# Newborn shetland lamb pics (update #11: the name for color/pattern)



## patandchickens (Apr 6, 2011)

I wasn't even at all sure the weird little shetland ewe was bred... never saw her in heat, never saw her marked by the ram, although she is faded black so a mark would not show as well on her. (edited: been browsing shetland colors this morning, probably technically she is moorit?) Her girl parts have not been anything like so puffy as the dairy ewe-lambs'.

But, very suddenly this afternoon she has sprouted a truly Dolly Parton-esque bag, with giant dairy cow teats; and is standing funny (possibly, of course, just because of having these giant sheep boobies sprouting between her hindlegs); and although she *always* looks saggy and 'dropped' she now looks positively concave in the lower back.

So the next lamb on the ground may be hers.

In contrast, I just dunno what Hope's story is... she is now day 156 since being marked, so she is either real overdue or somehow she was marked a cycle later and I didn't see it (she was marked within hours of the ram first being turned in with them, and I did not change the crayon til day 17, so it is possible... tho you'd THINK I'd have seen her re-marked... I just dunno). I don't suppose there's a lot I can DO about it except wait.

Will keep you posted 


Pat, who banded Peacie's lamb's tail this afternoon and is still feeling rather guilty about it even tho I know it's the right thing to do. We're calling it Posy, btw. The lamb, not the tail.


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## miss_thenorth (Apr 6, 2011)

Congrats and keep us posted.  We can only hope that Hope lambs soon.


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## aggieterpkatie (Apr 7, 2011)

Good luck!  I love the name Posy.     It's definitely possible Hope got bred a cycle later. That happened with one of my ewes.  The breeder saw her bred, but she didn't settle until the next cycle.


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## patandchickens (Apr 7, 2011)

She did!  (e.t.a. - the shetland, I mean. Hope is still obstinately pregnant)

She was in early labor when I went to bed; I meant to go out again in an hour and a half or so but since this is her third year lambing and she's a shetland I did not bother setting an alarm so of course I overslept by an hour and missed the whole thing. But oh well. I had penned her into the small (not much more than jug-sized) shed before I went to bed because she is a wild one, so it all worked out pretty well.

So we've got a single ewe-lamb, monumentally stupid about figuring out what to suck on but between Kurly and my own efforts I *think* we've got her more or less learned on what's the lunch spout and what isn't (and the fact that there is no point in persistantly looking for it under mommy's neck)... she has definitely sucked several times and seems round and happy so I guess she will get better with experience.

Kurly is being an excellent (and very licky) mommy. Immediately licked all the iodine off hte umbilical stump both times I dipped it, too. I figure it is out of my hands, and hopefully she will not get iodine poisoning 

Took the kids out to see the lamb before school today and we seem to be calling her Willow (the ewe's registered name -- tho I did not buy her papers, cuz, why? -- is WillowGarden Black Kurrant).

Am spending the morning sllloooowwwwwly trying to load a bazillion shetland color/markings websites, because she is some funky-*ss shetlandy paint job and I am trivially curious to find out what it would be called. If she were a horse I would call her a steel-grey overo. 

Will take pics in an hour or so and post them so that you, too, can not know what her color/pattern is called 

Pat


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## patandchickens (Apr 7, 2011)

OK, here is Willow, not quite 12 hours old:

















Taking bets on proper Shetlandese description of her color, LOL  

(currently I am thinking grey blaget, possibly with some other pattern-related adjective too b/c her face is marked... but I have no idea what I am talking about whatsoever)

I also let Peacie and Posy out of their jug (shed) after I took those pics but by then the camera battery had died so I will have to go out this afternoon and try again. Posy is REALLY enjoying racing around in the llarger world, and hopefully Hope will continue to be gentle to her (but not feed her)

Pat, having a nice lamby morning today


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## aggieterpkatie (Apr 7, 2011)

What a cool little lamb!  I'm not up with my shetland terms (since I don't own any shetlands) but that looks to me like it could be some sort of mouflon or badger face markings?    I'm not sure though, and I love the markings all over her body. Very cool!  Congrats for another ewe lamb!!


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## aggieterpkatie (Apr 7, 2011)

Nope, not mouflon, that's the opposite of badger faced. There are SO MANY different color patterns!  

My next guess is a katmoget , but I'm not sure if there's something else involved with the spotted/variegated body pattern.

Maybe the different colored body pattern is Marlit?  It's hard to tell, because there are so many different ones and not many good pictures!


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## ksalvagno (Apr 7, 2011)

Her color pattern is way too cool!  Congratulations!


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## patandchickens (Apr 7, 2011)

aggieterpkatie said:
			
		

> There are SO MANY different color patterns!


I get the impression that Shetland Islanders have historically had a llllllottttt of time on their hands for a) breeding funky lookin' sheep to each other and b) coming up with elaborate terminology for the results 

I emailed the Kurly-and-Jose's breeder, he produces a lot of registered shetlands and is into unusual looking ones so hopefully he can come up with a plausible label. Not that it really *matters*, I'm just interested, you know? 

(e.t.a. -- after a small computer crash and making lunch for my son, I realize you are right about the badger-faced thing Katie -- am therefore leaning towards "grey moget blaget" or "grey moget marlit" i.e. badger-faced pinto grey?  Not katmoget, as that would not have the darker splotches on the upper body.) 

(e.t.also.a -- hmmm, now I have found a site that says katmogets may also have light bronzy patches on the body... I would say these are more light grey than bronze but it is hard to tell yet....

I think my official conclusion is that I will leave Shetland color diagnosis to the experts and stick with simpler subjects like multivariate statistics and interspecific interactions in ephemeral-pond invertebrate communities.

Hey, I know a good shetlandy sounding term to describe it:

"Buggerit"! 


Pat


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## Bossroo (Apr 7, 2011)

Yup ... blue roan pinto !


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## patandchickens (Apr 8, 2011)

Got email back from her breeder, who sez:

"What a cute lamb! She is a grey katmoget. The pinto effect will lessen as she matures and she will get quite lite on the body, with darker points and belly. Handspinner LOVE this fleece as it spins to a nice, very light grey. It also takes dye well."

So, +1 to Katie for guessing right! 

Her fleece is already sooo soft, much softer than Posy's.

Pat


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## aggieterpkatie (Apr 8, 2011)

Very cool to know!  It was a lucky guess.     I can't imagine trying to learn all those colors and patterns!


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