A short recap of everything on the farm

I'm currently taking exams, so haven't been posting as much about the farm etc. However lots has still been happening, and today I'm going to be showing you a little of how everything is going.

Nan

Nan is still in training, and will be getting much more work after my exams finish in a few weeks. I will be considering Nursery Trials for November so if anyone has any experience with which ones are best please do get in touch.

The options are still open however I don't think I will be breeding from Nan, because I think that there are far too many collies (and other dogs) in rescue and I would rather increase my number of dogs by rescuing rather than breeding more. 

Two of the Jacobs

The family flock of Jacob sheep have now finished lambing and are currently being mob- grazed over some parts of our grazing. The ewe in the picture above was an orphan three years ago, Charlotte. She is still very friendly and has been raising some great lambs, one posing with her in the picture above.

Lambing 2015

I didn't post over lambing, it was a very busy time! These are two of the lambs a day after they were born, inside with their mother. Then of course there were my Oxford Down sheep who lambed earlier in the year...

Lambing 2015

Both of my ewes had one ewe lamb, an excellent result meaning my flock size doubled immediately. The lambs have been growing fast, they went back outside in March and are now still growing while grazing in with the Jacob flock.

Two of the girls last week

The lambs have grown fast, and I will be showing them later in the year, I have some shows planned in September. If any of you have any experience with showing I'd love to hear from you!

So that's a quick run through of whats been happening here on the farm, the next big thing will be shearing which will hopefully be taking place soon. Whats been happening with you? Let me know in the comments below. And don't forget to send in your 'Future Friday' topics, see my last post for details. Feel free to share, comment, follow; and don't forget to head over and follow my twitter @oxforddownsheep for 140 character snippets of whats happening with the sheep and everything else. 

Oxford Down Lambs

I will be carrying on with my sheep breed posts however first I need to tell you about how my oxford downs are getting on. I have always been interested in sheep and from a very young age have been helping out with the family flock of jacob ewes.  However, at the beginning of December last year I began a new business venture; I bought my own small flock of Oxford Down ewes. I bought two ewes both in lamb and fairly young.

Back in January both ewes gave birth to one ewe lamb each and I am extremely pleased with all of them. I hope to show the lambs this year and I will be putting the whole flock outside again soon. 

Please comment and let me know how lambing is going for you and what kind of sheep you have, or with any queries you have about my sheep. 

Watch this space for more interesting posts about  my sheep and other breeds of sheep; let me know which breeds of sheep you want me to cover on here as well :) 

Hebridean Sheep

This is the start of my new series on sheep breeds. I will be posting a new breed each time and discussing the characteristics and history of these breeds. Please comment with any questions you may have and share your own experience of the breed or anything related to them.
Lets begin with the Hebridean sheep. The Hebridean was nearly replaced in the UK by breeds like the blackface and became extremely rare but has recently become fairly popular and started to become widespread again.
It is thought that the Hebridean has descended from the multihorned Viking sheep and has retained the multihorned feature of the Viking breed.
The Hebridean is a primitive sheep breed and is lean and fineboned meaning they are an overall small sheep. Both ewes and rams are horned and it is common for them to have two horns, and less common, but not unknown for them to have four or six horns.
The Hebridean sheep are extremely hardy and are able to deal well with wet and cold conditions. They will eat most types of vegetation which makes them an increasingly popular choice for conservation grazing.
They produce good meat as young lambs but are more popular eaten as mutton as they produce a bigger carcase at a more mature age. The attractive black fleece is also a popular wool choice both commercially and among crafters.
Please ask any questions below and share your own experience or knowledge of the extremely interesting Hebridean sheep breed.
Keep watching my blog to find out about lots more sheep breeds. Also comment with any breeds you would like me to cover and I will do my best :)