Which Direction

Spent the last day of 2010 feeding and caring for all the stock, then skirted two fleeces and got one in the wash. Sheared Hershey, my brown BFL wether, he has not been feeling well and was not eating today. After shearing I let him out in the yard to graze, he only picked at what little grass is out there. Nothing is coming out of him, even though he is drinking alot of water. I drenched him with apple cider vinegar, probiotics, thiamin and some Banamine for pain. He has always been a pet, and is my favorite colored fleece to spin and knit. His twin Cocoa is not friendly but has the same fleece. Some sheep are special and form a bond with their shepherd, others are just sheep, but you care for them all the same.

Skirting

Wanted to get this fleece of Sweet William's skirted and in the wash, but new friends came over to decide which spinning wheel they would like to buy to spin their llama fiber on. I am not a big fan of llama fiber, but they had some soft brown fiber that I picked open with my hands and when spun, it was lovely. The best part of the visit was the baby they had in a play pen in the back of their mini van. A six week old rejected cria in diapers and a llama jacket, red of course for the holidays. It was a sweet brown and white spotted baby that gave kisses. What a great holiday gift.

Another cold day

Bitter cold again this morning but everyone got a warm drink of water to go with their grain and hay. Cold weather makes sheep and goats so hungry you can get mowed down while pouring grain in a feeder. When I go out the door, there they are, waiting, and not patiently. Even the chickens and cats are under my feet, and if you come out late, they will meet you at the back door and follow you until you feed them. The only way they can keep warm is to keep eating, and that means more money to make wool and mohair and eggs. I did find three eggs this morning, that is a good sign we are on the road to spring.

Snowballs

This may be how snowballs were invented. After the roads thawed a bit, I made it over to the horse pasture to feed the dog, the rooster, and break the ice in the water tank. Pennelope was dragging snowballs behind her. Made the trip back to the house for scissors, then returned to trim her tail. They didn't seem to bother her, but most animals would be frightened.

Clearing the snow

Pennelope blows the snow off the grass and continues to graze, this is the first time I have seen this happen. I usually feed them hay in the winter, but this pasture has plenty of grass. Most of the time, snow melts quickly in Georgia, but this year has been totally different from the past.

Pawing for grass

The horses have plenty of tall grass to graze but were pawing the ground and blowing with their mouth to uncover the grass. The sheep and goat pastures never had much grass due to the drought, and have been supplemented with hay and grain all year. With no wind break this pasture is very cold and windy.

Sheep came in

Even Dan and his girls came to the barn last night, backed up to the blowing snow. They have plenty of wool and fat on their backs, but are uneasy about the snow.