I sneak into the sheep pen every morning hoping to not disturb the flock. The time before everyone has gotten-up and started their day is when I can get the best overview of how everyone is doing. Ewes and lambs that are contentedly snoozing or chewing cud are a sign of all being well. Lambs …
Nearly done. I have one last lady, Charlotte, to lamb still and then lambing 2018 is in the books. On Monday, my smallest ewe Eva gave birth to a healthy little ram lamb. He was a little surprising, despite the tendency for rams to be white this year. As his mama is all black… Still, …
Over the weekend, four more lambs were born. First it was twins from Fanny with a ewe/ram pair that were both white! Yay! The little ram is spotted and the ewe is almost entirely white. I had been a little disappointed by the fact that all my girls had been, up to this point, born …
I had a meeting for the Iowa Sheep and Wool Festival in Ames and I didn’t get home until after dark last night. So it was with a headlamp that I greeted this little guy. I’m sure that he now thinks that I am some sort of God. Or Iron Man. Or a bizarre cyclops. …
Currently I am feeling much like Captain Kirk in the famous Star Trek episode where the cute and cuddly tribbles overrun the Starship Enterprise. I have lots and lots of cute and cuddly, and they are everywhere. Lambs can easily fit between the bars of the cattle panels that I use for the sheep pen, …
Twenty. Twenty lambs out of twelve ewes. That’s a 166.7% lambing average. Which is phenomenal for me. Last night it was Hettie having a set of ewe/ram-dark/white twins. They are healthy and happy and as my dad likes to say, “Goers”. This morning it was Diana’s turn to have her first lamb, a very healthy …
I keep expecting the twin parade to end with a rash of singles because that is normal. And expected. And just not happening this year. Last night Beulah had a lovely set of twins, another ewe/ram set. Then this morning, I arrive in the pen to find that Miss Claire had given birth to a …
Last night there was yet another set of twins born on the farm. This time a little set of ewes. I just happened to be there as Ellie started giving birth so I hung around to make sure that everything went ok. Lord, should I ever have babies of my own, please allow me to …
Last night we had another set of twins born to Prudence. Once again a black and white combo (it’s like a bunch of Oreo cookies around here honestly!). They were born very quickly as I was doing chores. I walked by her on the way in and noticed that she was off by herself in …
I am, once again, in charge of classes for the Iowa Sheep & Wool Festival for this year. I’m really quite proud of the class list that we have come up with for this years attendees. There’s a little something in it for almost everyone! For the knitters, I have several great classes on offer. …
Sarah Jane Humke 