Well, it looks like WWOOFER Brian is going to put me out of a job !!! I’d like to introduce today’s Almost Daily Diary, written by our guest editor, Brian….
If you were to tell me that I was going to grab a sheep by its hind leg, fling it into the air while twisting it onto its back, and then throw it to the ground, I’d probably believe you. I have learned that crazy jobs of that sort are of the norm here at the ranch. That was my experience this rainy morning (yes, still raining) as Greg called Sarah and I over to doctor some of the sheep for cruels, a result of sharp grass or food cutting the inside of their cheek and causing an infection. “Just grab its back leg and throw it over”, was Greg’s simple instruction. If only it was that simple. First you have to catch the little devils as they fly by you jumping in the air, straw flying everywhere, while everyone is bleating at the top of their lungs. Catch, meaning grabbing that ever elusive hind foot. Then, against the animal’s wish (and your conscience), yank the leg up while with your other hand push and roll its body onto its back. At this point in the process, make sure that you aren’t close to the feeders so that you don’t bang the sheep’s head on one of them. Oops... The last step is to hold the feet in the air as Greg dashes over to holds its head between his legs and administer the shots. All of this happens within a matter of seconds. A quick shot and disinfecting spray later, the sheep is back up on its feet and eating like nothing ever happened. I would later apologize to the sheep for banging its head.
In order to calm our nerves and get the jitters out from this morning’s excitement, Greg took us into the barn to learn how to sharpen chainsaws. Just so everyone knows, we all still have a full set of nine fingers. Sarah was later tasked with using her design skills to work on some creative labels for the future farm tour, while I continued hacking off fingers in the barn.
All day long, actually I should say for about the past week, it has been raining off and on. For a southern boy who it used to the sunshine and hot, humid days, this is a big change. The constant cloud cover has left me waiting for the vampires to come flying out, followed by a million thirteen year old girls. However, the weather never seems to dampen our spirits, especially when it comes time to bring in all the animals for the evening. The cows, snot plastered all over their faces, trudge slowly into their pens while the sheep go sprinting by to be the first to their food with Bran hot on their heels. Lastly, with carrots in hand, we bring in the horses. It’s incredible to see how quickly the horses have grown to like Sarah and me. Well, it’s incredible how quickly the horses have figured out Sarah and I have lots of carrots. After a long, hard day of work, there’s nothing better than a huge, wet, hairy kiss from Lady. Unless it’s two, huge, wet, hairy kisses.
Note from Maureen….Not even a chocolate chip/peanut butter cookie or three ?
Take care, keep safe, M
If you were to tell me that I was going to grab a sheep by its hind leg, fling it into the air while twisting it onto its back, and then throw it to the ground, I’d probably believe you. I have learned that crazy jobs of that sort are of the norm here at the ranch. That was my experience this rainy morning (yes, still raining) as Greg called Sarah and I over to doctor some of the sheep for cruels, a result of sharp grass or food cutting the inside of their cheek and causing an infection. “Just grab its back leg and throw it over”, was Greg’s simple instruction. If only it was that simple. First you have to catch the little devils as they fly by you jumping in the air, straw flying everywhere, while everyone is bleating at the top of their lungs. Catch, meaning grabbing that ever elusive hind foot. Then, against the animal’s wish (and your conscience), yank the leg up while with your other hand push and roll its body onto its back. At this point in the process, make sure that you aren’t close to the feeders so that you don’t bang the sheep’s head on one of them. Oops... The last step is to hold the feet in the air as Greg dashes over to holds its head between his legs and administer the shots. All of this happens within a matter of seconds. A quick shot and disinfecting spray later, the sheep is back up on its feet and eating like nothing ever happened. I would later apologize to the sheep for banging its head.
In order to calm our nerves and get the jitters out from this morning’s excitement, Greg took us into the barn to learn how to sharpen chainsaws. Just so everyone knows, we all still have a full set of nine fingers. Sarah was later tasked with using her design skills to work on some creative labels for the future farm tour, while I continued hacking off fingers in the barn.
All day long, actually I should say for about the past week, it has been raining off and on. For a southern boy who it used to the sunshine and hot, humid days, this is a big change. The constant cloud cover has left me waiting for the vampires to come flying out, followed by a million thirteen year old girls. However, the weather never seems to dampen our spirits, especially when it comes time to bring in all the animals for the evening. The cows, snot plastered all over their faces, trudge slowly into their pens while the sheep go sprinting by to be the first to their food with Bran hot on their heels. Lastly, with carrots in hand, we bring in the horses. It’s incredible to see how quickly the horses have grown to like Sarah and me. Well, it’s incredible how quickly the horses have figured out Sarah and I have lots of carrots. After a long, hard day of work, there’s nothing better than a huge, wet, hairy kiss from Lady. Unless it’s two, huge, wet, hairy kisses.
Note from Maureen….Not even a chocolate chip/peanut butter cookie or three ?
Take care, keep safe, M
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