Last Sunday, Marvin and I went up to the barn to feed the Mangalitsa pigs. We opened up the barn doors and went around the corner. When we came back, the two "baby" Navajo-Churro sheep were inside. We have been trying to catch these little guys so that we could cut their tails and neuter them. We took this opportunity and closed the doors with them inside. Del and Jason were coming over from DVR so Marvin would have help to catch them, tie their feet and take them to the round pen.
A couple of hours later, the guys went up to do their deed. During this time, the ewes had been crying for their offspring and the 90 pound lambs were getting a little frantic.
They were able to catch one of them quickly and efficiently. The second one was a different story. Marvin went around one side of the hay pile and was going to grab him by the horns when he came out. The lamb had a different idea. He charged full speed ahead and butted him right in the nose knocking him down!
Poor Marvin had a broken and bloody nose, but he got his man in the end (without harm to the lamb). I'm happy to say that they are doing well after their procedures and once again calm.
I've always wondered why they dock their tails so I looked it up:
Docking improves the health and welfare of sheep and lambs. It prevents fecal matter from accumulating on the tail and hindquarters of the animal. Research has shown that tail docking greatly reduces fly strike (wool maggots), while having no ill effect on lamb mortality or production. Docking facilitates shearing. Not many sheep shearers want to shear sheep with long tails. Docking makes it easier to observe the ewe's udder and detect potential problems.
Some markets (lamb buyers) discriminate against tailed lambs, since having a tail lowers the dressing percent (yield) of the lamb and removal of the tail during processing requires extra labor. On the other hand, ethnic buyers of lambs often prefer undocked lambs. For the Muslim Festival of Sacrifice, unblemished lambs are often preferred for harvest. An unblemished lamb is one that has not been docked, castrated, or had its horns removed.
Not all sheep require tail docking. Because hair sheep lambs do not have long, wooly tails, it is usually not necessary to shorten their tails. Lambs from the Northern European short-tail breeds also do not require docking. Fat-tailed sheep are usually not docked. Some producers of wooled lambs do not dock their lambs or they only dock the ewe lambs.
I really liked this prayer. Hope you do too.
Lord bless my garden with all that it needs
Hep me to nurture, then small tiny seeds..
I ask not for fortune, or fame Lord I need
Courage to keep faith, in growing a seed..
To live on a back road, with Nature around
making a living, from seeds in the ground.
And Lord, I am thankful, for Sunshine and rain
for time watching Birds and all the wild game.
I’m truly thankful, For quiet country time
Being a Farmer, suits me just fine….
to sit in the quiet of seeds while they grow
with warm country blessings that reap what we sow.
I hope i will always, call farming my friend
Blessed in the Spirit, of Country …Amen
Thank you Lord.
Enjoy the weekend!
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