21 April

The Lambing Thing

by Jon Katz
The Lambing Thing
The Lambing Thing

One interesting thing about this photograph is that the sheep are lying down in the sun and the feeder is nearly full. That is the sign I look for to know when it is close to the time when we stop bringing the hay out at all and let the sheep and donkeys graze for their food. The grass is not quite high enough yet, and we have fenced off the pasture on both sides of the house to give it a chance to establish itself over the next few weeks. My guess is we will stop putting hay out on Saturday or Sunday.

The donkeys and sheep can graze behind the Pole Barn or out beyond Lulu’s crossing. We are still filling the water buckets because the ewes are all bred and due any day, and we don’t want them to have to go too far to get fresh water. Speaking of lambs, it is past time for us to see some. We must have been slightly off in our calculations, they must have been bred a bit later than we thought.

We know from the vet’s ultra-sound machine that four of the five ewes are pregnant, we saw the lambs. Sometimes in April was our belief and everyone’s estimate. We have a bit of April left and the ewes are clearly carrying. Maria is eager to see some lambs and so am I. Soon, I think, soon. The udders are down, everyone is bagging up, their bellies are drooping low.

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