Kona the Guard Llama

Kona our new Guard

 Kona is our new guard for the flock.  While we have been very fortunate to have no trouble so far with coyotes, wolves, bears or domestic dogs hassling the flock, we are also aware that prevention is a much better option than trying to "fix" the problem once it occurs.  While we toyed with the idea of a guard dog, I wasn't sure that our operation could successfully keep a dog confined, and, of course, content.   A guard llama seemed a perfect solution.  So, with a little help from our good friend Dee Heinrich, we found and purchased Kona.

Since we move our sheep twice daily (once to pasture in the morning and again back home in the evening) with our border collies, Peat & Katrina, we weren't sure how Kona would respond to their presence.  And what we've learned is that he is remarkably tolerant.  I am no longer worried that he will injure them.  However, we've also discovered that he definitely does not behave like a sheep!  He behaves perfectly like a guard llama!  This means that he sometimes acts like an independent thinker, which means when we are bringing the flock to and fro, he will split from the group and look for the greener pastures.  Our remedy was to keep Kona on a lead rope until it is crystal clear that he is committed to following the sheep.  This has worked well, along with making sure we reinforce his correct decisions.  He loves grain, and making it available if and only when he moves with the group to and from pasture has worked quite well.

Kona sampling White Pine needles

Kona was a 4H project so is quite familiar with being led on a line.  He was also meticulously groomed when he arrived; before arrival here, he was recently sheared with a barrel cut(sheared around his mid-section) to keep him cooler during the rest of our hot, dry summer.

Kona with "his" flock

Kona is a valuable addition to the care and management of our flock.  As long as he continues to help us meet our mission of keeping our flock healthy and free of damage (and not making his management another arduous task!), he will have a home here for a long time!

Shearing 2011

Ewes waiting in pen

Shearing came on June 2nd this year. First we had to group the ewes in the pen in the pole barn and then we had to pluck the lambs out and return them to the barn to avoid them being injured in such tight quarters.  My friend, Paula, owner of the Knit-N-Purl yarn shop in Marquette helped shuttle lambs!  (The final count on lambs is eighteen!)

Plucking lambs from the holding pen to return to the barn

 Unlike last year, we haven't really had that many really hot days up to now, but the sheep were obviously relieved to rid themselves of the pounds of wool they accumulate all year.  Our shearer comes from Wisconsin and shears most of the local flocks in our area.  Very skilled and very talented, he is painfully aware of the necessity of taking the fleeces carefully for my hand spinning customers so as to avoid second cuts which are not favored.  Still, it takes less than five minutes from beginning to end for each sheep:

First blows

Each sheep is sheared using the same pattern

Almost done

Finished....naked sheep! :)

 This year we had several folks show up to watch, and as a surprise to some, help with various tasks along the way.  Our neighbors, Isaac and Nancy, are fans of our sheep and drive by several times a week to laugh at the lambs as they gallop in the fields and jump on the knoll in the pasture.  Today they were here to see shearing for the first time...and we put them to work.

Nancy reassuring the sheep in the raceway

Isaac helping load the raceway by manning the gate

 Once the fleeces are off, it is critical to get them gathered and labeled so that there is no confusion about which fleece came from which sheep.  Our friend Karan volunteered for this important task.

Karan waiting for the next fleece

All in all, the job was done in about two hours from setup to finish.  The weather was beautiful, we had great help and the fleeces are now ready for skirting and preparation for processing or sale.  The fleeces were really impressive this year and I will post pictures of them on the farm website as soon as they are ready!  Shearing is a great time of year and is the culmination of a year's worth of careful feeding and lots of management to assure that they are as clean and as luxurious as they can possibly be.  Next year will see an even larger number of CVM/Romeldale and Romney fleeces; I'm looking forward to it already!:)

Thirteen and counting!

Cheviot ram lamb four days old

Yup, thirteen lambs so far.  Six ram lambs and 7 ewe lambs.  Five ewes left to go...of which at least three look like they could go any time. The weather has finally turned and we have gorgeous sunshine to dry things up.  Good news for the sheep and good news for us; 5am feedings are a lot more pleasant when the stars are shining.  Here are a few pics of the crew so far

Romeldale lambs basking in the sunshine

What the?????

More Border Cheviot lambs...

First 2011 lamb; Border Cheviot ram lamb 1 day old

Louise's CVM X Romney ram lamb, Charlie; 1 day old

Romeldale ewe lamb, Carlee

  And, yes, you're right...ALL WHITE lambs so far.  I have a brown-factored CVM ewe that is hopefully bred and will produce some cute little colored CVM babies for the farm, but only time will tell.  If there's one thing shepherding teaches you, it's patience.  What's the saying?  All good things come to those who...(yup)...wait! :)

2011 Lambs are arriving!

We are well into lambing now with seven Border Cheviot and two Romeldale lambs so far.  And all but one ewe has twinned!  The weather has been challenging with temps dipping to 38 degrees Fahrenheit at night and wind and rain during the last few days.  It's a good thing that most of the ewes have chosen to come into the barn to lamb; the bad news is they have been tending to pick the wee morning hours!  But since we are in the barn every 3-4 hours anyway, we've been available to help if needed.  All moms and babies so far are doing pretty well aside from a few bumps in the road...One ewe lamb of twins was very tiny and born to a first-time mom who left her as she delivered her sibling; we happened to find her in time and warmed her and brought her into the barn.  Her mother had already decided she wasn't interested in her and had to be held to let the little gal (5 lbs) suckle for that all important liquid gold: colostrum.  She is now a bottle lamb and struggling to pick up speed.  A second ram lamb twin was suddenly and mysteriously rejected by an experienced mom who decided she did not want him to nurse any longer.  On day three, she simply would not allow him near her udder. Period.  When we held her to allow him to nurse, she twitched and jumped like he was hurting her.  A quick finger in the mouth determined that he had large sharp teeth that must have made nursing painful!  So, he is also relegated to the "bucket."  While we would normally visit the barn every four hours with a warm bottle for each "bottle lamb", this year we are trying out a free-feeding bucket system with this ram lamb; this system is supposed to allow the little tyke to regulate his own intake to a style that would match that of normal nursing.  This is accomplished by keeping the milk chilled but constantly available and the lambs learn to drink smaller amounts frequently, just like they would with mom.  It seems to be working beautifully as he is calm and content when we check on him and no more frantic scrambling and baaing for his bottle from us!  So, only nine lambs but two reliant on us to feed them!  Such are the trials and tribulations of shepherding!:)  

Pictures will be coming as soon as the weather breaks!  Wish us luck for an uneventful night tonight!

Shearing at Log Cabin Livestock

 Many, many folks have played important roles in my continuing development as a shepherd (or would it be shepherdess?)  Sheep people are incredibly generous with their knowledge and time, and Ben and Denise Bartlett are no exception. This week I was able to repay a small portion of my indebtedness by helping Ben and Denise (owners of Log Cabin Livestock) with shearing.  Ben and Denise own and operate a sheep and stocker steer operation in Traunik, Michigan.  With 450 lambing ewes and 150 head of steer, and lambing about to begin in May, this is a busy busy time for them and as luck would have it, Ben and Denise's farm is only about a mile or two from my own ... well, as the crow flies!  So, on Tuesday morning, I spent a few hours helping keep the sheep moving in so the shearers could do their jobs and get the sheep moving back out!

Sheep Sea

Compared to my tiny flock of 19, this was like a sea of sheep.  And yet, because of Ben and Denise's keen attention to flock behavior (and considerable experience) moving the groups was streamlined, low stress, and efficient.  First, the sheep were divided into smaller groups, from which even smaller subgroups were gathered into a holding pen.  From this pen, individual sheep were moved into a long, narrow chute designed to take advantage of the sheeps' following behavior and which ultimately moved them along to the shearing platform where each sheep could be gathered by a shearer to have their heavy year's worth of fleece removed.  

Chute separates sheared ewes from waiting ewes.

Sheep in the chute

My job was to help keep the chute loaded with sheep so that when a shearer finished with one, another was ready and waiting within an arm's length.  Professional shearers make short work of their task and can easily shear a sheep within minutes.  After each sheep was sheared, Ben's grandson helped clean the shearing stage, readying it for the next client!  

Keeping the shearing stage clear

Puppy love!

Comedic relief was provided by the ranch-hand-in-training, pup Mick.  Not so sure what to make of his wooly charges and always ready to beat a hasty retreat, Mick tried out his clumsy puppy moves on the "not so impressed" and very pregnant ewes!  And while mastering skills for his new career as co-sheep manager (alongside resident dog, Bo) did appear pretty important to Mick, what he was really busy perfecting was his role as top schmooze.  From the looks of it, he's got that part down!  My day wrapped up around midday, the sheep were several pounds lighter and we all crossed our fingers for a smooth lambing season starting in May...that and warm sunshine and green grass...sooner than later!

Snow Storm?

After losing all of our snow over the last week, we now have returned to winter.  And I suppose I should have known better than to wish for spring in mid-April in the Upper Peninsula, yet it was attractive to think that finally the cold snowy days of hauling water through the snow banks had arrived.  I had even managed to get the barn cleaned last week and was looking forward to the outside area drying so we could finally clean up all the winter's accumulated hay.  But it was not to be.  The sheep don't seem phased at all, and they spend as much time as usual resting quietly.  Actually, I think they feel quite comfortable in the 25-30 degree weather, though the gusts of wind are an unwelcome element.  If you look closely, you can just make out the snow sitting on the backs of our rams hard at work eating from their feeder near their shed in the ram pen. The pictures do reflect how overcast and gray the last two days have been.  After several days with sun, it is hard to return to the gloom of winter.  When the sun shines in the winter, it is beautiful as it reflects off the snow and the ice crystals glisten.  But the gray days are many here at this latitude and summer is a welcome reprieve.

On the bright side, it looks like several of the girls are "bagging up" and I am eager to welcome lambs!  Our rams were put in with their respective breeding groups on December 7 last year and that means that lambs are expected on or around May 1.  With a new ram here on Fiddle Knoll Farm, we are anxious to see if he actually covered his girls as we hope.  He is a gray badger Romeldale/CVM ram and turned 2 years old in March this year.  Since it was his first breeding season, one always wonders if a new ram will be up to the job!  Since it appears that at least one ewe in his breeding group, our white Romeldale, Pearl, appears to be producing milk in anticipation of feeding her new lamb(s) we are optimistic that he figured out what his job was.  Several of our Border Cheviot and Clun Forest ewes are also looking good and we can thank our Border Cheviot ram, Bodie, for what hopefully will be another successful season of perky lambs!  Let's just hope that the snow leaves (again) soon!