Meridian Jacobs Goes Green (Or Are We in Oz?)

There is a green glow everywhere.

Breeding Season is Here

Four Farm Club members came today to help me sort out breeding groups. I told myself that using four rams was plenty but in the end I put ewes with six rams. I don't have a very big place and by the time I save spaces for non-breeding rams (a few ram lambs left), non-breeding ewes (my State Fair ewes and lambs and a few ewe lambs that I don't want to breed yet) and try to leave buffer spaces between breeding groups it gets tricky to find space for everyone. Kenleigh's Matrix, a ram lamb, was the first to go out with 14 ewes.

Meridian Loretta was obviously in heat, but we wondered if Matrix, smaller than the ewes, was going to manage the job.

Meridian Fogerty, a yearling ram, was next. He has 8 ewes.

Faulkner was happy to be given eight ewes.

Meridian Clapton, the ram who has been behaving badly wanted some of the action.

Clapton is temporarily in a small pen so he has just three ewes.

Puddleduck Sullivan has ten ewes.

When you first put the rams with the ewes they get a little carried away trying to find a ewe in heat and you may see random marks on some of the ewes. One of the Farm Club members asked how you can tell if the marks from the ram harnesses are the "real thing". I told her that you can tell.

This is in Fogerty's pen later in the day.

These are two of Matrix's ewes. One is Loretta, the ewe in the first photo.

It wasn't until the end of the day that I picked up the marker for the sixth ram harness so Meridian Miller (the ram lamb who was champion at the State Fair) didn't get his 7 ewes until evening. He is in the pen right behind my shop.

You could say that the ewes were a bit stand-offish, but Miller didn't let that deter him.

Where will you be February 21? I'll be in the barn with new lambs.

The Younger Generation

It simple math. If I had 65 sheep last November and  want 65 sheep next November, but  81 lambs were born, that means that  I need to sell 81 sheep before November. So out of all the lambs that were born I need to be very selective about which ones I will keep. Here are the chosen lambs so far.

This is Sonata, daughter of Meridian Moon and Sweetgrass Clint.

Lila, a lilac ewe, daughter of  Meridian Lola and Mud Ranch's Hudson.

Fandangle, daughter of Meridian Fran and Sweetgrass Clint.

Kenleigh's Isadora who came from Kenleigh's Acres in Oregon.

Mud Ranch's Foxglove and ...

...Mud Ranch's Ginseng, both lilac lambs from Mud Ranch in Lewiston, CA.

There are plenty of other pretty lambs, but most of them will need to find homes elsewhere. I have my eye on one appealing ram lamb:

Axle, son of Meridian Tina and Sweetgrass Clint.

I almost forgot someone:

Onyx, daughter of Sparkle and Faulkner.

This is Fogerty, a ram who was born last spring. He is one of the rams that I will use for breeding this fall. Here is another photo:

You Can't Always Count on Genetics

This is Ebony, a black and white Jacob ewe.

This is Hudson, a lilac Jacob ram.

Here is one of their lambs at almost 2 months old. He is lilac like Dad.

This is the other lamb at about a month old...

... and here he is at just over 2 months. He has been marked with a cull tag because of a severe split eyelid, but also, do you see how his horns are growing?

Both lambs today, at 3 1/2 months old:

I love the horns, the color, and the fleece on this lilac ram, but (as in the discussion over on Facebook) I sure wish that I could combine these lambs into one and keep just the parts I like. Look at those pretty blue eyes on the black and white ram...

...and he has nicely marked feet also.

Speaking of rams, here are a few more photos:

The photo above is of Meridian Clapton at about 6 months...

and here he is as a yearling.  Look at the photo below for horn detail on his right side.

The first thing that is unusual is how his horns go behind his neck instead of under, but there is also a fifth horn there.

Meet Puddleduck Sullivan, a 2-horn yearling ram. But is he really a 2-horned ram? I see a seam in those horns that could mean that he is a fused 4-horn. And he also has another horn on this side. People talk about 6-horn Jacob sheep, but I haven't seen any in which the 5th and 6th horns weren't scurs or some how compromised by the larger horns. After all, where would you put another full set of horns?

This is Meridian Fogerty, a another 2-horn yearling ram. I had so many rams last year that I didn't use him, but he will be in this fall's ram line-up. His horns are closer to his face than I'd like, but still OK.

One more ram. Sweetgrass Clint is Clapton's sire and here he is (above) at 6 months old.

This is Clint last fall as an adult.

Bottom line--you don't necessarily get the perfect lamb by breeding two "perfect" parents and you can't predict how the lamb will look as an adult when you buy it at 4 months old.

For more photos of how rams' horns change see my website photo gallery . By the way, Ebony, who is at the beginning of this post, stars in her own video over on YouTube. Click here  and find her video to see her having those ram lambs.

Running with the Big Boys

It was getting dark tonight when I took these photos with my i-phone so the quality isn't great, but they are kind of amusing. Look at where this lamb ended up today.

I don't think he was too happy about it.

But of course he wouldn't let me catch him anymore than the big rams will let me catch them. They needed to be chased into a pen.

When doing chores this morning I saw these ewes that I assumed would lamb during the day.

Summer didn't show much interest in breakfast.

Laura looked uncomfortable.

This is Summer again, looking even  bigger. No lambs yet, but I'm going to the barn now for the last check before bed.

The rams are jealous of the ewes that got to go out in the pasture. That is Hudson, Clapton , and  Clint.

Sheep photos

Lambing won't start for 4 weeks but there are some ewes that look as though they shouldn't wait that long, especially when you realize that 70% of total fetal growth occurs during the last third of pregnancy.

Sparkle was bred as soon as I put her with the ram. She is due February 18, a month away.

I don't have a breeding date for Summer, but she is obviously pregnant.

I'll be surprised if she doesn't have triplets.

Jimmy is out there with the ewes and he is a very luck sheep. Most males that do not make the cut as breeding rams end up in the freezer. When he was a young lamb, I thought Jimmy had breeding potential. In fact I had a buyer for him. She was very disappointed when, after taking a closer look at him at about 3 1/2 months of age, I would not sell him for breeding. I was knew that his lower horn on the left would be a problem, but what was not obvious until I looked more closely was the freckling.

In this photo you can't see the freckling, but when I parted the fleece I could see it. Freckling in a young lamb is a disqualifying trait for Jacob sheep registration. It increases with age and it is almost as if a spotted sheep turns into an overall gray sheep. Jimmy has a beautiful fleece (although not appropriate for a breeding ram) so I decided to keep him as a wether. The horn issue was dealt with when he was castrated because, without testosterone, the horn growth slows drastically.

Why keep a wether? When you have to separate a ram for whatever reason, he needs a buddy to keep him company. Sheep do not do well by themselves. The other wether I have right now is Jerry (nice fleece, but too much black for a breeding ram)...

...and he is Faulkner's permanent buddy.