Growing Lambs

Time goes by so quickly, like a snowball rolling down a hill, getting bigger and bigger and bigger...

Such is the case with our four beautiful ram lambs, born less than two months ago. I have to make decisions on whether any of them are sire quality. This is a hard thing for a new shepardess. However, decide I must! They will all be for sale soon, and it's been such a ram lamb season for most of the shepardesses out there this year. I have to ask myself, "Am I ready to house extra ram(s) for the winter if they are not sold?" Most likely not.

From what I've read, looked at, listened to and learned so far, I think our lambs this year have very nice structure. Their sire, Fairlight Conway, has awesome body structure that he's passed on to all of them. Their wool varies in crimp, length (intermediate and primitive), color (as they mature), and genetics. They are all moorit right now, but one is an Ag musket, who will turn Brownie's lovely oatmeal color. They all carry spotting genetics. Their horns look different from each other, and I'm having a hard time guessing who's horns will turn and clear appropriately. Overall, there are one or two that stand out with the most "ramly" presence.

I've put myself on a deadline to make my final decisions this weekend. Anyone checking out this blog, please feel free to give me your input. For now though, I'm just posting some recent pics to show them off. Regardless whether they are better ram or wether material, they're still lambs and still awfully cute, sweet and fun to hang out with! So without further ado, here are the twin ram lambs from Miss Fairlight Pixie and Miss Fairlight Brownie, sired by Mr. Fairlight Conway.

L to R: Pixie's lamb #1, Brownie's lambs #1 & #2 (musket), Pixie,

(in front, on knees) Pixie's lamb #2

L to R: Brownie's lambs #1 & #2 (musket), Brownie

Brownie's lamb #2 (musket)

Brownie's lamb #1

 

Brownie's lamb #1

 

Pixie's lamb #2

 

L to R: Pixie's lamb #2 & #1, Brownie's lambs #1 & #2 (musket)

Brownie's Lambs Have Arrived AT LAST!

Welcome to the world Brownie's twin ram lambs... yes, it IS an all boy year!

They were born one week and three hours after Pixie's boys, around 9pm last night. The first sign I caught of pending labor was Wednesday night. Brownie's belly had dropped a bit, hips hollowing out mildly, and vulva looking more red than pink. Oh ho ho, here we go... so all day yesterday we checked Brownie on the hour to see if there was any progress. Wouldn't you know that I had to drive a field trip for the high school varsity softball team (they won both games - woo hoo), that kept me away from home from 12:30 to 7:30! However, Troy was under strict instructions to check her and call me if any changes. Nothing happened while I was gone... yeah!!!!

When I came home it was time to round up Pixie & lambs, along with Brownie, into the maternity pen/lambing jugs for the night. When I approached Brownie she was standing by the fence, panting, vulva swollen, in obvious pain and slight confusion. However, she coasted right into the pen for me. I put Pixie and her boys to bed, for safety and to keep them out of Brownie's way, and went inside to have a late dinner with my hubby.

Afterwards, we played on the patio with the kids... it was a beautiful spring day to be outside. My husband heard Brownie's, with lack of a better way to describe it, cow grunts & groans first. I jumped up, ran into the house, threw on my 'I don't care if they get stains' clothes, grabbed the camera & flashlight and sprinted outside to the pen. Was that one really large hoof??? Brownie would lay down on her side and make terrible noises with a few contractions, then stand back up again and pant. This process repeated several times. The noises make it harder to bear witness. You feel so helpless watching, knowing she's in pain. I've been there, I know! I watched my best friend give birth to her first baby girl, and it was a similar feeling of helplessness... thank goodness sheep birthing is a blip on the radar compared to the length of some human births!

Alright, back to that hoof... I'm thinking a lot of things, "Oh no, what if this lamb's just too large? Will I need to push the leg back and pull the other one forward like it says in the book? Should I call the vet? Should I call Tammy? How long do I wait? Why was I thinking I was equipped to be a shepherdess?" I ran back into the house, did who-knows-what with the camera and grabbed a clean pair of socks, just in case I needed to assist with a slippery lamb. Back outside again, I find Brownie doing the real work of pushing her lamb's nose out. About that time, by flashlight mind you, I see the "one hoof" is actually two. Oh crap, where's my camera?! "Troy, help,!" Out slithered the baby. Phew! Enters Troy with the camera, thanks hon! Someone has to keep their cool, and it's not gonna be me. This is too exciting! :)

She promptly went to work, cleaning off lamb #1. Oh my, he looks just like Brownie as a lamb. This means we have a beautiful, err handsome, Ag lamb who will have the same gorgeous oatmeal colored fleece as his momma! Woo hoo!

In about 15 minutes or so, she laid down on her side. Gave about three pushes with a fair bit of noise, and voila! Baby #2 has arrived!

After a little bit of cleaning from Brownie, it looks as though we have a moorit ram lamb with a few white hairs on the top of his head. Awe, look at their positions... Walking and looking for that elusive first drink of milk is hard work!



Last picture before my batteries ran out. You can see Pixie and her twins witnessing Brownie's miracle. At some point I noticed Pixie "baahing" a fair bit. I'm not sure if it started before or after the new lambs starting mewling for Brownie. She was either coaching Brownie through it all or just getting maternal and trying to call them over to her. After all, new mothers know everything, don't they?



I waited awhile for Brownie's afterbirth to pass (or at least to be well on it's way) and for her and babies to bond without interference. Cleaned babies umbilical cords with Betadine, gave them two pumps of Nutri-Drench and checked for horn buds. Yep, that's what I thought! Sigh, no ewes this year. Then I gave Brownie warm molasses water and jugged them all up. I removed all soiled hay from pen and loaded fresh stuff in, so as not to attract predators with the blood scent. Off into the house to clean up.



At 11:45 I did a final check. Brownie's afterbirth was out, and she had already eaten it. Good girl! NOTE: For those not familiar with this process... it's a normal animal instinct to hide signs of lambs from predators. Plus it's full of nutrients for the mother. So, always give your animals a chance to clean it up, but if they don't, you should do it for them.

I still hadn't seen a successful nursing, but I was betting that Brownie would settle down and give the boys more time to find what they were looking for once I was out of her wool. With a big "Thank You" to God for helping Brownie safely deliver two healthy lambs, I went to bed for some much needed sleep.



At 2:45am... you didn't think I'd sleep all night, did you?.. I snuck outside to check on the new family. All was well, both lambs were standing up, and Brownie was nice and calm. My common sense says a weak unfed lamb wouldn't be standing, so I felt reassured they'd make it through the night and went back to sleep for another 3 hours before the alarm went off... time to run the school bus route. Yeehaw! Feelin' perky! Ha!

So this morning, here's what everybody looks like in the light of day. This boy looks a bit lighter than Pixie's lambs. Could be a lighter moorit or maybe a fawn down the road?? Only time will tell for sure. What a sweetie! All of Conway's boys have the cutest little heads, don't they?

This is Brownie's famous look. It means, "What are you up to now lady?" Brownie is just like her mother, Locksfield Willow, who's home is at Fairlight Farm. They're both very untrusting of those humans. Says Brownie, "Other than those delicious animal crackers and bits of bread (my favorite treats), what are they good for, really?" ...cue the sniff and wary eyed look of disdain.

Alright, check out the Brownie lamb pic from March 2008:

See any resemblance?

Here's another look from the new momma. I think she's saying, "Butt out already!"



Now, this post should be dedicated all to Brownie and her lambs. However, the camera was in my hands...

"Look Ma, neighbors!"

"Huh? What? You talkin' to me?"

"Really bro! She's taking my picture. Would you get your nose outta...! How embarrassing."

"Ha! Ha! Ha!"

"Why you eatin' that stuff Ma?"

"Say wa? Are you talkin' to me, again?"

Pose familiar? Fairlight Pixie lamb pic, March 2008:

"Wheeeee! Leap frog's the best!"

Alright y'all. I'm gonna stop here. More pics just might follow soon. :)

Happy Mother's Day to all you mommas out there, whether you have furry children, the human kind, or both. Be kind and gentle to YOU.

Peace & God Bless,

Kim & Family

Pixie's Lambs Have Arrived!

Well, at long last...
Introducing Fairlight Pixie and her twin ram lambs.

Many of you know we didn't have a due date, seeing as the ram was in with the ewes all through the fall and winter. So, I've been anxiously watching our girls for any sign of labor since March. I've read up on all sorts of signs, and they've kept me guessing for quite some time. Tammy @ Fairlight Farms told me that one of the signs was the "hollowing out" in front of the hips, once the babies drop. This would be a sure sign that lambs would arrive within 24 hours or so. Well, yesterday morning rounds showed the hollowed hips and the dropped belly. And, while she was laying down I caught a quick glimpse of her vaginal area... did it look extra swollen? She stood up quickly, but I didn't pursue investigation any further. I came in and told Troy, "It wouldn't surprise me if those babies were born today." Of course, he just looked at me in disbelief... I mean, hadn't he heard that one before?!

Around 2:15pm, before I left for the afternoon bus route, I checked on her. Still the same... eating grass, just chillin' out. O.k.

At 5:30pm I looked out the window, and OH MY!!! Was she licking something? Yes!!! I jumped up and down and squealed like a stuck piglet (yes, really). I raced outside with the camera in tow. Yep, two beautiful lambs. She was cleaning them off, and her afterbirth was already working itself out. Oh, the joy. It seemed all of the animals, even the chickens, had lined up against the fence to watch Pixie's little miracle. It's very touching to watch the ram and whethers stick their noses through the fence to smell the babies. They were all so gentle.


I, Troy, and our kids just watched for awhile. Then after a bit, I gathered my supplies and went into the corral to coax Pixie into the lambing jug with her babies. Of course when I first walked off with her lambs she looked panic stricken. Once she followed us into the jug though, she realized all was well, and I had no intention of hurting her little boys. She calmly watched while I trimmed up & sterilized two excessively long umbilical cords (they were dragging the ground), gave them their Nutri-Drench, and checked for sex identity. I packed extra hay into their jug, gave Pixie some Molasses water and left the little crew alone to bond and rest. Thirty minutes later though I heard a mewling, because baby lambs sound more like cats I've discovered, and baahing from Pixie. It seems the holes in the fencing of the lamb jug were just too big... one lamb was out, trying frantically to get back in with momma. Brownie was even looking frantic and confused, like "what the heck is going on here?" Oops. Well, I put baby back in, then Troy and I went back out after putting our own kids to bed and used chicken wire and zip ties (my favorite trick by the way) to shore up the two side by side lamb jugs. Phew! No more stranded babies!

So, I'm happy to report that everyone is looking great this morning. Little tails are wagging as they nurse from their momma. Pixie's grunts and baby's squeaks are heard as they learn each other's language... which Troy and I find completely charming! Pixie is a wonderful mother already. She's so gentle, careful where she steps. She's doing her job keeping them clean and nursed. Way to go girl!

It's raining today, so pics of dried off lambs will be saved for another post. However, it does look like we have two solid moorit ram lambs -one with a white krunet on top of his head, just like his Dad, Conway.

I'll keep you posted on Brownie's progress. Hopefully, she will have just as easy a time lambing as Pixie and bless us with some beautiful ewe lambs!

God Bless and Happy Friday to All!

Beautiful Spring Day

"She's not looking... quick, give her a sniff!"

Oh, what a day. There's a constant breeze, the sun is shining, and it's about 70 degrees right now. The sheep are grazing, and panting a bit too... shearer will be here this weekend. The chickens are cackling with pride as each egg is layed, and the guineas are alerting the farm with their all too pleasant "buck-whee, buck-whee.... chee, chee, chee..." every time a car drives by or a butterfly sails across the yard, seriously. Even with the guineas calling, it's still just a pleasant and beautiful day. I'll share some pics taken from our video camera (we have two digital cameras that went on the blitz at the same time, go figure).

Marty gettin' his scratch on... "ahhhhh"

"Green Acres is the place to be, bock, bock!"

"I'm too sexy for my shirt, so sexy it hu-urts..."

Such cute little wethers. "Pet me, pet me..."

"We love it when she gives us trimmed tree branches to munch on..."

"Hey Brownie, when should we tell the food lady that we're just pretending to be pregnant so we can keep getting extra treats?" ... Seriously girls, when are those lambs gonna drop?

The End!