Holly

My husband has a favorite saying in answer to whatever is plaguing me at any given moment.  "Oh well, it's always something".  Sometimes it's funny and sometimes not.  Yesterday was one of those days when it was not.  We received a call from a neighbor early yesterday morning, telling us that there was a dog on the side of the road that looked like it could be one of our Pyrenees.  It was our weird, sweet Holly.  The past few years she's gotten progressively more fearful of storms and it seemed as though nothing we tried seemed to calm or comfort her.  Usually, she would run off and hide and show up the next day, looking as though she had been through hell.  Monday night we had one of the most dramatic storms I can remember in a long time. So much thunder, lightning and heavy rain and it went on forever.  Holly had obviously started running and just kept going because she was 1 1/2 miles from home.  At some point, she must have run out into the road and been hit.  Holly had been here five years and I wrote about her arrival here.  We don't know what her life experiences were before she arrived here.  She had a quirky personality and clearly preferred her sheep to hanging out with humans (which is exactly how it should be for a dog who's been bred to protect livestock).  She's been a wonderful guardian for our animals - always sweet and kind with the ewes and lambs, never playing rough or chasing them.  We are going to miss her so very much.  We still have Aslan and are most likely going to need to start a new puppy soon, though it's difficult to even think about that at the moment.  It's all part of that ever-present cycle of life and death here on the farm.

Some gratuitous lamb shots

The lambs are growing so quickly now.  Their play-times get more rambunctious and personalities begin to show.  No surprise, Gabby's two boys are very self-confident and seem to be the ring leaders for all kinds of trouble activity.  They're the first to jump on the hay bales and to try getting into the ewes feed bunks.  The famous Graham Lamb is their uncle (he and Grabby are twins), so I'm thinking there is something "special" in their genes. 

This pretty girl is one of only two single lambs we had born this spring.  We had four sets of triplets, two singles and the rest were all twins.  Out of twelve ewes, that makes for an over 200% lambing average.  That's a pretty good average since I'm not raising Finn sheep or some other breed that routinely have small litters.  One of my favorite things to do is go into the pen at night and just sit down and wait for the lambs to decide whether I'm a friend or foe.  I'm not sure how many more years I'll want (or be physically able) to keep having lambs.  It makes me sad to think of a spring-time with no bouncing lambs to watch.  The really hard part comes in a few months when I have to start deciding which lambs stay and which lambs go.

(another set of twins - boy with the tag in the left ear and girl with the tag in the right ear)

Holly always has a favorite ewe that she likes to hang out with.  I've never figured out how she chooses which one it will be, though it nearly always is one of the black sheep. One really good thing that I've observed this spring is that Aslan, who came to live here last fall, has been terrific with the lambs.  Though he's five years old, he'd never been on a farm where there were lambs being born and I wondered how he might react.  He's learned to slow down and hang back a little a feeding time, so that all the lambs come into the barn before him. 

The sheep are sleeping away most of the daylight hours because it is so dang hot!  Who ever heard of mid to upper 80's at the beginning of May?  Makes me worried about what kind of temperatures we will be having in July.  The sheep are already asking for the fans to be set up.  Those of you watching the lamb-cam might have noticed that I'm not shutting everyone in the barn at night.  I've been leaving the gate open to the outside, so they can go out where it is cooler.  They are in a very secure field and Aslan is in with them, so I'm not worried about predators.

Our last planning committee meeting for the Kentucky Sheep and Fiber Festival is this afternoon.  It seems nearly impossible that it's just a little over two weeks away now.  I've been in the dye pots for several weeks now and have finally finished dyeing all of the yarn from our sheep/alpaca blend yarn.  If you come (and I hope you do), please stop by my booth in the Livestock Pavilion and say hello.  We have a wonderful line-up of workshops and vendors, so there will be plenty of pretty things to buy and lots of interesting things to do.  I hope to meet many of you there.

Morning

This time of year,  the routine is the same every morning and yet there is always something new.  

 

So many personalities ...... the possibilities are endless.

Refocus day

 While positioning myself to back my little Subaru into the garage on Saturday, I happened to catch this trio enjoying the last sunny day we will have for a while.  Rarely do I see Holly hanging out this closely with the llamas.  It's not that they dislike each other.  It's more that they move in different social circles.  Of course,  as soon as Strawberry saw me stop the car and get out with the camera,  she stood up and that was the end of that.

Whew ..... is it over already ?  Thanksgiving is only a memory because,  though my camera sat on the kitchen counter the whole time,  I never picked it up.  Between getting that huge meal on the table (which,  even with two ovens,  requires some real juggling ) ,  visiting with the grands and trying to participate in all the different conversations going on in various rooms,  the whole day is a bit of a blur.  I'm always a little stunned that a meal I spend nearly a week preparing can be decimated in about 30 minutes !  Last night was turkey hash for dinner and I made and froze the turkey stock this morning,  so I'm ready to refocus.  Believe it or not,  I am sick of having so much food around.  Right now,  I would love a week at an upscale spa where someone else prepared lovely little portions of healthy,  low calorie meals and served them to me ( and also did all the cleaning up! ).  Oh well,  a woman can dream,  can't she?

So,  now it's on toward Christmas.  I'm working on a few small knitting projects,  some gifts,  some things to sell at "Art on the Farm",  which will be held at my friend Lindy's Seldom Scene Farm on December 10.   I'll post all the details soon.  It will be a fun event and well worth the drive out to her beautiful farm.   ( I have a serious case of barn envy ! )

Up and at 'em

Things are better around here this week ... on several fronts.  I am on my feet and the crutches have retired to the garage attic once more.  I'm thrilled that I was able to get back up and running ( so to speak ) so soon.  This time last week,  I wouldn't have wanted to put any money on how long it would take me to resume my regularly scheduled program.  Any other time,  I might have taken advantage of an excuse to stay couch-bound ( with knitting time ) as long as possible,  but the wedding to-do list waits for no one!

Remember her?  It's little Olive!

Best of all,  we have had rain.  Beautiful,  slow,  all day rains.  The grass is green again after being given up for dead.  All humans and animals are much happier,  even if it does mean I'm back on the mower.  The only down-side to the rain is that the greenhouse construction is not finished.  The builder still says it will be done before the wedding.  I have my doubts,  but at this point,  I'm not going to stress about it.

Holly standing - Aslan reclining

So,  how about a Holly and Aslan report?  They are best buds.  Holly goes in to Aslan's field once or twice a day to visit,  maybe have a little romp,  and then back to her group of ewes,  who are still in the "outfield".   Aslan is still with the little girl lambs,  plus Strawberry and Pippi,  and is doing great.  His first day here,  he barked at the llamas because he'd never seen anything like them before,  but once he was in the field with them,  he accepted that they were a normal part of his new world.  Great Pyrenees are sometimes a little weird about their routines and surroundings,  but Aslan has adapted very,  very well.  Our dear,  sweet Holly is probably the weirdest LGD  ( Livestock Guardian Dog ) I have ever owned and having Aslan here has made it even more obvious.   That's okay.  We love her anyway!

Getting things done

These are the newly finished beds.

We've had a little spell of nicer ( cooler than 90+ degrees ) weather lately and I've been able to tolerate working in the garden some.  While it hasn't been a banner year for produce from the garden,  we have had plenty of cucumber,  zucchini,  yellow squash and swiss chard.  The tomatoes are finally beginning to ripen.  I don't know what their problem is this year,  but they are ripening in slow motion.   Mike has gotten several more of the raised beds finished and I've begun planting a fall garden,  for the first time since we came to the farm.  It's so much more appealing to think about gardening in cool weather.  Why haven't I thought of that before?  This past weekend I planted broccoli,  brussel sprouts,  kohlrabi, spinach,  kale,  carrots,  celery, and several varieties of lettuce.   I was thinking as I planted,  if all went well,  I'd be harvesting some of those for Thanksgiving dinner this year.

Holly is not impressed with any of this activity.

We've been very focused on preparations for Mike's son's wedding here at the farm and it's now less than seven weeks away.   Amazing how motivated you can get to clean out the garage,  barn ( as much as possible when there are all those animals living there ),  garden shed,  and more,  when you start thinking about all those people who will be here looking at how we live.   I think it's probably a good thing to have a major event here at the farm every 5 or so years,  just to keep us on our toes!

Sorry for the lack of posting lately.  When there is too much activity going on around me,  I find it difficult to settle my brain and focus.  I'm hopeful I'll get back on track this week. 

Keeping watch

We are just at the beginning of a winter storm and as I sat in front of my little Vermont Castings woodstove, all toasty and warm, I looked out the studio window to see this scene. The Grannie is in with those silly teenage ewe lambs, being a bit of a calming presence. As the first flurry of flakes began to fall, they took themselves to the barn. Grannie stayed where she was, whether because she has a longer fleece and didn't feel the snow as much or that it seemed too much of an effort to get herself up. As I watched, Holly came out and stood beside her. I believe she was willing her the energy to get up and into the shelter of the barn because after a few moments, Grannie struggled to her feet and made her way in. Observations like this are one more reason why I love being a shepherd.

Moving right along

Whew! I'm sorry for all the confusion. I fully intended to get this up in the morning, but like a lot of plans I've made lately, it just didn't happen. So, I'm going to go ahead and include all those folks who got here a little late to the party. After all, it tis' the season!

According to random.org, the winner of the Christmas Give-away is comment number 6. Michelle said..."Oh, I would be wonderfully happy to win ANY book by Alice Starmore; thanks for the chance!" So, Michelle, send me an email at diannemac1010@gmail.com, with your address and I will get this package right off to you. Thanks to everyone who stopped in and commented. It is so much fun for me to read all the comments and follow links back to your sites. I never cease to be amazed at how the internet can connect from so many far flung places.

Our farm lane has finally thawed out and is safe to drive on. We are going to have a few days of "normal" (whatever that is) temperatures in the 30's and then the bottom falls out again and we head for single digits. I'm going to be excused from farm chores for a while. My poor husband will be doing all my chores while I recuperate from carpal tunnel surgery. A big part of my panic at being ice-bound for 4 1/2 days was because I could see that I was not going to be fully prepared for Christmas in time. I found out the day before the ice storm that my surgery is scheduled for tomorrow. I would not have chosen a pre-Christmas date, but having to work around the surgeon's schedule, Mike's schedule and my own made it a necessity. I'm just hoping, hoping, hoping I'll be able to figure out how to knit. I am a very right-handed person, so the idea of wearing a cast on that hand for three weeks is daunting, to say the least. It's possible I'll be forced to practice my continental style knitting (at which I am lousy)!

(that's little Miss Olive looking at me...hoping for special treat...because she knows she's special!)

We are still seeing the coyote on a regular basis. In fact, yesterday morning he (or she) came within about 30 feet of the house. I'm worried that this one is getting just a little too comfortable around here. Holly was doing her duty, staying close to the sheep, protecting them and barking. She spent the entire day out in the field with the ewe lambs and, as I write this, is doing her nightly patrol, now that all the sheep are in the barn for the night.

Thanks to all who commented and I hope you'll check in here again. There is always something going on here on the farm..........and lambing time will be here before we know it!

Good girl, Holly!

Can you see that creature sitting up there in the snow? (click to enlarge) Yesterday as I was trudging to the barn for evening feeding, I heard Holly barking, barking, barking. She was barking an alarm bark, not just a warning bark and bouncing up and down with each bark. It took me a while to see this guy sitting out there watching the sheep. The whole scene was at once alarming and reassuring. Alarming because coyotes are usually out and about after dark and rarely do they come within sight of the house and barn. It was reassuring because Holly was doing exactly what she should. She hadn't abandon her sheep to chase the coyote. She had rounded up the ewe lambs and put them in the corner of the field nearest the big barn. Once she had them in the safest available spot, she placed herself between the lambs and the coyote and continued barking and moving slowing toward it. The coyote loped off toward the back of the farm. Holly has been on high alert since this happened, constantly patrolling and giving her warning bark.

There seems to be a larger than usual coyote population right now. A few nights ago, as I was walking from the barn to the house, I heard a big pack howling and yipping from the back of the farm, only to be answered by another large pack down in the creek below our house. Talk about raising the hair on the back of your neck....that'll do it! We don't hunt or trap them, but I wouldn't rule out the possibility, if one were to attack Holly or kill one of the sheep. We try to coexist. We won't bother them, if they don't bother us or the livestock.

When Holly first arrived here, we figured she had been born around Christmas time. She has matured into one of the best livestock guardian dogs I have ever owned. I'm thinking she may need some kind of combination birthday present/reward in the near future. Good girl, Holly!

In the outfield

It is seriously hard to believe that Thanksgiving is just days away when the temperature is 71 degrees, which it was yesterday. We had a big storm blow through early this morning and it is bringing a big change our way. Right now the forecast is for a chance of snow flakes early Friday morning. I pity those poor folks who are planning on getting up early to get some Black Friday bargains, which is one thing I can honestly say I will never do! I don't even like going into the mall or any of those big box stores on regular days!

Yesterday I took these pictures of the ewe flock grazing in what we call the outfield. It's the one farthest from the barn. Holly doesn't really like for the ewes to go there. It's bordered by the woods and coyotes often come into the pastures from there. I opened the gate to that area recently because there is so much good grazing there and practically nothing to eat in the other fields. During the day, Holly allows the ewes to go there for a short time and then she will move them back into their regular field. It's an interesting exercise to watch and it reassures me that Holly is doing her job.

I love watching what happens between these two. This old girl spends a lot of her day resting and Holly is usually close by, keeping watch. I like to think that the ewe is comforted by Holly's watchful presence.

(Edited to add: I'm planning a little giveaway for "Black Friday". Don't you think it would be the ultimate bargain to get something for free? Just check back here and I'll put up a post with pictures of the goods!)

Creatures of habit

It was cold yesterday morning.......I'm talking ice in the water buckets cold. I love it!! I know I'll be complaining about the cold before it's over, but right now it is such a relief to be rid of the blasted heat we suffered through during what seemed like a never-ending summer.

About mid-morning, I looked out at the ewe's pasture and there they were, crowded together in the shade of that lone pin oak. Mind you, the temperature was still in the 30's, but the sun was shining and that must be the clue to head for a shady spot. I think it's going to take all of us a while to get over this past summer.

Because our pastures dried up during the drought, there is not much to nibble on out there. I'm feeding everyone once a day now and that means that they watch me constantly. The minute I step out the door, regardless of time of day, they're all hoping it means dinner time. I believe they actually know when it's not, but are hoping they can fool me into thinking differently. When normal feeding time arrives, they gather at the gate and stare hard! What does it mean when my sheep try to outsmart me every single day?

Holly, on the other hand, waits patiently. This is how she tells me she wants to eat now. Wish she'd teach the sheep to act like this.

Watching

Holly has been hyper-vigilant lately. We're hearing the coyotes moving around and howling a lot at night......maybe teaching pups to hunt? Not sure. In any case, Holly is on the job. A few days ago, I opened the gate to what we call the outfield, hoping the adult ewes would go over during the daytime and graze. Our fields have suffered from the drought and are looking pretty sad right now. The outfield has not had animals on it since back in the early summer, so there is a lot of grass there. Holly has been very uneasy about the sheep being in the newly accessible field. The first few days after I opened the gate, as soon as the ewes would wander over and start grazing, Holly would round them up and force them back into the other field. The outfield is bordered by woods and a creek and eventually turns into cliffs overlooking the Kentucky River. There's a lot of wildlife traffic on that land, so I know Holly is just doing her best to protect her sheep. (which is what I remind myself when she wakes me up barking at 3 am!)

(I love this image. The ewe has her head tucked right into Holly's chest. There's some comforting going on here, I'm sure of it.)