Lambs!

I've been run off my feet with lambing.  We have 12 bottle babies now.  Most are one of a set of triplets and a few are orphans.  We had 15 sets of triplets and 9 sets survived intact, meaning all three of the triplets are alive and doing well.   We lamb nap the smallest lamb, or a ewe lamb if the smallest is a male, in each set and bottle feed him or her.  While the mothers are in the shed I leave the lamb to be stolen with his or her mum and supplementary feed the lamb.  I hate taking the lambs but we’ve found all three lambs grow so much better and the survival rate of all three is drastically increased when the mum only has to feed two.
 

After only a day or so after lambing began I had a full time bottle baby.  He was the largest of a set of triplets and was stolen at birth by the ewe next door who had lambed on the first day.  She loved him, cleaned him, parked him next to her lamb and called him back if he left the pen.  She was the perfect mother with one exception - she wouldn't let him feed.  Each time he moved towards her udder she realised her mistake and hopped around the pen as if she were on hot coals.  The poor little fellow persisted but without luck.  Of course his mum wouldn't have him back.  He smelled wrong to her, she’d never really had a chance to meet him after her was born and she had two lambs to take her attention anyway.

We had the pens set up to theoretically prevent the lambs moving from pen to pen, but this little boy had great athletic skills.  If hurdles were an Olympic event for sheep he’d be a real contender.  After each unsuccessful attempt to feed from the lamb-napper he’d remove himself from the pen and sit out in the little alley way and sulk.  The lamb-napper and her lamb were duly put out after two nights in the shed and the little now motherless fellow spent his days stealing milk from the ewes around him.  Despite my dutifully bringing him a bottle four times a day, he always told me he preferred sheep milk.  When no-one was in the shed to stop him he hopped from pen to pen stealing as much milk as he could before he was kicked out by the outraged ewe.

Over the years I've hardened my heart to dead lambs and while I feel desperately sorry for those who struggle to survive.  I've try to be as pragmatic as possible but sometimes I fail.  I soon learnt I couldn't break my heart over every little lamb who didn't make it.  Each year brings its share of these lambs.  Some are born dead; others just seem to fade away despite anything we can do for them.  One day during lambing I just sat and cried over the latest little one - a little ewe lamb I'd been trying to feed since she was born.  

She was a twin and her mum seemed to have only enough milk for one.  She fussed over both lambs and looked after them well, but they were not thriving after just one day.  The little boy was a fighter and manages to be fed while the little girl gave up right from the beginning.  I took her on as my second full time bottle baby and supplementary fed her twin until we were sure his mum could raise him in the paddock.  The little ewe lamb had been drinking less and less each day until I couldn't get any milk into her at all the one night.  I told Graeme she wasn't going to survive and came to terms with that as I tend to do on these occasions.   One morning I went over to feed the lambs to find her lying quietly in the alley way where we had kept her with the other motherless bottle baby.  I sat in there and fed the ram lamb, deciding to leave her alone as she was near the end.  I talked to the little boy as I fed him and she heard my voice.  She crawled over because she couldn't stand any longer so I picked her up thinking she wanted some milk.  She didn't, she just wanted to be held.  I sat and stroked her, talking to her the best I could through my tears and settled her into sleep again.  It took a while and I think Graeme thought I should just put her down and get on with feeding all the triplet babies we are going to steal when their mums were put out, but I couldn't abandon this little girl.  Graeme came over; saw me in tears and left again to do the watering - a wise move on his part  I wished there was an easy way to hasten her demise but with lambs there's nothing much humane we can do.  I make them as comfortable as possible and usually leave them alone once they are past helping.  Graeme came back from the shed at lunchtime to tell me she was dead.  It looked like she didn't move from where I placed her once she was sleeping again so hopefully she just passed away easily and quietly.

Sorry for the sad story but I really felt for the little girl and mourned her loss.  

On a much happier note the gang of 12 are all growing well, mug us unashamedly every time we go over to the lambing shed where they are kept in a huge pen at the front so they can sunbathe on warmer days and sit in the shade a bit further back in the shed should the sun get too warm.  They each have a strong personality of their own, but I’m not allowed to name them apart from the number spray painted on their back so we can tell who has been fed and who hasn’t.  Lambs are not above looking starved to death and scoffing down a second bottle before we realise he or she was in the first round of those fed.  

We now have a system for feeding such a large number of lambs.  We tried lamb feeders but found that some lambs won’t persist long enough for the milk to come through and walk away, while those more stubborn lambs drink way too much now the herd has been thinned.  So hand feeding it is.  Graeme set up a small pen within the large lamb raising area of the shed.  He lifts the six smallest lambs into to the pen then we feed the larger lambs on the outside.  We used to feed the smaller lambs first but once we were out with the now starving to death and determined to get their milk no matter how rough they had to be with us lambs, we were nearly battered to death in their efforts to get at the bottles.  The larger lambs proved much calmer about the whole feeding process if they were allowed to go first.  The smaller lambs are eager to get their milk when we move into the small pen, but in the cramped space they can’t get quite as rough as their larger siblings.

Graeme and I have developed a great method to feed three at a time.  It’s not very elegant but the lambs don’t mind.  We sit down on an upturned bucket each, hold a bottle in each hand, holding on tight to the base of the teat so the lamb doesn’t pull it off and have the third bottle tightly held between our knees with a lamb tucking in.  We have to choose the lamb for the between the knee bottle carefully.  Most lambs are easily distracted and if the lamb comes off the bottle we can’t move it closer to the lamb’s mouth.  A lamb who has come off the teat doesn’t automatically reattach to that teat.  The lamb’s first thought is that the bottle being consumed by the lamb next to it is a much better, tastier bottle than the one where the teat is being waved in front of his/her mouth.  

Lambs numbers 3 and 7 are our best “in between the knees lambs”.  Once on the bottle they get straight down to the job of drinking and don’t stop until all the milk is gone.  In the second round of feeding (we have 12 lambs remember and can only feed 6 at a time) we have problems.  Number 9 is my choice and is learning to stick to the job of feeding but apart from him there is no other candidate for the job.  We just grit out teeth and expect mayhem.  We are rarely disappointed. 

Spring Rock Happenings

It’s been a while since I’ve written anything so I thought I’d catch you up on all the happenings at Spring Rock since Christmas.  I'll try to get a post out every few days until you are all caught up.

We had a lovely Christmas lunch with my daughter in law’s parents and family.  We also picked up two ducks and a drake while we were there.  Casey (my daughter in law’s mum) had a clutch of eggs hatch and had too many ducks wandering around her back yard.  They are Mallard Peking crosses and very handsome indeed.  I don’t think the ducks were very impressed about being handed over and the duck collecting apparently turned into more of a duck rodeo from the sounds emanating from the back yard.   The ducks all objected to the project and the chooks and rooster joined in with rude comments and flapping wings while most of the males at the lunch tried to corral three ducks.  The drake expressed his opinion of being caught rather forcibly when Justin caught him.  Justin had the scratches to prove it.  The ducks were duly tucked away in a box and I uttered soothing words to assure them life was going to be just as good at our house as it was at Casey’s and Scott’s.

We got the ducks home safe and sound with the occasional soft quack to be heard from the rear of the car.  Once the ducks were ensconced in the chook yard we went inside to finish digesting our big Christmas lunch and take things easy for a while.  If only we could.  Cleo, who’d noticed the arrival of a few new additions to the menagerie went down to visit and ran along the outside of the chook yard to say hello.  Guess what?  The ducks could fly!  Yes, it was a big surprise for me too.  I had considered this possibility but they looked too bottom heavy to get off the ground and over the chook fence.  The first night one duck objected to large dogs greeting them to her new home and took off, never to be seen again.  It looks like she used a combination of wings and climbing techniques to get over the fence. I had proof positive the next day that they couldn’t get more than a metre off the ground.   When I arrived to remove Cleo she was nowhere to be seen.  I locked Cleo and Aslan up early for the night and decided I'd clip the other remaining duck’s and drake’s wings the next morning, thinking it was dark now and they’d go to sleep.  I came inside and enjoyed the rest of my Christmas Day – or what was left of it.

I forgot to tell Graeme about the wing clipping plan and he let the dogs out when he got up. Not feeling she'd properly introduced herself the day before, Cleo went down to say hello again.  The other duck took flight and was last seen desperately trying to get airborne but in fact just skimming the ground until she landed on one of our dams.  I once again locked up the dogs and caught the drake to clip his wing.  The dogs were tied up to the clothes line where they could see the chook yard but not reach it.  I thought that once they got used to the idea that there were new residents we'd all be OK, but the poor drake was now lonely.  I didn't believe for a second that we’d be able to catch the duck on the dam.  The drake took himself off to the nesting box where he cuddled up to Aunty Brown, the little broody Silky.  She was not too sure about her new companion, but the drake lived with Chinese Silkies and bantam hens at Casey’s place so he was quite at home with her.  

After doing a few important jobs around the house I walked down to Christie's dam as we call the dam down from the house in memory of my beautiful pony Christie.  As I got closer to the gate I saw the duck standing there looking towards the house with a wistful expression on her ducky face. The sheep took this moment to come tearing down the hill, eager to see what this black and white thing was, and as I got closer I could only stand and watch duck soar (well soar implies grace, there was very little of that) over Christie's dam and into the long, brown grass in Christie's paddock with the sheep in hot pursuit.  I slowly caught up - I was still a fair way away at this time, but couldn't see the duck anywhere.

Eventually, after lots of roaming around the paddock and calling the sheep all sorts of names, keeping a wary eye out for snakes and thinking dire thoughts about ducks and dogs who wanted to meet them, I spotted the duck as she too flight again and landed on the driveway on the other side of the fence in Christie's paddock.  I tried ringing Graeme to come help wrangle the duck but he wasn't answering either his phone or the house phone so it was just me and the duck.  I suspected he was hiding out, worried that I would find the duck and expect him to grab her out of the skies and return her to the chook yard.

My back injury was feeling the effects of all this walking as I made my painful way through the fence wire, doing my best to avoid the barbed wire and not really succeeding.  I had words with the duck about this but she just kept waddling homewards, quacking quietly to herself as she waddled homeward .  I walked slowly behind her with my arms out to try and block any turning back.  She was walking right into a very stiff wind so couldn't take off unless she changed tack.  I was determined she didn't change tack.  As we walked at duck pace rather than human the normally 10 minute walk back took us close to 45 minutes with me talking gently to the duck so she knew I was behind her.  We discussed such things as badly behaved ducks, drakes who were missing their friend and having to settle for being ignored by a broody silky and suitable, yet non-insulting, names for ducks and drakes.

I sped up when she reached the driveway's closed gate in case I could catch her but she just ducked (pardon the pun) under the gate and actually waited for me on the other side while I had to open and close it to get through!  I’m sure the quacking was her saying, “Hurry up!” in duck language.   

We continued our snails' pace wander home and finally caught up with Graeme in the shed  near the house.  Graeme came out and, being a man, immediately took control of the situation, telling me where to stand and what we were going to do.  My back was very sore, I was sick of the whole thing and just let him direct us to where he wanted.  The last leg of duck herding was over very quickly now that I had help (or had been relegated to being the help).  We caught the duck right next to the chook yard, clipped her wing and returned her to her drake who was then happy to leave the much relieved silky and come out and welcome his duck home. 

As I said, while the duck and I were on our walk, chatting of this and that, I tried out a few names for her and the drake.  She studiously ignored such suggestions and Pain in the Neck, and Troublesome Duck.  The ones she seemed to like best, she quacked when I offered them as suggestions, were Christmas for the drake and Quacker for her - Christmas Quacker?  I hope you all get it.  Graeme didn't.  I just got a blank look and explained it to him.  He calls crackers bon-bons so that explains it all.  In all the 41 Christmases we've shared he's never noticed I call them Christmas crackers and he’s never referred to them as bon-bons (being anti Christmas he just has never referred to them)! 

Christmas and Quacker are now happy members of the menagerie and while they studiously ignore our chooks they enjoy competing for treats and scraps and foraging in the garden when the dogs are locked up.  No ducky/doggy friendship blossomed.  Cleo occasionally visits the chookpen to make sure everyone is behaving and when she does the ducks just turn their backs and pretend she isn't there.  A much wiser tactic that panicking and escaping for the wilds of the farm if you ask me.

Christmas and Quacker back home and enjoying a wander around the back yard now that they have promised not to try escaping again.

Happy Christmas From Spring Rock

Ambrosia is inspecting the decorations up close and personal.

The dogs Cleo and Aslan, the ferrets Loki and Pandora, the cats Ambrosia, Nefertiti and Tristan, the galahs Hedwig and Hermes, the roosters Eros and Butterfly and The Girls (our 9 chooks), Graeme and I wish you all a very Happy Christmas surrounded by those you love.

My Day

 I thought you might all like an update on Aslan's progress.  He's growing well and I think he's absolutely gorgeous.   Aslan is the most laid back puppy I've ever encountered.  He's the love of Cleo's life as well.  Even Graeme says he's cute although he doesn't play with Aslan as he did when Cleo was a pup.  He thinks that Cleo has Aslan for a  playmate now and vice versa so there's no playing with squeakies any more.  Cleo and Aslan still manage to keep him busy though, putting up fencing around my garden.  We keep finding new bits of garden that has been trampled flat during St Bernard games Graeme borrows more sheep fencing to put up yet more barricades to allow the garden to recover and to keep large puppy bodies out.


Yesterday began with giving Aslan a bath. He had an appointment at the vet's in the afternoon for his vaccination and check up.  First up I had to lure Cleo into the laundry so I could lock her up during the bathing procedure because she likes to get her nose into everything I do and Aslan is not in the mood to be shoved around by Cleo's nose when he's enduring a bath.  After Cleo was incarcerated with a rawhide bone to console her, Aslan's bath began.  Aslan isn't a fan of baths but he takes a very mature approach to the whole sordid incident and thinks of other things while his body is drenched, soaped, rinsed, conditions and rinsed again.  When that is over the good part begins.  Aslan loves being towelled dry.  Why he gets such joy out of it I don't know, but even since he was a tiny pup sitting on my knee while I towelled down his paws and tummy from the wet grass, he has been in seventh heaven while being rubbed down with a towel.  I'm sure he thinks it almost makes the whole bathing beforehand worth the indignity.

Then it was time to change dogs over - get Cleo out of the laundry while putting Aslan in.  Cleo prefers to be wherever Aslan is, but after a bath he's just not in the mood to be thoroughly checked over by a big black nose.  He prefers solitude to contemplate and dry off.  Changing the dogs over therefore took a while.  Cleo kept trying to get back into the laundry to be with Aslan and Aslan kept trying to get out of the laundry to find a nice spot of dirt or mud to roll in.  Finally they were on the correct sides of the laundry door and I was able to come inside, change my clothes and do a bit of housework.  Aslan and Cleo were eventually reunited and spent most of the morning snoozing on the  laundry floor.

In the afternoon we headed off to the vets' for Aslan's third vaccination.  He was very happy to visit there - more people who love him.  Cleo came too as usual because she frets when Aslan is out of her sight for too long.  Cleo loves car rides so it was all win win for her.   Aslan lay down and let the scenery pass by, but Cleo likes to wander around the back area trying to find the best window to look out.  A couple of times she planted her great big foot on Aslan and they had words.  I got into the conversation when Aslan growled at Cleo.  He swore it was an accident but I have zero toleration for growling.  Cleo barely noticed Aslan's growl and just moved over to the other window saying the view was better out that side of the car.  I don't know how she can tell because she's slobbered all over all the windows so it's hard to see out anyway.

When we got to the vets' the dogs had to stay in the car and wait for a house call - or I suppose a car call.  The vets' recommend that puppies who aren't fully vaccinated be carried and not put on the floor inside but my carrying Aslan days are over and Graeme didn't want to take him in to the vets'  without me for some reason.  Cleo would fret if we all went out of her sight, so the back of the car it was.  Rose, Aslan's personal vet, absolutely loves him.  When we visited the first time she asked me if I would let her carry Aslan into the surgery.  I was more than fine with that after having Aslan sit on my lap for quite a while in the busy waiting room.  Rose and Aslan bonded during that visit and she told him he was her new favourite patient. Yesterday wasn't any different.  Rose (whose real name is Rosemary by the way) came out with a vet student and made a big fuss of Aslan.  The vet student spent most of her time patting Cleo, but that was because Cleo kept putting her head under the student's hand and nudging her in a significant way.  The vet clinic has five vets but Rose made sure she was the one to come out to the car to give Aslan his check up and inoculation.  Everyone was amazed at how much he'd grown in such a short time and and how big Cleo was.  Rose said she thinks Aslan is going to be a very big St Bernard based on how much he'd grown and the size of his paws.  Cleo muscled in as often as she could and made sure she got her fair share of pats and attention too while Rose was checking him over.  Cleo was shameless.  While Rose had her head bent over Aslan checking his tummy area Cleo leaned over, despite being on her lead tied to the cargo grate, and gave Rose a bit lick right up the side of her head.  Rose laughed and gave Cleo a pat.  I told Rose she'd need a shower and change of clothes after her visit with us.  Rose agreed.

Aslan passed his check up with flying colours.  I asked about his weight because making sure he gets the right amount of nutrition is always at the top of my mind.  Rose said he was perfect, so both Aslan and I were very happy.  Graeme has been saying for a while that Aslan is too fat and I've been assuring him it was fluff, so Graeme can stop the insults now.  We have an expert's opinion on his weight.

Just before Rose returned to the clinic she asked if we'd allow her to take a photo of Cleo and Aslan for the clinic's Facebook page.  Both pups are always happy to pose for photos and after his had a bath in the morning I was happy to have his cleanses recorded while it lasted.  Rose returned with the camera and both  Cleo and Aslan assumed cute poses while Rose snapped away.  Rose returned to the clinic and I got her purse to pay for the visit and returned to the office as well.  When I opened the door I heard Rose saying to John, another of the vets, "You want to see a lot of cute?"  She then scrolled through her photos so John  could see all the photos she'd taken.

Here is the one they put on their Facebook page.

  
The link to the page if you want to see it is https://www.facebook.com/moorongvet?fref=photo  Sadly they called Cleo Chloe, but I'm sure Cleo will get over the insult eventually.  I'm telling her to concentrate on being a star.

Aslan still clean and fluffy this morning so I'm sure he'll be looking for some mud and disgusting farm type stuff to roll in and Cleo is sis sure to know the perfect spot to take care of all this fluffy cleanness.

Aslan Is Home

 Cleo and Aslan meet for the first time.

Almost two weeks ago we headed for the Goulburn area to meet our new menagerie member and bring him home.  His breeder, Ann, was a lovely lady had travelled down from Queensland by car with three pups to deliver to their new homes.  Ann had developed a nasty cough along the trip, but she spent time to give me lots of good advice in pup raising and showing.  Aslan agreed with all she said, but chose to sit in the shade of the car and snooze in between wise head nodding when Ann said something he wanted to agree with, especially on the use of treats to reinforce wanted behaviour.  We moved inside for a cup of tea and Aslan followed along being told to "follow the feet" by Ann.  It's proved over the last few days that Aslan is very good at "follow the feet", his only hindrance now is Cleo who wants to follow Aslan right on top of him, rather than beside or behind him.  It's difficult to follow human feet if all you can see are giant paws all around you.
 

 Aslan the day after he arrived home.  Note the feed dish - it's the same one in the photo below.

 

  Cleo at the same age as Aslan in the photo above.

The first few days were fraught for Aslan.  Cleo wanted to get to know him from every angle and her nose was always glued to some part of Aslan's anatomy.  The little pup couldn't find relief from the big nose that was constantly questing for more information about this new addition to Cleo's life.  Aslan tried being philosophical about it for a while and we tried to intervene when things got too much for the baby pup but in the end we had to offer him political asylum.  Bringing him inside wasn't a good idea because we didn't want to make Cleo jealous and we wanted them to bond and form a strong friendship.  Graeme came up with the answer.  He brought a fence panel down from the shed and placed it across the laundry door so that Aslan could come and go as he pleased but Cleo couldn't get to him if he wanted a break.  They could still lie close to each other though.  It works like a dream - makes it difficult for us to get in and out of the laundry now, but we are the mere humans in all this bonding and bullying scenario so we don't really count.

Aslan seeking political asylum from Cleo's attentions.  Note the tongue poking out at Cleo.

Aslan isn't the only one making major adjustments though.  Cleo is delighted with the newest family member but does allow herself to be bullied out of her food by the little scrap of fluff if I don't intervene.  The feeding regime at the moment is quite involved.  Mornings begin with a drink of lactose free milk for both parties.  Cleo on the back porch and Aslan locked in the laundry so he only gets one share.  Then comes the tinned food.  Aslan had a scoop of tinned puppy food - the very tinned puppy food Cleo refused to eat from the very first offering.  Cleo has half a tin of adult dog food - the very dog food she has scarfed from her early puppy years because she wouldn't eat puppy food.  Cleo now refuses to eat the adult food unless a dollop of Aslan's puppy food is added to her adult food.  She then eats the puppy food first and feels that she's not letting Aslan get something she doesn't have.

Aslan is locked in the laundry with his breakfast for about 15 minutes so that Cleo, a slow eater - she like to savour her meals - can get some food inside her before he comes out and tries to muscle in on Cleo's breakfast.  Once the timer goes off (so poor Aslan isn't forgotten and left in the laundry) I remove Cleo's food, placing it up on the feed bins where Aslan can't reach but Cleo can (but never does - she'll stand and look at her food as if it's on top of the roof rather than nose high).  We then do a tour of the garden so Aslan can practise "follow the feet".  Cleo makes this a complicated procedure because her favourite out in the garden pastime with Aslan is to gently place her nose under Aslan's fat little tummy and flip him over on his back turtle fashion.  A puppy will only suffer this indignity a number of times (quite a number is turns out) before he objects strongly to being flipped over every few steps.  Aslan then voice his disapproval of the game and says it with sharp little teeth as well.  Cleo manages a hurt expression on her face and appeals to me to see the unfairness of it all.  Sadly for Cleo I'm on Aslan's side and end the discussion by picking him up and carrying him back to the house while Cleo follows asking to be picked up too.

Cleo gets a big pat and scruff up and told I still love her too when we get back to the house and both dog lie down for a well earned sleep, waiting for lunch time and the whole feeding procedure (with only the dry food and a chicken leg each this time thankfully) to begin again.

 Aslan practising to be a show dog.

After lunch all is relatively quiet.  Cleo and Aslan go out and play, talk to the ferrets, the galahs and the chooks through their cages and generally enjoy the lovely spring weather we've been having.  Around 4.00p.m. life gets more interesting as it's time for me to collect the eggs.  Cleo has always been of the opinion that I am not able to collect eggs without her help.  She waits patiently outside the cage and accepts offers of stale bread if any is available, otherwise she just waits and watches the proceedings, knowing her daily egg will be delivered when we get back to the house.  Aslan likes the more up front and personal approach to the hens.  He trots inside the chook yard as if he owns it and goes straight up to the nearest hen or rooster to introduce himself.  Now when Cleo was a puppy she tried the same thing and got a peck on the nose for her trouble - hence her choice to wait outside the chook yard.  For some reason the chooks are more tolerant of Aslan and give him free reign of the chook yard without interference.  Cleo fusses on the outside of the yard, trying to warn Aslan of impending doom but Aslan wanders around making chooky friends and proving Cleo wrong.  I collect the eggs, give each puppy his or her egg for the day and go inside for a well earned rest.

All is quiet until dinner time about two hours later.  After the dinner ritual is over and Aslan once again freed from his seclusion in the laundry it's play time again for the dogs.  Eventually they come back to the laundry and their beds to settle down for the night.  

 Tummy Rub Time

So the state of the nation at Spring Rock is pretty good.  All members of the menagerie have adjusted to the new addition.  Hopefully they won't notice him growing and growing as the months pass and will still be pro Aslan.  Aslan is learning to live on a farm and ignore any passing sheep if we go for a walk.  Cleo is showing him how - it's hard, but a dog can do it if she or he tries.  Graeme is coping well with the whole second St Bernard situation.   I'm a bit busier than usual and look forward to the day Aslan can have his meals left on the floor to eat when he feels like it rather than these four meals a day.  Cleo is looking forward to this too because she doesn't like having her meals removed after 15 minutes either, but, unlike Cleo, with the easy integration of one fluffy little puppy I'm not complaining about the next few months of complicated feeding regimes. 

Welcome to the family Aslan.  

Best Friends