We faced a unique challenge this past fall; the grass in our riding ring was very tall, but it is filled with boulders so it cannot be mowed. Sadly, I found this out by attempting to mow it. Our neighbor, Nan, was faced with a problem of her own; she needed to separate her rams from her sheep prior to breeding. And that is how I became an accidental shepherd.
One fine fall day, Nan came over to prepare the pen by laying down some hay, then, we went over to her barn to gather the troops. I had no idea what to expect or what we would use to get the sheep to relocate. Did we need to rent a truck or a cowboy or… I don’t even know. Thankfully Nan has been raising sheep for many years so all I need to do is what I’m told. She led the herd by shaking a bucket of grain and yelling “Hey Baaa” and they dutifully followed her across the pasture. I held up the rear with Rosy, the Australian Shepherd (of course!) to make sure we didn’t have any strays. An unexpected guest was the llama, Phoenix, who Keith calls Tina. It took 30 sheep less than 2 weeks to tame the jungle and we loved having them. Hamish made fast friends and would daily visit in hopes of scoring some grain or better yet, sheep droppings. The ring was turning into a gigantic candy dish as far as he was concerned!
It was so picturesque the sight made me giggle. Leaves turning colors and sheep grazing in a field, my field! Who am I? I’m that blissfully giddy country girl in the rubber boots. (Who am I????)
One fine fall day, Nan came over to prepare the pen by laying down some hay, then, we went over to her barn to gather the troops. I had no idea what to expect or what we would use to get the sheep to relocate. Did we need to rent a truck or a cowboy or… I don’t even know. Thankfully Nan has been raising sheep for many years so all I need to do is what I’m told. She led the herd by shaking a bucket of grain and yelling “Hey Baaa” and they dutifully followed her across the pasture. I held up the rear with Rosy, the Australian Shepherd (of course!) to make sure we didn’t have any strays. An unexpected guest was the llama, Phoenix, who Keith calls Tina. It took 30 sheep less than 2 weeks to tame the jungle and we loved having them. Hamish made fast friends and would daily visit in hopes of scoring some grain or better yet, sheep droppings. The ring was turning into a gigantic candy dish as far as he was concerned!
It was so picturesque the sight made me giggle. Leaves turning colors and sheep grazing in a field, my field! Who am I? I’m that blissfully giddy country girl in the rubber boots. (Who am I????)
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