A belated thanks

Sorry it took me so long to post my thanks to you all. It has been a hard few weeks and I keep getting very depressed. The other 3 dogs are trying to take help. Christmas eve (which I normally adore) felt so depressing though that I didn't even go and ride Muppet. I did make up for it on Boxing day though with extra grooming, treats and a lesson. 

Today I separated my groups so now I have the 2 rams and my wether together, 4 bred (hopefully) ewes and 3 open ewes. The boys had a little tussle but are in a small space and I threw in straw bales to break it up even further. I also made a sort of ram shield out of a cut up baseball hat for Dreamer as he is so much bigger than Sunny. Hopefully I can get some pictures tomorrow if our weather improves.

I hope everyone had a happy holiday season. Sorry for the lack of pictures but I'll work on that. I just wanted to post my thanks.

Sad day

Well there are no pictures today. Only tears. Last night Ji (our husky) had a massive seizure and we made the tough choice to put him down today. He was miserable and restless and would not have tolerated more medication. The vet was very nice, we hadn't seen her before. After assessing him and asking about his history she was actually convinced that he had a brain tumor, and there was nothing we could do for him. We stayed with him as he went to sleep, held him in our arms, and told him how much we love him.

Hopefully I'll be able to post a more uplifting post next week. 

Non sheep photos

Well the dogs were all out running around in the yard this weekend, and I got a few pictures so here is the pack. First of all we have Murphy. As far as we can tell he is a Miniature Pincher mix. He is a rescue and we have had him since he was a year old. He is also not the brightest dog in the planet and is more likely to sit if you say "peanut butter" than "sit".

Next we have Binson. She's a Jack Russell and absolutely thinks she is in charge....she's the smallest! Binson likes to sleep underneath the covers with her head on my pillow.

Next we have Zora. She's our old lady dog. No idea on her breeding (another rescue) but she's always reminded me of an Australian dingo.

And finally we have Ji our youngest. He's a Siberian Husky and is the problem child as he has recently become epileptic. So far he is doing a little better on the medications (and diet) so we are continuing to hope for the best.

Well that's the pack. All of these dogs and non of them work sheep lol!

Wow is that an update?

Has it been over a month since I posted some news and pictures? Wow. Um sorry everyone. Things are going well in the shetland department. The breeding groups are established and the only ones are upset are the girls' not getting the chance this year. The weather was nice and frosty today and the light was beautiful for pictures so here are a few.

This is Painted Knoll Kanasatka who is growing up to be very pretty. She is not as shy as she used to be and will come over for some attention now.

This is Colby who continues to also grow up nicely. She is staying a dark grey underneath so far which I really like and her fleece is super soft.

And this is my Hermione. She is not very happy about not being allowed to have lambs this year but I am only trying to breed 4 ewes and I wanted to give her a year off. I'm actually thinking of parting with her next year as I really want a flecket ewe but want to keep my flock numbers at 10. Anyway she is a wonderful girl and always gives me a little tail wag when she gets her belly rubbed.

I hope everyone has a wonderful Thanksgiving. I personally am thankful for my wonderful family and all my animals. I never thought I'd be blessed enough to have my own sheep and a horse. Let alone someone that loved me. So blessed indeed. 

Show report continued

Well not exactly the next day but in my defense I had to fly to California for a wedding. Today we got our first frost in MA and the youngsters among my flock were extra frisky this morning. I wish I took pictures.

Anyway back to the show report. Here are the kids in the yearling ewe class. This is the first time they have shown and they are not in 4H (no real interest) but they did have fun at the show. They did a sheep agility class as well which involved walking their sheep through hoops and into a paddling pool which was fun and over a jump and a small bridge. Unfortunately all my pictures are blurry.

Here is Cammie after winning Campion Shetland Ewe at the Bolton Fair. Can you tell I am happy? LOL. I know she's not stood square but she was before that...she was also a little stressed out but we'll work on that before next year.

So my sheep are in their breeding groups. I am only breeding 4 ewes this year and leaving 3 open with my wether in another paddock. So far everything is going very well. The boys will stay in with the girls' for several months as they are both perfect gentleman with the them and actually share their hay (which they won't do with each other). Yeah my boys know how to impress lol. 

Fall colors are all starting and I need to get out there with my camera this weekend.

Show report

Yesterday we attended a very wet Bolton Fair in MA. It was the 126th Bolton fair but the first time we have ever attended it in a show capacity. We took 5 sheep Dreamer, Suncook, Jewel, Gypsy and Cammie (Kanasatka). 

Did I mention wet? Dreamer says who cares where are the animal crackers?

We had a lot of rain Friday and then it rained pretty much non-stop on Saturday with only a few breaks in the weather which is a shame as the fair is a blast to go to. The wonderful thing about the Bolton sheep show is that they actually have a Shetland group so this is the first the first time I've shown against other Shetlands.

Our first class was Yearling ram which Dreamer won.

Our second class was Junior ram lamb which was a large class in which Suncook came 3rd. This was Sandra's first time showing.

Then the kids had took Gypsy and Jewel into Yearling ewes class (another large class) where they came 3rd and 4th respectively.  They also did Yearling pairs which they came 2nd in.

There would be a picture here but blogger wouldn't load it.

Next class was Junior ewe lamb (large class) which I took Cammie in and she won! She then went on to win Champion ewe for the Shetlands.

Still no picture I'll post one later.

We also entered a pairs class with Suncook and Cammie coming 2nd and Dreamer and Jewel coming 3rd. 

What a day!

It was very long (the sheep had to be  penned by 8am and we weren't allowed to leave until 6pm) but really good and I was so proud of my sheep. They met a lot of new people and won a few fans (hi Holly). So many people were surprised at how soft the sheep are and that the boys horns are warm. The children also took the sheep into a sheep agility class but I'll post pictures of that tomorrow if blogger lets me lol. 

I love the new fencing

So I have invested in PermaNet and ElectroNet fencing from Premier after having an escape from wire fencing. The first type is tall and sturdy but heavy and I'm not that tall so it is harder to install (although I can still get 4 rolls out in 30 mins alone) the second type is lighter and a breeze to put out. Last night I moved a paddock I had made for the 3 boys and put it up in a new place. The whole thing took 10 minutes of my time. 3 rolls of fencing and a good size area. Wonderful.

This morning they liked the new pasture. I like the view from my deck. Of course all of this has to come down soon as I want to put my sheep into their breeding groups. They are all ready to go lol. The wonderful thing about the fencing is that I have more time to do other things like tying practice.

We have a local show next Saturday and this will be our first time showing against other shetlands. The haltering practice is going really well even our new lamb Colby is doing well for a first timer although she's not showing this time out.

Sunny says thanks for the new grass.