Elsie's Transformation

Something happened to Elsie when we put on her sheep coat.

Elsie, a fluffy gal,...

She has become less shy.

...modeling a size 31 sheep coat, with some positive ease.

Not only is she approaching for pictures and treats, but she also is one of the first in the barn instead of one of the last (sometimes).

Elsie and the gang

I have no idea what bit of sheep psychology is behind this change.  Our other (somewhat) wild sheep have stayed (somewhat) wild, and some of the tamer lambs seem a little worried as to what we might do to them next.

Elsie still recognizes her Pistachio.

Poor Elvira

Poor Elvira.  She can't find her baby.

"Where's my wee little lamb?"

 The really sad part is that her baby is following her around, baaing, and looking like this:

"So...what's this all about?"

We didn't wash the coats since the last time they were used.  It seemed sort of pointless.  The last time this coat was worn, it was worn for about a week.  But apparently Elvira thinks that Peanut is Henrietta (the coat's former owner) and that she is chasing her.   All of the other ewe/lamb pairs have figured out the mystery of who belongs to whom.

We took the coat off Peanut and brought it inside to wash.  Elvira still is a bit confused.

(Interestingly, this particular coat--which was too big for Henrietta when she was pregnant and in full fleece--is a little on the snug side for Peanut.)

Elsie has figured out what this all means: everyone is getting coated.

"Please, don't let it be true!"

She's right.  We've coated the ones we could and measured the rest.  They'll be getting their snazzy new coats sometime soon.

And Firetrucks

Who would have guessed that Acorn also would chew on fire trucks?  (It's probably not a great idea to fix toys in the sheep pasture, but one does what one must.)

Yum, yum.

Barack O'Llama was getting into the action today, too--chewing on my drawstring, the key to the fence (good thing he didn't eat that!)...  No pictures as we were outside for (someone else's) farm animal emergency.  He was a little bit clingy as well.  Perhaps he's been hanging out too much with the lambs and learning their bad habits?

(Most of) the lambs sticking to their llama like glue.

Beware the Crazy Sheep

They look sweet and gentle like...well, lambs.  

Peanut.

But...watch out or they will eat your shorts. (Or shoes.  Or post-its.  Or gloves.  It's really disturbing when they chew on wool socks.)*

Cashew and Pistachio devouring my shorts.

And sometimes they even look scary.

Looking elegant is tricky when you are sticking your snout through a fence.

Poor Cashew.  She's really quite a lovely girl. Both of Calico's girls are lovely.

Acorn and Cashew

*The only things on this list that they've actually eaten (not just chewed on) are the glove and the post-it.  And I do think they'll grow out of it--none of the big girls chew on anything other than pasture, hay, and the occasional snack.

It's Been a Long Time

Not much has changed here.  The lambs are getting bigger. Some of them are nearly as big as their mothers.  Most of them are bigger than Henrietta.

Filly is looking like a big girl.

Barack O'Llama and Snowball still are not friends.  Barack is making some efforts at being friendly: less clicking and snorting, not putting his ears back so much.

Llama showdown at sunrise (sort of).

The apple tree at the far end of the pasture has apples on it.  The sheep and llamas aren't supposed to eat them.  If the apple seeds are green, they are toxic.  We've been trying to keep the apples out of the pasture, just in case. 

"I'm just trying to help.  Really."

In the back pasture, the boys spend most of their time lounging.

Snowball: the least lazy of the boys in the back pasture.

The boys have a new water bowl.  Gunpowder has figured out that it's a water bowl;  Pecan and Almond aren't so sure.

They were less freaked out by a new llama.  Hmm.

Black Sheep

It's getting difficult to tell Henrietta and Macadamia apart from a distance.  I'm not sure a ram was involved at all in Macadamia's birth.  Perhaps Henrietta figured out a way to clone herself?

Sometimes they hang out under the coop.

Macadamia is slightly smaller than Henrietta, for now.

Henrietta, trying to look taller.

We'll likely have more black lambs next spring since their daddy will be Gunpowder. 

Gunpowder, resting up before breeding season.

Almond is not black....yet.  He's hoping that if he rolls in the dirt enough, he'll fit in with the other boy sheep.  (The good news is that dirt washes out.  Grass and hay not so much.) 

Almond wearing shelter camo.

"Being awesome is exhausting." Pecan

A white llama looks good with black sheep....

"You shall not pass" Snowball

...see?  (I'm just thrilled to see them sharing a shelter so soon after Snowball's arrival!)

Waiting for the rain to stop.

If you give a man a camera...

...he will take pictures of himself with his llama....

...and give Pecan a spiky fleece-do (and take about fifteen pictures of it).