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Lamb Marking

Lambing has now finished, though we are still feeding the 3 poddy lambs for a couple more weeks. Fortunately we are down to 2 bottles a day, which is slightly easier.

The farm has a rhythm to it. Things have to be done in a certain order, and after lambing comes marking. Marking is probably my least favourite part of farm life, because it involves cutting the tails off all the lambs. For people who don’t live on a farm, this can seem horrible and unnecessary, but you only have to see a flyblown sheep suffering to understand that it is the less of two evils. 
If the tails aren’t removed, then the sheep manure tends to stick to the tail and back legs. Flies find this a perfect place to lay their eggs, and when they hatch, the maggots eat the actual sheep. Sorry for that visual, but I guess you now understand why it is necessary!
Country Boy and a friend spent the morning marking the lambs, who surprisingly, seem to cope really well. They put a band around the tail before cutting it off, so there is very little (if any) blood. They also put a band around the testicles of the boy sheep, which causes the testicles to fall off later. We buy rams for breeding with, because the rams have been bred for their superior genes (well that is the theory anyway). Neutered boy sheep are called wethers.

 Meg and Hannah are still quite squeamish about marking, and really don’t like looking at it.

They did find Lucy and Caleb, two of our poddy lambs from last year. They didn’t get their tails cut off (though Caleb did get a ring around his testicles), so they are easy to spot in the crowd of sheep. Also they are invariably in the wrong paddock. Lucy and Caleb came straight up to the girls for a pat when we arrived. Another very un-sheepish thing to do!

Our friend has a little dog, that thinks it is a proper sheep dog, though the sheep tend to ignore it. She is a lot of fun for the kids to play with however, and when we arrived she promptly started begging Toby for his sandwich. I think that she is the perfect size for Toby!

By lunch time the lambs were marked, and counted.These lambs will be sold for meat. Now we need to start  getting ready for the next lot of lambing when the merino lambs (for wool) will be born. This week Country Boy has to give all the merino ewes an injection before they start their lambing.

As I said, the farm has a rhythm about it, but it never really ends!

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Comments

  1. Cathy says

    August 10, 2012 at 2:14 pm

    Telling it like it is – love your post. I guess a lot of city people wouldn't understand what's necessary. A lot of hard work so we can enjoy the meals we want. We don't value our farmers enough!

    Reply
  2. The Kids Are All Right says

    August 10, 2012 at 11:47 am

    I love your posts so much. So far removed from my life but not, if I really think about it. These stories are part of the larger story about that lamb that ends up on my plate. And if I am going to eat meat I need to acknowledge all that goes in to bringing it to me.

    Reply
  3. Grace says

    August 10, 2012 at 10:59 am

    You really put some perspective as to how busy farming life can be. Love that second last photo of Toby looking down at the little dog 🙂

    Reply
  4. Alicia says

    August 10, 2012 at 2:06 am

    Looks like a very busy time. Its great to see your kids on the farm. That dog is so cute, waiting for some sandwich.

    Reply

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Hi, I’m Jo

I'm a city girl turned farmer's wife, school teacher, ideas woman, and mum to three country kids. Country Life Experiment is all about simple country living, growing and making our own food, and life on our family farm in rural Australia. Join me as I give country living a try. Read more...
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A lovely, easy Christmas with family, good food, a A lovely, easy Christmas with family, good food, a few presents, an afternoon swim and dinner on the veranda as the sun set. Time to stop and be thankful for the many blessings of the year. I hope you had a lovely Christmas too!
We have been mulling over how to fix up the drivew We have been mulling over how to fix up the driveway and lead up to our house for a while. Currently it’s just a dumping ground for old bits of metal and a big pile of mulch, but C would like to create a turning area and put in a garden. First up though, there’s a huge old stump that needs to go. What better excuse is there to have a fire on Sunday afternoon? C and the kids jumped on the quad bike and trailer, and hauled back a big pile of sticks and logs to help the stump burn. Once the fire was going, marshmallows were found and roasted. No better way to spend time together.
Team work makes the dream work. We were asked rec Team work makes the dream work. 
We were asked recently whether we “make” our kids work on the farm. The answer is of course not. Having said that, all three love to help out whenever they can. They all work hard because they want to; because they take pride in working hard and contributing in a meaningful way to our family life; because they love living on our farm and don’t remember life before we moved here. Whether it be planting trees or doing sheep work or feeding animals, they all want to be involved. As a parent, nothing is better than watching them grow in skill and confidence as they work along side you. We’re so glad that we get to spend time with our three, working together.
We’ve had an unexpected addition to the family ☘️🐑. She is a lot easier to look after than the other family members but she does try to escape her yard and head butt people. Poddy lambs are super cute but they tend to think they are a human. Clover the lamb is sure that Meg is her mum. Can’t think why… 🤔🤣
The perfect way to end a long winter weekend: toge The perfect way to end a long winter weekend: together, cooking damper around the remains of the bonfire.
It’s been a tough few weeks on the farm. We got It’s been a tough few weeks on the farm. We got through shearing without a hitch (thankfully 🙏) but we’ve had a run of the flu followed by Covid run through the family since then. The kids and I have tested positive (this is my second time getting it 🦠) though so far C has managed to avoid it. There has been a lot of lying on the couch feeling pretty ordinary. Han had to reschedule her driving test for a 4th time due to Covid, which is disappointing for her because she wants her freedom and for us because it would be so much more convenient if she could drive herself places. Just to add in to the mix, our hot water system has chosen now as a good time to die so we’re on cold showers until we’re all out of iso. This is not meant to be a whinging post but sometimes life just sucks a bit and it’s good to be real. Fortunately, the sight of the fire going with a stack of wood next to it cheers us up. Things will improve soon. Onwards we go…

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Hi, I’m Jo

City girl turned farmer's wife, school teacher, ideas woman, and mum to three country kids. Country Life Experiment is all about simple country living, growing and making our own food, and life on our family farm in rural Australia. Join me as I give country living a try. Read more...
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