Up All Night: Tricot, Pistachio, Tiffany, & Adelie

To be fair, Tricot didn't keep anyone up all night.  During the day on Friday, I noticed that Tricot was frequently pushing but not getting anywhere.   I was worried that something was wrong, maybe a malpresentation or even a dead lamb.  (Tricot delivered Spruce, one of the biggest lambs we've had in five years by herself, so I didn't worry about a large lamb.) When Scott arrived home from work, I helped him pull the lamb.  He is a big black ram lamb with a few white spots on his head.   Because he was so large, we didn't expect a twin.

Scott said, "There's another one!" and I thought he was kidding.  He was not.  Tricot's second lamb is another ram.  He's white and much smaller.  The size difference is a concern, but they are doing well.  We've named the black ram Thunder and the white ram Lightning.

Tricot cleans her lamb Lightning.

Thunder and Lightning with mom Tricot.

On Saturday morning, we built a nursery pen and ear tagged the first batch of lambs.  The older lambs and their mothers (Mimosa, Czadas, Sequoia, and Acacia) moved out of their jugs and into the nursery pen in order to make room for another group of pregnant ewes.  All FIVE of the ewes due next were bred during a couple of hours Oregano illicitly spent in the ewe pasture. During the time spent in the barn, I noticed that Pistachio and Tiffany were acting a little odd.

We ended up going to the barn in the late evening to check on Pistachio.  Like Tricot, she was laboring without any progress.  We put her in a jug and planned to check on her in ninety minutes, after the kids were in bed.  When we returned, she was cleaning her two lambs-- one black ewe with a little white spotting on her head, one white ewe with a small black spot on her back.  (These spots will likely fade.)  The white ewe is Cirrus, and the black ewe is Nimbus.

Cirrus & Nimbus with mom Pistachio

During this time, Tiffany was alternating pushing and being overly interested in Pistachio and her lambs.  Before we headed back to the house, Tiffany focused on pushing and easily (well, for me) delivered a white ewe lamb (Glacier) and a black ram lamb (Storm).  We clipped and dipped them, helped dry them, made sure they were nursing, and headed back into the house.

Glacier & Storm

Glacier is already posing.

A couple of hours later, we heard loud baaing from the monitor.  Tiffany is a vociferous mother, but I could tell it was not her.  "It's someone lambing!" I said.  "I think it's Adelie!"

Adelie is a small ewe lamb, born last spring.  I would have never intentionally bred her, but Oregano visited her on his foray over the fence.  By the time Scott arrived at the barn (with me trailing behind him). Adelie had lambed.  She had a small black ewe.  She didn't have problems with the delivery, and although both mom and lamb Tsunami seem confused at times, they are doing better than expected.

Adelie & Tsunami