Meanwhile, In the Front Pasture...

Pistachio, Henrietta, and Macadamia all went up a sheep coat size.  Now that she's not wearing the equivalent of a skin-tight leotard, Pistachio looks like a (really) big sheep.

All the stylish lambs are wearing khaki.

In order to get to the barn, a person must scratch Almond under his chin.  Sometimes he loves attention a little too much.

Almond: Like Sandy, but with horns.

 Speaking of really big sheep, Pecan.... Although he has so much fleece, sometimes a person has to wonder how much sheep is really under there.
 

Pecan: well-insulated again the cold.

 Henrietta is wearing her coat from last year.  She still would rather be in the back field with the rest of the big girls, but she also seems to enjoy being the boss of the front field. 

"I looked better in khaki!"

Filly has changed her looks yet again.  She's such a pretty girl no matter what color her face is.  Now that her mama (Hazel) is busy elsewhere, Filly is getting friendlier.

"I might walk over to you.  Maybe."

 How could I forget to mention that we have a new sheep?  You can tell it's a sheep because it's wearing a sheep coat.

Barack's face says it all...

An Upgrade

Although he's still very shy, Snowball loves when we visit him--which we do a lot more frequently now that the ewes are in the back pasture.  He still hasn't figured out what all the fuss is about treats, but sometimes it's nice to have an animal who's not all about the food.

Yay, visitors!

Sally loves visitors, too.

Yay, visitors!

She loves to scratch on them...

Ah, a human scratching post!

...and to eat them. 

Yum, sweatshirt!

The ewes come for the treats.

Elsie stomps to the front of the line.

Calico: she's all about the food.

All the action makes a llama want to take a dust bath.

"Are you not aware that it's herbivore nap time?"

The result of putting up with humans in your pasture?  A swankier place to sleep at night.

Now they have a dining room and a bedroom.

A Ram and His Harness

We weren't seeing Gunpowder doing his job as much as we expected.  We were a bit worried.  He's a young guy, only six months old, and quite obviously has not fathered any lambs yet. (A ram lamb can get the job done at about five months of age, in case you are wondering.) To have some reassurance, we ordered a breeding harness. (I'm not going to explain how a breeding harness works.  Look at the picture and use your imagination.)

Czadas thinks Gunpowder looks quite handsome.

Gunpowder has been wearing his harness for three days, and three of the ewes have been marked.  We hope he's doing his job and not just pushing them away from food when he's marking them.  (He does like his food.)

I think he's smiling.

 He's definitely interested in the ewes, but sometimes he seems a bit nervous.  They're older ladies, after all, and most of them are bigger than he is.

Checking out Sandy, a much older lady.

The other benefit of a breeding harness...We should have accurate due dates. Or we'll know who was between Gunpowder and his hay on any given day.

Elvira has fashioned her own harness from hay.

I've had some questions about why Gunpowder isn't wearing a coat.  The short answer: we didn't want to put on and take off a coat on an animal with horns!  The side benefit is that we can easily tell where he is and what he's up to, even from inside the house. 

It's easy to play "Where's Gunpowder?"

The Drama Escalates

Most of the older ewes have moved into the back pasture with Gunpowder.  Henrietta is taking a year off, staying in the front field with all the lambs.  Guess who's standing at the gate, baaing at the other sheep all day?  Henrietta, Acorn, and Cashew.  None of the sheep have been baaing back at them, but Sally has been mooing in response. 

Filly, who was quite attached to her mother, is handling the change well.  Peanut and Pistachio are fine, too.

 Pecan and Almond were not happy campers during the actual relocation, but they are moving on with their lives. 

Meanwhile in the back field...

Gunpowder was very excited to meet the ewes.  He chased them around on the first night, but he seems to have figured out that chasing might not be the best way to go.

Gunpowder and Elvira make a lovely couple.  Hopefully, there will be some cute lambs as a result.

Elvira doesn't want to share him.  She's telling Czadas to stay away from him....

 ...

Adjusting

The chickens flying over the fence freaked Sally out a bit, but otherwise, four species of animals managed to eat in harmony.

 Barack O'Llama is a bit aghast that Snowball has allowed a cow into the pasture.  Or perhaps he just wants more food.

 Snowball is very protective of his new charge...

 

...Actually, she spends most of her time with the boy sheep, but I do think that Snowball is very fond her her.

Tiffany, Tricot, and Czadas have found a shady spot.

Calico is being friendly to the new ewes.  Perhaps she is plotting an overthrow of Sandy's leadership.

Otherwise, things are pretty much the same.  Henrietta and Macadamia look a little more alike everyday...

...and Acorn is destruction wearing sheep's clothing.

(I did rescue her. Sandy didn't seem inclined to do so.)

The New Girls and Another Moo Neighbor

We brought home three Shetland ewes today: Tiffany, Tricot, and Czadas.  There's a bit of a long story, but...they are lovely girls with lovely fleeces.

Tiffany riding in style

They are hanging out in the back of the barn until everyone gets adjusted.

The new gals

We didn't think the adjustment period would take long, but Barack O'Llama is acting a tad concerned...

"What is happening around here?"

... and some of the sheep are following his lead.  When I went out to check on everyone, I found most of the sheep crowded into Barack's stall.  (Henrietta, Macadamia, and Cashew were at least being friendly.) 

Imagine some baaing...

In the back pasture, a big change went a bit more smoothly...so far.  Cute Little Moos/Sally (depending on who you ask) has moved into the back pasture with Snowball and the boy sheep.  It's sort of her halfway house--making the transition from barn to pasture a little easier on her. All the animals in the back are all happily ignoring each other.

Sally and Snowball

Sally contemplating a drink.

A Week (or so) in Pictures

Not much more than pictures, as I am slightly typing impaired at the current time.

Barack O'Llama enviously watches Snowball eat, as though he didn't just finish his own food and several treats besides.

Snowball inspects Scott's hoof trimming job. It's a good thing he has llamas helping out.

Yes, Barack spends a lot of time in that corner.

Have I mentioned that the white chickens are annoying?

Henrietta wants to help with the pumpkin carving, too.

 Pistachio eats some pumpkin. 

 Elsie has an entourage.