norseofcourse's journal - spring and show update

[norseofcourse]

I came home yesterday to a great big box sitting by the back door - my wool!! It's so beautiful. I'm taking it to someone today who can help me sort through it and maybe wind it into big balls - I can't quite figure out how they've got it arranged in the box, and I don't want to pull it apart the wrong way. I can see that it's in layers, but it all seems to just blend together, so different from the ball of roving I've been learning to spin with. But I'm so glad it's finally here!

 

[jodief100]

That is sooooo cool! I wish I had time for some fiber work. I want to spin and weave and do more crocheting.

 

[norseofcourse]

It's been exactly one year today since I first got my sheep

I've learned a lot, and I've really enjoyed having them. And it's been fun meeting all kinds of people along the way, from local spinners/weavers/knitters, to sheep people both locally and all over the state at the Ohio Sheep Day, and folks here who have been so helpful and shared advice and stories. And I can't forget finding a farm in Michigan with nice Icelandics (polled!), and going there to get my ram.

I've gone through the roving I got back from the mill, and I'll be posting some figures on the thread I started when I got my sheep sheared last fall. This link to that thread is here: http://www.backyardherds.com/threads/naked-sheep-pictures.27004/

 

[norseofcourse]

jodief - thanks! I wish I had more time for fiber stuff, too. It's fun, but there is so much to do, especially with spring coming.

It was a wonderful spring day here today! In the 50's, cloudy in the morning but then bright sunshine - it was great to see a lot of the snow melting! Unfortunately that meant a lot of mud. Oh well - I'm still happy to see spring starting to arrive.

I got the boards for my hay feeder cut to length, so tomorrow I hope to start putting it together. Once it's finished and set up, I'll need to get to work on the milking stand! I've been working on petting Gracie more, the more she is used to me, the easier it will be to train her to be milked.

I spent some time the other day trying to figure out what color lambs I might end up with - it's three weeks away from my first possible lambing date, so I've got to do something to keep from going nuts! I had some articles on color inheritance in Icelandic sheep, and from my sheep's colors, and the lambs they had last year, I tried to figure out what genes they carried, or might.

Gracie's white pattern hides whatever colors she's carrying (black or moorit (brown)). Rose is black, made into grey by the grey pattern gene, but there's a chance she could be carrying moorit. Brosa is white, but I think she's white because of spotting, not white pattern. I think her base color is black, but she may also carry moorit, too. Spotting (white) is recessive, and the ram Elding is spotted, so Brosa's lamb might tell me if she's spotted or not. Rose isn't spotted, but she carries one spotting gene, since Little Boy was spotted (so was his dad). So - all I could really figure out was I might have black, brown, white or grey lambs, and there's a good chance the colored ones will have white markings, too!

I don't see any signs of mine starting to shed yet. I didn't write down when they started to shed last year. The ponies haven't started to shed yet either. Come on spring!

 

[norseofcourse]

Another week closer to lambing, and spring is trying to get here too!

I've been working on the hay feeder. I'm using Premier1's single-sided design, and it's going well, even with just me putting it together. No way can I move it myself though, so I've got a friend coming to help me move it into place, probably Tuesday. It looks like it will work well, I'll get some pictures soon.

I'm trying not to obsessively check the girls each and every time I go out. I've been reading the lambing threads on here, and I have to say I'm relieved to discover that I am not the only one who takes a lot of pictures of the hind end of expectant sheep! Actually I haven't taken any yet this year, but I have looked at last year's to compare how they're looking now. I have a feeling Rose and Gracie will lamb fairly close to the 'first possible due date' of April 1. I'm not as sure about Brosa, since this is her first time. I am glad Rose is pregnant, as she's the one who didn't pass her placenta last year, and had antibiotics for that. I hope she passes it this year.

The forecast is for sun the next two days, and daytime temperatures above freezing, so that should melt most or all of the rest of the snow on the ground. The sheep and ponies will be happy to see the grass and weeds start growing, I am sure. Come on spring!

 

[norseofcourse]

Oh, I did get a picture the other day! They aren't showing any signs of shedding yet.

 

[norseofcourse]

I got the hay feeder set up today!! A friend came and helped me move it into place and finish it up. I filled it with hay, but the sheep were of course very suspicious of this Great Big New Thing. I poured some pellets/corn into the trough part. Gracie - my most food motivated sheep - was the first to approach and start eating. Then Elding came up and ate - pressing close to Gracie for security. Then Rose, then Little Boy. Brosa hung back, still not quite sure, so I took some pellets and hand-fed her closer and closer to the feeder, till she finally ate a little out of it.

I stayed and watched for awhile as they figured out how to eat the hay out of it. They'd take little nibbles, still not quite sure about the new feeder. As they ate, the newness started to wear off, and by the time I left, they were all happily eating from the wall-o-hay. The 8' width of the feeder gives the five of them plenty of room. By the time we finished, it was too dark for pictures, so I'll get some tomorrow.

 

[norseofcourse]

Here's the new feeder!

It didn't take long for them to get used to it. There's plenty of room to put grain or pellets in the 'trough' below the hay, and it also holds the hay they pull through but don't eat, keeping it clean so I can take it out and feed it to the ponies - they won't eat all the stemmy bits, but they'll eat most of it. Next winter there should be a lot less wasted hay! You can see all the hay all over the floor, that they pulled and pawed out of their old feeder. It's at least 5 or 6 inches thick, packed down from being walked/peed/pooped on.

Rose and Gracie are definitely getting wide - we're hopefully about two weeks or so away from lambing. Brosa (center) may or may not be pregnant, I haven't seen enough definite udder development on her yet. Fingers still crossed though!

 

[norseofcourse]

I am really liking this hay feeder! It used to be, when I brought the sheep hay, they'd crowd around me and grab hay out of the haybag as I came in the gate and walked to the barn, and they'd crowd around the feeder as I filled it, eating the 'fresh' hay. Even when I brought more hay per feeding, it was the same. Now, I'm thinking that more hay just meant more got wasted, pawed out of the old feeder and spread around the floor.

Now, when I bring hay, they'll meet me at the gate and take a few nibbles out of the bag, but they don't act like they're starving. I'm still taking out the stemmier stuff that they don't eat, but it's much less than what I was taking out before (and if I can get some nice soft second cut hay next year, it should be nearly none). A full feeder is more than enough to last till the next feeding, so there's hay in front of them all the time - but even at that, I'm not going through hay any faster than I was before, and I actually think a bale is lasting me a little longer now.

I altered the dimensions a little from the Premier1 plans, which made a steeper angle for the wire panel. This was partly to make the feeder hold more, partly to fit a taller locally purchased panel instead of theirs, and partly for less likelyhood of hay getting in their wool. It seems to be working out well, they don't look to be getting a lot of extra hay on their heads and necks. UNLESS I fill the hay feeder while they're eating grain out of the trough I only made that mistake once!

I'm not quite on lamb watch yet, but I may be only a week away from lambs now! With a half inch of snow today, and a low of 12 tonight, I'm glad there's still some time yet. Maybe spring will come... or at least some slightly warmer temperatures. I'm still not certain if Brosa is pregnant. The other two look like they should lamb in early April, time will tell how close my guess is.

 

[norseofcourse]

Not sure if I want a pessimist or an enabler... I'm looking at taking in another rescue mini horse. Her ad said she bit, but when I talked to the lady, she said she put a saddle and her daughter on her, and the mini reared up, struck out and bit. Luckily the kid stayed on and mom got her off. They'd gotten her free a few weeks ago, supposedly knew how to lunge and possibly being trained to drive. Previous to that she was a backyard pet.

I went to see her today, she's about 36-37 inches, decent conformation and appears in good health. Got a little fidgety as I held her, but not bad. Didn't seem to have any sensitive spots along her spine or around her barrel. About 4 years old. Handled her front feet, walked behind her. A bit head shy but not bad. They said she sometimes got 'stubborn'. I said I need a few days to set up a separate pasture for her, I can get her Friday or Saturday.

I don't *need* another horse, but just like Prince, this is the kind of horse I want to work with. Rearing, striking and biting are a bit more serious than Prince's behavior problems, but I'll go slow and figure out what works for her. They don't want her to end up at an auction - she would probably sell, but they're worried she'd go somewhere with kids and hurt one of them.

So, this is a good idea, right??