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Sand Hill Thicket

Tales of stunning sunsets, happy sheep, and peace and quiet on a 10-acre farm in Northeastern Kansas.

Category

Sheep Management

Lambs!

We had a successful lambing season this year, thankfully, as last year didn't go well. We are back on track plus five healthy lambs! Gardenia Gardenia had her twins right on time in the evening, but she started getting a... Continue Reading →

We’ve Started Shearing Our Flock

We are neck-deep in fleece again! Shearing is in full swing. Beautiful fleeces are dropping daily. Here are a few for your viewing pleasure. Feta Sheep Tzatziki Delphis

It’s Shearing Time Again!

We are about a third of the way through shearing now. It takes us a couple of weeks because we not only shear each sheep, but we also do a health check, vaccinate, trim hooves, and then we skirt, grade,... Continue Reading →

Most of My Best Fleeces

https://youtube.com/shorts/OVsQ-GR7etQ?

The Solstice & Elderflowers

The longest day of the year. However, the days start getting shorter from here. Makes me want to stay up all night! I am surrounded by elderflowers and their intoxicating scent. I have to hurry and enjoy the cool of... Continue Reading →

Too Lazy To Push The Mower

I'm too busy with other projects and I really don't want to use the push-mower or weed-whacker. Next act: rams and wethers trim the garden area. The rams and wethers have been hard at work all spring weed-whacking for me.... Continue Reading →

The Sheep Have Been Shorn

It feels so good to be done with shearing! We feel so accomplished. We figure this must be how it feels to finish a full marathon. The sheep have all been shorn, vaccinated, and had their hooves trimmed. They are... Continue Reading →

The Shearing Cats

It's been an interesting shearing season! We've sheared in the cold, after the rain, in high humidity, in extreme heat, and surrounded by cats. The cats were there to annoy us every step on the way. They love the smell... Continue Reading →

Shearing Has Begun

We started shearing, but it has been really dreary, cold, and rainy. We took a couple of days off to let the sheep dry and now it's sprinkling again... The weather just doesn't want to cooperate this year. Sunday was... Continue Reading →

The Crocuses Are Up!

Spring is on its way! I'm so excited! Even though we are in between a couple of snowstorms from the stretching of the #PolarVortex, I can finally see the end of the tunnel. It's time to plant seeds for vegetable... Continue Reading →

Snow & Freezing Fog

We got about four (4) inches of snow in this last storm, and then had freezing fog this morning. It's a winter wonderland out there! My favorite (I don't even like snow) kind of snow is the kind that melts... Continue Reading →

Merry Christmas – Blogmas Day 24

Wishing you and your family a safe and healthy Christmas filled with good food, conversation, peace, and relaxation!

It’s Hard to Make Friends – Blogmas Day 14

I spent some time with my bottle lamb, Clove, today. I've been feeding her grain morning and night since I let the ewes back down to the barn for the winter, trying to get her to put some weight on.... Continue Reading →

12 Days To The Solstice – Blogmas Day 9

I can't wait! I might really love the holidays, but I think I love summer more. So, having the winter solstice so close is tantalizing! I can't wait for longer days, warmer temperatures, and green plants that are growing and... Continue Reading →

Racoon “Coon” the Flirting Ram – Blogmas Day 6

Coon loves babes (ewes) all year long. While the other rams gradually lose interest after the normal breeding season, Coon does not. We say he is "obsessed with babes". So, this time of year, he cops this pose as he... Continue Reading →

Sheepy Sunsets

I really feel like fall and winter sunsets are the most vivid here. Hence, I often linger, risking frostbite (okay, it's not THAT cold yet), to watch the colors appear. I really love the silhouettes of the defoliated trees against... Continue Reading →

A Typical Morning In The Barnyard…

Here's what my barnyard looks like on a typical morning. It's a bit crazy here. What's your typical morning barnyard/garden/backyard look like? I've been letting Clove, my 2021 bottle lamb, come and graze the clover around the barnyard while I... Continue Reading →

How to Introduce A Ram Into An Existing Ram Flock 2.0 (Video)

I've written about this topic before, but we've learned a lot since. We currently run a flock of five intact rams and two wethers; the primary ram (sire) and his six sons, which are all brothers or half brothers. Last... Continue Reading →

Lambs Get Their Own Pasture

I've been meaning to upload this video for a while - since Spring of 2020! #ThrowbackThursdays These 2020 lambs got their own pasture (free from their mums) that they could access by going through their creep pen. Lots of jealous... Continue Reading →

Beards & Wrinkles At Dawn

Thursday mornings I have to put the bin out for trash collection and the boys were out having an early morning graze. It was a beautiful morning for a few pictures. Especially good to catch a few of Hawk and... Continue Reading →

Pumpkins & Mowing & Mucking – Oh My!

The pumpkins are out of control! A vine came back from last year, which I think is either pumpkins or large orange gourds. It's taken over the ewe paddock outside their stall door. There are scores of baby pumpkins on... Continue Reading →

Ewes Go Bush Cutting

When we lived on the U.S. Territory of Guam, the locals would use the carabao to "do bush cutting". Back stateside, we would probably refer to that as weed whacking and we would use a weed whacker. Well, here on... Continue Reading →

Introducing: Heron the Ram

I wanted to introduce you to the patriarch of the next generation: Heron the Ram. He just turned one year old. His fleece is AMAZING just like his brother Hawk's fleece. They are both out of Tzatziki (very crimpy) and... Continue Reading →

Clove & Mamma Rhea the Grandmother Ewe

Clove was so proud of getting to the summit of the mountain, but grandmother was not pleased.

Shearing is Done!

Oh my, I never thought we'd shear that last sheep, but we've finally finished! This is the most sheep we've ever sheared in a season. We've got a pretty good system down now: we team shear, trim hooves, vaccinate, and... Continue Reading →

Late April Snowstorm: Lambs’ First Snow

April 20: Our last frost date was about two days before this... Don't worry, it all melted by 2pm that afternoon!

All Your Lamb Are Belong to Me! (Video)

Lambing has commenced! https://youtu.be/VqXm0cbdjsI Orange is in love with Clove, our bottle lamb from a set of mismatched twins. Notice Orange is bigger than Clove at 12 days old! Gardenia, a first time mum, gave birth to a set of... Continue Reading →

The End of the Deep Freeze is Nigh!

I can't wait for the #PolarVortex to be fully gone! We've had either negative wind chills or negative temps every night since the 5th and we've been solidly under 25°F this entire time. Serious #DeepFreeze! However, we've had perfectly wonderful... Continue Reading →

Ice Wars: Stock Tank Heaters

Orange Gives Lark A Bath

Orange gives Lark a bath. Warbler is so pushy...

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