. Such a sweet sight.

A Rough Week...

If I had a week like this as a beginning shepherd, I think I would have given up on sheep. What a week. Losing our first lamb was bad enough. Today, we lost one of my very favorite ewes (Deidra) to ketosis, or maybe hypocalcemia. In the 8 years of lambing, this is my first experience with it, and poor Deidra was the one to suffer from my lack of knowledge. I still have a lot to learn. Sue Reith has written some article on this, and I plan on studying them further.

She went out to graze with the flock yesterday, but lagged behind, and was first to come back to the barn. I noticed some spotting, and worried that maybe she was having a miscarriage. By evening, she was quite lethargic, and by that time I was figuring it out. I was up with her half the night, dosing her with Keto-Nia drench and dexamethazone. She was off feed and water. I spoke with my vet several times, and read everything I could on the subject. I followed the treatment in the Laura Lawson book "Managing your Ewe" (bible to most sheep owners) . My vet is ready and willing to help, but she is not an expert on ruminants, so I feel that I'm own my own most of the time. The ISBONA yahoo site is a great help and support, and I rely on it often. So, I was at the vet's this morning picking up more meds, and poor Deidra died while I was gone. It's shocking, how quickly it can happen. I loved that girl. She will really be missed.

On a happier note, Faye had a nice big ram lamb this evening. He's mostly white with spotting on his legs. More on that later.

Poor Faith

Her little ram lamb didn't make it. A sad start to the lambing season, but things can only improve from here, right? His breathing was never quite right, very labored. My mom, a retired nurse is visiting, and we tried every trick in the book, but it just wasn't meant to be.
Faith was very sad. This was her first lamb. We have started to milk her now, and she has been the calmest ewe I've ever milked. Her teats are tiny, so it's not easy. She is so relaxed, tolerant and sweet, though.
This may sound gruesome, but I had my husband skin the dead lamb. We put the pelt in the frig. We should have ewes lambing in the next day or two. If one has twins or trips, we will try to graft one onto Faith. She is an eager and accepting mother, and it won't hurt to try!

King Hrothgar

Daughter Maddie, with our first lamb of the 2010 season!

He's here! Our first lamb of the season! Faith had a huge single, a black spotted ram. He had a rough start to life. At our first barn check this morning, I saw Faith with one rear leg sticking out. I knew he would drown if we didn't get him out quickly. I found the other leg and pulled, but he was stuck tight. My husband, Randy, took over and we had him out, looking limp and lifeless. I swung him, breathed air into his lungs, and rubbed him down good. Finally he gave a little kick and came to life. It was chilly out, so I brought him into the house and worked on him longer. Randy stayed in the barn to milk out colostrum. Little by little, the ram perked up. He had a good sucking reflex, and drank a couple ounces of the colostrum.
My son had friends over, so it was fun for them to see a newborn lamb.
Meanwhile, in the barn, Faith was standing in a corner wondering happened. I never did hear her do the nickering mother sounds. We put her in the jug and tried to introduce her to her baby, but she pushed him away. I'm sure he had lost her scent, so I tried another trick. I rubbed afterbirth on him, and draped some over him. She started sniffing him, then licking and nickering! The mothering instinct is there! Now, we just need to get him nursing. I don't want to start the season with a bottle lamb.
This is our eighth season of lambing, so all lambs will have H names. My son and his friends picked the name Hrothgar, King of the Danes, and father figure to Beowulf. The first lamb of the season is the king. His sire is Finn.

Still waiting.........

I thought that SURELY we'd have lambs by now. Good Lord! The girls are holding out on me again. It happens every spring. They love to torture me, and test my patience. They are scheming to all lamb the same day. That must be it! There are basketball udders and wide loads in the barnyard. Lambing will begin any second, I'm sure.

I need your help!

On a whim, I submitted our family for a photo contest. Imagine my surprise, when I found out that we are finalists!! If we get the most votes, a professional photographer from California will come out and photography our family, farm, sheep, and whatever else she finds interesting out here on our place. Now I need your help!
Go to her web blog and vote for Terri
before Tues. 3/16 midnight!! THANK YOU!!

here's the link: Julia Wade Photography