Sunday, April 5, 2009

We got sheep!

We got sheep today. I went to look at them about a month ago and have been waiting for them to wean their lambs since I didn't want all the babies.

We got a dorper ewe and her lamb who is half baby doll and a jacob ewe.
Here is the dorper and her lamb. Dorpers are hair sheep so she is in the middle of shedding her coat and looks funny right now. Her lamb has wool since baby dolls are wool sheep. We named the mom Andromeda and the baby Nebula.
This is the jacob. She was already named Sweet Pea and even though plant names are supposed to be for poultry, we decided to stick with that name for her. She is very friendly, she's already come up for pets numerous times. For a sheep this is pretty amazing!


Here they are in the pen with the run-in, everyone loves to hang out here. You can see the chickens in the background and Aurora checking them out.



Everyone is getting along pretty well. The sheep are very interested in Orion but don't seem to like Aurora too much, she is very loud! The dorper is protecting her baby and doesn't let the goats get too close. Nebula wants to play with Orion but her mom won't let her yet. Sweet Pea has sniffed both goats and seems to think they are ok. Aurora is keeping her distance from the dorper.


I have them all in the stall tonight, I know that Aurora and Orion both sleep on top of their carriers so I figured they'd be ok. I made a straw nest on the floor for the sheep, unless they want to sleep in the carriers. I'll go down and check in a bit to make sure everyone is getting along. Do sheep sleep at night the way goats do? I need a barn cam.

16 comments:

ChristyACB said...

Awesome! Congratulations on the expansion of the menagerie!

They are some good looking sheep!

helenw said...

So cute! Congrats! How did you manage to get them home?

Zachary and Jennifer said...

Hurray!

They look great. Great names too! :-)

Jennifer

Laughing Orca Ranch said...

How exciting! More critters for the farm. I'm so happy for you Christy. I'm glad that they see to be so friendly, too. Sheep can be very sweet and loving if they've been handled a lot as lambs. Both of my sheep enjoy being petted and act very much like my goats in their curiosity.
Maybe this is also because goats tend to be very calming for sheep and take away their urge to bolt at anything that scares them?

Anyway I look forward to your sheep adventures in the weeks to come. Such fun!
Is Logan thrilled?

~Lisa

Gayle said...

I love your new sheep. My daisy looks horrible from being in all winter so I won't post photos until after she is bathed. All that green grass and dry ground. I love raising animals and it must be so enjoyable in a warm climate. Here is it way more work than fun, sad to say.

linda m said...

Wow!! How exciting! Now I really can't wait to come and visit so I can meet all your new animals. Is Logan going to work with the lamb as well as with Orion?

Christy said...

Helen - We borrowed a sheep/goat cage that goes in the back of a pickup truck. It worked great!

Lisa - The Jacob is very friendly and curious. The dorper is much more sheep like, skittish and stand offish. Her lamb is very jumpy, it is going to be hard to get her friendly unless the mom gets friendlier.

Gayle - I'm sorry it is hard where you are. I'm sure come summer I'm going to be complaining about the heat and refilling water 10 times a day.

Mom - So far the lamb won't come anywhere near us, so I'm not sure he is going to work with her. Orion is a handful anyway!

Melody said...

They are beautiful! Congratulations!

Danielle said...

Congrats! It'll be nice not to have to worry about shearing, at least for some of them.

But I just sheared yesterday, so I'm kinda biased at the moment!

Joanna@BooneDocksWilcox said...

Oh boy, the sheep look great. Congratulations Christy.

Gail said...

Congratulations on your new additions. I hope these will be as much fun as the goats.

Jennifer said...

Congrats on the new sheep! They are so neat, such pretty colors!

Perri said...

Congratulations on your new flock. Those are beautiful sheep! What are your plans for them?

Perri

Carla said...

Holy Cow (Sheep!), I go away for a few days and you buy sheep! Congratulations! I hope you enjoy them beyond measure.

~gail~mooselovingmamabear said...

Great shots of the "new" flock... they are beautiful! Have lots of fun w/ them...

Linda Foley said...

They are nice Christy! I'm slowly getting caught up with your blog.

As a side note, ya know you can milk sheep also and the milk is really delish!