Bum check!

I am being driven mad waiting for the remaining expectant ewes to lamb. I have been spending a lot of time looking at bums.....let me explain...this is not nearly as exciting or risque as it might sound. You can tell a lot about who's getting ready to lamb by looking at the bum. The bum is a wealth of information. I will spare you the details, you will just have to trust me on this one.

I have one ewe that should have been due yesterday, but she isn't looking like she is in too big of a hurry to be a new mom. To complicate things, this will be her first lambing and sometimes the newbies make a funny little game out of keeping me guessing. I have a couple of ewes that I am relatively sure of their due dates for next week, but they look like they are positively ready to explode at any given moment. I have one ewe that I put in the lambing jug last night because (sparing you the details again) she was having some clear signs that things would be moving along within the near future........I checked on her at 12am, 3 am, and got up again at 5:30 this morning to find her happily munching hay, alone, in the jug. I think that they are all giggling, waiting for the full moon tonight and then they will all go at once.

Moving right along...you will have to forgive me, I am suffering from sleep deprivation.

It was finally a gorgeous day today so I decided to let the first born twins out to meet the rest of their barn mates for the first time. No matter how it's done, initial introductions are always stressful. If I turn out several groups of new moms and lambs together for the first time it is pure mayhem. It usually involves a lot of baaing, crying, and headbutting (and that's just from me), then there are babies trying to find the right set of legs to follow, mamas trying to listen for their own baby's call amongst the chaos, it is absolutely nerve-wracking. Unfortunately, it is just as bad letting just one new family out into the "general population". Everyone swarms around to see what's going on and to make known their position in the pecking order. Inevitably the lambs end up getting a sound head-butting or two from the other ewes until the novelty wears off and order is restored.

"Maybe if I stand very still she won't notice me."

....And then there is the issue of making Ande's acquaintance. Ande tends to be a bit overzealous and somewhat terrifying if you are a tiny newborn lamb.

"Please, make it stop!"

Things finally calmed down and Lovey let the group know that these were her lambs and she was going to kick some sheepie bum if anyone messed with them. Eventually the lambs got a chance to stretch their new little legs and practice a few spring loaded jumps, readying themselves for the lamb races that will take place once the rest of the contestants have arrived.

It never ceases to amaze me how quickly these little guys grow and change.

"Could you do this when you were three days old?"

"I didn't think so!"

Clearly, I had better go get some sleep......hopefully I will have new arrivals to report soon.