Leaving Wild Rose Farm!

Wild Rose Farm - 4 Ewe Lambs Avoiding The Shepherd !

Today it was time for five Wild Rose Farm ewe lambs to go to their new home ... notice that lamb # 5 has evaded the camera.  She's figured out which way to go and has made a dash for the chute behind me.  The weather was perfect for sheep shipping ... overcast & cool in the high 60's.

Wild Rose Farm Ewe Lambs Ready To Travel !

The sun came out just before Mike & Linda got here with the utility van.  We had a nice visit "talking sheep" and then loaded up the lambs.  They were already munching hay as the doors closed.

Sunny Skies & Down The Road Go The Lambs ...

Glad to see them going to a great new home.  So, another pic of a vehicle heading out the driveway ... am I getting into a photographic rut?!?  ;~0

Really, We Were Just Leaving ...

Trailer Hooked Up & Ready To Go

We were literally walking out the door to go pick up 50 - 60 bales of 2nd cutting hay "out of the field" from our neighbor, when two of "the boys" pulled into the lower driveway.  They had 50 bales on their truck.  

Backed In & Unloading Hay

This was great!  Now your intrepid blogger got to take pictures -vs- being in the top of the barn dragging & stacking bales ... yea!  Why the delivery?  Thunderstorms are threatening, so the guys ran this over while the father kept baling.  We only wanted one load of the small square bales so that we have something tasty to offer sheep who may get sick, or for when we want to increase the nutrition level for a short period of time on select sheep.  You get the idea ...

Done Unloading ...

Off They Go Back To The Hayfield!

An hour & a half later & I can hear the thunder in the distance ... rain is coming!  Time to shut down the PC! 

Wild Rose Farm At Dusk

Wild Rose Farm Ewes Grazing At Sunset

We were out and about as the sun was going down today - we went to the Back 40 to deliver sweet corn husks to Glenda.  The sheep nose around & nibble the husks, but the donkey relishes them, so she gets the husks!   The llama was off to the far right in the of the picture above ...

A Regal Look From Snow White!

I like to give her a couple of treats when she's out on pasture just to keep her coming when we call her.  Looks like I've got her attention here!  :)  Treats coming?
Then back up to the barn. Rambouillet ewe #410 is in the pen behind the barn with her twins ... I'm thinking maybe I'll keep her ewe lamb for the flock ... it's 50/50 Rambouillet/Dorset.  We'll see.  Right now we have lambs for sale as breeding stock, so we'll see which lambs get picked out to go to new homes.

Wild Rose Farm Rambouillet #410 & Her Twins

Finally, a last look around inside the barn for the evening.  Hay, check.  Water, check.  Minerals, check.  Here are 2 of the ewe lambs that Mike picked out hanging around together ... they must know that they'll be going to a new farm soon!  :)

Wild Rose Farm X-bred Ewe Lambs - SOLD Today! 

Cool Weather & Rain At Wild Rose Farm

Mowing Pasture Before It Rains

Readers will notice that it's still very green here for mid-late July.  We have a forecast for a couple of days of rain, so we got this paddock below the house mowed yesterday as soon as we moved the sheep through it.  Then we mowed the "hospital pen" right below the barn after the ewes munched it down overnight.  The skies were getting pretty dark as we were finishing ...

Ewes Grazing Below Hospital Pen - Tractor Headed For The Barn

 I got this perspective up towards the barn while on the riding lawn mower doing some trim work along the fence.  The ewes are grazing what is essentially the "second cuttting" in this pasture ... some seed heads, but mostly green second growth.

Rainy Morning At Wild Rose Farm

A steady gentle rain started after dark, continued overnight, and went off & on all day Saturday.  We had just over 1" in the rain gauge as of this evening ... temps are a cool 65 degrees.

Evening Drizzle & Misty Fog In The Woods

The sheep have been shifted over one paddock and along with llama Snow White , they graze on in the rain tonight. We're hearing that the forecast calls for 80's & 90's starting on Monday ... I'd settle for mid-70's & the sheep would certainly like it better.

Llama Lazing .....

Llama Snow White With Her Ewes ...

Here's a view from the house ... Snow White is out under the pine trees resting with the ewes.  We brought them up to the barn yesterday as a group. 
First we had to go find the llama.  There is a spot where we just had some tree stumps pulled, so there is a nice area of fresh soil exposed ... perfect for llama dust bathing!   It seems that rolling in the dirt was preferable to hanging out with the sheep.
At the barn, we put a halter on the llama, did a little grooming & brushing, and then put some fly repellent on her face & legs.  We also took a little time to lead her around and give her some treats.  Every time we handle her, I thank her previous owners, Darlene & Ray for showing her, grooming her, and teaching her to lead.  She has been easy to handle for us so far.
It was a comical scene yesterday & I didn't have my camera with me ... the 2 new Dorset lambs were integrated into the ewe flock.  I say that loosely, because they still hang out together and don't want to be separated from each other. 
Anyway, they've never seen a llama and interestingly, Snow White immediately knew that they were strangers in the flock.  She stood and alertly watched them as they alertly watched her!  The little pair slowly made their way over to her and they had some nose to nose sniffing.  As they went to join the rest of the ewes, Snow White followed them and "completed" her sniffing identification of the newcomers. 

Coming & Going At Wild Rose Farm!

Maple Hollow Farm in Bedford County, PA

Finally ... a chance to put up a post after a busy weekend ... we drove out to Maple Hollow Farm  in Bedford County, PA on Saturday.  They focus on production style Dorset sheep and that's the way we'd like to go with the Dorset portion of our flock.   Brian & Melanie brought a very uniform group of early 2014 ewe lambs up off of the pasture fields and into the barn for us to sort through ...

Maple Hollow Farm - 2014 Dorset Ewe Lambs For Sale

What a nice looking cohort of ewe lambs - if you click on the picture, you'll also spot 2 Border Leicesters & a Tunis!  :)  But just being "nice looking" doesn't get it here.  Out came the production records with adjusted weaning weights, etc., so we were able to sort through that data as we looked at the lambs. MHF has imported semen from Australia and we were interested in buying registered lambs with that type of production background. 

Maple Hollow Farm Dorset Ewe Lambs Loaded

After a bit of time looking at the lambs, we loaded up 2 ewe lambs and were ready to head home ...

How About The View From The Top Of Maple Hollow Farm?

The drive was uneventful except for the usual kids (and adults) staring and pointing at the sheep as we passed through the suburbs of the Pittsburgh area! 

Dorset Ewe Lambs Parked In The Shade At Wild Rose Farm
Look At The Length Of That Lamb!

So that was Saturday ... on Sunday, we had a pick-up.  Ashley came and picked up 2 registered Rambouillets.  She got one ewe lamb and one ram lamb to add to her flock and to show.  We lucked out and she arrived in the afternoon between pop up T-showers. 

Wild Rose Farm Rambouillet Ewe Lamb #0426

In all of the jockeying around, I didn't get a picture of the lambs leaving.  Being early May lambs, they aren't nearly as large as the Dorsets that we brought home on Saturday.  They departed in style in the back of a Honda CR-V.  They were quite content to stay next to the back window & away from Ashley & her Mom in the front seat! :)  Good luck showing the lambs! 

Life Along The Highway ...

Beaver County Boy Scouts Near Start Of 100 Mile Hike!

How do you know something is happening on US Route 30?  The hounds, of course, sent up a chorus of frantic barking and I heard voices ... no smart comments please!  ;)
It's that time of year, so I grabbed the camera and ran up the driveway in time to catch the last of the Boy Scouts as they passed on their way to Heritage Reservation Boy Scout Camp in Farmington, PA.  Every year the ritual takes place when the hike starts at a local church about a mile down the road from Wild Rose Farm. 

There They Go!

It looks like they have a cheering section parked on the left at the next street.  :)  The weather was overcast and in the mid 70's ... a great start to the hike!
Since I was out there, I decided to deadhead the stand of daylilies that thrive at the end of our lower driveway right along US Route 30.  Even the road salt in the winter doesn't bother them.

Daylily Garden Along US Route 30

While I was taking pictures, our neighbor went by on a tractor. He's out making hay on the backside of the farm across the road and was headed home to get his round baler.  A busy day on US Route 30 ...

Heading Home To Get The Baler!