Completed Weaving

Here are some pictures of the weaving custom order I finished and mailed last week. They are aprons for elementary school girls based on traditional Croatian folk aprons.

Very Busy

Last week I finally planted some peas. Since they haven't emerged yet, the chicks are still day-tripping to the garden; I take them in each evening. They are thoroughly enjoying being able to run around, chase bugs, and do some experimental flying. They're about seven weeks old now and growing like mad.

They had a scare two days ago. Friends visited with their dog, who is quite a bit smaller than Dierdre. He squeezed between the fence and garden gate and went after the chicks. Luckily the visiting kids were already in the garden and caught him as he grabbed hold of the tail of one of the chicks. Although she lost some feathers, no real harm was done.

I finished a large weaving custom order and shipped it on Monday. Yesterday and today I and other members of my fiber guild are selling our work at a fair in downtown Prescott; I spent yesterday morning there. I also gave a talk yesterday, "From Sheep to Shawl," at the Prescott Highland Games. Afterwards, I went back to the Courthouse Square and spent a couple more hours at the guild's booth.

Dierdre accompanied me all day. I think she was a little overwhelmed by all the people and dogs, but she seemed to have a good time. I have a small skein of yarn I spun from her fur, so I showed it to people as an example of "chiengora." People often jokingly suggest I spin her fur, since she has so much hair, so it was fun to show them I had done so. By about 4:00, she was giving me that "are we going home soon?" look, so we loaded my spinning wheel into the car, went back to Wilhoit, and fed the sheep and chickens.

Lamb Psychology

I know, I know, in my last post, I said it was pointless to try to figure out lamb psychology, but this lamb's actions are just too strange.

She keeps following Dierdre around. Last night, we went to the barn to feed Astra. There's a divider in the barn that used to be part of a stall. While I stood there with a bottle of milk in my hand, Dierdre circled the divider four times with Astra in tow. By the end, I think Dierdre was getting kind of freaked; she couldn't shake the lamb. I finally stepped in and grabbed Astra, who hungrily started eating when I stuck the bottle in front of her face.

Today, Dierdre and I were walking, and Astra ran up to us. I veered left, Dierdre right. Astra followed Dierdre, sticking to her side, slightly behind her shoulder, just as lambs often follow their mothers. The dog swerved and changed pace; the lamb stayed with her.

I feed her. Dierdre pesters her and herds her. Yes, Dierdre is sort of sheep-sized. She has four legs. She's very furry. But I feed her! I just don't get it.

On a cute and less-confused note, two friends helped feed Astra yesterday. All parties were quite happy (once we got Astra away from Dierdre).

Baby Animal Updates

Heloise's lamb is doing well. She's guzzling lamb milk replacer from a bottle four times a day. I'm a bit frustrated, though, that she's not running to me each time I go out. Instead, she heads straight for Dierdre. Considering I feed her, and the dog pushes her around and tries to herd her, I'm not sure why the lamb's made the choice she has. But trying to understand lamb psychology is probably futile.

I moved the chicks to larger accommodations last week. They adjusted quickly to the bigger space, although they protested greatly during the two seconds it took to move each of them from the large box they were in to their new digs. Growing chicks certainly eat a lot!

Very Sad

Heloise, our favorite sheep, died on Sunday. She likely had mastitis. Her lamb was only eight days old.

I didn't notice anything wrong until late Saturday afternoon. She had one injection of penicillin, but it wasn't enough or in time to help her.

I'm bottle feeding her lamb. She's had some trouble adjusting to a bottle, but she is eating some. I've seen her try to nurse from other ewes, but they keep pushing her away. She guzzled the milk from the bottle last night, but she wouldn't take it this morning. I'm hoping that means she was full because she managed to nurse from someone, but I'm not sure. She did drink several ounces from the bottle a little while ago, though.

The other sheep are looking after her, in general. She's sleeping with them and wandering around the property as part of the flock. She keeps crying, though. I know she wants Heloise.

Heloise was one of the first two sheep I bought. She's my "cover sheep" on my home page, and I often tell stories about her. It's hard to pinpoint all the reasons why she was so special. I guess she just had that certain something about her.

We always called her our Zen sheep. She seemed to take everything in stride. Even her arrival here was bumpy. Heloise and Juliana, her travelling companion, had an adventurous trip to our ranch. I arranged to meet their original owner, who was traveling from California to Arkansas, at a sheep ranch about 40 miles north of Wilhoit. However, my truck broke down a few miles short of my destination. It was two days before we could get it running again, so Juliana and Heloise had a short, but unexpected, stay up north. We finally got the truck going late in the afternoon of the second day. We loaded the sheep and set out…and broke down again after driving less than a mile. As the sun was setting, and then in total darkness, we winched our pick-up (with Heloise and Juliana still in the back) on to a trailer, and the truck and sheep got towed all the way back to Wilhoit.

When she had her first lamb, Minerva, she was a caring but not overly-anxious mother. She let Minerva explore and only called her back it she wandered too far. Some mothers, especially first-time ones, will hardly let their lambs out of their sight. Heloise took a more relaxed, and perhaps progressive, view of motherhood.

When Minerva was a couple months old, a strange dog got into the property and started harrassing the sheep. By the time I got to the barn, all the sheep were huddled together except for three. Francesco, the alpha ram, Heloise, and Minerva stood out in front of the others, between them and the dog. Luckily, I got there before the stand-off was broken and chased the dog away, but it was fascinating who protected the rest.

Heloise was always interested in what was going on around her. She made friends with the horses and dogs next door, putting her nose through the fence to touch theirs. She liked to have her chin rubbed, and she loved molasses.

I put molasses in a honey-bear squeeze bottle and give it to nursing mothers. All the sheep like the taste of it, but I have to force it into the mouths of most of them. Heloise, though, figured out very quickly the advantages of opening her mouth of her own accord and drinking from the bottle. She would come running when she saw me carrying that honey-bear bottle. A neighbor once asked if I had brandy in there, considering the enthusiasm with which Heloise was drinking.

Poor Heloise, as one of the first sheep here, she was also one of the first to be sheared by us, inexperienced as we were. I won't pretend she didn't make a fuss, but we all survived, and the shearing experience has improved over the years. When I sheared her last summer, she fought a little about getting on the shearing stand, but once she was there, she seemed resigned to the experience. She knew she would be more comfortable once that heavy fleece was gone.

She was also very practical. I usually take two or three trips to give the sheep hay. Every time I give them more, the sheep run over to the new batch, sure it's going to be better than what they've got in front of them. The grass is always greener, right? Heloise, though, often stayed where she was, apparently realizing it was all the same, and once the others had scrambled to the other hay, she had the first batch all to herself.

Although I've read that some other breeds of sheep will let any lamb nurse, I've only seen my ewes allow their own babies to eat. Heloise, however, was flexible on that issue. A few years ago, one of Minerva's lambs indiscriminately nursed from both Minerva and Heloise. Not surprisingly she was big! But Heloise had no problem with it and nursed that lamb as willingly as her own.

Heloise had beautiful wool -- long, shiny, ringlets, and her dreadlocks were classic Cotswold. I always loved shearing her and seeing the cascades of wool come off.

We'll miss her.

It's Kind of Weird, but....

I may have gone off the deep end, but even the sheep droppings from the lambs are kind of cute. They're so small. I'll spare you a picture; I don't think it would translate well online.

Chicks, a Lamb, and Facebook

It's been a busy week. I bought six Ameraucana baby chicks on Wednesday. They're about 10 days old now.

This morning Heloise gave birth to this little lamb.

And I created a Facebook page for High Castle Traditional Crafts - https://www.facebook.com/HighCastleTraditionalCrafts.

Snow, Mud, Sheep, and a Hen

From Saturday night to Monday morning we received about 10" of snow. It was beautiful but quite the storm. Saturday night the wind and rain were extreme, and we lost electricity for awhile.

By Tuesday, the snow started melting fast, with temperatures in the 50s. Now we have snow and much mud. Dierdre's legs are covered with it, and she kicks it up onto her belly every time she runs. She could definitely rival Harry the Dirty Dog. It's just so lovely that she wants to sleep right next to me, considering she smells like a muddy barn.

As usual, the sheep appeared affronted by the snow. They spent a day and a half in the barn while the snow was falling. That always makes feeding them a challenge, since they have a tendency to stomp the hay into the mud that they've tracked in. Dierdre was determined to herd them even there, although they were already where they should be. Therefore, she kept circling close to the inner walls to keep them in as tight a group as possible. The sheep didn't appreciate it much.

My hen seems to be trying to set a record. She's laid 8 eggs in the last 13 days, even with a snow storm. A few weeks ago I told her I was going to buy some baby chicks. I thought it was simply polite to let her know she'd have company when they were old enough to roam. I certainly didn't mean to imply I was going to boot her out or something, but she does seem to be showing me that she's up to the task of supplying us with eggs!

An Egg!

Our 8 1/2- year-old hen laid an egg today. I'm so proud of her! She's pretty old to still be laying, even occasionally.

A Few More Lamb and Sheep Pictures

A couple pictures of Boudica's lamb.

One of Sierra's twins slowly eating a single piece of hay.

Hildegard's little ewe lamb.

Hmm, Sierra walking in front of the camera again.

Some woolly rumps.