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Main: Our First Sheep

The following article was written when our first sheep were delivered to Massachusetts. We now have many sheep, but this represents our status in those early days. Please excuse the use of the present tense.

We currently have six sheep in Lincoln. Three are intact rams and three are neutered wethers. Two are white, two are brown, and two are black. (Ray likes the symmetry.) We have not named the sheep. Fortunately, most can be identified with two or three words so I have manufactured names using those words.

WhiteRam (sometimes called “Whitey” by Ray) is the largest and dominant ram. He is quick to toss his head at sheep or hands that get too near. WhiteRam is halter trained and was in the parade of breeds at the Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival, 2010.

BlackHeadedRam also has a white body, but his head is black. He is easy to overlook because is well-behaved, but keeps to himself.

BrownRam used to be the dominant ram before WhiteRam outgrew him. BrownRam is comparatively friendly and well-behaved. He is also halter trained, but was not in the parade of breeds.

BrownWether is brown and probably the friendliest of the six. He is always at the front if corn is being handed out — except, of course, if one of the rams decides he wants to be first. Here he is interested in the camera.

FriendlyBlackWether is black and friendly. There are two black wethers and this is where the simple naming approach breaks down. Fortunately, one is friendly and one is shy. FriendlyBlackWether is halter-trained and was in the parade of breeds.

ShyBlackWether is black and avoids contact. Although he will now eat corn from your hand, he does so only rarely and used to not do so at all. It is difficult to distinguish between the black wethers in photographs. The shy one has a more prominent left scur.

So that’s the lot. The sheep have not been weighed recently and they have grown since they arrived. They are all bigger than the target breed (Ouessant), but that is not unexpected for 50:50 cross. Ray’s guess is that WhiteRam is now around 55–60 pounds and the smallest wether is around 40–45 pounds.

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Page last modified on October 07, 2015, at 04:35 PM EST