In the wild, baby animals have to mature so quickly, so they can stay safe and reach adulthood. Even the lambs on the farm, at one month old, are growing so quickly and behaving as big sheep. But Freya, our 9-month-old llama still thinks she is a baby... Who, me?
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This year's lambs are especially shrewd when it comes to hay feeding. Instead of fighting for position at the sheep feeders, they've discovered that the llamas spill... And they say sheep are dumb... It has been a formidable twenty-four hours... At five-days-old, it was time to bring Tucker and Twain down from the lambing shed to meet the rest of the flock. I try to hold my anxiety in check, but I always worry about sheep with horns greeting small lambs. However, comic curiosity instead of aggressiveness was the tone. The sheep flock was mildly interested, but Freya was astonished and wanted a closer look. Freya was encountering all sorts of surprises; I took a spindle out while I was supervising and she had to sniff it, just like the sheep do. Tehya's lambs did fine in the sheep shed during the night. I expected to need to protect them this morning so they wouldn't get trampled as I let out the flock, but instead I was greeted by the familiar sound of a ewe nickering and a wee lambie cry. Lindyhop, a first-time mom, had a ram lamb she was cleaning up that looked about 20-minutes old. I could tell she was about to have another. I waited patiently as Lindyhop pushed and pushed. The second lamb was born rump-first, but she did it on her own! It's amazing how quickly they are up and nursing! Lindyhop wasn't too sure about the move up to the lambing shed; Gene and I had to really coax her (read "force") her to get into the jug with her babies. Now she is settling in for a few days' bonding and rest with her ram lambs, Reggae and Disco--had to be dance names! ;-> I loathe dusting; it is a never-ending chore, and with high winds and wildfire or woodstove smoke it's impossible to keep up with. But...I love watching llamas take dust baths. This is a common sight during the summer months. However, I was stunned to see this action from one-week-old Freya, yesterday: Note the not-so-white neck now. And that's Zuri, born in April, in the background for size comparison with Freya. I've also been watching the interactions between Nella and Freya. Considerable nuzzling going on... Nella is very protective of her cria, yet she allows her to explore. Freya has been checking out the fences and racing across the paddock, back to the comfort of mom. You can see how light Freya's one blue eye is from this angle. By the way, we named her "Freya" after the Norse goddess of love and beauty and the source of the day name "Friday" (she was born on Friday the 13th, and 13 is a lucky goddess number). Another fun thing to watch is how llamas get themselves down. It's called "kushing" in llamas and is similar to how the sheep get down. Tilting the head back and looking rather smug. Freya mastered this on day one. Kushed! Comfy spot. All legs! Family portrait :-) Things seemed settled on the farm; it was perfectly safe for me to drive to Graeagle for a knitting day at Woolly Notions, even though it was Friday the 13th. I had a relaxing time, starting a new knitting project and visiting with the regulars at the shop. The drive both ways was beautiful and inspiring. My first clue anything was amiss was glancing up the hill as I drove past, noticing that the sheep were in a different paddock than we had let them into in the morning. I thought perhaps they had found an opening in the fence. I expected to find Gene napping or reading the newspaper when I got home about 3:00, but he was in the driveway when I pulled up and said, "You need to come here and see this." I walked toward the pasture, thinking perhaps some wild critter was in there. Then, a flash of white beside Nella... This little cria (baby llama) is only a few hours old. She (I think it is female, haven't checked) has one blue eye and one brown. I am just now learning about BEW (blue-eyed white) llamas on the internet. We had no idea Nella was pregnant, and I also just learned that llama gestation is 11 and a half months! I just thought she was a big llama! Gene had quite the day, witnessing the birth and calling the vet to come make sure this little cria was okay. And the sheep were startled as well. The cria is nursing here, and Nella is none too pleased with these curious sheep. Notice her ears in the back position. I didn't get a picture, but she did a mild spit/hiss at them. Welcome to Four Winds Farm, little cria! |
sheep thrills
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