[Jacob-list] an interesting morning...

[Linda]

Whew!  I'm confused :-)  Jacobs certainly have minds of their own.  Glad that all the lambs are doing well.

It does sounds like a very interesting morning.

Linda
 
www.patchworkfibers.com
Registered Jacob Sheep, Angora Rabbits, Handspun Yarn

On Fri, 31 Mar 2006 11:24:51 -0500, Betty Berlenbach wrote:
> ...okay, so this a.m. at 6 I went out to feed the critters,
> expecting Anna Mae and Delilah to have lambed, since they were
> looking a little crosseyed last night.  And I was not disappointed:
> there were the two mothers, one licking off twins, the other
> licking off a single...all small...(Did I stop to think:hmm,
> unusual for Anna Mae who usually has baby cows?, NO!  Here's your
> first hint to the rest of the story.)  So, I penned them, Anna Mae
> with her (sic) twins and Delilah with her little single, all 4-1/2--
> 5 pounds.  And went to the supermarket...Came back, and checked, to
> find, what, another extra leg in with Anna Mae, no...look more
> closely, another lamb, no look even more closely, WoW!  There's
> four lambs in here...hmm...okay, SO, the triplets were Delilah's
> and she was just getting help cleaning them off.  It's now two
> hours later, and there are two big "cow" (8 pounders) lambs in with
> the two little ones.  I put the triplets all together with Delilah,
> and put Anna Mae with her REAL (as in birthed by her) lambs.  Did
> weights, dunked cords, etc...all seemed well.  An hour later I
> checked: one cow-lamb was outside the pen, the other all but; the
> side of the pen gate (which I'd forgotten to tie) having been
> butted open.  And both looking cold and skinny...Put them back with
> mama, who promptly beat on them.  Held her down so they could get
> drinks, by this time, they are a  little weak and stupid...She
> would still have none of them...although it was the biggest one she
> mostly butted.  Okay, I decide, let's see what happens if I give
> you back "your" little girl from the triplets...now, she will
> accept the smaller cow=lamb so long as she can have her daughter,
> too, so I figure, two each, and one for me...no, wait, let's just
> see...so I put the biggest cow lamb, 8-1/2 pounds in with the
> remaining two triplets and Delilah, and miracle of miracle, she is
> happy to take him, offers him a long drink, which he gladly
> accepts.  I watch for awhile: all is well: Anna Mae has accepted
> smaller cow-lamb and girl-trip.  Delilah has her remaining two
> trips and Anna Mae's largest cow-lamb.  Why has Delilah accepted
> this lamb?  Who knows, but maybe because her two trips had been
> cleaned off by Anna Mae so they smelled like her, so ...so did the
> cow-lamb.  She was too confused to figure it out, but knew she had
> three?  She surely looked around, as if counting to make sure there
> were three, not too fussy about WHICH three apparently.  All is
> well in Weathersfield, Vermont, now...three ewes lambed so far, 16
> to go.  Good thing I didn't rush off to visit mother in law in
> nursing home, but waited to check in an hour to make sure all was
> well...I probably would have had two dead lambs when I got home,
> had I done so, as originally planned.  Two shetlands are looking a
> little crosseyed, so maybe there'll be shetlands tonight...Of
> course, they are such drama queens, it could also be that they just
> weren't getting attention, so decided to fake a little distress, so
> I'd come pet them..It's wonderful to be lambing again...It never
> gets old...until the last lamb of the season is born, at which
> point, I'm always happy to call it quits for another year.

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