Drumcliffe Farm

2010-11-22T16:44:00.000-08:00

1st snow

We're experiencing our first winter storm of the season. Plenty of snow and wind. I never seem to be ready for this or maybe I just try to deny the inevitable. I got a kick of watching the chickens deal with their first snow. Daisy was the first to fly out of the hen house this morning and land on the night's before snow. She would try to put her weight on one foot to take a step, sink into the snow and squawk. It wasn't until this afternoon that they seemed to figure out how to get around in the snow, or maybe they just got hungry enough to venture out. I made sure they had water in the hen house along with a light bulb for heat.

Speaking of chickens. We moved the henhouse-on-wheels into the garden for the winter. So instead of tilling in the remains of the crops and planting a cover crop, our chickens will hopefully take care of the garden for the winter. The barn cats had thought the garden was their venue but have seemed to accept their new partners.

If the snowstorm was not interesting enough, today was the day we scheduled to break up the breeding groups, loan one of our rams to a friend for their breeding program, and transport sheep to the butcher to fill our holiday locker lamb order. This is all pretty challenging in its own right, but add a blizzard to the equation and now we had a real challenge. We got it all done and everybody has seemed to settle down in their new pastures and barns. In fact, we saw Arthur (our loaner ram) getting down to business as we drove off after dropping him off at our friends' farm. And Jan and the dogs are taking a nap in front of the fireplace.

Now its time for the winter rhythms to set in. The rams are in the ram barn and the ewes are in the ewe barn. I have a pile of fleece left from last year's shearing to process and I'd sure like to clear the project table by the time we shear on Feb 12th. I'd also like be able to spend a little more time at the feed store and/or the coffee shop.

WINTER ON!!!

2010-10-14T13:30:00.000-07:00

BREEDING SEASON

We turned the rams out on October 9th which is consistent with our schedule last year. This allows us to shear in early February, puts lambs on the ground in March, and weaning in early May. Though our lambs are small for the show ring at Black Sheep Gathering, this schedule seems best considering our weather and pasture condition. Setting up and separating different breeding groups means of course that we needed to handle all the sheep. This exercise along with the recent sheep handling for the Oregon Flock and Fiber Festival once again stressed the importance of developing a level of trust with the flock. It's more and more obvious that most of our more mature animals are much easier to handle, both the rams and the ewes. I mainly attribute that to fact that they know us and trust us. Though they may think it all a bit bothersome, they seem to accept what we need to do and put up with it. It's always the lambs that put up the biggest fight.

The pastures are in great condition and the breeding groups all seem to be doing quite well on the fresh grass. Actually the pastures look the best they have all season. Even though the grass is plentiful I'm trying to supplement it with a bit of baled hay from time to time. They seem to like the balance of fresh and cured feed. Because I don't want the working rams to share a fenceline, not all ewes have access to the barn but they all have shelter of one kind or another. Some of the girls miss their barn and tell me about it every chance they get. But I remind them that they are a primitive breed of sheep and they need to get over it. I do see the value of the barn and know they like to loaf there and spend the night. I'm sure they sense the higher degree of security and it reduces stress. They'll get back to the barn after the rams are finished with their business. - Jeff

2010-09-29T19:37:00.000-07:00

FRIENDS

Allow me to reflect a bit more on the Oregon Flock and Fiber Festival last week-end in Canby. I've been thinking how absolutely impossible it would have been for us to even consider taking part in this festival without the help of dear friends. We showed 8 animals and had a small farm booth to sell some of our wool products. Showing animals means catching them at the farm, loading them into a trailer, unloading them at the fairgrounds, leading them to their stalls in the barn, leading them to the show ring, actually showing the animals, leading them back to the barn, loading them back in the trailer, and finally unloading them back home on the farm. Jacob sheep, being a primitive breed, are not very tame. And I have never found the time to try to halter break them. Thus, moving these sheep can be quite a physical challenge. At one point we had 3 different animals being judged at the same time. This all makes me so thankful for our friends that never seem to hesitate to step forward when we so desperately need them. I can always count on help for sheep shows, shearing, weaning, and vaccinations.

I realize there's an inherent reward when we help others. It feels good and it must be hard-wired in the human social animal to so willingly help those in need. Thank goodness! But I realize now that it feels just as good to ask for help. What a relief it is to set aside that misguided American ethic of self reliance and accept the fact that we are a community. I know many are hesitant to ask for help mistakenly believing its a sign of weakness and a sort of giving in. I can testify that asking for help is just as rewarding as giving help.

I can't thank you all that have helped here at Drumcliffe Farm and have geiven me the opportunity to ask for your help. Your responses and efforts have meant everything to me. And be assured you'll be asked again! - Jeff

2010-09-27T19:22:00.000-07:00

OREGON FLOCK AND FIBER FESTIVAL

The 2010 festival is over, our sheep are back on the farm, and we're sort of unloaded. For sure, I've had a chance to breathe and have begun to reflect a bit on the week-end. We showed 8 animals and displayed a humble variety of wool products at our little farm booth. We had some significant success in the show ring and made a few sales of fleeces and yarns. More importantly we had a chance to visit with some old and new friends. We also "talked sheep" with who I'd call the general public. Some of this "public" can be very well informed while others have never been exposed to Jacob sheep or wool processing. We loved talking to both! What a great opportunity this event provides for farm and city to come together. One of my frustrations has been how few of our urban neighbors come to visit the farm even though I've tried to keep the farm gate wide open. This festival finally allowed us to tell our story. We saw many reach such a valuable awareness as they listened to our story while holding a batt of wool in one hand and touching the very animal the wool came from with the other hand.

Here's a partial list of our awards from the show ring:

1st place Jacob ram yearling - "David"
1st place Jacob ewe lamb - "Sara Beth"
1st place Jacob ewe yearling - "Elaine"
2nd place Jacob ewe yearling - "Lady Anne"
1st place Jacob young flock
Champion Jacob ewe - "Sara Beth"
Reserve Grand Champion ewe, Classic Sheep Show - "Sara Beth"
Best Jacob Fleece - "Sara Beth"

I think the award for the best fleece was the most meaningful to us since our prime objective is to produce quality fleece for handspinners. It was nice to have our labors recognized in this manner. Last year "Lady Anne" was the Grand Champion ewe of the Classic Sheep Show and since then has developed quite an attitude. I guess we can look forward to the same from "Sara Beth", especially once both are back in the pasture and can compare notes.

2010-09-17T08:53:00.000-07:00

A NIGHT OUT

Last night Jan and I took a break and attended a performance of the Oregon Symphony Orchestra with guest artist Joshua Bell at the Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall in downtown Portland. It was a spontaneous decision to go and I figure spontaneity is always a good thing, especially when its so easy to get buried in the consistent rhythms of farm life. As I sat waiting for the performance to begin I took in the opulence of this great restored concert hall and reflected on how blessed we are. Here I am in this great hall next to folks that are dressed in something other than boots and blue jeans. There's chandeliers rather than fly-specked bare light bulbs, beautifully sculpted carpet rather than dirt floor with straw highlights, the tinkling of wine glasses rather than the peeping of insistent chicks, the sweetly mixed smell of perfumes and and colognes rather than - well, I think you get the picture. Earlier in the day Jan cleaned out the chicken coop and I was still recovering from unloading and stacking 3 tons of grass hay in the ram barn the day before. And later, in the same day, we're at a performance of the Oregon Symphony Orchestra - amazing.

One of the pieces played was the "Orchestral Suite from The Tender Land" by Aaron Copeland, one of my favorite composers. The melodies remained with me yet this morning as I did my chores and checked out the health of the pastures. I was anxious to see how they were responding to the recent warm rains and was pleased to see a growth of new grass. This should give the flock some good feed, reduce our dependency on baled hay, and at the very least give the pastures a healthy secure basis as they enter the winter months. Copeland provided a whole new way to view my "tender land" and I gained a whole new appreciation of what we had accomplished here, and what still awaits us. My time in the pasture took a little longer than usual, the sheep seemed a bit more at peace, the clouds were whiter, the skies were bluer, the grass was greener, the rain was wetter, and the warm was warmer.

I think Copeland stuck with Jan as well but maybe in a bit different direction. As I return to the house after my chores, I normally find Jan reading the morning newspaper with her first cup of coffee. This morning I found her barefoot, in my bathrobe, and a pair of rubber gloves on the kitchen porch tending her natural dye pots. I guess beautiful music can move us all.

2010-09-09T14:52:00.000-07:00

SURPRISE AT DUSK

The other evening I wanted to move the rams from one of our lower pastures back up to the barn for the night. I normally leave them out at night and they seem to enjoy sleeping under some of the big Doug firs along the fenceline. I had planned to rotate them to a new pasture in the morning so thought I'd just get ahead of the plan a bit. And besides it was a pleasant evening. Our sheep have learned to come to me with a call of "Sheep, sheep, sheep". They know to move away from me with a call of "Up, up, up". This has allowed me to have them follow me or I can herd them from behind the flock depending on the need. No matter which I use, Melody our guard llama seems always to bring up the rear. Of course when she's moving the sheep on her own she pretty much is always in the lead.

So back to the task of moving the rams. I knew they were below a slight hill and out of sight. Rather than hike down the hill to herd them up I called out "Sheep, sheep, sheep" and they soon began their way up the hill toward me at the gate. As I started back to the barn I looked back over my shoulder to make sure all were following and noted the flock had grown by five. Three deer and two barn cats (Barney and Gunther). The deer soon came to the realization that it may not be in their best interest to respond to my voice commands and be following me. It was as if a switch was turned on and over the fence and into the woods they bolted. The cats stayed the course.

I can only attribute this rather strange behavior to the fact that the deer saw that the sheep were very quick to respond to my call and they must have thought the sheep sensed a danger. Because they couldn't sense any danger themselves they figured they would go along with the sheep just in case. Once they realized I was in the lead they decided to return to being deer.

2010-09-01T20:37:00.000-07:00

CLOSING SUMMER

Summer is coming to a close. The grandkids will be leaving us soon to return home and to school. They've both seem to have grown so much this summer. Our laying hens are now comfortable in their rolling coop in the pasture. We recently did a bit of remodeling and constructed new nesting boxes. I noted tonight as I closed them up for the night that all were using the boxes, so hopefully our first crop of fresh eggs will be soon delivered. We also just completed a rolling chicken run for our fryers. It should be easy enough to move that we can move it to fresh ground each day. After a touch-and-go garden season with a cold wet Spring and a hot-dry summer, the vegetable garden is looking pretty productive and harvest has begun. I still think if we get any ripe tomatoes, it will be a miracle.

Our newly installed solar photovoltaic panels have finally passed the final inspection and we are now producing electricity. We even have a new meter that shows whether we are either pulling in electricity from the utility or pushing out power to the grid. Its not as if I sit and stare at this meter for hours however on the sunniest days I tend to check it out more often. PGE, our utility, estimates that our 2.4 kW system will reduce our carbon dioxide emissions by 2165 pounds annually. We're now part of a solar powered grid producing enough electricity to power over 1,263 homes a year. That feels pretty good.

2010-08-03T14:51:00.000-07:00

SORRY FOR THE ABSENCE

The other day someone pointed out to me that I had not composed a blog entry for some time. To tell you the truth, I didn't think anyone was actually reading my blogs. And, we've been pretty busy around here and I just didn't carve out anytime to write. I'm going to try to get back into a routine that will include a bit of writing once in awhile. If nothing else, it will require me to sit down, relax a bit and celebrate the life we live here on the farm. And it will allow me to reflect on what we have accomplished and dream of what is yet to come. So to catch up since Spring weaning:

The grandkids have returned for another summer session of Grandma and "Papa" summer camp. That includes swim lessons, tennis lessons, and an art school.

We took a few of our animals to Black Sheep Gathering in Eugene. We didn't show too well but I attribute that to our late lambing and thus small stature lambs.

A lot of cold rain this Spring that seemed to help out pastures but was tough on our vegetable garden. I've had to mow the pastures twice already to keep the grasses from going to seed. At this writing, the hot dry season has set in and I've begun to feed hay remaining from last year, though the sheep still seem to prefer the pastures.

Melody, our guard llama, still never ceases to amaze me. The other day I had called the ewes up to the barn. When Melody didn't come with the ewes I was quick to accuse her of being obstinate and I started down into the pasture in a foul mood to get her. As I crested the knob that keeps the bottom of the pasture from view I saw Melody herding 4 ewes up to the barn. She had heard me and was only trying to move the 4 ewes that hadn't heard me. I was quick to apologize.

We've joined a local venture, the Sandy Area Farm Loop. This is a group of local area small farms that the public is welcome to visit, particularly on week-ends. No visitors yet, but the new brochure/map has not yet been printed and their website has not been updated to include Drumcliffe Farm.

We're only a couple of days away plugging in our new array of photovoltaic panels that will hopefully generate a significant portion of our electricity needs. This has been a long term dream and the house was designed and sited on the property with this objective in mind.

Speaking of conservation matters, our 1500 gallon rain cistern is now fully operational. This collects rain water from the roof which we use to water the vegetable garden. When there is no rain, the cistern is slow-filled from our well. Seems to work well and will work even more efficiently once I've expanded the drip irrigation system.

Our chicks (we're running a bit late on this one) are just about to be released from the brooding box in the barn to the pasture and their coop on wheels. The idea here is to roll these layers into the pasture as the sheep are rotated out. Once the brooder box is empty I hope to start a crop of fryers.

We've registered for the Oregon Flock and Fiber Festival in September where we'll once again show a few of our sheep and have a small retail space in the animal barn. We're scrambling to produce product for this show as well as keep our regular customers provided with fleece.

And of course we've had our regular share of visitors and celebrations on the farm. Both family and friends. Right now we are hosting Sarah Swett from Moscow, Idaho who is here to teach a special tapestry class at the Damascus Fiber Arts School.

And finally, speaking of family, we'll soon be packing up the grandkids for a trip to San Francisco to meet their new cousin who'll be arriving in the United States from Ethiopia with his new parents within the next couple of days. What a dear blessing!

I promise my blog posts will be more frequent.

2010-05-20T17:45:00.000-07:00

THE SHEPHERD

I've recently had another opportunity to understand how my role as shepherd is defined. This has always been a humbling experience, probably because its not me doing the defining. The role of shepherd has evolved over centuries and even a control freak like me can do little to influence it one way or another.

We began weaning the lambs the other day. And like so many events here at Drumcliffe Farm, the experienced ewes are quick to recognize that their lives or environment have been altered, not necessarily in a good way. It always amazes me that the very same animals that are normally sure to keep their safe distance from me are just as quick to seek me out during times of stress or danger to seek a solution. Its not as if they they see me as the solution, its more that they expect me to find the solution - fix the problem. It started in the morning as we brought all the sheep into the barn from the pastures to sort out the lambs. Our neighbors, friends, and family had gone into the pasture to gather up the sheep and push them to the barnyard. At that moment, I realized that the sheep saw these strangers as a potential danger and I directed my help to the sides and simply called the flock to me. They calmly followed me right into the barnyard. The day ended with the lambs separated from their mothers and the annual lamb/ewe chorus began in earnest. I left Melody, our guard llama with the lambs, which calmed them. However, the ewes were on their own. For the next few days I could see it in their eyes. They weren't angry, or scared, accusatory. They simply and honestly wanted me to bring their lambs back to them. But they still trusted me to do what was right. In time after a few days, they still sensed that I could fix what they perceived as a problem, but their acceptance slowly grew.

This is difficult to explain to someone that has never experienced caring for a domesticated animal like sheep. Its not the same relationship as a with a pet cat or a pet dog. A human/pet relationship is more of a mutual benefit sort of thing, and dogs and cats have evolved (with our selective breeding) for thousands of years to fill an especially unique companion role. Domesticated farm animals have also evolved (with our help again) to fill a bit different role. Sheep, even the supposed "primitive" breed like our Jacobs, depend on the shepherd to survive. They would not exist without the shepherd. I know that and I believe they know it as well. I know there are a few exceptions of sheep and goats "going rogue" and surviving in the "wild", but that is not a viable self-sustaining population.

I have a healthy relationship with my flock. I understand my stewardship responsibilities and provide their needs. I thank them for their service to me and honor their existence. I am truly blessed.

2010-04-27T07:33:00.000-07:00

PICTURES

Yesterday we took time off from getting the garden in to take photos of this year's lamb crop and get a first chance to really assess their fleece. We have photos of each sheep at a few days old but feel that you need to give them a few weeks to begin to display their true selves. Of course it was a real rodeo! A lot of chasing around, waving our arms, running in circles, swearing, and calling out in frustration. Chaos and confusion ruled the day. It was as if this was a brand new strange alien world for all involved with shocking surprises around every corner. Just as we'd think we had it under control, we'd be kicked back to square one. And the noise! My God, The caterwauls, the pleading to the heavens. You'd think it was the end of the world.

And that was just trying to edit the pictures and get them loaded onto our computer! I'll tell you of us trying to catch the sheep in another blog.

2010-04-14T09:04:00.000-07:00

ANTHROPOMORPHIZE

Anthropomorphize. What an interesting word and what an even more interesting concept. Fun to say too. I'm no Latin expert but the two key roots of the word as I understand it are anthro and morph (human and form). The dictionary defines anthropomorphize as "to ascribe human characteristics to things not human". I've been accused of being anthropomorphic and I'll admit right here and now that I'm guilty! Not only guilty but a bit proud of it. I do have a philosophical problem with the term itself. It seems more than a bit egocentric on the part of the specie Homo sapien. More accurately, speciecentric. I bet my sheep often ascribe sheep characteristics and behavior to me. And that's my point. It seems pretty logical that I would see similarities between my sheep and myself, and other two-legged residents of Drumcliffe Farm. We certainly share a lot of the same genetic code and we evolved from a common ancestor. (I'm still waiting for an invitation to that family reunion.) Spend some time on a sheep farm during this season of pregnancy, lambing, young lambs, and weaning and I guarantee that you'll be ascribing all kinds of human characteristics to the sheep.

And here's another one: "Sheep are stupid." I can't think of anything further from the truth. They know exactly what is going on and they certainly have enough intelligence to outsmart me. I have one ewe that will pretend to be eating hay from a manger that I built right next to the gate I open and close regularly as I go about my chores. She knows that a bit of grain and the fresh stack of hay are stored on the other side of that gate. If I'm looking at her she'll be standing at the manger pretending to eat hay and will be completely ignoring me. She's not really eating anything -just goes through the motions. As soon as I turn my back she focuses right in on me and the gate latch. If I turn around she goes right back to her act. If I give her any space at all, and she thinks I'm not watching, she makes her move and slips through the gate. Of course she never makes it to the grain or haystack before I catch her. I'm beginning to think her objective is not the grain or the hay but is the game itself.

I love to watch the lambs this time of year, before they're weaned. They have so much to learn. Most of their first days are all instinct and their behaviors are hard-wired: standing, nursing, jumping, responding to mother's call, etc. But after a couple of days they venture away from their mothers to learn for themselves and to explore their world and capabilities. I get the biggest kick when I first perceive their recognition of me and how they try to make sense of who I am and why I am important in their world. Am I someone to be avoided, someone they could trust, or a bit of both? Of course it all depends on how their mother perceives of me, but once I see that they are beginning to figure the whole thing out for themselves, I try to respond in a positive non-threatening way. I figure that will pay dividends in the long run.

2010-03-26T16:32:00.000-07:00

LAMBING SEASON IS NOW CLOSED!

Lambing season at Drumcliffe Farm has officially come to a close. And with a bit of drama. After I spent most of the night expecting some activity, Olivia finally decided to get down to business about 9AM. She was in labor about 1 hour and delivered a nice strong ram without difficulty. I knew she had multiple lambs to deliver but she seemed more interested in the first born than going back into labor. I was a bit concerned but decided to leave her to her own design. I was to help a friend shear his flock at 11 AM so I gave him a call and told him not to expect me but would try to be there if I could. After the first-born got his fill and she was able to put him down for a nap, Olivia finally got serious about the second labor. Since the first delivery was so quick once she started serious contractions, I figured the second would be the same normal presentation. She went down and began contractions just as with the first. After she stood and I was able to get a closer look, I recognized the second lamb was full breech. The process seemed too far along to reposition the lamb, and there seemed to be some room left for my hand. I was able to alternate tugs and twists and when the moment came, gave the lamb a strong pull. I quickly cleared the airway and tickled his nose with a piece of straw. Another strong lamb, stood early, and after only a bit of my coaching he got his share of mother's colostrum.

So, the season is over. I look forward to a full night's sleep. But honestly, I'm sad its over. Its been a very special time.

2010-03-23T13:34:00.000-07:00

PATIENCE MAKES A WISE SHEPHERD

Not to say I'm particularly wise. In fact, I'm far from it. But something this morning allowed my wise voice to speak over the chaos of fear and questions. I ventured out to the barn about 2AM knowing that 2 of my ewes were starting to show external signs that their lambs were beginning to line up for their big moment. Sure enough, Tomi was out in the barnyard pacing around and talking to anyone that would listen and Mary was in a corner inside the barn with indications that her water had just broke and spending a lot of effort chasing other lambs from her maternity room. I was more concerned with Mary but also knew we had to keep an eye on Tomi as well. I gave Jan and Zoe a flashlight and sent them out to the cold dark morning while I pulled up a comfortable chair in front of the heater in the barn to watch Mary. Barney the barn cat recognized a good thing and nestled on my lap. I of course would call out to Jan and Zoe periodically to make sure the batteries in their flashlight were holding out. Mary really never got down to business and Tomi soon had twins which she quickly cleaned and started them nursing. We easily moved them from outside to one of the lambing jugs. Though she was obviously in some distress and making a little progress, by 4 AM Mary still wasn't very far along. Zoe retreated to bed but Jan got a couple of blankets and stayed by my side. By 5 AM Mary was trying her best but no lamb was showing. All kinds of visions of abnormal births started tormenting me. The first challenge would simply be to catch and restrain her and I knew Mary well enough that I wasn't looking forward to that bit of rodeo action. She had been in labor for a long time and I was worried. That's when the patience thing came into play. I was very tired and decided to leave her alone for 1 hour and go back to the house and bed. Maybe at least my mind would be clear. At 6:30 AM, with a great deal of trepidation, I made it back out to the barn. During the short walk from the house I was doing an inventory of all the equipment I would need to gather and reviewing in my head all the illustrations in the book of abnormal birth presentations. I nearly turned around, fearing what I would find. I gingerly wound my way through the newly awakened flock and nursing lambs toward the corner where Mary had staked out. She was gone! I quickly made my way to the barn door to inspect the barnyard. No sign of her! I went back into the barn for a second look and realized I had actually already stepped over her and her new twins twice in my search. Amazing! Mary was fine, the lambs were clean, and both were nursing. I went back to bed.

2010-03-21T12:45:00.000-07:00

NATURE SPEAKS

With only three of our older ewes still to lamb, our lambing season is nearly over. Though we've lost four lambs so far, I'm generally pleased. Very tired, but pleased. The timing seems to be good too since our pastures are greening up nicely with a mix of warm sun and soft rain, which our newly lactating mothers really enjoy.

The first of our fatalities I discussed on my last blog.

The second was a bit of a surprise. First-time mother, single birth. The labor was very easy and quick which first led me to believe that the lamb suffered no trauma and should be healthy. I didn't even know she was close to lambing. In hindsight, I'm now thinking the whole thing was too easy and too quick. Labor and delivery involves a lot of triggers in both the lamb and the ewe and I wonder if those magic little moments never happened. The lamb never was able to stand on her own and was weak from the get-go. I easily milked the mother out and we stomach-tubed and bottle fed the lamb. The tubing got her the necessary colostrum but she never quite took to the bottle. I don't feel there was too much more we could have done.

The third was from an unobserved twin birth and was deceased by the time I found her. So a bit of mystery. The mother had her cleaned but it appears it never stood or struggled from where she landed.

The fourth may have been the most difficult for me as the shepherd. He was one of a triplet birth from Danie. Danie is the ewe that suffered from pregnancy toxemia last year with her triplets. I was feeling pretty smug this year since I had recognized her toxemic condition earlier and was able to treat her earlier with much less intrusion. Rather than close her in a treatment pen, as I did last year, I was able to give her propylene glycol orally as needed. She lambed unobserved and when I arrived on-scene two boys were with Danie getting plenty of attention and a third boy was off by himself in the barnyard - standing and cleaned but by himself. "Off by himself" seemed to be his style from that point on. In fact, he was small enough to escape the lambing jug twice. He seemed strong but never seemed to figure out where the milk source was located. He had good suckling instincts and I successfully bottle-fed him but he just seemed a bit lost. Jan thinks he was blind, which I understand is possible. I may have been able to make a bummer lamb out of him but chose not to. Here is where my challenge as the shepherd arose. We decided to raise the Jacob breed of sheep specifically because their "primitive" qualities meant they needed less care and maintenance. I decided to help him along with a little bottle feeding and some coaching but also decided to let Nature speak. I found him dead in the lambing jug one morning and released Danie and her, still very small boys, to the rest of the flock. They're doing fine.

It's Spring Break for the schools this next week and our number-one hand, our granddaughter, is now here to help finish the season. Maybe I'll get a little more sleep.

2010-03-13T12:06:00.000-08:00

NAMING OUR LAMBS

Some have questioned why we name our lambs rather than simply keeping track of them with an ear tag number. We started naming the lambs after friends and neighbors that have helped us out on the farm in some manner. It probably seems pretty personal and we often get the typical response:

"How can you eat lamb if you know their names? As in please pass me another serving of George."

True, I can sense a bit of hesitancy when we let someone know they have a namesake frolicking out in the pasture, or if they actually come to the farm to visit their namesake, or especially if they know that "George" will soon be headed to the butcher. But after that initial pause, what I see is the honest seeking of their own personal connection with reality. In a way, it forces them to define for themselves what it means to be an omnivore. And if that process isn't triggered on its own, I make sure I help it along. It really is a visible sense of recognition that I see. I think it can only be positive when a 21st century grocery store shopper comes face to face with the reality of the farm, and I'm glad to help. I have to admit though that I soften things a bit when I deliver fresh lamb meat to a customer and even if they ask "Is this George?", I'll refuse to tell them.

Speaking of reality, we had a good healthy dose of it this morning. I was about to release a new mother and her twins from the lambing jug and put them in the pasture when I noticed that one of the twins was lethargic. Upon further investigation we discovered that he was born without an anus. Not necessarily common but it happens enough to be fully referenced in the sheep library I've accumulated. Not much option here but to put him down so he wouldn't suffer. He was a strong lamb in his first day or so and nursed normally, so this was a bit of a disappointment. The grandkids insisted on a full ceremony so we selected a nice sunny clearing down in the woodlot across Butterfly Creek.

Danie, one of older ewes suffered pregnancy toxemia last year before delivering triplets. With that in mind, I was keeping a close watch this year. I was able to begin treatments a little earlier this year when she started showing the typical symptoms so I hope this year won't be as traumatic as last years. I predict triplets again. However, even though she is one of our sweetest girls and probably the matriarch of the flock, she'll need to be culled after this year.

2010-03-09T20:06:00.000-08:00

WE'RE DROPPIN' LAMBS ON THE GROUND

Well, not exactly, but the ewes are, sort of. Our lambing season has kicked into a higher gear and we're being blessed with a great new crop of new-born lambs. The ewes have free access to both a pasture and the barn during lambing. Just as thought I had them figured out and they were choosing the barn to lamb this year, Bella surprised me with choosing a rather sunny little patch of grass under one of our large Doug firs way down at the bottom of the pasture. I had come home from a trip to town, scanned the pasture and noted Melody (our guard llama) standing over one of the ewes prone on the ground, which is a sure sign of birth in progress. I ventured down the hill toward the site and saw that I missed the blessed event by only a few moments. Bella popped up and began to clean the new-born. Melody assisted by nudging the lamb to get it to stand. Bella took turns cleaning the new-born and continuing labor with the next in line. The second was born within only a few minutes. Rather than swoop in and cart all three back to a lambing jug in the barn, I decided to let Nature take its course. I settled down on my own patch of grass in the sun to enjoy the next hour or so. Bella got both lambs cleaned up and with the help of Melody, got both to stand and nurse. Storm clouds were approaching and I thought it time. I slowly approached the new family, after assuring Melody I meant no harm, and began to carry the new lambs up to the barn. It was a bit of a hike carrying two lambs up the hill while hunched over to keep them within clear sight of Bella but she is a good mother and stayed right with me.

Having seen both, I have to admit that lambing in the barn is a bit easier on the shepherd, but in this case, with the warm sun shining, allowing Bella her special time in the pasture was, without a doubt, the best. However, let there be no doubt - all the ewes will be closed into the barnyard each night because I have very little interest in stumbling around the pasture at 3AM looking for that one pregnant ewe who has a sudden urge to be independent and express her love of the great outdoors.

New Lambs are Making Their Appearance

2010-03-08T19:17:00.000-08:00

We have had four lambs born since Mar. 2nd. I want you to meet them!! 1st (Mar. 2)- Drumcliffe Duck (U of O)born to Holly II and August, 2nd Mar. 2) Drumcliffe Cindie and Drumcliffe Bob, twins born to Mae and August , and 3rd (Mar. 8) Drumcliffe Ronald born to April and Jake. In case you are wondering, we try to name our lambs with the names of people who have helped out at the February shearing. Lots of folks get a big kick out of this and so do we. These names are affectionately given and we are reminded of dear friends when we look out at our flock throughout the year that follows.

We have 11 more expectant ewes so the next few weeks should be very exciting. Jeff is getting up every three hours to check on the flock. Sometimes I actually hear the alarm and get up too. Our ewes are such good mothers, and all their lambs have been very strong. The ewes always have a choice of having their babies outside or inside the barn, but we think these girls like to come inside to give birth contrary to what we've heard about Jacobs liking to give birth in the pasture.

Jeff is gone to a meeting tonight, so I am checking the barn. The ewe that we think is having triplets looks suspiciously ready. I'd better get out there. ---Jan

2010-02-27T17:45:00.000-08:00

MELODY, OUR GUARD LLAMA

I realized that I have yet to write about Melody, our guard llama. Allow me to correct this slight. She deserves it.

This morning, while I was making my daily walk down the drive to retrieve the newspaper, I heard Melody give her alarm call. Whenever I hear her call out like that, I of course try to identify the danger she perceives, but I also try to let her know that I hear her and will respond. She gets a little put out if I ignore her and don't do my job as the flock shepherd, so I've learned to at least gaze in the same direction she is looking, and look real tough. If I have the chance I'll stand beside her and stare down the danger (even if I can't see it). We make a formidable pair! This morning she was staring something down in our neighbor's woods. That certainly made me a bit nervous since we're so close to lambing. I followed her line of sight to a beam of morning sunrise that was snaking through the woods to a freshly cut round from a felled tree. This was just about the only thing in the woods that was illuminated by the morning sun and the circle of growth rings certainly looked threatening, like a giant eye. Melody had every right to be alarmed, especially since this newly felled tree was a new element in her environment. She already had the flock gathered up and was ready to lead them back to the barn. As she watched, and continued her alarm calls, I walked through the woods to the fallen tree. Once I reached it, she must have realized that it did not present any danger and she released the flock back to their graze.

I've noticed, that as we get closer to lambing, the ewes move about the pasture a bit more deliberately and seem to defer to Melody more than usual. I'm certain that they recognize the security she provides. The Jacob ewes prefer to lamb in the pasture and will remove themselves from the flock to be alone at this special time. I don't try to interfere at this point but I do like to eventually move the ewe and her newborn lamb(s) into a lambing jug for a couple of days. The problem is to recognize that one of the girls has sneaked off by herself. However, it usually turns out that she won't be alone. I can usually scan the pasture and if I spot that long neck of Melody's I can bet that there will be a ewe in labor at her feet.

Though the ewes are settling down for their big day, last years lambs are not pregnant, and still like to play. Normally Melody puts up with this juvenile boisterous behavior, and at times even joins in. Lately however, she's quick to correct the young ones and settles them down. Its almost as if she knows that the ewes need some predictable stress-free flock behavior right now.

Melody joined our farm as a guard animal and she has more than filled that role. I often find her sleeping in the open doorway of the barn while the rest of the flock is settled in for the night well inside the barn. She's the flock mistress and I've come to the realization that our farm will be best served if I simply follow her lead. What's both maddening and rewarding at the same time is that she knows that I know that she is the boss.

Melody's humble assistant, Jeff

2010-02-18T19:27:00.000-08:00

MEAT DELIVERY

I've just returned from delivering fresh lamb meat to a few of our customers. It was a beautiful day with a bright sun that seemed to raise everyone's spirits. Today's clear skies, my delivery tasks, the new green grass, the very pregnant ewes, and visions of the new lambs that will soon to be joining our flock, all led me to think a bit more than I usually do about that sunshine. I'll get back to the sun thing later, but first -

I don't apologize for the pride I felt today as I delivered fresh lamb meat to my customers. When we first entered into this venture, one of our objectives was to honor the small family model of agriculture that was so important in the history of this country. It simply wasn't enough to raise healthy sheep in an ecologically sustainable way, or to conserve an heirloom breed of sheep and its genetic pool, or earn show ribbons, or sell breeding stock to others that also had similar objectives. What was equally, or perhaps even more important, was that we had an end product (or products) that a customer base would be willing to fairly compensate us for. It wasn't critical that we make a lot of money, but to honestly honor the history of agriculture we had to be rewarded for our efforts. With the help from our customers today, we met that so important objective - and thus my pride as I delivered each of those boxes of meat. Its the same pride I feel when I send out bags of fleece or batts of processed wool.

Back to the sun thing. I realize that I didn't create these products that bring me such pride. The ewes and the rams certainly had something to do with it. My pride comes in the fact that I was able to harvest the sun by capturing its energy in grass and forage, and then able to convert it from grass to meat and fleece. Of course I had to be smart about it and work a bit. But with a bit of husbandry and sensitive stewardship of this little piece of the earth, I can provide a discerning customer with a product that they can be assured was raised in a ecologically sustainable manner that fully recognized the completeness of each animal. Thus my pride. And to my customers: Bon Apetit.

2010-02-09T21:42:00.000-08:00

A TIME TO REFLECT

I delivered 5 animals to the slaughter house today to fill our customers' orders for meat. I suppose its obligatory that I comment on how I felt about that on this blog. In fact, I have been thinking about all the profound meaningful things I could say and how I could justify killing beings that I have named, raised, and have come to understand each of them as individuals. Each had its own personality and lived their life on Drumcliffe Farm a bit different than their flock members. I was prepared to write about how these sheep had fulfilled their destiny as domesticated species on a sustainable small family farm; how they lived a comfortable, safe, stress-free existence with dignity; how they were allowed to fulfill their potential with respect for their well-being; how they had provided us with quality fleece; and how they ultimately will provide sustenance for friends and neighbors. I pray they will be honored at a sumptuous feast and provide joy at a memorable meal in the near future. I was prepared to write all that, and more, until I unloaded them from the trailer after a short drive from the farm to a local butcher. The very same animals that would take extraordinary measures to make sure they were never within my reach, animals that would either jump over or jump through gates to escape me, were suddenly converted to animals that could not get close enough to me. If they could, I'm sure they would have jumped in my arms and would have been happy to sit in the front seat, next to me in my truck for a quick drive home. Now, in this foreign place, I was no longer the human that was important to avoid, I was the human that would correct this mistake and put things back as they were meant to be. With effort I hadn't ever expected to expend, I finally got them in the holding pen at the slaughter house. My preparation to write eloquently to express all my positive feelings as a proud farmer, fulfilling the honorable business of American agriculture, totally went up in smoke. Let there be no confusion, I still had an abundance of positive feelings and pride - but I lost the ability, or the desire, to express myself in the written word. Anything I could possibly write seemed to be so trivial compared to the relationship I had with those five sheep at that moment.

I remembered being a guest years ago at a First Foods Ceremony at a long house on the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs reservation. At that meal we honored all the food by stating the name of the food before we consumed it: water, huckleberry, camas root, salmon, venison, etc. It was simple and done with very little flash. Just a straight-forward honest recognition of each specie and their worth. A way to express one's thanks and his or her gratefulness for their contribution. I decided to do the same this morning. After completing my business in the office with the butcher, I returned to the holding pen: "Katie, Bruce, W.B., Spaulding, James".

- Proud to be called "Shepherd" - Jeff

2010-02-06T19:41:00.000-08:00

SHEARING DAY

I'm back from the barn after cleaning up a bit after our shearing and tucking everyone in for the night. They all look so much more vulnerable after losing all that fleece, I feel just a bit more of my shepherd self coming out on nights like this. Even Melody, our guard llama, looks more cartoonish than the grand mistress of the pasture she has been. I swear I saw a hint of embarrassment in her eye as she brought her girls back into the barn for the night. Shearing went very smooth and all seemed to really enjoy themselves. As usual, we had more people here to help with the shearing than we had sheep - and I'll always take that as one indication of our success. Most everyone had a job to do including sheep wrangling, hoof trimming, drenching, vaccinations, note taking, gate keepers, skirting, and of course shearing. To make sure the barn was completely full of activity, we had a nice contingent of young people exploring the hay stack. With only a couple of exceptions, the fleece we sacked today was of excellent quality. Some even exceeded our expectations. And after looking at the girls sans fleece, we can safely predict that all but one are pregnant. So our flock will be growing quite nicely.

After a day like this we realize what great friends and neighbors we are blessed with. Many of our shearing help are repeats and I know they would be offended if we failed to invite them to help out each year. What I appreciate the most is their pride in accomplishing the most mundane tasks and, even though they may not have an abundance of experience, their self direction in recognizing a task that needs to be done and figuring out how to do it.

Shearing was completed in time for a late lunch of chili prepared by Jan and, even though we didn't ask for it, jalapeno cornbread, fresh avocado, baked beans, home-made bread, and desserts appeared on the table next to the pot of chili. All to be washed down with smoked porter beer from the Mt. Hood Brewery. A good day, I'd say.

And the best of all - I have a fresh mountain of fleece to wash and process just as I was getting to bottom of the pile from last year. - Jeff

2010-02-03T19:43:00.000-08:00

COMPANY COMIN'

We're getting ready for shearing day here at Drumcliffe Farm this Saturday. I spent some time cleaning up the barn, spreading clean bedding, rebuilding a few of the gates so that we can sort the animals as needed, setting up the skirting table, making sure we have the best possible lighting, bringing out chairs and a coffee percolator. We're expecting quite a crowd and I realized that so much of my preparations were being done for our guests, not so much for the function of gathering fleece. In addition to shearing we'll be skirting the wool, trimming hooves, obtaining fleece samples for registration purposes, giving vaccination boosters, drenching for worms, trimming some horns, and applying a few ear tags. My goal, and probably biggest challenge, will be to give everyone that shows up, a job to do. Some would question (and some actually have questioned) why we go to so much trouble for what could be a pretty straight-forward process. Given our farm's business plan to provide a sustainable local source for lamb meat and wool products, I don't doubt for a moment that all this effort is not only worth it, but is exactly what defines us here at Drumcliffe Farm. If we truly intend to do business with our local community, we better be ready and willing to open our farm gate to our local community. And it goes beyond that. I realize that in addition to selling lamb meat or fleece, here at Drumcliffe Farm we're selling an idea. The idea that the small farm is still a viable business model and legitimate lifestyle in America. To sell that idea we need to share that idea, and what better way than to invite our friends and neighbors to roll up their sleeves, get a little dirty, and actually touch the product. Of course this is a single well-defined, fairly interesting, event and I realize that inviting this same audience out to the farm on a day-to-day basis to help with all the mundane would not work. But it sure seems to work on shearing day. Stay tuned for a full report on our successes in my next post.

Jan and I ventured over the mountain to Dancing Wolf Ranch the other day to pick up three tons of eastern Oregon grass hay. This should last us until Spring when our natural pastures will meet our needs.

2010-01-28T18:11:00.000-08:00

WOOD LOT

I took advantage of a break in the weather to do some long delayed management of our woodlot. When we first purchased our farm, a couple of acres had just been logged of some very valuable cedar and other old-growth. In fact - the burn piles of the remaining logging slash were still smoldering as we signed the final papers. Once we became the stewards of this land I noted some great wetland habitat in this recently logged area and wished the logging plan would have provided a bit more protection for this resource. I spent some time to inventory the logged area and clean up some old fenceline and refuse. It didn't take much to realize that this north facing shaded frost pocket wouldn't be too valuable for sheep forage and I decided to restock it with Douglas fir, cedar, and hemlock. Plantingh was done with the help of a Girl Scout troop. I constructed a small footbridge for ease of access and our grandson named the creek running through it Butterfly Creek. Its technically an un-named tributary of Badger Creek (Badger Creek -> Sandy River -> Columbia River) but "Butterfly Creek" works for me. If the truth be known, I bet that that this little drainage has a number of names thanks to generations of grandchildren - but it will always be "Butterfly Creek" to me.

My specific objective the other day was to cut back the Scotch broom, which is an invasive noxious weed that if left to its own would take over this whole region. My hope is that if I can keep on top of this problem, the trees will grow and the canopy will shade out the sun that the Scotch broom requires. So far - I think its working but of course I'm in it for the long haul and patience is a virtue. One thing I noted was that where the native ground cover Oregon grape was well established, Scotch broom was absent. That may be good news and a possible management tool. But of course, it may be just the opposite - Scotch broom is crowding out the Oregon grape. I'll have to research this further. - Jeff Jaqua

2010-01-19T10:11:00.000-08:00

Rainy Weather

It appears that the Pacific maritime influences have returned to dominate our weather. In other words - it's going to rain a lot. That's OK and is what we should expect and welcome. The natural grasses in our pastures sure seem to thrive with a bit of rain. And to tell the truth, this Winter has been a bit on the dry side. As opposed to last year, I have yet to plow any snow and the sheep have yet to restrict themselves to the barn. However, they sure seem to enjoy loafing under the lean-to and chew their cud while it rains. If they're hungry enough and there are enough goodies out in the pasture, they're quick to ignore the rain and will stand out in the worst downpour.

The other day, before the rains settled in, I did a thorough cleaning of the barn. I wanted to get this done to ensure the sheep had clean bedding from this point until we shear on February 6th. Clean bedding means clean fleece and clean fleece makes wool processing, that comes later, much easier. I spread all this nutrituous recylable onto the middle pasture and lightly disced it in. I've chosen not to disturb the soil too much and have yet to turn it over by plowing, preferring to preserve the natural microbial component, and working with what Nature provided me when we adopted this piece of land. It may be a bit slower process to get to the most productive forage for our sheep but I believe in the long run it will pay off. I figure the moles will do whatever deep turning of the soil that is needed. Any way, I felt pretty smart as I parked the disc and watched the new rain fall on the newly scratched soil and light spread of sheep manure.

- Jeff

2010-01-07T21:42:00.000-08:00

Rotating Pastures

This afternoon I decided to move our ewes into one of our lower pastures. It wasn't necessarily because the forage was any better since this time of year we're not getting a lot of new growth, but they always seem to get so much enjoyment when they get to move. When they realize what I'm going to do they are quick to follow and will often beat me to the gate. Of course they do find some good eats out there, even in the winter. Because our pastures are on a south facing slope, a little green will pop up with only a bit of sun on one warm day. Just enough to keep the girls interested in the field and move their focus from the hay mangers. Moving them periodically of course is healthy for the soil and the importance of soil health in this business cannot be overestimated. - Jeff

2010-01-03T15:52:00.000-08:00

The new year is upon us and I suppose it's obligatory to reflect a bit. I guess I can't very well argue with the popular media that we should be grateful to say good-bye to 2009, but I can't help to take a more local view of right here at Drumcliffe Farm, raise a glass to our good fortune, and feel a bit of optimism. And maybe that positive local view is the very perspective that will make things better for all of us. We increased the size of our flock, opened some new pasture, achieved recognition for our Jacobs at the Oregon Flock and Fiber Festival, sold some fleece, improved our wool processing technique, and have a waiting list for lamb meat when we butcher in February. I wouldn't necessarily say that our business is turning a profit, but I can say that our business model seems to be a success.

The holiday season is coming to a close with only a few more bowl games to go and things are returning to a natural rhythm here on the farm, at least as much as any farm can attain a "rhythm". There always seems to be a surprise waiting around the corner. The other morning I awoke to a sheep bleating that didn't seem to be the normal "Get your butt out here and feed us" bleat. I investigated to find Ingrid caught in the brambles of a blackberry patch. She wasn't caught too badly and only needed a little encouragement from me to try a bit harder. She easily freed herself with only a few locks of fleece left behind.

Sheep are great at proving that I know nothing about sheep. It's common that when you introduce new sheep into the flock, they tend to keep to themselves until they get comfortable in identifying the matriarch and the general pecking order. When I introduced our four newest ewes into the flock the other day I noticed that one of our girls (Bide A Wee April) was hanging pretty close by. It wasn't until I was entering the pedigrees of our new sheep into the database that I noticed that April and one of our new sheep (Bide A Wee June) were full sisters - from the same set of triplets. We had bought them from two different farms and they had been separated for about one and one-half years, but it seems that they may have recognized each other. You'd thi nk their names may have given me a hint. But I guess I prefer the sheep to tell me themselves, rather than figure it out from studying a data base.. Happy New Year to All!!

2009-12-31T21:46:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year!

Family News:
Tonight is New Year's Eve. Zoe, Ian, Tom, Jeff and Jan are having a party. We have played Harry Potter Uno, read aloud a couple of more chapters in "Beyond the Spiderwick Chronicles - The Wyrm King", and now we are playing WII Bowling. Tomorrow, we will be watching the Oregon Ducks win the Rose Bowl!!! Great food is planned.

Farm News:
On Tuesday, Dec. 29, 2009, we welcomed 4 new ewes to our sheep flock, Holly, June, Mae, and Alice Ann. We picked them up from Kate Sherrill in Svenson, Or., and drove them home in a bad snow storm that literally paralyzed Portland for awhile. Luckily, we knew how to get to Drumcliffe via "the back roads" so we didn't get stuck in the gridlock of the Portland freeways.

Today, we took pictures of our new girls and then introduced them to their new flock. Everything is going well.

Merry Christmas & Happy New Year

2009-12-26T22:47:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas & Happy New Year!