Ethel, standing, with Dwayne behind her, will soon have company. Two years ago, just after arriving on the farm, I acquired a beautiful young Pygmy goat pair. The doe had twins and basically they all played in the yard. There was little fencing in place and being so small, they were really no trouble at all.
The day before yesterday, the man who bought the twins that were born that year gave me a call. He is very busy with work and sold the goats and some donkeys he had and was wondering if I would like his two sheep and two male alpacas, for free. I went over to see the animals since he only lives on the next road. The sheep are Suffolks, one ewe and one wether, kept only as pets, and the two alpacas are how alpacas should look. I knew the two alpacas already on the farm were small, likely brother and sister and inbred. The male is infertile, but they were given to me. I must say, of all the animals on the farm , they are likely the least intelligent too.
So, I said I would take the sheep and alpacas and they will come home and at first live with the rams, except the ewe who will live with the sheep. Usually I quarantine the animals for a period to be sure they are healthy, but there is no place for them to be on their own at this time. I do feel that they are healthy and will not bring anything untoward to the farm animals. The Suffolk sheep are huge though, bigger than any of my sheep, including the E'st a Laine Merinos, who are big. I will have to learn to twist their heads to lay them down the way the shearers do because these critters are way to big for me to sit on their butts by lifting them up. I bet they are 200 pounds each.
So, Dwayne and Ethel, the two alpacas here, will soon have company. I also convinced the man to sell me his sheep feeder since he won't have to use it now. Yay! A round bale sits in it and they stick their heads through the bars but cannot climb on the hay, so hopefully they won't waste too much. Sounds good, eh?
The day before yesterday, the man who bought the twins that were born that year gave me a call. He is very busy with work and sold the goats and some donkeys he had and was wondering if I would like his two sheep and two male alpacas, for free. I went over to see the animals since he only lives on the next road. The sheep are Suffolks, one ewe and one wether, kept only as pets, and the two alpacas are how alpacas should look. I knew the two alpacas already on the farm were small, likely brother and sister and inbred. The male is infertile, but they were given to me. I must say, of all the animals on the farm , they are likely the least intelligent too.
So, I said I would take the sheep and alpacas and they will come home and at first live with the rams, except the ewe who will live with the sheep. Usually I quarantine the animals for a period to be sure they are healthy, but there is no place for them to be on their own at this time. I do feel that they are healthy and will not bring anything untoward to the farm animals. The Suffolk sheep are huge though, bigger than any of my sheep, including the E'st a Laine Merinos, who are big. I will have to learn to twist their heads to lay them down the way the shearers do because these critters are way to big for me to sit on their butts by lifting them up. I bet they are 200 pounds each.
So, Dwayne and Ethel, the two alpacas here, will soon have company. I also convinced the man to sell me his sheep feeder since he won't have to use it now. Yay! A round bale sits in it and they stick their heads through the bars but cannot climb on the hay, so hopefully they won't waste too much. Sounds good, eh?
Weezie's twins, two years ago.
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