Thank goodness......... I've been really worried about Lilly.
Her days out in the field have been filled with chewing random objects and with sitting next to the main gate, waiting for me to come back... usually consisting of about 4 hours between feeds, and that's such a long time for someone so small....
Today I left her in good company with "Lucky II" who comes down to the barn with her lamb for breakfast each day... it comes from being inside with him when the weather was bad the first week he was born, and she has requested it ever since! When I returned with Nigel a couple of hours later, Lilly was no where to be seen.... I climbed over the gate and went to search for her...
She wasn't too far away, close to other sheep in the field and happily munching grass on the other side of the stream.... when I called her name she looked up, said hello and bolted towards me, leaping the stream, and jumping into my arms where after jabbing me with her nose, snuggled in for the few minutes we were there..... That Jab is really powerful... lambs do it when they are feeding, and Lilly is no different. She and others have regularly shot their bottles out of my hand, but being such a cuddly character, she also does it when I pick her up.. I can usually dodge it as I know the signs but the other day she caught me unaware and gave me a thick lip... Lambs are stronger than they look.
I'm so relieved that she is finally being more adventurous... These are tiny steps, but they are important ones to integrate into the flock... The next step will be to put her in a smaller field, probably with Peewee and Lupin as they have teamed up. Their lambs can help Lilly by playing with her and by teaching the flock mentality, that staying together give's protection... Peewee will know and understand how it's done when you're a pet! Lilly will also have to learn that the barn will not always be there at night, so we will use the old trailer routine.. putting straw into a small trailer, to make it feel like the barn gives a sense of familiarity and protection from the weather.... we've used it every year and it works like a dream.... We used the large trailer with the lambs in the main flock this spring, and there were often over 20 lambs in it every night... and the ewes know that they are safe too.
Her days out in the field have been filled with chewing random objects and with sitting next to the main gate, waiting for me to come back... usually consisting of about 4 hours between feeds, and that's such a long time for someone so small....
Today I left her in good company with "Lucky II" who comes down to the barn with her lamb for breakfast each day... it comes from being inside with him when the weather was bad the first week he was born, and she has requested it ever since! When I returned with Nigel a couple of hours later, Lilly was no where to be seen.... I climbed over the gate and went to search for her...
She wasn't too far away, close to other sheep in the field and happily munching grass on the other side of the stream.... when I called her name she looked up, said hello and bolted towards me, leaping the stream, and jumping into my arms where after jabbing me with her nose, snuggled in for the few minutes we were there..... That Jab is really powerful... lambs do it when they are feeding, and Lilly is no different. She and others have regularly shot their bottles out of my hand, but being such a cuddly character, she also does it when I pick her up.. I can usually dodge it as I know the signs but the other day she caught me unaware and gave me a thick lip... Lambs are stronger than they look.
I'm so relieved that she is finally being more adventurous... These are tiny steps, but they are important ones to integrate into the flock... The next step will be to put her in a smaller field, probably with Peewee and Lupin as they have teamed up. Their lambs can help Lilly by playing with her and by teaching the flock mentality, that staying together give's protection... Peewee will know and understand how it's done when you're a pet! Lilly will also have to learn that the barn will not always be there at night, so we will use the old trailer routine.. putting straw into a small trailer, to make it feel like the barn gives a sense of familiarity and protection from the weather.... we've used it every year and it works like a dream.... We used the large trailer with the lambs in the main flock this spring, and there were often over 20 lambs in it every night... and the ewes know that they are safe too.
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