(pictures are NOT mine)Got the idea I wanted some sheep. For meat and maybe for wool, but meat first. We had, as I said a little over 2.5 acres and it was all fenced so I thought they would work out pretty good.
Anyway, I did some research (this was before the internet, BTW) and found a local farmer that would sell me a couple of sheep. The first ones I got were two Dorset ewes and a ram.(picture 1) I used to have them out in the 'yard' when I was out there. They did their thing, I did mine. All in all it worked pretty good. Since they were working so well, I made some more calls and found a place that would sell me two Suffolk ewes. (picture 3) They were both in lamb so we loaded them up and brought them home.
Got them off the truck and put in the barn and IMMEDIATELY one of them starts to crouch. Now, I have never had sheep before, but I HAVE delivered puppies and I recognize an impending birth when I see it. This poor ewe has just met me, sheep are skittish anyway, and she is a first time Mom. So needless to say I didn't expect it to be easy. Turned out she not only knew what to do (Mother Nature and all) but that she seemed to know immediately that I was no threat and didn't mind me helping her and touching her lambs. Yup, you read it right. She had twins, a boy and a girl. I was SO thrilled it was beyond imagining. To see these little things come out and be standing within minutes and then nursing almost right away.
I would love to experience farm life every single day to just have that happen once a year. Just amazing. The other ewe had her single lamb the following week. She had a female as well. Farm wise, the females of anything are the valuable ones as they are where the next generations come from. You only need one male for every 20 to 30 ewes, so most of the males are castrated and grown for meat. I also had one Dorset male lamb born, (picture 4) about three weeks later. Now I had the Suffolks castrated but the Dorset male wasn't around at the time of the 'visit' so he didn't get done. The guy that did the job for me said that I didn't have to worry as he would be gone before he was old enough to breed. We got the tails done as well, they can get very dirty under there especially the lambs, and it is a safer practice with the way farm life is.
Now, you remember my friend from up the road that brought me Daisy, the goat? Well, I'd had the sheep for a few weeks he shows up one day and says he got me a birthday present. He opens the back of his truck and there stands this rather homely looking, old Suffolk ewe. Well, I didn't need another pet, but he knew I was a sucker for these animals that needed a nice home to live in. That's how I got Dolly. I put her in with my other sheep and she fit in but was always a little fonder of me than she was of the other sheep.
Circumstances changed over the summer and I had to get rid of my sheep. The ram went first, then the ewes and lambs a few months or so later. I hated it and knew I couldn't sell Dolly as she was not really good for meat or wool or anything and I didn't want to part with ALL my herd. (I had 5 adults and four lambs, plus Dolly). So I kept her and used the little a-frame shed that I had used to house the turkeys in for her house for the winter. She would stay in there and when the nights got colder I'd close the door up to keep her safe. She was fine through the winter and I started talking to her everyday as I did with all my animals. It relaxes them and it gives you someone to bounce ideas off of.
Anyway, this one morning I go out to open her door and let her out to graze. She didn't come out right away, and the first thought was that she had maybe died or was sick. Then she showed herself, made this different kind of sound that they make in their throats and a little female lamb followed her out. I was never so happy as when I saw that. She was so proud of herself. I counted back and it turned out the father of her lamb was my little five month old Dorset male that I had never had castrated. We know it was him as the ram had been gone too long to be the father. I enjoyed having the two of them follow me around the rest of that year.
By the way, Dolly and her baby ended up going to a petting zoo. As I said, something came up that I got rid of a lot of my farm animals. Never again will I do that for ANYbody.
I loved most of my time on that farm. And I miss it terribly.
