Wall to wall sunshine predicted for today…oh. Great, there is nothing quite like doing farm chores in 80+ degrees. Nothing quite as nasty as sweat trickling down your back or dripping off the end of your nose forming little riverlets through the thin covering of poo dust on our hot and tired bodies. It doesn’t sound quite as idealistic as Greenacres….and by the end of the day we sure don’t look anything like Ava Gabor…but we wouldn’t be anywhere else by choice!
We said goodbye to Annie the ewe yesterday. Annie had come to us several years ago, a big white ewe, she had become my firm favourite mom in the sheep pen. Annie arrived at the ranch suffering from a severe bout of mastitis, I’m telling you, that ewe was the Dolly Parton of the sheep world. Greg and I had to take care of her condition and she was duly installed in our sheep sick bay. Never having had a sheep with mastitis Greg and I went to work restoring Annie with the Lallies to something more like Twiggy. I clearly remember tipping Annie on her back, swollen udder glowing and teats engorged. What to do with her oversized assets to restore her to good health, ….??? Each morning and each evening Annie was tossed over, legs all akimbo in the air, still munching peanuts and giving contented grunts. It was my duty to relieve the pressure in her udder so I milked her, like playing the bagpipes I squeezed her teats and rich creamy milk fountained into the air. I vividly recall a young Bran, the border collie leaping between the frothing fountain mouth open catching every last rich warm drop. Annie had been giving us triplets each year, big healthy white lambs that flourished under her care but this year Annie prolapsed badly. Under pressure from her offspring, Annies milky bar was not able to keep up the supply for her 3 rambunctious lambs and little Chance was adopted by us. Moms udder was replaced by a rubber teat and a moms love given by me, still recovering from my back surgery. Annie with the Lallies didn’t recover from her prolapse and, concerned by her condition, it was determined that Annie was going to the sheep pen in the sky. Annie didn’t suffer and the experience was witnessed by Lesley and Derek as part of their Woofer Internship.
Wesley arrived yesterday and hit the ground running, it certainly looks like our newest Woofer Intern is going to fit right in. Oops, time’s up…..
Take care, keep safe, M
We said goodbye to Annie the ewe yesterday. Annie had come to us several years ago, a big white ewe, she had become my firm favourite mom in the sheep pen. Annie arrived at the ranch suffering from a severe bout of mastitis, I’m telling you, that ewe was the Dolly Parton of the sheep world. Greg and I had to take care of her condition and she was duly installed in our sheep sick bay. Never having had a sheep with mastitis Greg and I went to work restoring Annie with the Lallies to something more like Twiggy. I clearly remember tipping Annie on her back, swollen udder glowing and teats engorged. What to do with her oversized assets to restore her to good health, ….??? Each morning and each evening Annie was tossed over, legs all akimbo in the air, still munching peanuts and giving contented grunts. It was my duty to relieve the pressure in her udder so I milked her, like playing the bagpipes I squeezed her teats and rich creamy milk fountained into the air. I vividly recall a young Bran, the border collie leaping between the frothing fountain mouth open catching every last rich warm drop. Annie had been giving us triplets each year, big healthy white lambs that flourished under her care but this year Annie prolapsed badly. Under pressure from her offspring, Annies milky bar was not able to keep up the supply for her 3 rambunctious lambs and little Chance was adopted by us. Moms udder was replaced by a rubber teat and a moms love given by me, still recovering from my back surgery. Annie with the Lallies didn’t recover from her prolapse and, concerned by her condition, it was determined that Annie was going to the sheep pen in the sky. Annie didn’t suffer and the experience was witnessed by Lesley and Derek as part of their Woofer Internship.
Wesley arrived yesterday and hit the ground running, it certainly looks like our newest Woofer Intern is going to fit right in. Oops, time’s up…..
Take care, keep safe, M
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