It was time to sort the lambs once again. Our plan was to sell the peewee lambs and the cull ewe lambs at a Special Ewe Lamb Replacement Sale this week at our local sheep sale barn, but when Hubs talked to the manager, he said the market was really sour and since he knew what our good, big ewes looked like, he felt it would be a mistake to bring them in and get paid very little for them. So Hubs and NumberOneSon made the decision that we would sell the peewee lambs only and keep all of the good ewe lambs this year. Normally we keep about 50 replacement ewe lambs to put into the herd to replace the old ewes that we've culled. Instead we are keeping 105 ewe lambs and selling 36 mixed lambs and 2 old cob ewes at the sale barn. The wether lambs (104 head) were sold back in August (16th) when the market was decent, but still half the prices of last year. It was a good move.
The bucks were turned into the mature ewes (172 head) on Friday, September 14th. That means we'll start having baby lambs around February 11, 2013. All these figures and dates are very important to us, therefore they go into Hubby's livestock diary (Red Book) and my Ranchwife Journal here on Gumbo Lily. You can't believe how many times I have clicked back on my blog to check dates or to get livestock numbers.
Hello darling friend!
ReplyDeleteTHAT is a fantastic sheep shot! I love it!
I remember last year, when the babes were coming and it was very cold.
LOVE that picture! Aren't blogs just wonderful for checking back on what happened? I often wonder how I made it without mine. And now, I can't wait until Feb. -- you know how I love those little lambies!
ReplyDeleteI can really believe the checking back to get the numbers right. That's the story of my life...checking and re checking LOL!
ReplyDeleteSo interesting ~ I love reading about your animals and life on the prairie.
ReplyDeleteDid you get enough rain to make the grass start growing where the pastures burned? Do you ever have pests such as army worms on the new grass?
That is like my Mom's little black book for cattle and her diary. I also have clicked back to find out when I made which wine, as my notes are awful. Sounds like a good year for your sheep. I do not envy lambing time. I did it one week and found it to be quite the experience, I never wanted to have again.
ReplyDeleteDontcha love it when your bloggy is useful to yourself like that? I do! I use my recipe blog all the time and was thinking when my kids start moving out that it will be handy for them, too.
ReplyDeleteSoooo...does this mean lots more lambing work for you?
Have you read Hannah Coulter? (Or any Wendell Berry?) I just finished it and now that I am reading your blog it makes me think of you. It is about farming more than ranching, but I imagine much of the ideas he presents (about land and succession especially) apply.
Blessings to you and yours, J!
Well, after all...that's what a blog should be... a log. Love your photo of the ewe (not that I would actually know a ewe from a wether). I just have a country house but I'm not very smart about sheep...don't tell anyone.
ReplyDeleteYour echinacea flower is perfect!
ReplyDeleteReally like this photo!!!!
ReplyDeleteWow! I can't get over the size of your flock (or is it herd)! You will be very busy come spring I'm thinking.
ReplyDeleteBlessings!
Deborah