I helped ship several thousand lambs off Sublette Flat one morning this week. The day began with the trucks arriving at daylight. The lamb and ewe flock enter the corrals. Having ewes in the herd helps to keep the lambs calm while they are handled.The herd is pushed up the sorting chute to the cutting …
Author: Cat Urbigkit
Counting sheep
So how do you count several thousand lambs? You put the herd onto one side of a corral, with a line of men standing in front of them to hold them there. The counters stand in the middle of the line, and step back a little as the men on the ends take a step …
Old friends
We shipped lambs this week, and I was pleased to see that two of the Aziat (Central Asian Ovcharka) pups I raised were with the lamb herd. Our bearded collie, Abe, had sat in the truck all morning as we loaded lambs, staying out of the way of unfamiliar dogs, people and big trucks. As …
What a difference a day makes
I took this photo of Luv’s Girl on Saturday afternoon. I like the conveyance of texture in the photo. But yesterday afternoon, the weather changed. Here’s the view from the same meadow this morning:While none of our animals are even slightly bothered by the snow, this little mourning dove seemed peeved with being wet:This prairie …
We all have weird friends
Many of our ewes seem to enjoy the birds that co-exist with the herd, from small songbirds to cowbirds and magpies. Not all of the ewes will let the magpies use their heads as perches, but some do.
Happy October
We’ve entered my favorite month. Happy October to everyone.
Watchful
As we left the desert allotment yesterday, this badger ran into its burrow, but stopping to have a good long look first.
Working girls
On Tuesday, we started shipping our lambs to another desert allotment here in western Wyoming, to combine our lambs with that of a friend’s, into one large herd. By the time the sale takes place in 10 days, there will be over 2,000 lambs in this bunch. Right now, there are four livestock guardian dogs …
The art of setting a snare
First, you tie some sheep legs to a large tree, using heavy cable, burying the spring to the snare at the base of the tree. Then you gingerly set thin steel strips and wire mesh in the snare so the animal will feel some support as it puts its foot into the snare. Next, add …
Rose hips, bear lips
We run sheep out in the sagebrush desert of western Wyoming, but we’re along the New Fork River, a major corridor for wildlife. It’s no wonder, with the amount of berries and rosehips covering our riverbottom, that bears would want to live here. Here’s Jim walking through the brush, looking at the rosehips.Our local problem …