Thursday, September 17, 2015

Traitors!!!!!!





As planned the day started off with separating sheep. I really dislike separating the flock for market day. I always get a little tinge of guilt when I pass judgement on one of the poor lambs. I don't talk about it much we all know the fate of those who went to market. I have adjusted to this over the years by making sure I only allow certain ones I know will be kept to get too personal and act like pets.

Occasionally this backfires on me of course.




Like with Sandwich or Boris. Actually Boris was Mrs. PP's screw up she was the one who went and started petting him and feeding him treats with out checking the ear tag to know if he was a ram or a ewe first.

Sometimes we get an old ewe who goes into retirement and has been around long enough that we just keep her in the invalid flock.




The good thing about sheep is even the retired or the otherwise unsalable ones do prove somewhat useful at times. For instance in another month or so when we put the breeding ewes in with the rams the invalid flock helps the young ewes and slaughter lambs adjust to life without mom nearby. Usually by that time most of the lambs are independent but there is always a few hold outs. Sometimes we even find homes for the select few pet whethers or retired ewes believe it or not. Really though a couple of useless eaters are not that bad in the total scheme of things. So what I need 25 more bales a year I got the room to grow it.

Market day though is terrible for the lambs who didn't make the cut. At least the slaughter lambs get a few more months of carefree living yet. The market lambs get separated, shoved into a metal box that rolls down the road, then ran up a ramp into a pen with all kinds of other animals all around them. Poked by strangers with sticks and ultimately sold in a huge lot alone and separated from every thing they have even known mixed in with 100's or more strange sheep somewhere. All the while crying for mom and looking at me like they have just been betrayed by a beloved grandparent or something.

We had 15 earmarked for market today. We only took 14 because at the last minute my mother couldn't bring herself to load up the last bottle baby we couldn't find a home for. Honestly she is so small I doubt we will even notice the extra food expense anyway and maybe she will fill out enough to breed eventually. Bottle lambs sometimes take an extra year to grow enough for breeding.

At least I didn't sell them to Muslims who tie their legs together and throw them in the trunk on their way to slaughter in some back yard. Believe me I get calls from men with strange accents asking to do that very thing. Ever so often I actually let a lamb go through private sale for breeding or even as pets but when someone calls I tell them flat out I will not let an animal leave the place unless they are in a proper cage or trailer.

So our flock is much reduced in numbers this afternoon. We are now down to 38 total head. We kept 7 breeding ewes and 5 slaughter lambs that will be leaving us in January. We managed to sell 2 bottle baby whethers as pets earlier this year and 1 breeding ewe in a private sale but we have lost our original ram and 3 breeding ewes this year as well. Two ewes died while one is now officially retired.  It will take us a year at least to replace the breeding losses and get back to a steady growth once again.

On the bright side the bee growth was absolutely booming this year. More on that later.

Keep Prepping Everyone!!!!!!


15 comments:

  1. Soon they will show up with a marriage license and demand that you let the sheep ride in the car with the groom the courts will say it has to be.
    Rooster butchering day is one of the least happy days here.

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    1. Sf - LOL Prolly right!!!

      It's not that I disagree with the butchering. Or even have all that much against selling to a Muslim even though I don't think it is right as a Christian to support their culture. But damnit I refuse to treat an animal like they do. I mean sure ya gotta do the deed but tying them up for hours like that before you do it seems a bit too cruel for me and I will be no party to it.

      I hate butchering anything to be honest. I have done it. A lot when I was a kid and teenager and I disliked it so much then I swore I would never do it again unless I absolutely HAD to. So far it has seemed more pleasant to trade my labor and cash to other to do it for me. I still got all the equipment and know how if the trade thing stops working out for me though :)

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  2. I am still haunted by the looks in their eyes.

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    1. Tewshooz - OMG that look of betrayal and fear is haunting to say the least.

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  3. All of the above is a big reason why we couldn't raise goats here. Oh sure the worm/parasite battle was a ongoing battle in our humid hot weather as well.. but I would cry over selling them knowing they were going to the meat market. Then honeyman felt bad cuz I was crying and well it wasn't working out. It would take me sometime to get over it every time too. I agree talk about feeling like a heel.. whew I did... we refused to sell them to the people wanting to butcher them on our property! Oh ya they ask to do that. Some people around here will let them but we said no to that. ..... I simply don't have the stomach for the whole meat market thing. I am sure being vegetarian is why. I just can't do it. I am not saying everyone should be vegetarian but I am and it was just more than I could handle.

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    1. Texan - I must say that raising sheep insulates us a bit from it whereas as I understand it goats do not. Goat seems to be a bit more culturally preferred by the ones who are most guilty of that type of thing than lamp. Also they never actually offer me enough to even tempt me. I mean sure if I sell em one I don't have to take it to market so they think they deserve a price cut but I still have to take 13 others anyway. At the market I am insulated again from having to be the one to pull the trigger and witness it at least.

      I did have one guy ask to butcher on the place last year when I told him no to tying it up and putting it in his van. I had to decline him that request as well.

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    2. Oh and I applaud your vegetarianism. I mean if it gets real bad it's very nice of you to be ready for the ultimate sacrifice and all since you will have absolutely nothing to eat while we carnivores will still have some thing available :)

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    3. ROFL now how do you figure that? I see it just the other way around. I will always have something to eat ROFL... its surely not for everyone and thats cool :O). Its just who I am.. have been for over 30 yrs. :O).

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    4. Texan - Well say we were all taking a survival trip to Death Valley or the Arctic and the plane crashed. We would run out of food. Well you would run out of food before I did :)

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  4. Tomorrow is D day for the table ducks, anything destined for the table I make sure the have a happy life, food water shelter and protection they live a good life and I feel better about the whole thing, when it comes to the deed its done in a calm manner with no distress to animal or human, its not a pleasant job but we need to eat and that was the reason for raising them, :-)

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    1. Dawn - I am not a big fan of duck, that fatty layer kinda turns me off but I agree with your points that's for sure!!!!

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  5. Butchering.............yeah, I gotta admit something. Years ago I thought that I would be an abundant rabbit producer. It went just fine until it came to killing and butchering time. I'll just say that I sold out of that business in less than a year.

    I do not have any problems with butchering, per say. Like chickens, pigs, cattle, deer elk, bear, but those rabbits...........

    Bob
    III

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    1. idahobob - I admit it myself. I will do just about anything to keep from having to butcher something myself. I would rather clean out the septic tank with a five gallon bucket than butcher something. I really dislike it.

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  6. Farming is not for the faint hearted. I make my husband do any butchering. I cook :-)

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    1. Lisa - LOL. The wife and I were discussing that once when we were talking about getting chickens at Perkins one morning. During a lull in the general din of the place the wife suddenly said out loud "And who gets to do the killing"?

      I about lost it when everyone started looking at her.

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