Last summer, the sheep were quite easy to move from one temporary pasture to the next. I just grabbed a handful of grain and they followed me around like...well, like sheep! But over the winter, they stayed in the same pasture and got out of the habit. Now they would much prefer to explore the green pastures they are walking by instead of keeping their eye on the goal! So it's been a bit of a fiasco moving them. Yesterday, there were myself, Mom, Pops, Jascha, Chad, his brother and girlfriend, Dale (on his day off!) and Loretta. I didn't think it would take 9 of us to get 5 sheep into a new paddock, but I sure was glad everyone was there!
Once the sheep were securely in the smaller fenced area, the real fun began. A woman from down the road brought her clippers over and one by one the sheep were transformed. First up, Linden. He tolerated the process rather well. Dale and I held the sheep in position while the shearer and her husband got the wool off.
Afterward, Linden was hardly recognizable! He went from a huge fuzzy puff ball to a scrawny, rather absurd looking naked critter.
He was pretty unsure of the change at first, but soon forgot how silly he looked and went back to his regular nosy behavior. I trimmed hooves while the shearer worked...and Linden needed to inspect each and every subsequent sheep while they were being held down to make sure they were getting the same treatment he had!
Meanwhile, Mac and Ace lounged about and played while their elders were being "tortured". They had nothing to fear...but just wait until next year! Well, maybe Ace did get a little startled when Percy roamed a bit close, but other than that, it was just a fun adventure for the lambs!
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