Date

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4/3/10

Ugh. The waiting is always the hardest part!

The lambing kit is stocked and packed, the ewes are enjoying some fancy hay, and I am getting all hopeful and excited every time I see someone paw the ground.

I’m spending most of my days working outside, ogling the udders that have been gradually filling on the ewes. Nebula’s is the biggest. I wouldn’t be surprised if a couple of girls lambed within the week

… But of course you never know... Sometimes the ones who appear to be the closest to lambing hold out another week and I’ll come out to find a different ewe cleaning off her lambs! Every ewe is different, and some of these ladies aren’t due until mid-May… It’s going to be a long lambing season this year.

Stay posted.

Found these shots of Penelope from last year. Thought I’d post them just for fun.

4/15

Finally, the waiting is over! I found Nebula with a very active newborn at my last lambing check last night.

601X is a moorit gray ewe lamb, full of sass. She was less than an hour old and hopping around like a week old lamb when I found her. Dad is Ace

This morning, mom and babe are doing great, grazing and settling in together in the nursery pasture.

Forecast says we’re in for snow and ice pellets tonight… What gives?

4/21

Another single ewe lamb. 602X is a moorit mouflon ewe out of Zippity and Ace. This is the first moorit lamb ever born here, so I am super excited!

Found newborn babe and mom early this morning. Both are still doing well.

Tonight we’re in for thundershowers... What’s with all the bad weather every time a lamb is born? Hope this trend will break with the next arrivals!

4/25

Daytona’s udder has been looking huge for the past couple of days and I have been waiting with baited breath for her to lamb.

Finally found her yesterday morning with her twins. 603X is a black spotted ewe and 604X is a black spotted ram. Dad is Entwhistle.

4/29

Chacha delivered twins out of Entwhistle in a snowstorm this morning!

605X is a white ram and 606X is a solid moorit ewe. This was Chacha’s first lambing and the twins are curled up in a nest of hay, safe and out of the weather (good girl, Chacha!)

4/30

One of my unregistered ewes, “Phoebe”, delivered twin ewes out of a Dorset ram. They are each as big as a single and very cute! Phoebe did a great job.

5/1

Found Firefly in labor today and she gave birth in the early afternoon to what I **think** is a mouflon badgerface ram, 609X. He is light under his chin like a mouflon would be, but is obviously badger patterned. If he’s not a mouflon badger then he is a gray badger. Yay for double patterned sheep! He may carry spotting, too. Colors and patterns aside, there is genetic potential for a great breeding ram here… We’ll see how he grows out!

2 days ago it was snowing when Chacha gave birth. Today, Firefly gave birth in a sweltering 80 degrees! I’d pick snow over heat any day.

5/2

Twins from Bindi this morning!

610X is a moorit mouflon ewe and her twin, 611X is a moorit gray ram. Perfectly matched in size.

Dad is Ace

5/3

Ladybird gave birth to a big pair of twins in the wee  hours of the morning.

612X is a black gray ram with flashing and his brother, 613X is another moorit mouflon.

Ladybird is a great mom!

5/3

Then this evening my Mori daughter Calliope gave birth to a black gray ram, 614X. Ace is the sire.

5/5

Happy cinqo de Mayo! 3 more lambs early this morning. Flower, another one of my unregistered ewes birthed a HUGE singe ram lamb out of a dorset sire. This new baby weighs 14 pounds… AT BIRTH! Mom did a great job despite his colossal size, but it really makes you think carefully about crossbreeding commercial rams on Icelandic ewes.

5/5

… And Greytl threw a pair of twins: a grey mouflon and a black moufon. Both boys, 616X and 617X dad is Ace.

5/12

Moonspot gave birth to a nice 10lb single ram this morning! 618X is looking healthy and strong. Dad is Romeo.

5/12

Then this afternoon Jasmine, gave birth to her own single ram lamb! 619X, also out of Romeo