Today we brought the first of our sheep indoors for lambing: Mrs White, Mrs Brown and Lamorna. They are due on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday respectively. We have given them the third stall in the barn which over the week we have cleaned out and treated with agricultural lime. One of the jobs the lime does is to ‘absorb’ the smell of ammonia (which comes from the wee of the animals) by improving the drainage of our acidic soil. Ammonia not only smells bad but air polluted with ammonia can cause respiratory issues. Lime also increases the pH of the soil/ground which in turn can help to destroy pathogens that cause disease. Lime is alkaline (above 6.0 pH) and as such is caustic and so gloves and masks need to be worn when applying it and only when it has been covered up with animal (bedding) and/or started to do its work, is it safe for the animals to go into the stalls. As our floors are earth and cannot be washed in the way we washed the concrete flooring of our old barn, lime is a perfect way to ‘disinfect’. We got all the sheep inside, vaccinated the last two ewes (due in 5 weeks) and then let them all back out apart from the three mums-to-be. Rather sadly Cadbury was seriously unhappy about this. In one move we had taken away his mum and sister plus Mrs White who he has known all his life. He took a lot of persuading to leave and then he stood and bleated the other side of the gate. When I later went up to feed the cows he followed me before giving up and returning to bleat back at the bottom gate. We felt terrible but there is no point in him staying inside plus he would actually be in the way and once these three lamb, they won’t have any time for him anyway.
The excitement and nervousness now begins - as do the frequent nightly checks! We are also a little worried about post lambing and turning the ewes and lambs out. The recent weather has made the land really wet, the wettest it has been all winter in fact, and the top of the 3-acre in particular (which is to be the turn-out field) is very soggy indeed. Plan B is to perhaps use one of the goat field shelters for a few days if we really feel we cannot put the sheep out on the grass! With no end in sight to the daily rain, this may end up being a distinct possibility!!!