Daphne's Due!

The tiny rip in her ear lets me know this is Daphne

Yet another sheep about to give birth. March 1st marks the 145 day since I saw Sean and Daphne do a little dance.  He was leading of course, after a little leading-on of  him around the pasture.  She wasn't going to be gotten too easily!  But, you could tell she wanted to dance. Around the side of the barn, under the shed of the tin roof, they made what is about to be two lambs.  I think it's twins. Daphne looks evenly round on both sides.    As I was observing her today, I saw a very strong kick from her side.   Won't be long now, and we'll have more lambies running around.

The udder is starting to get full

Just in case Daphne, or any of the others, decide to plop out their young ones behind the barn as Bess did, I have been going out every night and closing them in the barn pen.  I make them think that I am going to give them food in the feeder, so they follow me over to look at it.  Then, I dash back and bungee cord the gate closed. Plus, in case of predators, I think they are safer in the pen as a herd.  Closing them in at night also makes sure that Sheila gets her lambs into the shelter of the barn. Of course, they are up much sooner than I am, and would prefer to be out grazing already by the time I venture out the door. So, they don't prefer this arrangement. But, I feel much better about knowing the sheep are a bit more safe at night on The Derby Farm.

A Type of Farmer Sadness

Part of being a farmer, I guess. Birthing animals, and loosing them.  I do raise the lambs for meat, but it is still hard when you loose one as a newborn. The cute little premature black sheep didn't make it through the night.  We have had quite a few warm days here in Sonoma County for February, then last night's temperature got down below freezing.  Guess it was all too much for him.
His mama, Bess, is the oldest of the ewes, and was not showing signs of being a good mother. She would often kick him when he tried to nurse. (Not all the time.) When he called for her, she didn't bleat back.  (Her barn mate Sheila did, just as she does for her lambs.) Several times, I had to guide him to her nipple.  I have never milked a sheep before, but I have a goat when I was younger.  The udders look the same. So, I grab the nipple pulled on it until it squirted a bit, and stuck it in his mouth. He sucked happily, but then had trouble finding the nipple again. He seemed to be getting liquid. If he didn't look better by today, I thought I might have to bottle feed him.  (Which I have no idea how to accomplish.) Well, I didn't have to do that. As sad as I am, I am seeing this is a blessing.  It is probably quite a bit of work hand feeding a lamb; keeping up with its needs, plus my other responsibilities and schedule.

Maybe a more experienced farmer would have seen something right away that I didn't know was abnormal, and know what to do in order to save the little black one. All the books I have read didn't prepare me for this, I feel.  I have to learn it by living it.  I ask questions of other farmers as well as continue to look at written resources, but experiencing farm life is how I am learning. 
Hopefully, I won't loose any more lambs.  But, we'll see. There are 4 more pregnant sheep on The Derby farm.

What?! Another One Already!

A dark lamb I'd never seen before just showed up in the pasture!  Luckily, not too far from the barn, and luckily I got there soon after it was born.  But, who was its mama?  I wasn't expecting any of the other ewes to be in labor for a while. The day before, I did notice that Queen Bess, the oldest of the sheep, had a full udder.  Hmm, maybe she is pregnant after all.  Didn't expect a baby the next day!  You see, when I got Bess in June, her udder was already hanging low, and she always appeared a bit fat.  (She hid her pregnancy well.) It is a good thing I was headed out to the sheep anyway, because he was caught behind a wire.  As soon as I hoisted him up and started to carry him into the barn, Bess came from around the back of the barn where she had obviously decided to plop him out into the dirt. He was covered with dirt and sheep poop, but not blood.  So I dusted him off a bit and shut him up in the other jug with Bess.  She did start to lick him a little, but not to the extent that Sheila had done with her twins.  This is the gross part.  You can skip this next paragraph if you want.

Bess appeared to still be in labour. Something bloody was hanging out the back side of her. (Remember, this is my first lambing season, and I have no experience in this.) Wasn't quite sure what to do.  For over an hour, I waited with her.  Sometimes, she stood, sometimes she laid down. Then, I got to thinking.  The lamb came out fairly unbloodied.  There wasn't much of a mess behind the barn where she bore him. I think it is the placenta! While she was standing and pushing a bit, I, with surgical gloves on, grabbed the placenta and helped pull it out of her. She was a much happier sheep after that.  Some animals, sheep included, eat the placenta.  Bess was not interested. So, out in the corner of  unused pasture, went the placenta under a big rock.

Next big problem: he looks a little premie, and can't find the nipple.  Sucks everything around under Bess, except the nipple.  He even tried my red boot once.  I milked a goat a few times when I was younger.  So, I grabbed Bess's saggy udder and tit, and pulled.  When I finally got a bit of milk/colostrum going, I shoved him under her and had to place the nipple in his mouth and hold him there.  When he tried to nurse a few times, she would kick so he couldn't get much food..  I grab her back leg, shove him under her, and once he gets going sucking, and she stops kicking, I back away. This behavior has continued even until this morning.   Hope he gets enough in him and starts to put on weight.  I'll keep an eye on him.  So, now we have 3 lambs on The Derby Farm.

Max, The Duck Herder

Max, our Black Labrador Farm Dog

Every farm needs a farm dog.  Each morning when I go out to feed the animals, he is excited to join me. Of course, there is a reason.  Max is a labrador, after all, and very food motivated.  There are 5 ducks and 5 chickens on The Derby Farm, as well as the two peacocks.  In the mornings, I let them roam freely right outside the pen (not the peacocks of course.)  The chickens are busy away scratching in the dirt finding tasty bugs.  The ducks love to go out further into the tall, wet grass to seek out their sweet, buggy snacks. All the while Max is running around the back part of the field doing his business and snacking on sheep poop.  He leaves the bird alone, mostly.  But every now and then, I really need his help. 

The little black flock of waddlers likes to cross the driveway and check out the bugs over by the wood pile.  This is where the duck herding instinct happens for Max.  I call to him for his help, and Max comes running toward me, sees the ducks, and knows what he has to do. In through the ducks he bounds, chasing them back across the driveway toward the pen. Once I get the ducks and the chickens all back safely inside the coop, Max patiently sits right outside the coop door, waiting expectantly for his reward.  A duck egg!  He loves them. We have several laying ducks, so I don't mind sharing an egg for such a good and well behaved dog.  He doesn't care so about the sheep.  He goes nose to nose with them.  But, he is a duck dog, not really a sheep dog.  We are all so glad to have Max as a part of the family on The Derby Farm.

The Lambs are on the Loose!

Three days old, and in need of exercise. Think Sheila was about to go a bit stir crazy if she had to stay in the jug (pen) much longer. It is a beautiful Sonoma County day, so it seemed just the right conditions to let the lambs out into the pasture and let them meet the rest of the flock.  It is so pleasing to hear the little ones, and to watch the lambs run, jump, and prance all around the pasture, all the while sticking close to mama. If they get a little separated from her, they bleat loudly, and she answers them back. 

Earnestine, for no apparent reason, likes to butt the lambs down. (Last year, she was the ewe that rejected her lambs. Hope she is a better mom this year.) One time, I was feeding Sheila some grass so she was a bit distracted. Earnestine started to come over and harass the lambs. Guess Sheila wasn't too distracted. She immediately turned on Earnestine and rammed her head into her.  What a good protective mama!

Later, I will protect the mama and the babies from predators by putting them back into the jug for the evening with some fresh alfalfa hay.

I don't understand why Earnestine does this exactly.  She had better get used to the lambs though, because they are now part of the flock and more lambs are coming (including her own.) Maybe she is jealous?  Maybe she just likes things the way they are and doesn't want any changes to her world.  People can act this same way sometimes.  Instead of a physical ramming (unless you're a teenage boy), we usually lash out with words, and unloving actions. Too much of this kind behavior can really hurt another person as well as ourselves and our community. Hope Earnestine gets over it soon so there can be harmony on The Derby Farm.

Personalities are Starting!

Little pink nose

This lamb is only 48 hours old, and is already showing signs of personality. He is curious and is already interested in whatever mama is eating.  This is the lamb that within only a few hours after birth was already trying to fit through the slats on the jug (pen) gate. We'll have to keep an eye out for this one.  He may prove to be an escape artist! 

His sister is a bit more shy and tends to hide behind mama.  She is very interested in drinking milk, but sometimes ends up under mama in the wrong direction of the udder.  By the time she turns herself around, mama has already moved, and she has to find the milk again. 

Sheila is a good mama.  When I bring visitors to see them, she tries to stand in front of the lambs to protect them. When I go in, she doesn't do that. She knows me and trusts me as the shepherd. This is a wonderful experience.

I have so much to learn about their care from here. When do they get shots? How soon do we dock the tails? (Just read an article about how important that is.) When do we let them out of the jug to meet the rest of the flock on The Derby Farm?

After You Muck Out a Barn, What do you...

Do with the all muck? I have no idea. These are the sorts of things that I have to learn as a new farmer. Sheep poop mixed with hay must be good for something.  So, I have a new pile of sheep dung.  I probably need to dig a hole, and bury it, and then use it for compost. We'll see.  Right now, it's a pile. 

As I was mucking, I thought that I ought to muck out my house.  I have clutter.  The, I might need that someday, kind of clutter.  (I do have Scots blood in me, after all.) I also thought whether or not I needed to muck out my heart.  Here does all that kind of muck go? Questioning life's lessons while doing chores on The Derby Farm.

Two New Lambs!

Sheila and the new lambs.

That was unexpected!  Everything I have read said that before the ewe goes into labor, she'll go off her feed for a while, separate herself from the flock, and labor may last from 12 -24 hours. Didn't happen like that at all!  I went out Saturday morning to feed the animals a little later than I normally do.  Sheila was acting just as she always has.  She ate the alfalfa hay, then ate oats out of a pink bucket I held for her. No signs of labor. 

Twin lambs only a few hours old.

So, I decided that I would do a bit of yard work while my husband was outside doing chores, too.  We were taking near the sheep pen, when I started to count the sheep, something I do often.  I did not see Sheila, but instead heard a very tiny bleating sound from the barn.  I yelled, "we have lambs!"  Sure enough, I went into the barn, and Sheila had popped out two lambs!  Doug ran to get my camera for me (only to find I needed to charge the battery, of all times!) He then hen started taking camera phone pictures, and texting people like a proud grandfather.  Sheila was just finishing licking them clean by the time we discovered she had given birth to twins, a ram and a ewe. We got to watch one of the lambs stand for the very first time in order to find the mama's milk.  I didn't get to watch the birth, but there are still a few more sheep to go!  Maybe I'll get to see it, maybe not.  I am so glad that everything has gone so well, and that we have two new lambs on The Derby Farm.

Prodigal Peacocks

Hunger drives us to do things.  Sometimes good, sometimes not so good. There are different kinds of hunger, but it is the hunger of the stomach I am referring to.  Because of hunger, one is more apt to steal.  Because of hunger, one may tend to shove a smaller creature out of the way. Because of hunger, like the prodigal son, one can be driven towards home where the food is.

George has blue feathers on the neck, Victoria more green.

George, the peacock showing off his plumage.

Several weeks ago, we experienced a very windy and rainy storm.  The next morning the sun shone brightly through the clouds as I went about my chores of feeding the animals at the usual time. Sometime during the night, the bird coop door must have flung open because I found all the ducks and chickens enjoying wandering around freely on the grass.  My heart skipped a beat.  We have more than just ducks and chickens.  We also have George and Victoria, a peacock and peahen.  I searched inside the coop. Just as I feared, no sign of them.  
My heart sank. I was so disappointed. They were wild peacocks that we had caught at friend's house; I thought we would never see them again.  They were scared off by the storm, and were probably on their way to join a wild flock somewhere.  A neighbor had spotted them in his yard the next day, but didn't realize they were mine, so he didn't call.  Three days went by, and no sign of them.  So, I decided I would put a dish of egg crumple with cracked corn just outside the coop door, and see what would happen.  And sure enough! Hunger brought them home.  We were easily able to herd them back into the coop.  The prodigal peacocks have returned to The Derby Farm.

The First One to Pop One!

Sheila, our first  pregnant sheep.

Our flock is about to increase in size by one, or I hope, two, very soon!  The actual due date is February 12.  How do I know that?  On September 20, I let Shaun, our ram, into the front pasture with the 7 ewes.  He ran straight to Sheila.  I am sure it was the moment he had been waiting for.  I must have been torturing him making stay behind that fence.  Shaun smelled Sheila with a big curl to his lip. She must have been ready and in heat, because he was on her and done in a flash.  The gestation period for a sheep is 145 days, so February 12 seems right on target.  The reason I think it she could be pregnant with two lambs is because she seems evenly fat on both sides. Her udder is pink and seems just about ready to be full of milk.  I am hoping that the other ewes are pregnant, too, but the others aren't showing the signs quite like Sheila.  She also happens to be the most affectionate of the flock, enjoying her ears and chin to be rubbed.  The others shy away from it, but she  comes to me easily.  This closer shepherd/sheep relationship makes me so pleased that Sheila is the first of our sheep to bare lambs.  I have no idea what I am doing here.  Learning as I go along from books, from other people, and by just experiencing The Derby Farm.