Valorie; This is a fairly strong response, please understand that you have the right to raise your sheep as you see fit. However, I just do not understand this level of domestication of this type of animal. One possible benefit of this story could be that anybody else considering this type of "Training" will rethink their plans before they get to this point.
It sounds to me like you don't understand that there is a very real safety issue when this type of animal has been handled in this manner. If this is a young ram, what you have seen is just the start. Have you ever seen video of rams fighting in the wild? If not you should find a National Geographic tape and watch it very carefully. This is NOT play time, the impact from a sheep the size of a mature BB is, almost certainly, enough to break human bones. As for the position that the ram took, stepping back with his head down, that is two things: 1) A challenge from the ram, and 2) he's ready to play and your next on his list. Just remember that to these rams "Play Time" is an impact that shudders their very frame. As I see it you have a life long problem with this ram. You are correct that he has lost his fear, that's the problem. He will never again fear any human, children and other animals will be at particular risk because they are so naive. If you don't keep this ram for the rest of his life you should be sure to fully inform whoever you sell him to, this is not a safe sheep to be in the field with. Your comment about keeping goats between you and him and to stay facing him is a dangerous approach. As the ram matures he will chase the goats out of the way if the urge strikes. So try to imagine a 100 pound ram with full curl horns cornering you in your own field. Your still facing him, and to him that means the challenge is still on. These rams are NOT pets. We do really wish you the best, but this type of story scares us. Ron and Sandy On Tue, 20 Apr 2004 19:51:08 -0500 "Valorie" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> writes: > Miss touching my ramYesterday was saddening to me. ________________________________________________________________ The best thing to hit the Internet in years - Juno SpeedBand! Surf the Web up to FIVE TIMES FASTER! Only $14.95/ month - visit www.juno.com to sign up today! =============================================== This message is from the Barbados Blackbelly Sheep mailing list (http://www.awrittenword.com/listserv/index.html). To respond to this message, send e-mail to [EMAIL PROTECTED] To unsubscribe or change your membership options, go to http://lists.coyotenet.net/mailman/listinfo/blackbelly To search the archives, go to http://www.mail-archive.com/[EMAIL PROTECTED]/
