Would ewe believe it?!

Ok, this morning's chores didn't go as planned. I had planned to just offer a bottle to one of the quads, check on the red #111 lamb that I thought the mother was going to reject, and to check on the last ewe waiting to lamb. Of course there's the usual of feeding the couple of penned ewes and giving them water since I try to keep 2 ewes in the building so that they don't feel like they're alone. They're calmer if they have company next to them.

I had already fed the dogs and cats, and moved on to the sheep shed which is also our hay shed. In there is the sheep hay (small squares) and the horse pasture hay (big round bales). I have a couple of pens in the back for the ewes to lamb in if the weather is cold and/or wet. That's practically all we've had for weather here. All the ewes but the first one have lambed in the shed this year. What's that say about the weather? It's been cold and wet.

I went in to check on a ewe and her lambs to see if they were getting to a point where they could be let out with the flock. I usually keep them in a pen for about 24 to 48 hours if they're in and not on pasture. It's harder for the lambs to stick close to their moms when they're in a more crowded situation. Out on the pasture they actually separate themselves to some degree and the lambs find it easier to find and stay with their mom. Also some of the ewes are really rough on lambs from other moms that stray into their space. That was the reason I had kept this one ewe in as the companion for the ewe waiting to lamb yet. So her lambs are actually about 3 days old or so.

One of the little ram lambs seemed a little less active than the other one. It had some poop sticking out from under it's tail. Now if you've never dealt with very young lamb poop, it's sticky. It's REALLY sticky. In fact I think that when it dries, it's probably comparable to that product they call Liquid Nails. Somehow, he had gotten his tail probably pushed on when he was pooping and got his tail stuck to his butt and then he kept pooping and soon he had a poop blob stuck to his butt and he really couldn't poop. We all know if you can't poop it's a really bad thing!

So...something had to be done. I knew that soaking a lamb's butt would be a tough one. And knowing what I know about the poop, it would take a long time to soften up. So...I got a 5 gallon pail, filled it 3/4 with hot water from the house. I carried it out to the shed and then used some cold water to make the lamb's bath. I took the little guy and sat on the floor of the pen and put him in hind feet first. I held him with my left arm so that the edge of the bucket wouldn't hurt and then with my right hand I began the hour long poop massage and removal. I had my hand in the water so long that my fingers were looking like prunes.

I got the job done finally and with a clean towel so as not to scent him with another lambs scent, I dried him off. He sure was glad to get out of that bucket but not as glad as I was to have him out. Of course by the time I was done, I was wet and he was dry. I had just soaked my arm in warm water and lamb poop for an hour. I had splashed it on my front and it soaked into my clothes of course. So once I could see that he was being accepted ok by his mom and he was nursing again, off I went to the house for an early shower. Usually waiting until the end of the day makes more sense on on a farm so you can go to bed clean at least.

I think someone needs to investigate lamb poop for some kind of new "green" adhesive. Trust me, it's water resistant and really holds strongly and isn't easily washed off though with persistence it can be done.

Well, we'll see what tomorrow brings. There's no more lambs coming but there's 2 mares in the foaling barn that look ready to grace us with a couple more additions to the spring birth numbers. Come on warmer weather so I can get out the camera and get some great pictures of all that's been happening here.

A Quiet Sunday on the Farm (c;

Today was one of those days where it's one thing after another. It started out with Dizzy having a lovely bay filly with a blanket. I was out the door before Terry so I checked on her first and then since all was well there I headed up to the sheep shed.

Up at the sheep shed we had another set of triplets. Only problem is, one must have been rolled in something from another ewe or lamb or it's mother thinks it's defective or too much for her to handle. My take on it, poor thing just got the scent of another lamb/ewe on it and now she thinks it's not hers. I probably didn't bed the pen deep enough and when she dug down to make a nest, she had the lamb on the dirt that was scented by another ewe already. She's giving it the barrel roll each time it tries to come up and nurse. The other problem that creates is that if it's nursing on one side then she moves off also and the lamb on the other side doesn't get to drink either. I had tried using some placenta from her to put more scent on the lamb but that didn't seem to change her mind. I've been up to the shed and held her 4 times today so it could nurse but that's a real hassle. Well, not as much of a hassle as making and feeding bottles right now I guess.The neighbor kids were over hoping that Tiny Tim from the quad set was going to end up a bottle lamb but he's 7 days old today and still doing well. I offer him a bottle twice each day but he's not usually interested so he's getting what he wants from mom at this point I guess. All 4 are strong and active so I guess I'm lucky with those so far. If by tomorrow night the little #111 ram lamb is still an outcast and it's learned to drink even better from the bottle, I'm sending it home with the neighbor girls. They'll be moving to Texas soon and they'd like to have a lamb just one more time before they go. This is only the 4th bottle lamb I've ever had. Last year a ewe that had triplets (first year ewe) rejected all 3. She's no longer with us, and then this year just this one lamb from this last set of triplets. Guess I'm pretty lucky he's learning to drink from the bottle pretty quick too.

Then the 4 older Boer nanny goats from Terry's brother showed up. Some friends dropped them off for us after they made a trip to buy some does and a couple bucks from him to start their herd. Oh my, are they a PITA!! They aren't used to being out on a pasture and they want to be up by the buildings. I tried to have Tag and Kip put them back out and into the valley around the creek & that was a venture of it own right. We got the goats so they'd eat the stuff down in the woods and try to help us make some paths through there. They don't move for dogs much and they know they have big horns and they're not afraid to use them. Poor Tag is sporting a cut on his eye, not bad but still. He is used to being able to bite a sheep on the nose when it gives him a hard time. That isn't happening with these goats. They need a lunge whip and a human to back it up to make them move off the gate even.

Scared the pants nearly off me when Tag went after one on my command and the darn thing retaliated and slammed him hard in the face with her horns. Neither he nor I are used to horns and I don't have a word for him to only bite from behind. I think I'll just use my lunge whip and grain to move them around. I'm not willing to try and train up the dogs to figure out those horns and that personality. I've only had a couple rams with horns and they were a long time ago and I decided horns weren't my dogs or my strong suit.

Terry had to go out and put additional hot wire up all around the pasture in order to keep them out there. They don't mind crawling under or jumping over something if it's the right height for them. So a short hot wire, and a tall one too were added today. Terry should be exhausted after all he had to do today. I know I am!

I'm headed for a hot shower, then a cup of cappuccino, and some courses to review. Right after I eat something! Later all!