October 18, 2024 When moving sheep from Waimea to Kona or vice versa, those individuals eventually form new bonds. In August I took four lambs to Waimea from Kona. They were raised on a bottle, and even those tame ones started bleating when their friends disappeared among the 100 other sheep. Among those four, you…
October 17, 2024 Yesterday’s shift of the sheep fences looked different this time. I normally keep the truck out of the sheep’s pasture they are occupying. However, being rushed to get everything done, I pushed down the boundary twine and rushed the truck across their field to pick up the posts and twine for the…
October 7, 2024 Lambs raised on a bottle can surprise you with their behavior after they are weaned. Some of them stay loyal, coming to me even when I don’t have any treats to offer. Some are stubborn, doing exactly as they please, which makes them inconsistent leaders for the flock. Others act like I…
Stubborn sheep. But they can change too. One of this year’s bottle fed lamb’s personality really demonstrated independence. He would often be in a different area of the paddock, then start crying his heart out not just for milk but for them to pay attention to him. Yet he was the one that missed his…
This last lambing season, I ended up with four lambs that got rejected by their mom, or their mom died. Also, two additional rejected lambs showed up, and those were adopted by other mama ewes. Yet one of those adopted lambs fell behind, and it later revealed that the two-teat milk supply was on one…
Willful and stubborn sheep polluting their land 200 hungry sheep and no sheepdog makes it crazy difficult to push them into their prepared paddock. To safeguard their health and also from getting out onto the road they have to obey my voice. But their heads are down, each doing their own thing. The majority are…
Yesterday I let the bottle lambs out of their enclosure. Even though I feed them, make sure they have shade and safety they will run away from me. But they were the true expression of joy. They leap and run and play. After they stop, they might look for me, they might not. I keep…
One individual sheep has no protection. Yet I witnessed a new momma sheep place her body between an intruder and her lamb. Her just born lamb had no speed and she knew it. She was willing to take the blows from any attacker even though she has no defenses like horses teeth or the ability…
These four lambs who lost their mothers demand their milk even after receiving their feeding. I carry four bottles and feed two at a time, they push and climb on each other because their appetite demands they fight. They lack understanding that the supply of daily bread and health already came. Even as the milk…
Seeing sheep in pain galvanizes me to take action. Thing is the sheep are very hard to catch. They don’t know that I can give them pain killers, or an ointment that speeds their healing. This month many lambs had bacteria invading the soles of their feet. Two weeks ago, I exhausted myself corralling lambs…