A lamb story in June 2019

Truth is, I don’t like little problem lambs anymore.

So many, many, many years now.

It’s not that I’m not taking care.

I do.

To look after every lamb that wants to life, is my duty and honour. Sometimes this needs hard decisions and be sure I always try to do my best and am never ever unfeeling.
Yesterday’s story (lamb stories for me, always a sheep tale too).
It is the first day of taking over the flock and tending. I just tended them two times last fall.

It is a very, very frustrating experience. I call the sheep, they look at me and run in the other direction. So I have to work the dogs and press the flock by force into obedience.

I have really good dogs, and mostly it works.

Just the few who split away, jump the fences, run into the woods, let me search for n hour and don't come back until evening.

Sheep need a long time to trust you. But if you really gaine it, they are true to you, what ever will come. In that way I am a sheep. And I so love to be the leader of the flock, feel their affection and the orienting after my saying.

So even knowing all that, I am right in this frustrating moment.

The flock has some new born lambs, not much, round about 50, not a real lambing season. It makes things worse, cause Ylva, my main oldgerman sheepdog, is afraid of new and overly protective mums. With this, most of the work falls on Lillebror. He is very strong willed, but not so exact. I already start loosing my voice.
In all this trouble, I make out two lambs who seem very dehydrated. I catch them and for both is clear that there isn't a mum any more. So they should come home.

But first things first, it gets hotter by the minute. So I manoeuvre the flock to the pasture, were this romantic, peaceful pick comes from.

1,5 hours later, the sheep decide that 91°F is way to hot for food and leave on their own.

But sure, they forget two sleeping lambs. As I wake them up, they don't see the ewes and surly run the other direction.

Yeah, catching lambs in this lovely weather!

Finally I get them and can carry this sweeties to there mothers.

Water time.

Lucky enough, I already filled the tubs. Some Idiot has run his car against our water hydrant and crushed it. Yea, ok, I was longer gone then planned after all.

Finally I can pack the motherless and drive home.

There, I worm some milk and the two are immediately drinking from the bottle. Perfect.

Midday, time to do nothing but suffer the heat.

So hot!
It’s evening until it cools down a little. So I am back at the pen, do some new fence building for dessert later.
Now the sheep. Two newborns, no mothers in sight. It is a very natural sheep breed, so they do place their lambs like deer somewhere. Nothing to worry about.

We are going, back to shepherding romantic.

And it really is!

Finally the sun goes down, cool air, grazing sheep, working dogs and me, just being.

The next ewe gives birth, twins.

And, yeah, everything is perfect. Easy birth, healthy lambs, enough to drink. That’s what I still love watching. A loving mum with her beloved babies.
It’s getting dark, back to the pen. Of course, I have to carry the newbies.
Feierabend.

Glowworms dancing in the dark.
Oh, this one day is already to much to read. But I think you are getting a picture.