This is Sorrel, VERY determined that this piece of cabbage is NOT going to get away (it didn't)!!
Today was meant to be dry but we had a torrential downpour mid-morning which sent everyone scurrying for cover, us included. And then the sun came out and someone drew back the cloud to reveal a stunning blue sky: such strange weather! It is all playing havoc with the goats' feet though and we have had several bouts of scald in between toes. Scald is caused by the bacteria Fusobacterium necrophorum, which is found naturally in the environment and can spread rapidly in warm, damp conditions – hence the goats suffering now. And loathe though we are to use medications too much, leaving scald untreated is both painful for the goat and very likely to get worse and, as with sheep, can become full-blown foot rot. Treating it quickly is the best option and so we always have a dedicated blue Terramycin spray in our medicine box that both helps to kill the bacteria and heal any soreness. It also helps to dry the foot off and so stop the scald reappearing.
We have had a couple of limps amongst the sheep too and so the blue spray has been out a lot recently. It is impossible not to spray some on one’s hands though so we have been sporting blue fingers a lot too!!
And as for the weather now, well, we have a Bank Holiday weekend coming up and unusually, we are promised very dry and warm weather!!!