This blog has been left untended for entirely too long as I busied myself with the other activities of daily life but I feel inspired to return to blogging with the start of the Chinese Year of the Sheep. It is literally going to be the year of the sheep for us here on our farm as we will have almost 150 ewes which will lamb in the coming few months. This could mean 250 lambs if the ewes have the number of twins we’d like. They are flushed (given increased feed and nutrients) in the fall before the rams are turned out which helps to increase the incidence of twinning. We do have quite a few ewe lambs (first time lambing) so that can decrease the number (and they are not as good mothers with more difficulties).
We purchased 20 Rambouillet-type ewes this fall which adds a little white-faced diversity to our black-faced Hampshire and Suffolk crossbreds flock. One can really see the difference in fleece with their thickly wooled bellies and legs and the lush quality of the fine fleece of this wool breed. Hamps and Suffolks are primarily meat breeds. The difference in fleece was very noticeable when they were sheared the first week in February…The white-faced ewes averaged 10 pounds of fleece priced at $1.30 per pound and the crossbreds averaged 6.3 pounds at $.60 per pound. ($3.78 per crossbred ewe which just barely paid for the shearing). What the crossbred ewes lack in wool production, they will make up for in pounds of lamb produced as their lambs are generally faster growing and larger than the white-faced…especially in the feedlot. It’s kind of a fun change to look at those white faces after always having the black-faced breeds.
Thinking that I might renew my interest in spinning now that we have some high quality wool, I did save back a fleece to tinker with this year. My spinning wheel and drum carder need a bit of refurbishing after sitting in the attic for almost 40 years (can it be that long??) When we were first married (and before becoming busy with 3 daughters), I had a keen interest in spinning and weaving. Sounds like a good activity for the Year of the Sheep!
Stella is excited about the Year of the Sheep also. In her opinion, the more sheep to police, the better she likes it.
Ella enjoyed a cushy ride on “Brownie”, one of the few named sheep on our farm. Doris, the ewe with the droopy ear in the background is one of the other “pets”. Stephanie will spend spring break at home along with one of her fellow vet students helping to lamb out ewes. No Florida beach for her! (and that’s HER choice)
We were blessed with a mild, sunny, slightly-above-freezing day for shearing. The shearer arrived at 7 AM and finished the approximately 150 ewes by 5 PM. It’s a back-breaking job vital to the sheep industry. I’ve posted photos from sheep shearing in previous years so search the blog if you’re interested in those pics.
Our winter has been brutally cold (have had double-digit-below-zero weather in the past weeks) but without the heavy snows that those in the eastern US have been enduring. Only have about 10 lambs thus far which is a good thing considering the temperatures. Although the ewes are locked in the barn at night, it doesn’t take long for wet newborn lambs to turn to lambsicles in the cold. Even frequent around the clock checking of the ewes isn’t enough sometimes especially if the mama has twins to lick off and encourage to nurse.
It is nice to see the daylight hours becoming longer even though sunshine has been a scarce commodity. Looking forward to browsing my seed catalogs this weekend. Wishing you all a wonderful weekend doing what you love to do!
