Logging, Hauling

With the Fiat and front loader forks we placed the logs onto the transport trailer.  This is the trailer Jeffrey made from the chassis of our old Ford pick-up truck.  We got three logs out of the tree and brought them back to the arch barn to set in front of the sawmill.  The last picture is of an oak log Jeffrey had previously cut.

Logging, trimming

After felling the pine tree, Jeffrey cut off the scraggly top and dragged it of the woods with a chain and the International.  Even with dually rear tires, the International had a little trouble getting it out, but out it came.  Then Jeffrey cut the tree into lengths we could transport and cut into lumber on the sawmill.

Logging, felling

I saw a pine tree not too far into the woods that had recently died.  We decided to harvest the tree for lumber.  These photos show Jeffrey notching and felling the tree.  The second to last photo shows the notched tree (lower left) just before it falls.

Oats

The junior ewe flock, after being dewormed yesterday, are out in the bulldozer annex area that includes the north beaver field, where we have oats planted that have not yet been grazed.  Kratos is on guard with the flock.

Deworming Lambs

Yesterday we dewormed and weaned a group of ewes with their lambs.  The ewes behaved fairly well (except when we were moving them to their new field), the lambs were their usual selves,  not really knowing what the program was and thinking it's much better to stay in a clump than do anything else.

The weather was miserable:  cold, misty rain and dark by the time we were done.  But, it needed to be done and we got through it with not too much irritation and bad language. 

South Field Alleyway

We cleared most of the brush along the alleyway to the north of the south field and now Jeffrey  (with some help from Izzie) is grinding down a few stumps that are in the way.  Pretty soon this alleyway will be all fenced.   What an improvement.

Rainy Day

It pretty much rained all day today and the ground was getting soft and mucky.  I  used the big wheel pallet lift Jeffrey made for me from a  past Christmas to move some supplement tubs from the front field to where the sheep were at the top of the hill behind Ed's place.   The tubs were nearly full, too heavy for me to lift up into the Gator.

Breakfast In Bed

A storm was coming so I went out early to feed the dogs and the sheep.   Kratos enjoyed breakfast in his doghouse bed.

Grazing South Field Oats

The oats in the south field are planted as one large area, but to graze it well it needs to be divided into paddocks.  The sheep can then be rotated between paddocks, which facilitates regrowth of the oats after grazing.

This year the south field is divided into three paddocks.   Two net fence sections plus a net gate are required to separate the east and middle paddocks.  Four net fence sections are required to separate the middle paddock from the southwest paddock that curves around the south and west sides of the middle paddock.  The woods form the outer edge of the  southwest paddock.

Special Ewes

Certain sheep become friendly and well known.

The ewe known as "1017" had twins. 

The daughter of "Gray One" (no longer with us) known cleverly as "Gray One's Daughter" or "Gray One II" had a single lamb.

Grazing More Oats

The junior ewe flock gets started grazing oats in the middle beaver field.

A nice stand of oats in the middle of November.   I put the sheep out on the oats for a couple of hours, then bring them back to the east bahia field.

Eastern gamagrass has nice big clumps that can provide winter wildlife shelter.   Recent frosts browned some of the tips.  Bahia grass is still green and slowly growing.

Fall Oats

It's the middle of November and we have a good stand of oats in the south field.   Ewes with lambs are just starting to graze on it.   The week before we had freezing temperatures for a couple nights  (28 degrees),  with days in the 40's and light rain.  Miserable.

Birdbath

I am slowly moving 17 ewes with their lambs from the east bahia field to the blueberry fields to be with the other ewes with lambs being fed.  We pause in the alleyway between the middle field and the south field where the ewes chow down on a weed patch.   Just in front of me is a puddle that is attracting flocks of sparrows and even some bluebirds for bathing.

The final stretch, we are almost there.  A trough with feed awaits them.

Fall Lambing

Our fall lambing season is well underway and I think the transition to only fall lambing will be successful.  We have decided to stop lambing in the spring and focus only on fall lambing.  With spring lambing we end up marketing the lambs when sale prices are poorest;  also carrying some of the lambs through the hot summer months is not very productive.

We also are trying some new lambing management practices, which so far seem to be working well.  As the ewes give birth, that day or the next, the ewes with the new lambs are separated from the rest of the flock and brought into a flock with only moms and lambs.  We provide this flock with supplemental feed (14% protein soybean hull mix) and rapidly the lambs learn to eat this feed as well, along with the moms.  This will facilitate the weaning transition and focus our feed on the moms and lambs.  The pregnant moms are provided molasses protein supplement tubs to help them along.  

Here we have the group of moms and lambs housed in the southeast blueberry field.  There are 75 ewes with 107 lambs, not all of the lambs are visible here in holding pen 3 where we feed them.  A separate feeding area adjacent to their main field is needed because this many moms get very pushy when one is trying to pour out the feed so that it becomes an impossible task.  Here, I can get the feed poured out and open a gate to let the moms and lambs in.

This group is closed, no more sheep to be added to it.  There was a natural lull in the lambing and the next group of moms and lambs are being put into the southwest blueberry field.  Separating them into similarly aged groups helps with the feeding and eventual weaning.  We can wean the lambs of a similar age and send the moms off to a hay lot to dry off their udders.

This is a view of Zeus, the alleyway going downhill to the barn complex and blueberry fields, and the middle field on the left.  Each morning I open a gate to let the ewes go across the alleyway to the front field to the right of the picture where fresh grazing is available.  The ewes go through in a rather orderly process (since I'm not giving them grain/feed it is not a stampede).  The ewes with new lambs hang back and become separated from the rest of the flock.  These ewes with lambs are the few white specks visible in the picture.

With the pregnant ewes in the front field, the ewes with lambs gradually work their way toward the flock and end up in the alleyway where they are directed down the alleyway toward the blueberry fields, holding pens and barns.

Moms and lambs are gradually encouraged to move along the alleyway toward the barn complex area.  They nibble on grass and weeds along the way.

During the process of moving them and during their initial feeding near the arch barn, I determine for our records the tag number of each ewe, the number of lambs (single, twin, or triplet) and of course we have the date each ewe lambed.