Lamb & Llama Introductions!

Wild Rose Farm Lambs - Wow .... She's A Big One!

From the perspective of a lamb, a llama is a BIG thing!  These two lambs seem to be awestruck. :)  This evening, we removed the dividing livestock panels between Snow White and the lamb mixing pen.  No pressure, we just let the llama enter at her own pace.  It only took a few minutes and she walked past the hay bale feeder and started checking everything out.  The ewes were unphased ... remember, they know what a llama is, so they pretty much ignored her.  I stayed in the barn for a couple of hours watching the interactions while I was working on some fleeces.

Impressive ... Are You Our New Leader?

The lambs were comical when they randomly noticed what was on top of those legs.  Snow White wandered through the pen sniffing occasionally, eating hay out of the feeder, & drinking from the ewe's water buckets.  You can see by how she is carrying her tail up that she is interested in everything and on alert.  It will take a little while for the llama to get used to these little creatures brushing past her legs and scampering about ... wonder how much sleep she'll get tonight? 

Snow White Sniffing A Lamb

The lamb count for today is one single born this morning & a set of twins born in the early afternoon. 

Night Pasture Check

Join us on the Wild Rose Farm late night pasture check.  Here's what it looks like when we go out to see if there is any lambing activity going on out there ... let your eyes adjust to the dark (!) & click on pics for a better view.

Approaching The Ewes - We Sweep The Pasture Looking For Reflecting Eyes

Now that we've found them just under the pine trees, we scan across the group with a tight beam looking at each ewe.  I usually talk quietly to let them know it's just me out there ...

Wild Rose Farm - Looking At Each Ewe

Next a wide angle look to see if anyone is separating off or it they all look settled as a tightly flocked group bedded down or ready to bed down ...

Ewes In A Group With None Separated

Now back to the barn where the llama can be seen cushed, but watching us coming in from the field.

Wild Rose Farm - Barn Lights & Llama Watching

A Fairly Quiet Day ...

When we last left the sheep, it was Sunday evening and we didn't see any impending births for the near term ... we were at 22 ewes to lamb.  Here are 3 Rambouillets - gratuitous pic for Andrew if he's following along!  :)

Three Wild Rose Farm Rambouillet Ewes Due To Lamb

We didn't have any lambs at the 5AM pasture check, but we did end up with Rambouillet #405 having a set of twin ram lambs in the field around 11AM today.  The ewe & lambs are now in the barn and are doing fine. 

Rambouillet #405 Cleaning Off Twin Ram Lambs

Pasture check this evening was much the same ... no one looks like they're ready to lamb tonight.  Here is our smallest/shortest ewe in the flock, cross-bred ewe #34.  She's voted most likely to cross file as a Southdown!  ;)

Wild Rose Farm X-bred Ewe #34 - Low To The Ground!

Her triplet daughter from 2012, ewe #133, had a set of twins on Sunday.  Now here she is below standing next to, perhaps the tallest sheep in the flock, Rambouillet ewe #410 ...

WRF X-bred Ewe #34 And WRF Rambouillet Ewe #410

Finally, here's what happens when you pick up a feed trough ... Baa!  Where's the grain ?!?

Wild Rose Farm Bred Ewes Sounding Off For Grain!

How Many Left?

Wild Rose Farm - How Many Ewes Left To Lamb?  Count 'Em!

We have 22 ewes in the pasture group this evening remaining to lamb, so we're half way there.  The young crossbred ewe #135 had a set of twins early this morning and it took a while to get her up to the barn.  First, she kept running back to the birthing spot looking for the lambs.  Then she ran down behind the water tank for some reason.  Mr. WRF had to put up net fencing to funnel her up to the barn - finally!
By the time he had her up to the barn, the feeding and watering was done.  I went out back looking for him, saw what was happening, and then retreated so as not to startle her.    Here she is tonight in the pen with one of her little twins ...

WRF #135 With Twin Lamb - 14 Hours Old

Back in the barn this morning, there was a lot of activity in the "mixing pen".  After the ewes and lambs bond in their individual pen and they've been processed and tagged, we turn them in to a larger group pen.

Dorset Ewe #116 - Hey Mom, Let's Play! 

Dorset Ewe #115 - Are You Sure You Don't Have Any More Treats?

Rambouillet Ewe #406 With Twin Rambouillet Ram & Ewe Lambs

New Wild Rose Farm Twins

Wild Rose Farm #37 With Newborn Twin Ewe Lambs

Look at what came up to the barn this morning at the 5AM pasture check.  Crossbred ewe #37, an old hand at this lambing thing, delivered a set of twin ewe lambs in the pasture.  Mr. WRF carried them up to the barn and she followed right along.  I could see him coming with his headlamp bobbing, so I stood back & waited so that I didn't spook the ewe.  The afterbirth cleared as she walked up, so the lambs are a couple of hours old.   Let's leave them in the barn to settle in ... she knows what to do!


WRF #37 Working On Her Lambs

Yesterday we had 2 sets of twins and a single born.   Meanwhile, in another corner, we have a little nest of the #50 triplets oblivious to their new cousins.  :)    

Wild Rose Farm Sleeping Triplets

2PM Pasture Check

Here's the sequence of what we see when we do a pasture check .... yesterday at 2PM.

Wild Rose Farm - The Approach - What's That Top Center?

Uh-Huh - Do I See Horns?  Is That Rambouillet #401?

Yep - That's #401 Circling & Pawing The Ground

Water Broke - Looking For A Lamb!

Wild Rose Farm Rambouillet #401 Pacing

She delivered the first lamb in the pasture.  We picked up the lamb and she readily followed up to the barn.  She's had triplets in the past and we'd rather not see that on pasture.  Too many chances for someone to wander off or get left out.  The second delivery followed quickly & easily in the barn.  That's it - twins!   This was the ewe with "wool break" who almost died on us last year!  Remember? 



WRF #401 - Moved To Barn

First Lamb Nursing

Morning In The Barn

Wild Rose Farm Barn After 5AM Feeding

Here's a look at the barn after we've done the morning pasture & barn checks.  Feeding is done, water buckets have been changed out, and everyone is settling back in.  If you click on the picture & look closely on the upper left, you can see a ewe standing up & sticking her head behind the plywood sheet.  You've heard that the grass is always greener on the other side of the fence?  Apparently, the hay (same stuff!) is tastier on the other side of the wall ... she's standing on her hay and eating from the back side of another rack.  Goofy sheep!

Twins Born Yesterday - Dorset Ewe #115 & X-bred Ewe #99

 No new lambs today as of 11AM so pens are being cleaned & we'll haul a couple of loads of manure.  And keep checking ...