Baymule’s Farm

[baymule]

Today is going to be sunny! Had 1 1/2” of rain last week and 2” yesterday. Ground is soggy. I’m happy to report that the new hoop shelter in front field is dry inside. Water all around it and muddy at the fence under the “porch” tarp, but my girls have a dry place to lay down. Water is standing in shallow pools and puddles but will soak in rather quickly. Need the sunshine!

Today I’ll be dragging horse panels from behind the open front shed to the front field, to build a pen with. I need to separate the 2 young rams and sort ewes, dividing them between the 3 rams. So I need another pen, plus put up a shelter for them. I’ll sure be glad to have a real barn.

 

[baymule]

Lambing starts now!

 

[baymule]

Lambing really did start now! First time Mom had a single ram lamb this morning. Right on her due date too! He was up, nursing vigorously and healthy. Good job Jet!

Jet took him right out on the field.

Jet is a first generation recorded ewe. That means she is from an unregistered ewe and registered ram. As a first generation, she is considered to be 50% Katahdin. She is “recorded” but not registered. Second generation is recorded as 75% and third generation is recorded at 87.5%. Third generation is eligible at one year old for full registration after passing the hair coat inspection.

Unregistered is considered to be commercial sheep. I take commercial rams to auction unless they are outstanding specimens. Last year, out of 10 commercial rams, I chose 2 as outstanding. One, a beautiful solid chocolate color is here locally and the other, my #1 pick, named Mr. White by his new owner, went to Fort Smith Arkansas. The other 8 went to auction.

I have three second generation ewes due in this lambing, making their lambs 87.5% and eligible for full registration. Also have 3 purchased registered ewes due. I only keep the ewes to be recorded. I’m working my way to a registered flock. I have 9 registered ewes, hoping for more from this lambing.

My goal is 50 ewes. With the 5 I’m keeping from the lambing in December, I’m at 35 ewes. As I get recorded ewes to fully registered, I will be selling the older recorded ewes to give room for the fully registered. This will be a perpetual work in motion.

I just sent in paperwork on 9 ewes to be recorded and 2 registered from registered ewes I have.

Jet is daughter of Ewenique, the last remaining ewe from the original 4 ewes BJ and I bought. Ewenique is 10 years old and currently has black twin ewes a few weeks old. I sent in for them to be recorded at 50%. A sheep lifespan is 10-12 years old. For Ewenique to have strong healthy twins at her age is pretty darn good. She has mostly had ram lambs, making it hard to keep ewes from her. I have one granddaughter from her who has gifted me her daughters, granddaughters and one great granddaughter making Ewenique a great, great grandmother.
Ewenique is never going anywhere. She also gives really good hugs.

 

[baymule]

There are ewes due March 28, 29, two on the 30th and one on the 31st. Possibly another one due sometime in there too.

I have ewes due 4-3, 4-4, 4-5, and 4-6. Give or take 3 or 4 days. Lambing can make me crazy!

Two due April 18 and one on the 20th.

 

[ducks4you]

We still have lambburger left.
DD intends to make a tasty meatloaf, and mix it with beef hamburger.
Sorry!! What ELSE are you gonna do with the rams?!?!?

 

[baymule]

Ram lambs go to auction or slaughter. Out of 10 last year, only 2 made the cut for flock sires.

I have 3 weaned ram lambs right now. 1 is spoken for, commercial sire. 1 I just sent off for his registration papers, we’ll see how that goes. 1 will go to freezer camp when I get tired of fooling with him. I actually think I’m finally ready to process my own. In 9 years of owning sheep, I have always taken lambs to be processed. Just couldn’t do it.

 

[baymule]

Tuesday I worked on building a pen for Rocky and 5 gonna be his Baby Mommas. I had horse panels propped up against the back of the shed. There was also one wired to that red gate that I took down. These were in Reina’s pen, so I put her in the round pen.

Horse panels are 16’ long, the holes are 2”x4” and they are heavy.

Reina has calmed dow a tremendous amount, she’s nowhere near the scared silly spooky, panic-RUN FOR YOUR LIFE! That she used to be. I didn’t bring in the mule until I dragged them out in the field and shut the red gate. She watched, but didn’t act afraid. Several times I walked over to her and petted her.

I got them out, in two piles. 3 full length and 3 not full length.

I tied the 3 full length to the mule but they are so heavy, the hay string broke. So I dragged them one at a time to the gate to the front field.

Ewes were grazing up close to the road and didn’t care what I was doing. I put Carson in his yard to keep him from running in the field when I opened the gate. He cried, barked and howled his displeasure and hurt feelings the whole time, because he wasn’t riding in the front seat with me.

Sheba was on duty, under a shade tree and never made a move to come to me or run out the gate. I dragged panels in and dropped them, went back for more until I had them all in the front field.

Then I took Carson for a ride down the road. That made him happy.

I got all the panels put up except the last one, got a gate dug out of my pile and dragged that in. Then it was time to feed and water, evening time.

 

[baymule]

I worked outside yesterday all day. I built another one of my famous Pallet Palaces. It’s 6’x12’ because I had two 12’ R panels. I had 4 pallets and scrounged up some used lumber. I used my tractor to carry the pallets to the pen I’m building. They are the big solid heavy kind. I can’t pick them up to carry them. To put them in position, I pick up one end and walk them into place.

I opened the gate and called the fat girls. They ran out in the yard, I’ve been letting the grass grow. The ewes in the middle field ran into their pen, yelling because they wanted out in the yard too. It was quite deafening.

I told Carson he couldn’t come in the front field.

He looked so sad, I told him ok. He just wants to be with me or laying down where he can watch me. I don’t usually let him go in the Anatolians fields because that “belongs” to them. I had moved Sheba to the middle field or she would have been in the yard which belongs to Carson.

I parked the tractor and loaded the mule with tools. I put the 2 sheets of 12’ R panels on the back of the mule land bungee strapped them down. I took them to the front field and of course Carson rode in the front seat with me.

I needed 12’ 2x4s but only had 10’ long, so I spliced pieces on them to make them 12 feet long.

While I worked, the fat girls happily grazed the yard. I’ve just let it grow, hey, it’s good grass, why would I mow it and waste it? LOL Because of the new baby lamb, Carson needed to watch it to make sure it was ok. Do he’d come see what I was doing, then go back to check on the lamb. Finally he laid in the driveway where he could watch us both.

I have 5 ewes due this weekend, Pinto, the red ewe is due today. Or maybe a couple more days. She is so big! There’s twins in there.

This is Rainbow, named by youngest granddaughter. Purely white, dunno where the name Rainbow came from. LOL

Back to work! I spent a lot of time wandering aimlessly about, looking for the right scraps of this and that. My building projects tend to be tailored to whatever building materials I have on hand.

And a new Pallet Palace is born!

Today I need to finish the pen and fix some sort of a gate. Then I’ll have to sort out ewes and Rocky the ram, into the new breeding pen.

A small barn will go in this front field, but it’s not built yet, hence the need for a temporary Pallet Palace and pen. So far I have one load of dirt spread for a barn pad, need several more loads to raise up the barn to keep it dry inside. Then a larger barn will go across the driveway in the middle field that will also serve the back field. All in due time. It’s gonna take me awhile…..

 

[ninnymary]

Can't believe you already have 35 ewes towards your goal of 50. Seems like it wasn't that long ago that you got sheep. I like your method of building up your flock to be registered and recorded. Maybe by next year you'll get there?
That palace pen came out looking good. Have you thought of putting a tarp on the back end of the one that has the porch and stayed dried? It would really keep it dry and warm then.

When are you going to start the actual building of the barn? This summer? Wish I was there to help you with all your projects. I'm a hard worker and strong, haha.

Mary

 

[baymule]

Thank you @ninnymary. I have 5 ewes due this weekend. 13 in all due over the next couple of weeks. I’ll be keeping ewes towards the grade up program.

My name is Baymule and I am a sheep hoarder.

The hoop shelter with tarp stretched to the fence, needs that end open. It’s already warming up and they need the breeze. Water runs down the fence, making that part wet and muddy, but will be cool this summer.

The barn location needs some more dirt. Then I’ll buy power line poles. I can drop them in the field by the barn location. Then I’ll buy building materials until I have enough to go up with poles and a roof. It will be 20’x50’. It will take awhile….. LOL