We shear our breeding ewes tomorrow. Shearing day is a big day on our calendars - much of our operating budget will come from the fleeces sheared tomorrow. And there is so much to do on shearing day that there is no way the two of us could do it ourselves - we need help, and lots of it!

Our team tomorrow consists of twelve to thirteen friends - both new and old - who are willing to brave the cold (temperatures will start out in the morning below zero, and make it up to a toasty thirteen degrees by the time we finish up!) and work hard for part or all of the day to help us harvest our year's worth of ewe fleeces.  We don't allow an audience, simply because there is not enough space in our small barn for the working team plus people who want to watch. If you want to watch, you have to work, too! We assign jobs specifically so that anyone coming to help can also take time to watch the goings-on.

As usual, we have a total team of about twelve - which seems like a lot, but has proved to be the magic number. Three people are on the catching team, scheduled to catch the ewes for shearing. Their responsibility is to catch first the white ewes and then the colored ewes, one at a time, holding each ewe near the shearing floor and removing her coat. When the shearer is ready, they hand him the ewe and go back into the stalls for another. We put three on this team so that they can cycle through, with only two working at any one time, allowing the third to rest and watch the shearing.  This is not an easy job! Regardless of how mellow sheep seem when grazing in the field, very few run excitedly onto the shearing floor, throwing off their coat on the way!  It would be a great thing but, unfortunately, it takes a bit of wrestling know-how to get this job done....

As the ewe is handed off to the shearer, one of that catching team announces the tag number (and I shout out the name), so that everyone knows who is being sheared.  All of our efforts are organized by sheep name and number, so this step is very important - as you will see....

While the ewe is being sheared, there is a lot going on in the background.  One volunteer is responsible for getting the "packaging" ready - they spread out one of our many old bedsheets on a clean area of the barn floor and then find the pre-printed card with the ewe's name and number.  They staple the identification card onto the corner of the sheet and wait for the fleece.  Another volunteer is checking "sample bags" that have been prepared in advance to see whether this is one of the ewes that needs fleece samples sent for fiber testing.  We send fleece samples from all of our yearlings, and from a small assortment of older ewes to compare against their yearling samples.  If this volunteer finds that the ewe being sheared needs to be sampled, she notifies the shearer and both a britch and side sample are pulled from the fleece as it is being sheared.

Also while the ewe is being sheared, there is one volunteer (usually me, but sometimes another trusted person) who works with the shearer to skirt the very worst wool and/or hair off while in the barn. The fleece from the bellies and tops of heads - the dirtiest parts - is pulled off as it is shorn so that it doesn't contaminate the remaining fleece. We also pull off the fiber sheared from the legs and faces - these are usually quite hairy and short, and will contaminate the remainder of the fleece if allowed to be packaged together.  We also try to get any second cuts that we notice (fleece bits that were cut the first time, and then cut closer to the skin the second time, leaving these very short bits - or second cuts - stuck to the useable fleece) - without getting in the shearer's way!  All of these bits and pieces of fleece are collected and sent to the weighing station after the ewe is finished - her records will include one entry for all fiber sheared from the animal, and another entry for the fiber that ends up in the bedsheet - and then another for the "after skirting" weight of the fleece.  We keep a lot of records because they help us in determining which ewes will remain for another year, and which ewes will be culled (not make the cut) and sold at auction.

Once the ewe is sheared, one of the workers (usually me) picks up the fleece in one piece and places it in the center of the sheet that has been marked for this ewe.  The volunteer who takes care of the sheets and cards ties all of the corners of the sheet into a bundle and hands the bundle to the volunteer at the scale for weighing.  After the fleece is weighed, the bundle is placed into one of four piles: Romney white, Romney colored, Romeldale white, Romeldale colored. Before she knows it, this volunteer will need to go back to ready the next sheet.

At the same time, there is also a team of three who take the ewe from the shearer once she is sheared. This team is responsible for finding the right size coat for the now-much-smaller ewe, and giving any immunizations that she may need.  This year, we have thirteen ewes who will need to be immunized with their annual shots on shearing day (some others got theirs last weekend, and yet others will wait for a week or more, all based on their expected lambing date).  Once the ewe is coated and immunized as necessary, she is released back with the rest of the flock.

In between all of this work going on in the barn is the sweeper, whose entire job is to sweep the shearing floor.  This sounds really simple, but it takes some experience to know what/when to sweep and when to just wait....  We want the shearing floor to be free of the straw that the sheep drag in when they come from the stall, and also any fiber from the previous ewe so that we don't mix fiber from one animal into the fleece of the next.  And we want to sweep up any second cuts that may occur, if we can get them before they go into the entire fleece.  On the other hand, we don't want to be in the way of the shearer or the skirter - a very tricky balance to find!

Finally, we also always try to have an extra person on stand-by who takes care of food, beverages, and filling in for restroom breaks.  This extra person goes inside early and puts the food in the oven, and just generally helps out where needed.  We've tried shearing without this extra person and it can be done, but it works out so much more smoothly when we have an extra that we just always try to find one.

So in the end, we have three catching, three coating, one skirter, one weigher, one taking care of cards and sheets, one sampling, one sweeping, and one person filling in as needed.  One year, we had two shearers come to shear at the same time, and tried to work it all out with twenty helpers - it was a mess!  Not enough help, not enough space, and way too much chaos!

So, we've got less than twenty-four hours before we begin shearing.  The jobs are assigned, the lasagna is ready for the oven, the pies are made, the paperwork (cards, sample bags, and recording lists) is done, and the barn is cleaned.  The ewes will be fed and locked in as soon as I post this entry so that they can finish drying off overnight.  It seems that another shearing is upon us!

We are in the midst of an ice storm this morning. It is supposed to leave us with more than a quarter-inch of ice over everything. At first I was thinking that maybe we would dodge the storm, but now there can be no doubt - there's a thin coating of ice visible even from the house windows.

Normally, ice is not a big problem for us - not nearly as bad as deep snow. As long as the sheep can remain indoors (to prevent falls this late in their gestation), our routine isn't much affected. In general, ice can come and we just throw another log on the fire. Unless there is a power outage, that is. Broken power lines are an entirely different problem!

When we lose power, we lose water: all of our waterers are fed from the well that provides water to the house. Without power, the well pump stops running and there is water for neither man nor beast. This late in their gestations, the group of ewes is drinking forty to eighty gallons of water each day - a lot of snow to melt next to the fireplace!

I've read that sheep can eat snow if they don't have water available, but they don't eat enough snow to provide them with the water they would normally drink. Plus, the ice coating over the snow makes it even harder for them to get a mouthful. This is not a good situation this late in their gestation - we want them drinking and eating what they need to keep themselves and their lambs going!

But so far, so good. The ice isn't too thick, yet, and we still have power. I've filled the tub upstairs in case we do lose power and I need to haul water out to the barn. At this point, it is a matter of waiting to see what the afternoon brings.... So I guess I will just throw another log on the fire and relax - for now!

Most days, I'm fairly present in the moment when I feed the sheep and chickens, enjoying their company and their antics. On other days, I'm caught up in my own thoughts and I do my chores more automatically, as a well-patterned routine. That happened to be the case when I walked into the chicken coop on Wednesday afternoon to check the levels of their feed and water and then collect eggs, all the while thinking about the many other things I had yet to do that day.

On my way into the chicken yard, I worked a bit on the gate - the snow had piled up so high in the last storm that we couldn't close the gate - there was too much snow in the way. Because it was above freezing on Wednesday, I was able to easily clear the snow, which allowed the gate to close once again. This was a big relief to me, as I had been worried about raccoons and other animals making their way into the yard and then into the coop to steal our eggs and chickens. 

As usual, once I got into the chicken yard, the dogs were "helping" me in their own ways: Coda and Chance were running at full speed in an oval around the chicken fence (I am still not sure how that "helps"!), and Lisa stuck her head into the small chicken door to distract the rooster while I went in the large back door to do my job. I noticed that when I opened the large door, unlike most days, I was not met by the flock of sparrows that typically finds its way into the coop to eat the chicken feed. I was so distracted by my thoughts, I hardly took note.

As I got into the coop, I did notice that three of the four nest boxes were empty - only the bottom left box had a chicken in it. Usually at this time of day, I encounter three or four boxes full of chickens, so I was a little surprised. There was still plenty of water and food in the coop, though, so I only had to collect the eggs and close up. As I went to gather eggs, I noticed that both the top boxes contained broken shells, and partially eaten eggs - not a good sign! I scolded the chickens about this bad habit that they seemed to have picked up, and moved to the other two nest boxes on the bottom row.

There were no eggs in the right-hand box, so I reached into the left box to slide my hand under the chicken and pull out any eggs that she may have been warming. As soon as I got my hand into the box, I heard a hissing noise coming from within - this was no chicken sitting on eggs!  Chickens don't hiss!! As I really looked into the box, I realised that I had reached my hand under an opossum!! Oh, my gosh! I pulled back fast and tried to figure out what to do! Opossums not only eat eggs, but they eat chickens, too! They have plenty of sharp pointy teeth, and this one was not shy in showing them off! I had to get him out of there!

I thought maybe the sight of my dogs would scare him out, so I brought all three dogs over to the big door in hopes that he would run out the small chicken door - but, no, he had no interest in leaving. I ran into the house to call Rick, who was on his way back from out of state - he suggested I call a trapper that we know.  Unfortunately, the trapper whose card I had on the 'fridge had died, and his wife knew of no one who did that kind of work. Now what was I supposed to do?

I called the Humane Society, but they were closed until Friday. I was kind of at a loss as to who else to call.... I finally called the dispatcher at the sherrif's office - she suggested I call the DNR contact.  Unfortunately for me, he was not taking any calls "for the foreseeable future," according to his voicemail. 

I was back at square one.... So I thought maybe I could convince the opossum to leave - or maybe he had already left. When I left the chicken coop to make phone calls, I kept the chicken yard open in hopes that he would decide there was too much activity and leave - but no such luck. When I got back out there to close things up, he was still there.

So I decided to try to scare him off myself and got a broom. I spent some time sweeping at him and poking into the box, trying to chase him out, but he was determined to stay. Frustrated, I went back to call sheriff's department dispatch again. This time, she sent out two officers to help.

I have to admit that I felt pretty silly taking two officers from their normal duties to come and deal with my opposum, but they took it all in stride and within a few minutes of their arrival, they had removed the opposum from the chicken yard and carried him across the street, where they released him into the wild. Our hope is that he won't get back in because the gate is now closed and latched. I only hope he isn't into 'breaking and entering'!

I did learn a lesson, though.... From now on, I plan to make sure that my mind is fully present before I stick my hand (or any other part of me!) near any animal. I can still hear the opposum's startled hiss as I tried to reach under him for an egg! 

One of a shepherd's concerns near lambing time is the possibility of pregnancy toxemia in the ewes. We've been lucky - and maybe a bit smart - in that we've avoided this problem during the past few years. The basic issue is that, with the ewe nearing the end of her gestation, she's not able to take in enough nutrition to both support the growth of her lamb(s) and maintain nutrition for her own bodily needs. When this happens, the ewe's body begins to break down its own reserved fats. When these fats are broken down at a high enough rate, toxins are released into the bloodstream and the ewe suffers from pregnancy toxemia.  If it gets bad enough, it can be fatal to the ewe and the unborn lambs.

Usually, this problem comes up in ewes carrying twins (it's often called "twin's disease") or multiples, as they require more nutrition and there's less space in the rumen (sheep's stomach) for hay and feed. Often, the first sign of a problem is that the ewe begins to lose her appetite - which is obviously only going to worsen an already bad situation.

The only way to totally solve this problem is to deliver the lambs - that way, the ewe's rumen can again hold more feed, and the drain on the ewe's reserves is reduced. The problem is that lambs that are born more than a couple of days premature are usually dead lambs. Unless the ewe is within just a couple of days of her due date (and you know this with some certainty), it is usually a better idea to treat the symptoms in hopes of making it to the end of her gestation.

But treating the symptoms is not easy either.... We have successfully treated ewes with this condition before, and it takes a lot of time and patience. The best approach is to get the ewe eating again - and eating high-energy feeds. Initially, there is a solution (propylene glycol) that is energy-dense, and can be force-fed to the ewe every few hours to give her the boost she needs. Based on the reaction from several ewes, however, it must not be very tasty - it is always a battle to get it into them.

When we force-feed propylene glycol, we do it with a very large syringe (without the needle) and squirt it into the back of the mouth where it triggers a swallow. You have to squirt very slowly so that it doesn't go down the wrong way and choke the ewe - which means that it seems to take forever!

The other problem is that propylene glycol reduces the desire in the ewe to eat - it makes them feel full - so, in a way, it is defeating the whole intent of getting her eating on her own again. We try to catch toxemia at the very beginning so that, hopefully, just a touch of the stuff will give her enough energy to eat for herself and turn the whole problem around. Otherwise, we may end up - as we did with Rosie years ago - feeding the stuff every few hours for four or five weeks until delivery. This is definitely something we'd like to avoid....

The way we try to thwart toxemia altogether is to ultrasound our ewes to know about how many fetuses they are carrying and then feed them accordingly, making sure that those with multiple fetuses get feed that is densely packed with the energy and nutrition they need. We watch carefully every time we feed to make sure that all of the ewes are running to the feeders to eat. Any ewe who moves slowly or seems disinterested is separated from the flock with a "friend" (sheep can become depressed if separated from other sheep - they are flock animals and need at least one friend with them) and fed in their pen where there is less competition for feed. Usually, this move will bring back their appetite to the point that they can be released back with the flock only a few days later. If the same problem comes up a second time for the same ewe, we get her eating again and then provide extra grain for her in a bucket after all of the flock is finished with their grain.  The last thing we want is a toxemic ewe!

We are now in the last month of gestation for many of our ewes, so we are just coming into the high-risk season for toxemia.  When I fed yesterday, I had to laugh to myself when I saw so many big, old ewes - who are carrying fifteen to twenty pounds of fleece plus two or three fetuses within their bellies - come running out of the barn, kicking up their heels at the thought of the grain that I carried.  So far, I'd say they all look fine....

We are definitely in the dead of winter now, and when I look outside at the accumulated snow, it makes me think of the many lessons we have learned about dealing with the ice, snow, and cold during this season on the farm. You have to remember that Rick and I are both "town kids," having grown up in (Rick) and around (Dee) the city of Detroit, Michigan. How to get through the winter on our acreage with minimal problems concerning our farm animals has taken some learning- and believe me, we've had our share of mistakes!

Like the winter we decided to push all of the "extra" snow into piles along the fencelines - once the snow and ice began to melt, the piles acted as dams and caused the snow-melt to back up behind the piles, flooding the barn and lean-to with over six inches of dirty water - right at lambing time! The worst part was that we knew this entire problem was our fault! If we hadn't blocked the drainage with piles of snow, it would all have been fine.... We now move the snow well away from the barn - to prevent the flooding, and also to keep the piles from slowly closing us in as the winter progresses. 

We've learned to use straw bales to build wind-break walls during blizzards (as I did last Wednesday), keeping the bulk of the wind and snow outside our shelters. After losing one of the automatic waterers under snow drifts for weeks, we now flag them to keep track of their locations, even when they're under the snow. Speaking of losing things, over the years we've begun to count sheep each time we feed so that we know we have them all accounted for.... We don't want to lose one because it fell asleep outside and was covered by a drift, or became caught somewhere and couldn't rejoin the flock. We've also learned to shear in January before lambing (even though it's really cold) so that the ewes feel the cold and come into the barn to deliver their lambs - preventing "lambsicles" frozen to the ground. The added benefit is that the lambs are born an average of two days later and two days bigger, making for higher survival rates.

With much trial and error, we've decided to feed bred ewes in the early afternoon because we found that doing so will prevent middle-of-the-night lambs - which eliminates the need for middle-of-the-night barn checks: a big plus for the warm and toasty sleeping shepherdess!  We've learned to always keep plenty of food on hand - cat, dog, chicken and sheep - since it's really hard to run to the store or get delivery when it's icy or snowing.  We've also learned to clear the driveway after every snow - even if another snow is coming in just hours - because you never know if you'll have an emergency and need to get out - or get help in - despite deep snow.

And most important of all, we've learned that no matter how bad things seem at the moment - broken tractor, snow at wading depth, ice everywhere, loud animals insisting on food even though they still have food in their feeders (!) - if we just continue to do the best we can and keep moving forward, spring is just around the corner and we'll get through.  I have to smile....  After weeks of sub-zero temperatures and snow everywhere, the sun is out and the snow is melting a bit - a very encouraging sign....

Well, now we have a problem, and it's a big one.  Rick was outside in the extreme cold yesterday, moving snow in the ram area, and the tractor quit.  Now, let me say right off: moving that snow drift was a must - the drift was tall enough that the rams could climb it on their side of the enclosure and then hop over the remaining foot of fence to get to the high-octane ewes' side (holding the ewes who get much more hay and grain because they are carrying multiple fetuses). 

This is not a good thing, for several reasons.  First of all, the rams who have found their way over the fence only need about half the feed that the ewes are getting, so if I leave them on the ewe side, the ewes will get less than they need and these rams will get much more.  I don't have to worry that the rams will breed any of them because they are all already bred, and due next month.  But that leads us to the next problem....  The ewes are all due next month, and additional stress at this time could cause them to miscarry - something we really want to avoid!  The last thing these ewes need is a frantic 300-pound ram jumping all over them, trying to breed ewes who are already bred!  The rams being over there is not a good thing....

So, we tried just moving them back with their rammy pals and calling it a day - but that didn't work.  Sheep may not be hugely smart, but they aren't stupid!  These rams have found a way over the fence into an area with lots of food and girls - what more could they ask for?!  So as soon as we moved them back, they immediately jumped the fence again.  That meant that, before we moved them back another time, we had to dig the drift away from the fence - at least a couple of feet back, so that the rams couldn't stand on it and run or jump over to the other side.  So, Rick went digging with a variety of tools: the basic snow shovel, the typical snow-blower, and the hugely useful tractor with drag blade and front-end loader.

That's when problems started....  The snow-blower wouldn't cut into the drift because it was too icy and packed down.  He pulled the tractor into the area, and as he pulled out to get a better angle, the tractor died.  It cannot be restarted.  This is really bad!  Rick finished digging out the fence by hand, but now the tractor sits in the field, looking more like a monument than a piece of functional machinery, with wind chills below zero and no one who wants to go out there to work on it.  I wish we had the know-how to fix what needs fixing, but we need an expert, and the experts don't want to come.  At least the drift is dug out (see photo, left) and I can put the rams back, but now we have to deal with the tractor....

Some of you might wonder why the tractor sitting there is such a big deal....  People lived for many years without tractors.  Well that may be, but here the tractor is nearly essential.  We are expecting five to eight inches of snow tonight, with blowing and drifting tomorrow. The tractor would have dug us out so that Rick could get to work and I could get to the grocery store (I have, instead, stocked up with groceries today, and Rick will have to take the four-wheel-drive truck to work tomorrow). 

By this weekend, the sheep on the ridge will need more hay, and we usually fill the hay storage building with fourteen bales of hay for them every weekend - with the tractor.  This weekend, it looks like we will be moving it up there through the drifts by wheelbarrow.  You can imagine our excited anticipation for that task!

Within the next week or two, we also need to clean out the stalls in the barn in preparation for shearing at the end of the month - again, a task that is most easily done with the tractor.  We normally hand-shovel the dirty bedding and then use the front-end loader of the tractor to move all the soiled bedding from the lean-to out to the compost pile - this takes about ten loads.  If we need to do it with the wheelbarrow (as we did in the days before the tractor) through the drifts, it will take us at least thirty trips - most likely more - to clean that area.  Each load will weigh over a couple of hundred pounds.  Just the thought makes me want to go back to bed....

So, the number one task on our list right now is to get the tractor fixed (broken tractor photo on right).  We are busy calling every place and any place that might have someone who could/would come out to fix the problem for us.  I pray that, before long, the tractor will be back up and running, and we can again not care at all where we last saw that darn wheelbarrow....

The next few weeks will be very busy for us.  Not only do we have to get ready for shearing at the end of the month, but very shortly after that, we expect to begin delivering over fifty-five lambs!  Shearing always marks the beginning of lambing season for us - it is healthier for the ewes and for their unborn lambs to shear them before the end of their gestation.  It is also better for the fleeces we sell: the stress of delivery can, at times, cause a weakness in the fiber at that point in time.  If we shear very near delivery, the weakness will be at the very tip of the new fleece where it cannot cause the problems that a weakness in the center of the staple would cause.

So, shearing comes first. This year, we have Mason Kolbet scheduled to come out on Saturday, Jan. 30th, to shear thirty-nine breeding ewes.  Before he comes, we need to clear the shearing floor.  Because we use every bit of space to the max, our shearing floor has been our straw and hay storage area for the past month or so. All of the bits of straw and hay that fell to the floor will need to be cleaned up (and the last few bales removed) and the straw that has been stored in one of the stalls will need to be moved into the loft.

All of the clutter that has accumulated since October (see photo at right) will have to be moved to make room for the shearing crowd. We will have at least a dozen people here to help with shearing, and our entire barn only measures 24'x40' - not a lot of space for forty sheep and a dozen people, all moving around!  The stalls will need to be cleaned at least a week before shearing (you never want fresh bedding down for shearing - it sticks to the fleece and contaminates the final product!) so the weekend of Jan. 16th has been set aside for that task. Cleaning stalls then will keep the floors clean enough that the volunteers' boots won't be a mess, but the bedding won't stick to the fleeces, either.

All the coats waiting for mending will need to be sewn up and returned to their bins in the barn.  The coats the animals are now wearing will be removed at shearing and thrown into the hamper to be brought into the house for washing and mending.  Once sheared, the animals will be fitted with a fresh coat - that means that forty animals will shed forty coats for cleaning and mending, and then will be fitted with forty fresh coats from the bins.  We will need every single coat we have to be able to get every sheared sheep into a clean coat!  I plan on finishing the mending of coats today, if all goes according to plan.

At shearing, we place each shorn fleece into an old, clean bed sheet (oh yeah, I need to count our shearing sheets, too, to make sure we have forty!) with a card identifying the source-sheep stapled to a corner of the sheet.  We then tie the sheet into a bundle to be brought into the house for skirting.  We need to print two copies of these cards before we shear: one to be stapled to the sheet, and the other to be kept with the skirted fleece, for photos.

In addition to cards, before shearing we put together a packet of Zip-loc bags for fleece samples.  We send away both "side" and "britch" samples for each new ewe in our flock, once she reaches one year of age. Each bag must be labeled with information specific to that animal, and we make sure that all bags are ready to send out for testing as soon as the sample is sheared.  This year, we will be testing seven animals (five new and two repeat), making for a packet of fourteen bags to label before then.

And finally, we will need to put together a team of volunteers to help with shearing.  We have so little space in the barn in which to move during shearing that we do not allow "sight-seeing" unless the person is willing to help in some way with shearing - there is just no space for onlookers! We usually plan for a dozen people: the two of us and ten volunteers.  Typically, we end up with people who come for a variety of reasons: friends who like to work with sheep, spinners who want to see the fleeces as they come off the sheep, kids who typically come to help with our sheep throughout the year, etc.  Luckily, we never seem to have too much trouble getting together enough people to help with shearing!

So, our goal now is to prepare for shearing at the end of the month.  Much of what we do here on the farm this month will be geared towards that and towards lambing, which comes shortly after.  This is a really busy time of year for us, but also exciting: first, we get to see all of the fleeces that we have been guessing about for the entire year, and then we get to see the new lambs!  What fun!  I wouldn't trade it for anything....  Maybe that's why, after nearly ten years, my flock is still growing, and I still happily schedule my life around this flock of sheep.

The New Year came creeping in with cold, cold temperatures last night. Although the sheep are warm in their big wooly coats, the rest of us shiver and search for more clothing to try to keep warm. The temperatures have dropped from highs in the 20s to single digits, and lows well below zero - and the wind-chill makes it feel even colder!

This morning, we finally decided it was time to break out the very-cold-weather gear, including the one-piece Carhartt's and the snowmobile boots. You can compare the photo at right with the one taken about a month ago in Dec. 2nd's blog - things are much more crowded in our laundry room now! 

Usually, the biggest problem we face in this type of weather is keeping fingers and toes warm - you can pile more and more clothing on the rest of the body, but there is only so much you can put on your hands and still work with them, or on your feet and still walk without tripping.  We do what we can, but in the end, we always come back in with nearly-frozen fingers and toes!

When it gets this cold, it can be really hard to get good photos, too. You can see why when you look at one of the pictures I took of the rams in the stall the other day (left): I eventually had to hold my breath to prevent the condensation that you see in this photo from interfering with the picture I finally posted.  Speaking of condensation, by the time Rick comes in from outside, his mustache looks like something Frosty the Snowman would wear - totally frosted over with condensation from his breath!

The cold weather can get to the sheep, too. We don't see that too much with the ewes, who are currently in full fleece and scheduled for shearing at the end of the month. The issue is more often with the rams this time of year.  Some of them were just sheared in October, and they have much less protection against the cold. Because of that, we feed them a bit more hay to get their rumens (stomachs) working more, which then produces more body heat. I often worry about wind-chills below -20F and frozen ear tips, etc., but have never had a problem with them - likely because we do provide at least a wind-break for every group.

For us, the New Year marks the beginning of the last "trimester" of gestation for many of our ewes, which means a change in their feed. Most of the fetuses' growth occurs in this last six weeks of gestation, so we need to provide the ewes with nutrition to support that growth. They all really love this aspect of the coming of the New Year, even though they don't recognize the calendar....  The "high octane" ewes on the ridge (ewes carrying triplets or more, or ewe lambs who are bred and still growing themselves) are today being switched over to an alfalfa/grass mix hay that has about 15.5% protein, while the rest of the bred ewes will move to an alfalfa hay with about 13.5% protein. This is an increase of about 2% for each group - for now! Once we get to mid-February with lambs beginning to arrive, we will again improve the hay (for all bred ewes) to a higher-quality alfalfa that measures about 17.5% protein - necessary for them to produce enough high-quality milk for fast lamb growth, whether they have twins or triplets.

So, the New Year brings with it some changes for us, in both weather and sheep management. It also signals the need to begin getting ready for our busiest time of year: shearing, followed by lambing. We are currently scheduled to shear at the end of the month, and the lambs begin coming within two weeks after. If we are not caught up with all of our sheep tasks by the end of January, we know we won't catch up before summer - it gets that busy around here! On Monday, I'll give you an idea of what we need to complete to be ready, and how our spring usually unfolds. Meanwhile, let's take some time to celebrate the coming of another year, and all the promise that it brings. From all of us here at Peeper Hollow Farm, we wish you a safe, healthy, and happy New Year - with, hopefully, a bit of warmth!