Peach’s predicament

Peach’s injury has me concerned. After confining her and Crystal Tuesday to the big barn for an unforeseen period I hoped that giving her an anti-inflammatory and “hay rest” would start the healing process. But by Friday morning she was no better. As you can see, she held her right rear leg up off the floor and hobbled on the other three legs to get about. There is a limited course for the drugs to be safely given before other problematic symptoms might set in so I felt a vet visit was in order. The doc was here by 10AM. She checked every possible issue, as we had before. The leg is just so darn swollen above the fetlock.

With no clear answer, I bit the bullet (with Peach) and opted to x-ray the leg to be sure there wasn’t a fracture. At least it would rule something out. After a mild sedative we got Peach on her side and I held her, although she was quite peaceful, for the films.

The doc took 4 films, different angles.

Later Friday afternoon the doc called to say nothing was broken. So it must be a torn ligament or tendon. A slow heal if at all. But she did suggest a 5 day course of steroids, one injection per day, with a continued half dose of the anti-inflammatory. I gave Peach her first shot yesterday. This morning no improvement. But she has an appetite and is calm…seemingly accepting her plight with her chum Crystal. We are having a miserable rain storm today and I suspect they are sharing sheep smiles in their high and dry digs despite the confinement. Tonight at chore time, Peach was up and putting ever so little pressure on that hoof. I am looking for any improvement and it was ever so small but perhaps a ray of hope. I know most farmers would cull Peach at this point. It’s too expensive and time consuming to treat. But I have to see it through. If she heals, awesome! If she doesn’t I have already accepted that reality. For now she is calm, eating, perhaps healing.

If you say prayers, please include Peach. She’s a lovely ewe and a special friend.

Meanwhile back at the winter barn Griffin is holding court at the hay racks….

Breakfast of champions

We’re having a serious cold snap for so early in December. Not that the sheep mind. Northern New Hampshire is now blanketed in snow as winter blows on into New England. Our farm ground is frozen and any hope of a snaggle of grass is gone. Hay is now the daily menu, plus we had a few pumpkins left over and put them out this morning after feeding. And a few carrots, too. Mila asks…”what’s up doc?”


and tells stories with that tongue…

while sharing a breakfast bowl with Memphis…

but as the flock enjoyed breakfast we had to move Peach to the big barn for some rest and recuperation. A few weeks back I wrote about her having a lame rear leg. It got better but then she must have done something to re-injure it and this morning I decided it was imperative to remove her from the flock with one roomie for company until she heals for sure. After swift and careful consideration, Crystal was nominated the lucky one to live the good life in the big barn with Peach. It is not an easy transition to separate sheep from their flock. They don’t like change at all. Seen later today Crystal and Peach having a snack of their own….

There was a lot of baaing tonight as they all sorted out the separation…but Peach is in recuperation, on some anti-inflammatories and limited movement until she heals. Thank you Crystal for carrying the torch with her.

My day

Today is my birthday! This is where I was born. We had a dairy farm in Amherst, NH.

This is me with my brothers….

This is our family…

me and my big brother with one of our Guernsey’s…

my 18th birthday…

and the rest is history! Life is good and I am thankful! Thanks for stopping by today!

Red Hens and Redheads

The weather has been lovely the past few days and afforded us the chance to wrap up hay for the winter months along with flock maintenance. It is always easier to get such duties done when there isn’t a biting Northwest wind and no sunshine to ease the chill. Follow the sun, I say!
Hay’s in, elevator put down, barn secure. Great feeling!

The hay loft is wiggle room only. I love a hay loft when the bales are more than head high. As a child I spent hour after hour playing in the hay loft on our farm, the memory is always fresh.

The hens are all grown up now and Bianca, our sole hen from last winter has taught them her tricks. They come to the shed door off the kitchen and wait for a treat. And so it’s Cheerios!

When it was warmer the hens would lay eggs wherever they pleased, this was not only a clever but cozy choice.

Now that cool weather is here they are all laying in the coop each day. Good girls!

We spent the better part of a day getting all the sheep tended to for winter. We trimmed hooves, changed coats and de-wormed everyone.
Coats are ready…

Maggie and Lily ready…

As the coats came off the fleeces appeared…this is Georgia, I just love the spots!

Jack trims the hooves, while I hold the sheep. We do it while they stand up rather than setting them on their rumps. They have gotten quite used to the process, most are quite compliant. This is Jackie…behaving.

Here’s Daphne…waiting for me to get a coat. Her fleece is lovely. I sunk my fingers into it and oh my!

Peach has been lame the last week or so on her right rear leg. I had watched her and treated her with some anti-inflammatory meds but after 10 days I thought a look from the vet was in order. The lambs all needed their rabies shots so Peach popped into the barn and the doc checked her over. As I expected there is no explaination other than she probably did something dumb like jump off a rock and strained it somehow. She is now on a longer dose of meds and time will heal it. Peach is a big ewe and is headstrong to boot. She manages to get to the hay and water and treats just fine!

Jack did some touch-up barn staining while the sheep were out grazing one day. Apparently it didn’t dry as quickly as we hoped! For the minimal areas he stained at the winter barn, Mila managed to find one!

Now the North winds can blow…and they will soon enough.

Rhinebeck ~ from my lens

Rhinebeck, as always, was incredible. We had awful weather on Friday for the trip out with driving wind and rain but the storm passed in the evening and the weekend, although cool on Saturday, was just perfect. I didn’t get out of my booth at all on Saturday. Katie went out for some awesome fruit tarts for us as an afternoon treat but that was it! Needless to say, I didn’t get a chance to take very many pictures.I heard from the main office at the fairgrounds that the preliminary head count for Saturday by 4PM was 16,000 and that is more than they have had in any two days in the past. There were a LOT of folks there! I didn
This is a partial view of my booth on Sunday morning before the opening…forgot to get the beginning photos so by this time the stock was gone on a number of yarns.
A beautiful baby and mom….
Here’s Katie, my helper and shepherdess on the farm, on the left with a wonderful woman who came to shop with us. We had a great time! She sported one of my Tribal Tiaras that I offered for sale. They make you feel free and offbeat while all the time reigning your kingdom!
Feeling free and happy!
These two ladies stopped by having brought these beautiful brooms from a man who makes them right at the show. Apparently they will last for years and he even suggests leaving the rubber band around the bristles to keep the broom from sloping to the side eventually. That was a new idea to me, but makes sense. These gals swear by these brooms and covet them as do many of his customers. Check him out at Lone Oak Brooms in this youtube video!

The fall colors were spectacular!

Another tiara being sported!

The end of the day Saturday Katie and I passed through the livestock barns on our way to dinner. This dear sheep was so tucked she never even woke up while I watched her.

This ewe was quite the heart throb. When we came upon her she was baaaing away. It was dinner time but she hadn’t had her hay yet and so we spent some time just loving her up and whispering sweet nothings in her ear. She was a real schmooze. When we left her I turned back and she had bedded down and was chewing cud. Sheep whisperers?
And always the wonderful music from Peru….you can hear it here

This woman happened to come by as Katie and I were leaving for the evening Saturday and danced to their music….quite a sight, a number of children joined in, all of it unrehearsed.

Another cute-as-a-bug baby who stopped to shop with his dad.

As Katie and I finished loaded on Sunday night and headed out I looked over to my left and this dog caught my eye. Looks like he is ready to go home!

I want to thank all of you who came to visit this year. It is what makes the show worthwhile for all of the weeks and months of preparation. My new line of yarns has hit the ground running and I so appreciate the enormous round of compliments and purchases you gave.

On another note, there will be a final show in New England and you can check it out
here in case you need yet another fiber fix before the snow flies! I’ll be there in booth 463E.

Summer reflections

Today is the day before the annual workshops begin here at Long Ridge Farm taught by Michele Wipplinger, founder/owner of Earthues in Seattle. I am almost ready, save for a little more fussing here and there. Michele arrives mid-day and so I have a few peaceful hours before the real work begins. As I looked out across my desk and on into the back gardens, the hens cruised by looking for some early morning goodies in the grass. It is a gray and misty day with a bit of a fall feel and we finally are having rain after nearly 8 weeks of next to none. My mind drifted as I thought ‘8weeks ago’ and mentally counted back, recollecting the spring and summer, and my jaw dropped thinking of all that has happened these past 4 months.

Mid-April we were lambing, I was vending at CT Sheep and Wool, April 24th and then onto NH Sheep and Wool, 5/8-9 and then May 10th promptly left for the trip to France with Michele and friends from Earthues for 2 weeks, arrived home for a week, taught two natural dyeing workshops, repacked and left for Seattle, June 20th for another week, then home again (super kudos to Jack and Katie for holding down the farm!!) to settle down (?) for the summer with a planned foot surgery scheduled for July 2nd. But that had to be postponed for a week due to a rotten cold I picked up on the plane from Seattle. Surgery 7/9 and after a week of behaving I started moving about more and more. I have healed well, it is still a long road and will be months til my dear foot is back to “normal”.

Life moves at variable speeds although at this point in mine I find it is zoomier than ever! I would be remiss if I didn’t apologise right now for not keeping in touch better these past weeks and months with you, my blogger buds. I suspect it is the state of hobbling that has thrown me off completely. But hopefully as things are now back to my normal zoomy, I will be able to catch up with blogs and all the other regular rituals I have missed.

The lambs and moms have now moved to pasture and joined the regular flock. Here they are coming up the road, with Kalie’s help (mmmaybe!) to join the others.

It was a bit chaotic for the first day; lambs couldn’t find their moms amidst the “who are you fest” and moms were trying to teach their young to stay clear here and there. Lots of baaaing and jockeying.

But now they are all settled in, grazing, sleeping peacefully by night and the daily chores are immensely easier. You can see Della to the left with three lambs in this picture. Della is all the lambs favorite. She is calm, protective and never minds an occasional jump on the back.

The fields suffered this summer with the lack of rain but they will manage to inch along until pasture season ends late September.

Thank for your continued interest in the goings on here…it means a lot to me!
I hope you are enjoying these last few weeks of summer!

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