Things took an unexpected turn on the farm today, as they frequently do! Had a surprise lamb born this morning; all the other ewes lambed within a couple days of each other. I thought this ewe lamb missed, but she decided to join the baby shower a full 23 days after the last lamb was born. That was easy enough to deal with, as I suspected she'd pop last night and was ready for her. Once I got her safely jugged, I led the others out to pasture.
We had a muster planned for the other lambs today to weigh, etc., so I tramped back up to the paddock they were in midday to send them back down to the barn. Here's where things started to go wrong. One prime butcher wether, who has another month on grass, decided to rocket past in the wrong direction. This was an act of total willfulness! But forgiveable as he decided to join the others and head down the e-fence lane. However, just as we got to the solidly fenced lane going to the barn, he cut out and hopped over the e-fence just as neat as a pin. Like he'd been doing it daily...This was the first deliberate breakout I've had in two years. Of course the others had a thought about joining, but fortunately, headed for the barn instead. I locked them in, locked out the escapee and did what needed to be done, leaving the flock in the barn. Needless to say, that freaked the escapist, who gladly joined the others when the gate was opened. So sorry. The last thing I need is a smart-aleck wether teaching the ewes how to jump the fence! Time for the lambing-to-harvest operation to come full circle, a month ahead of schedule! He is keeping the new mum company while we make some unscheduled preparations for learning how to dress our own meat. I recently purchased a "freezer tamer" - a remote device that controls the temp of the freezer and allows it to maintain a correct cooling temp. Got that hooked up, it's amazing! And Bob is building a frame for inside the freezer to hang the lamb. It should be just about right, with all the shelves taken out. I've done a heap-o-chickens, but never a lamb. Watched the pro do it at least 10 times. There's a first time for everything I guess. I was just hoping to "practice" on a cull ewe or something, not a prime locker lamb! Gonna be an interesting day tomorrow! Barb L. _______________________________________________ This message is from the blackbelly mailing list Visit the list's homepage at %http://www.blackbellysheep.info
