Posted in livestock, self-sufficiency, sheep, smallholding, tagged fleece, sheep, solar energy, spinning, wool on 11 May 2008 | 2 Comments »
Had the sheep shearer come today - nice lad, very competent at his work, kind with the sheep, and takes care over not cutting them. He’s a local lad, and divides his time between here and New Zealand.
Although I think it would be good if we learned to shear.. watching him work.. I realise it’s quite [...]
Posted in grow your own food, livestock, self-sufficiency, sheep, smallholding, tagged lambing, sheep on 8 May 2008 | 2 Comments »
the window for lambing now draws to a close.. if they squeezed any out now they remaining ewes would have had to have been tupped on the ram’s last day, and be a week late too! - is not going to happen…
So - not a roaring success.
Only one out of the three ewes lambed.. she [...]
Posted in livestock, self-sufficiency, sheep, smallholding, tagged sheep; lambing on 22 April 2008 | No Comments »
Moved the two ewes-who-have-no-intention-of-lambing into the field with Sharona and her lamb, Rogan, today. No choice really: out of grass in the orchard, and so the flock is back together.. only now are four. This came as a bit of a surprise to the two girls and to Rogan the lamb, he wanted to play.. they [...]
Posted in chickens, grow your own food, livestock, self-sufficiency, sheep, smallholding, tagged chickens; chicks; sheep; lambs on 20 April 2008 | No Comments »
Stunning how fast Rogan is growing.. mind you he has all the milk to himself, and is eating grass and vegetation now. It’s a real shame he does not have any other lambs to play with.. shame for Sharona his mum too.. as he has to jump on and harrass her! Today he was happy [...]
Posted in chickens, grow your own food, self-sufficiency, smallholding, tagged chickens, chicks, eggs on 4 April 2008 | 2 Comments »
The buff leghorn, our broody hen, marched out of her nest today, giving up on the remaining eggs and concentrating on her three chicks.
Chicks, just like lambs, can waste a lot of time.. just in the watching.
This has to be easier than using an incubator, although having a hen prone to broodiness might turn out [...]
Posted in chickens, livestock, self-sufficiency, sheep, smallholding, tagged chickens, chicks, lambing, lambs, sheep on 3 April 2008 | No Comments »
Rogan, our remaining lamb is still doing well, seems to be growing before our eyes, not surprising now he is getting all the milk. He is starting to copy his mum, chewing on a leaf of ivy companionably next to her.. though not actually eating it.. but its all good practice. His legs are, like [...]
Posted in livestock, self-sufficiency, sheep, smallholding, tagged lambing, sheep on 31 March 2008 | 4 Comments »
Checked on the sheep every couple of hours through the night - for the two ewes that could have started lambing, Sharona and her new borns, and little Conan, being fed bottles. All well, no signs of labour, Sharona was keeping her charges snuggled, Conan taking his bottles with increasing eagerness.
Then himself wanders down at [...]
Posted in livestock, self-sufficiency, sheep, smallholding, tagged lambing, lambs, sheep, smallholding on 30 March 2008 | 5 Comments »
another exhausting day, following having only 1-2 hours sleep the night before. Himself has been making 3 hourly checks throughout the night.. on both the ewes that have not lambed, but also last night’s arrivals. At the 6am check, he found one of the triplets was not looking so good.
The weather had thankfully improved a [...]
 | colouritgreen on egg skelter |
 | Rosie on egg skelter |
| colouritgreen on shorn |
 | joyknits on shorn |
| colouritgreen on person powered mower |
| Rosie on person powered mower |
