Like a walk through the country side living on a small farm is full of daily surprises, sometimes wonderful and amazing, and other times puzzling and sad. I hope you will walk with me as I live out my dream of living on this tiny farm. You will come to know the dogs, cats, Shetland sheep and chickens that make up this farm and what goes into keeping them happy and healthy. Come and join the journey with me.

Wednesday, May 02, 2007

Rainy Days and Wednesdays......

The sheep on a not so rainy day

It's a rainy day here. I think we are in for a few days of rain. We always need it, since we've been 'that' close to drought for several years. It's hard to not get tired of it pretty quick though, when water is standing everywhere and muck up to your ankles. Rain water does make your hair softer though, for what that is worth! :-) And I got the yard mowed--which was masquerading as a very mangy looking pasture. The sheep were being very delicate and spoiled this morning and wouldn't go out on pasture. The rain was mild at that point, so I didn't feel to sorry for them, as I heard their mournful baa's from the barn. Silly things. I finally tricked them as I was leaving and called 'sheep-sheep' as I was going to the truck. There was alot of grumbling but when I drove over the hill they had went on out to pasture. Not sure they will stay out long, but hunger may be an incentive!

I will likely start breaking them into new pasture after this rainy spell is over. Since putting the sheep on grass for the first time this year, I don't want the added problems of wet grass. (For some reason this intensifies the bloat effect). I'll be so happy---and so will the sheep--when I can move everybody over to new grass and quit feeding hay at least for awhile.

Last night I drove through a very aggressive storm on the way home--high winds, blinding rain and hail. Debris from the ice damaged trees was littering the roads. The only thing I could think of as I hunched over the wheel and tried to keep it on the road, was that the hail was probably riddling my truck with dents. Yesterday was a hard day for new truck. On the way to work I met a large what I think was a tree trimmer truck when I was almost to town. Suddenly something hit the window with a loud th--whack! I didn't see it coming and I didn't see it leaving, but it sure messed up the front windshield. There is large, approximately three to four inch diameter circle now inscribed in the middle of the windshield. It has a tiny chip in the middle but the major damage is that circle---I can even feel it on the inside. I took it out to the glass repair place, and realized right off it was a bad sign when the guy said, with awe in his voice---"I've never seen anything like that" and reverently rubbed his hand over it. Of course it couldn't be buffed out, but I had to check and see. So, I guess I'll be putting a new windshield in the next week or so! Did I mention that I made the first payment on it Monday? :-0

On a 'could have been worse' note (it can always be worse, as they say), the glass repair guy told me about a woman that was talking on a cell phone to her sister, driving down the road. Suddenly something hit her windshield, broke through and hit her in the shoulder. She gasped out to her sister that she thought she had been shot! And then hung up the phone! (I have threatened my own sister that she better never do that to me!!!) While her sister frantically tried to notify the highway patrol, the 'shot' sister stopped her car and soon realized that it wasn't a bullet, but what they think was a lug off a big truck! Her shoulder was badly bruised and the windshield cracked, but the damage could have been so much worse if it hit her in the head. (remember--it can always be worse! ;-)

Back to the sheep, I've had two of the lambs 'choke' in the last week, while sampling their mother's grain in the morning! Both are wether's but I doubt that has anything to do with it. One is Rain's big boy and I was able to help him right off , but this morning it was Rouen's black lamb and he was really in distress. I tried the modified 'sheep Heimlich', I tried whacking him on the shoulders (poor feller I'm sure his already jaundiced opinion of me just got worse!), then when that didn't work and he continued to gag and foam and generally act distressed, I swung him by his hind legs a little and finally when even that didn't work, I stuck my finger as far down his throat as I could. (very sharp teeth on the little bugger) That finally did the trick and he looked at me like 'what the heck was that all about'?? Sometimes when I get to my job in the morning I feel like I've already done a full days work! ;-)

I hope to post a very touching story later today! Stay tuned!

2 comments:

Michelle said...

Oooh, poor new truck -- and new truck owner! Don't ya know the devil just loves to rain on our parades? But he can't rain on our attitudes unless we let him, and it's obvious you haven't let him rain on yours.

I'm waiting to be touched (although some would argue that I already am -- ha!)....

Tammy said...

Hee.. we call that being 'tetched in the head' here! ;-)
Thanks for your comments Michelle, it makes blogging more fun when I get feedback! Tammy