UPDATE As The Farm Turns Some More

Ewe did it

The lambing is now complete, and the dust has settled. In order of birth:

Lulu - Oliver and Willow
Licorice - Bandit
Belle - Bo Skeeter and Cricket
Grace - Shane and Brooklyn

4 ewes blessed the world (and our little farm) with 7 lambs. Sheep math tells me that's 11 total, with 4 boys (who will be sold, except for Bandit) and 3 girls (which we will likely keep). Why, you ask?


Sheriff says.....

There are only a few rules the Sheriff tries to uphold around here: 1) No cats inside. *Since we have a sick barn cat, she gets a 'pass' to live in the house until we can get her more stable, 2) No roosters. *Since we do happen to have a silkie rooster, we agreed that would be the only rooster and would use him to breed silkie chickens. He would not be allowed to roam amongst the hens, who lay the eggs that we sell, 3) No long-term rams (male sheep). Once we "use" a ram to impregnate our ewes, we sell him. Otherwise, the rams will literally ram us, and this becomes a dangerous situation to be in the pasture. No bueno. *The exception for this rule will be Bandit, who will be fixed and become our first sheep wether, 4) No biting and/or spitting animals. *Okay, we have a biting animal. I'll explain that later.

As you can tell, the * reflects the exceptions to the Sheriff's rules. We probably have other informal rules, and many of the rules are really just guidelines we try to follow. They go something like this:

If you crow, you gotta go.
If there's a scrotum, you've gotta load'em.
If you're X and Y, you gotta fly.

You get the idea. The fact is (for us, anyway) that female farm animals are easier to care for than males. Rude. So yes, we tend to have a predominantly female population, with the males being an exception only occasionally. I could expound on this no-males-on-the-farm-thing more, but will sum it up by saying things get ugly when I  forget to keep my mouth shut. There, I did it. Mouth shut.


Where were we?

We were talking sheep and lambs, and who we'll keep, and who we will sell. Our Keep Stack looks to be: Belle (always and forever), Lulu, Willow, Cricket (Lamb Dad's true child), Bandit (to be wethered) and of course Little Brooklyn. Our Sell Stack will likely be: Bo-Skeeter (who seems to be full grown already), Shane, Oliver and maybe, just maybe will may sell Grace. This is all tentative at this point. We will see as time unfolds, as nobody is really weaned until closer to 3 months old.


Wait, where Licorice's name in all this

It's with deep sadness that Licorice has passed away. From the day she had sweet Bandit, something was wrong with her physically. She would not pass her placenta, she was lethargic, and generally did not feel well. With at least 3 Vet visits, medications and uterine lavage, Licorice was not able to survive despite all the efforts to save her. The one legacy Licorice leaves behind is Bandit. Although never feeling well, she fed and nurtured him for almost 7 days. It was on that 7th day that Bandit had to be taken away from Licorice, so she could try and make it - and give him a chance at life as well. Turns out, her milk had started drying up (either that or she had mastitis) and Bandit was becoming vocal with his hunger. We knew we had to take him, and place him with Cricket to be bottle fed. He took to the bottle right away, as he was so very hungry. Within 24 hours, Licorice was gone. She was laying out under a tree by the pond, and peacefully left this earth. It was heartbreaking. Her kind and docile nature will be so very missed. She was truly one of a kind. It was as if she knew her name, and would run to us when we called her. In our sadness, we have embraced her black, silkie-smooth haired, and ever-so-kind Bandit boy. He's her mini-her in boy form. He will be the first boy lamb we keep long term on the farm. The Vet says if we "fix him" at around 3 months, he will be a pet sheep that will mingle with the other ewes. Bandit is the exception to the rule around here.

These two

How's that working out?

With 2 bottle baby lambs now (Cricket and Bandit), it's like having 2 toddlers living outside wreaking havoc. Granted, they are very sweet and gentle, just very needy. They want to be held, loved and nurtured as each of their mama's would have done for them. Instead, this all comes from us. David and I are all-in for this endeavor. Actually, we love it!

There's a feeding schedule on the counter in the kitchen, bottles to me made, and formula to be mixed. The decision was made to keep Cricket and Bandit outside in a place of their own. Therefore, we moved Cricket out of the house, and the two bottle babies became bunk mates.

These two sweet thangs are loving their new life. They have bonded beyond belief. They do run with the whole lamb crew several times a day in the pasture, but then also prefer to be in their own space inside the "front yard" near the house.

Even in the pasture,
they stay close to
one another.

As the lambs grow, we are realistic knowing that since there's 2 to feed, we will need to implement something in place to help automate this process.

We will incorporate this new feeder to help assist with the feedings. Weaning for all the lambs will occur by the age of (approx) 3 months. We have a buyer for our sheep already, so will make that call when the time comes.


Change is in the air

There are times we (I) ignore the rules and things go poorly. Case in point? Diego.

Diego - Beautiful boy

If he were a man, his dating profile would go something like this:

"Handsome, social guy with hair that girls are jealous of, looking for someone who loves nibbles and nudges. Slim and trim with a shiny sheen, who looks to enjoy the company of a companion that enjoys close talking. Pearly teeth with surprise biting that keeps things exciting. Accidental love bites may happen, with particular fondness for fingers and ears. Does not do well with children. Call me."

Diego is the first one to come say Hi. He's the first one to make you think he's going to be friendly. He's the first one to bite you, and take a finger straight off your hand. He'll try it right through the fence. No one is safe in regards to this. We've even tried providing toys for him to play with, teething things, attention, and a myriad of other suggestions given to us regarding his problem. No resolution.

As you can imagine, with the number of children - and people in general - who visit us, this is not acceptable. We've made the decision to sell Diego. We will keep his mama, Dora, as well as Hope and Faith. Only Diego, the one and only male of the group, is heading out. It could be a control or dominance thing, but either way, Diego will be needing to find another home as we feel it's too dangerous for us to keep him. I have to be able to admit I'm not able to handle this situation, and make a change to it.

I fixed him all up (brushed him, haltered him) and had him ready for the trip to the auction.

It's our first time to attend a livestock auction. We have a friend (or two) who sells their farm animals there. And now, we will attempt this with Diego. So, on a hot and sunny Friday afternoon, David and Ed (family friend) loaded him up in a trailer and drove him there in preparation for the Saturday sale. As I type this, I actually have a lump in my throat. It's a visceral reaction to this whole process. I know I need to do this, yet it's not what I want to do.

UPDATE: It was Friday afternoon at 2 pm that David and friend, Ed loaded Diego into a horse trailer (thank you, Ed!). They drove 1 1/2 hour to Emory to drop Diego off for the Saturday auction. David said it was a drive-through drop off. A man with barley recognizable questions rolls through his quiz: Stud, gelding? Rider? David said there were some questions he did not understand, and when asked to have it repeated, it was again not understood. Nonetheless, David persevered. As soon as it started, it was over. Diego was in a stall and would await his next home. The auction was asking spectators to not attend due to COVID, and only serious buyers should attend. Therefore, we did not end up going back on Saturday to attend the auction, as we were unlikely to be buying.

Now you ask, how much did he sell for? Good question! We will not know until we get a check in the mail. Hard to say. We all had our guesses. I'll keep you posted. I'll miss him, but I can now feed the horses without incident. It's a first for me, and my 3 mares are reaping the benefits of more attention.


Less of a mess now

With my 3 (mare) mini horses, I will now focus on working with them, without the surprise biting incidents (it wasn't always a surprise, actually). I need to work with my two rescue girls Hope and Faith in a calm and serene place. Dora loves it nice and calm, too. I'm going to try and provide a relaxing environment for 3 girls who deserve to be safe and secure, esp after a life of abuse for Hope and Faith. I'll continue to work on showing them people aren't so bad after all. It's going to take time.

Faith

Hope

Dora

Let's unpack this

Change is the mainstay around here, esp when we are talking birthing lambs, having chicks and rightsizing a farm that accommodates regular visitors. We are busy cultivating love, hope, life lessons and doing everything at times.....but farming. I've learned that that's okay. I heard a term recently that said it all: Lifesteading. That's exactly what we are doing. Lifesteading on our Homestead.



How's the chicks, man

Good question!

The silkie chicks have hatched, and we have an abundance of silkie love around here.

So tiny

And additional gift we received was 1 little lavender splash chick. 1 out of 12 chicks. And of course, her name is Blossom, again. This time around we have the privilege of seeing her grow up, and as usual, we cherish her uniqueness. They are all gifts from God, and we adore them. Having a silkie farm is 1) a surprise, and 2) an adjustment. We will need to sell some of the chicks, as the silkie breed appears to be very prolific around here. Here's hoping Blossom is a girl!

Blossom, Chompchi (mama) and
Post (daddy, in background)

Every little thing will be okay

It will. We are fortunate our 3 goats are happy and healthy, our guard dogs are strong, our barn cats keep the mice and snakes away, our chickens lay lots of eggs for the world to enjoy, and we get to be the conductor of this fabulous orchestra. It's not all smooth sailing, but I wouldn't trade any of these experiences. They always prepare me for what's next.

As Lamb Dad and the sheep raise their lambs, as the chicks grow, as the donkeys find contentment in the back pasture close to us, as we encourage Hope and Faith to find trust again, as a barn cat tries to heal, as we assist Dora with a cough, as we sit on the front porch and listen..............we find peace and understanding. Sometimes I pray aloud on the front porch. We do not walk through this alone. We would not be able to do this on our own. It's by God's grace.

We've had loss lately, and immense amounts of love. This is not always easy. As we move through our lives, carrying our own burdens, we call to Him to walk and carry these things with us. Any storms brewing will pass, and dark days do turn to light. Just ask Hope and Faith. There is always light.

Stay strong, my friends,

Cyndi