This morning, Chloe—our bottle-fed ewe—gave birth to a very large, very spotted, very cute ram-lamb.
Chloe was one of our very first bottle-fed lambs and we had a lot of nervous anxiety the first year she was due to lamb, but we never should have doubted in her natural ability. She is an excellent mother. Last year she was the last to lamb (a beautiful ewe-lamb named Penny), this year she is the first.
Now all I want to do is sit out in the pasture taking pictures. Can you blame me?
Stumpie, our devious ewe.
Stumpie, perhaps not the most majestic name but fitting none the less, is one of the original three ewes at the farm. She’s the most intelligent and tricky. She has made numerous, spectacular escapes that have given her quite a name (and respect) at Lazy Willow. Back when the flock was more wild, moving them to a new pasture was a BIG deal that called for soberness of mind and steeliness of eye. But with just one breach, she’d have the pack leaping over the fence, racing loops around the farm with Ben speeding after them in flip-flops while they nipped at passing cabbages and blackberries. But after study and patience, I have discovered Stumpie’s ultimate weakness: Apples. She will go anywhere—go up to anyone, even Ben, her favorite adversary—for a sweet, juicy apple.
