How quickly we forget...

Username John

Hello all,

I still have 1 ewe left to lamb, but the most of them were lambed by end March - so 2 weeks ago... Now, I only have a small number of ewes, so tisn't as if I was lambing hundreds to begin with.

But during lambing, I was thinking heavily of whether I would continue to lamb, as I dunno does it continue to suit or fit into my life...
I mean time in terms of holidays for lambing, and the commitment for the weeks before and after lambing...

So - this was all swimming around in my head...

But - I was looking out at my lambs racing and jumping around in the sunshine today, and all the issues with time and commitment had totally disappeared... :P

Then I thought, how quickly we forget

rancher

Username John wrote: »

Hello all,

I still have 1 ewe left to lamb, but the most of them were lambed by end March - so 2 weeks ago... Now, I only have a small number of ewes, so tisn't as if I was lambing hundreds to begin with.

But during lambing, I was thinking heavily of whether I would continue to lamb, as I dunno does it continue to suit or fit into my life...
I mean time in terms of holidays for lambing, and the commitment for the weeks before and after lambing...

So - this was all swimming around in my head...

But - I was looking out at my lambs racing and jumping around in the sunshine today, and all the issues with time and commitment had totally disappeared... :P

Then I thought, how quickly we forget

If you're going to get rid of sheep, get rid in May when you can remember the lambing

Conmaicne Mara

A very astute man from Mayo said only a fool would lamb sheep. From a € POV he is correct. But life would be a lot less interesting, there's more to life than €'s.

Username John

rancher wrote: »

If you're going to get rid of sheep, get rid in May when you can remember the lambing

Sure we're not even halfway into April, and the memories are already slipping...

Green farmer

Conmaicne Mara wrote: »

A there's more to life than €'s.

What money ?

Green farmer

After lambing indoors with the pulling and dragging involved, I'd often be tempted to try outdoor lambing sometime. What puts me off is the fear of what predators would do to my lambs ??

sea12

Simillar to ure self john. Took last week off work. Still a good few to lamb. Hard to fit in with work and family life. Bit I kinda love it all too. Would feel that I would miss it too much to give up,

Green farmer

I'm about 75 % there. The sheds are beginning to look empty and a lot quieter. I get great pleasure after it's finished as well, seeing lambs in field thriving. The thought has crossed my mind though, how long in life do guys keep lambing ? It's very physically draining. Especially if your a one man operation. Is spending 12- 16 hours a day in a lambing shed a young mans game ??? Do guys move more into store lambs etc as you get older ???

Conmaicne Mara

Green farmer wrote: »

After lambing indoors with the pulling and dragging involved, I'd often be tempted to try outdoor lambing sometime. What puts me off is the fear of what predators would do to my lambs ??

That's an easy one to answer, they will kill and maim them any chance they get.

The weather is the worst part of lambing outdoors. You still have to do a lot of pulling and dragging, but with sideways rain or sleet, day or night.

Are the violins going yet? haha.

Most important to have flock suited to it, hardy, easy lambing.

Birdnuts

Conmaicne Mara wrote: »

.

The weather is the worst part of lambing outdoors. You still have to do a lot of pulling and dragging, but with sideways rain or sleet, day or night.

.

Its been a very benign lambing season in that regard so far - long may it continue.

Username John

Green farmer wrote: »

After lambing indoors with the pulling and dragging involved, I'd often be tempted to try outdoor lambing sometime. What puts me off is the fear of what predators would do to my lambs ??

Conmaicne Mara wrote: »

That's an easy one to answer, they will kill and maim them any chance they get.

The weather is the worst part of lambing outdoors. You still have to do a lot of pulling and dragging, but with sideways rain or sleet, day or night.

Are the violins going yet? haha.

Most important to have flock suited to it, hardy, easy lambing.

I'd be the opposite - whatever about lambing indoors, where you have some chance of catching a ewe thats mismothering, or a ewe with a big swollen head hanging out of her... outside - no chance...
(I should add, I don't have a dog, so that may be the answer here)

Plus - I know my ewes and lambs wouldn't be suited to it, they'd die first chance they'd get outside...

No - we definitely wont be lambing outside here anyways I'd say

Conmaicne Mara

Birdnuts wrote: »

Its been a very benign lambing season in that regard so far - long may it continue.

There were a few days here in March I was lamenting not having the tunnel finished. In fact I made use of my fathers old sheep shed to house two or three before they popped out any lambs. It was cold, wet, and windy.

Username John wrote: »

I'd be the opposite - whatever about lambing indoors, where you have some chance of catching a ewe thats mismothering, or a ewe with a big swollen head hanging out of her... outside - no chance...
(I should add, I don't have a dog, so that may be the answer here)

Plus - I know my ewes and lambs wouldn't be suited to it, they'd die first chance they'd get outside...

No - we definitely wont be lambing outside here anyways I'd say

We lambed blackface that used to be put to suffolk rams outdoors for years. I'm not sure I'd like to repeat the experience, but my system is vastly different from Dads way of doing things so maybe would be easier my way.

I find a very good way of catching ewes and lambs is by deception. I have a funnel created to my pen. I'll push the ewe and lamb towards the boundary wall, then direct them along it to the start of the funnel, once they're in it, very very few escape me. The trick is that the end of the funnel is right at the pen gate, and I leave the end length of wire open all year, so when I want to catch a ewe she thinks I can just run through here and out by the gates, no problem. Except she can't as I will have closed up the wire leaving her no where to go except into the pen.

razor8

Username John wrote: »

Hello all,

I still have 1 ewe left to lamb, but the most of them were lambed by end March - so 2 weeks ago... Now, I only have a small number of ewes, so tisn't as if I was lambing hundreds to begin with.

But during lambing, I was thinking heavily of whether I would continue to lamb, as I dunno does it continue to suit or fit into my life...
I mean time in terms of holidays for lambing, and the commitment for the weeks before and after lambing...

So - this was all swimming around in my head...

But - I was looking out at my lambs racing and jumping around in the sunshine today, and all the issues with time and commitment had totally disappeared... :P

Then I thought, how quickly we forget

So true, was really sick of it at one stage, was threatening to sell them all in my own head, very hard with a young family here and the feeling if guilt when you aren't spending enough time with them.

Adding to pressure We had our own little arrival towards the end. Was treading the wife would go early but thankfully all worked out in the end and most of workload over

Green farmer

razor8 wrote: »

Adding to pressure We had our own little arrival towards the end. Was treading the wife would go early but thankfully all worked out in the end and most of workload over

Congrats razor, no sleep full nights for you just yet then. The lambing is time consuming alright and heaps pressure on all other aspects of our lives.We'll be lucky if the wife's don't divorce us over it at times.
Waiting for the cheques to come in next august September time

Green farmer

Sort of separately, does anybody have any helpers,family and the likes helping them through lambing ? Or are ye all one man operations like myself ?

razor8

Green farmer wrote: »

Sort of separately, does anybody have any helpers,family and the likes helping them through lambing ? Or are ye all one man operations like myself ?

Wouldn't be possible without the aul man here anyway, one Man band must be tough going with no help, ya may train the other half up!

rancher

Green farmer wrote: »

Sort of separately, does anybody have any helpers,family and the likes helping them through lambing ? Or are ye all one man operations like myself ?

OH retired here, she's a huge help, I go to bed at 12 and get up at six, she gets few hrs sleep before 12 and then minds them until they stop lambing after 2...2-6 is usually a quite time, I do the heavy work cleaning out, bedding etc she does tagging, pets etc, she's very good at a ring womb, so it works well, no one killed

Username John

Green farmer wrote: »

Sort of separately, does anybody have any helpers,family and the likes helping them through lambing ? Or are ye all one man operations like myself ?

Hmmm, not sure how to answer this one...

The mammy and the missus help out where they can - checking em, hay, water, that kinda thing... But for handling any ewes, or anything like that - its just me...
But - I only have small numbers, so its not a big thing...

Green farmer

Username John wrote: »

But - I only have small numbers, so its not a big thing...

I had only 30 three years ago and increased it to 100. My attitude was I was still going to have to be there looking after them and putting in the same hours,whether it was 30 or 100, so I went for 100 to try and have some more €€€ wise after all the hard graft. The target now is to get in to 200, which is as much as I think I could look after and keep fed.

The oh works full time and looks after the smallies when not at work, but the mammy keeps an eye in the sheep alright and minds the kids for me while I'm with sheep.so I suppose I'm not really one man operation, but do all the pulling and dragging myself.

AnFeirmeoir

razor8 wrote: »

So true, was really sick of it at one stage, was threatening to sell them all in my own head, very hard with a young family here and the feeling if guilt when you aren't spending enough time with them.

Adding to pressure We had our own little arrival towards the end. Was treading the wife would go early but thankfully all worked out in the end and most of workload over

Congrats .. Just a single ? Will you Cull ?

razor8

AnFeirmeoir wrote: »

Congrats .. Just a single ? Will you Cull ?

I must bring the taggers into house this evening and if ye don't here from me here y'all il know what happened!!

Green farmer

razor8 wrote: »

I must bring the taggers into house this evening and if ye don't here from me here y'all il know what happened!!

Careful now razor, you try that and the wife might go looking the rubber band castrators

AnFeirmeoir

told my young ones that they had tails too when they were born but i put a ring on them.
They were shocked

sea12

Green farmer wrote: »

Sort of separately, does anybody have any helpers,family and the likes helping them through lambing ? Or are ye all one man operations like myself ?

Simillar to others. Mother and father help as regards keeping an eye on them but are not able to handle them at all. After that it's myself. Trying to train up the oh with mixed success!!!
In fairness she looks after the young ones aswell

arctictree

No help here. Neighbour sometimes helps when really needed but you try not to be a burden. Young lad is a bit small (5) and doesn't have much interest in it...

solerina

I am looking forward to the forgetting about it stage...we have actually begun official lambing at last ( there are about 70-80 unofficial lambs here already...neighbours rams doing damage)....4 days in and about 40 have lambed...all going well at the moment...we lamb entirely outdoors so this weather certainly helps !!