thistlebloom
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!!
Feelin' a bit sheepish...
!!- Thread starter
- #162
Beekissed
Herd Master
The past few days I finally got a chance to take a few pics....
And folks think you need to get goats to have milk and to get one's brush eaten down. Just look at that nice udder!
May's tiny single...out of the woods and doing fine today, strong and vigorous.
This whole section of the yard is covered in little purple violets....spring is here!!! Violets, bluebirds, lambs and all the lovely things that go with. Hallelujah!!!!
And folks think you need to get goats to have milk and to get one's brush eaten down. Just look at that nice udder!
May's tiny single...out of the woods and doing fine today, strong and vigorous.
This whole section of the yard is covered in little purple violets....spring is here!!! Violets, bluebirds, lambs and all the lovely things that go with. Hallelujah!!!!
Baymule
Herd Master
Aw, Bee they are beautiful. I am so happy for you, you have lambs now!
thistlebloom
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Congratulations on the arrival of your lambs Bee! 
Those are beautiful pictures.
Those are beautiful pictures.
Mike CHS
Herd Master
As always, some great pictures and just in time for spring.
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Beekissed
Herd Master
Finally got the sheep into an electrified paddock yesterday evening....and in the night we had a VERY violent thunder storm with lightning strikes close by, high winds, hail, torrential rain and uprooted trees in the yard. Figures, huh? The only thing missing is a lambing in the middle of it..... 
Went to check the sheep after the worst of the storm, as the dogs were barking like crazy~haven't got a dog in that paddock yet as both of my dogs are currently worthless mutts not worthy of the food they consume each day~and they all were fine. Figure a coyote was out roaming, as both dogs were going at it...usually only happens when a serious threat is around. The sheep were fine, shaking off the rain and lambs were up and nursing.
The lambs have reached the constant frolic stage, which I could watch all day long! They also have experienced the fence several times each, but don't seem to learn from it. The cats sure learned....the finest of redneck reality TV going on when we got that fence up and running. We pulled up chairs and just watched the entertainment....which turned into annoyance when Ben explored the perimeter and promptly slipped under the 10 in. bottom wire without getting much of a zap. Folks said put a ground wire down at ground level, but I know more experienced ranchers than me who have done so, with barbed wire no less, and their dogs still get out and have to wear a drag all the time.
So, today is innovation day wherein I devise antennae for Ben's collar to see if that will give the desired result. This is Ben's last chance on the farm....he's taken to ignoring his invisible fence boundary and going walk about every chance he gets and now he won't stay in high tensile. With his issues about loud noises and running off, he can't very well be moved to a different home....he'll just be anxious in a strange place and STILL wind up dead on the road or in a shelter, passed from person to person as they fail to keep him confined or from going T totally crazy every time it thunders. If we can't keep him in the fence and on the job this time, we'll have to take care of that issue in a more final manner, which is going to hurt me and the grandgirls quite a bit~but the alternative is that he gets shot out there or hit on the road(which he already did one time recently on one of his jaunts). I just don't see the point in keeping a dog tied up all his life....no good for him nor for us.
Should be getting more lambs soon and can't wait!
Went to check the sheep after the worst of the storm, as the dogs were barking like crazy~haven't got a dog in that paddock yet as both of my dogs are currently worthless mutts not worthy of the food they consume each day~and they all were fine. Figure a coyote was out roaming, as both dogs were going at it...usually only happens when a serious threat is around. The sheep were fine, shaking off the rain and lambs were up and nursing.
The lambs have reached the constant frolic stage, which I could watch all day long! They also have experienced the fence several times each, but don't seem to learn from it. The cats sure learned....the finest of redneck reality TV going on when we got that fence up and running.
We pulled up chairs and just watched the entertainment....which turned into annoyance when Ben explored the perimeter and promptly slipped under the 10 in. bottom wire without getting much of a zap. Folks said put a ground wire down at ground level, but I know more experienced ranchers than me who have done so, with barbed wire no less, and their dogs still get out and have to wear a drag all the time. So, today is innovation day wherein I devise antennae for Ben's collar to see if that will give the desired result. This is Ben's last chance on the farm....he's taken to ignoring his invisible fence boundary and going walk about every chance he gets and now he won't stay in high tensile. With his issues about loud noises and running off, he can't very well be moved to a different home....he'll just be anxious in a strange place and STILL wind up dead on the road or in a shelter, passed from person to person as they fail to keep him confined or from going T totally crazy every time it thunders. If we can't keep him in the fence and on the job this time, we'll have to take care of that issue in a more final manner, which is going to hurt me and the grandgirls quite a bit~but the alternative is that he gets shot out there or hit on the road(which he already did one time recently on one of his jaunts). I just don't see the point in keeping a dog tied up all his life....no good for him nor for us.
Should be getting more lambs soon and can't wait!
thistlebloom
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I can picture your lambs running and bouncing Bee, and what great entertainment that is! I can also picture a cat intercepting the wire 
.
Could you shave Bens back so he has to touch the wire?
I'm not necessarily recommending this but it worked for me to keep a cattle dog in an area where he was persistently slipping under the hot wire - I baited it and had no more escapes from there on out. I suppose a lot of people would call it cruel, but much less cruel than getting hit by a car, or shot when he herded peoples livestock without permission.
. Could you shave Bens back so he has to touch the wire?
I'm not necessarily recommending this but it worked for me to keep a cattle dog in an area where he was persistently slipping under the hot wire - I baited it and had no more escapes from there on out. I suppose a lot of people would call it cruel, but much less cruel than getting hit by a car, or shot when he herded peoples livestock without permission.
- Thread starter
- #168
Beekissed
Herd Master
I can picture your lambs running and bouncing Bee, and what great entertainment that is! I can also picture a cat intercepting the wire
Could you shave Bens back so he has to touch the wire?
I'm not necessarily recommending this but it worked for me to keep a cattle dog in an area where he was persistently slipping under the hot wire - I baited it and had no more escapes from there on out. I suppose a lot of people would call it cruel, but much less cruel than getting hit by a car, or shot when he herded peoples livestock without permission.
I agree. Cruel is in the eye of the beholder....everyone says send him to a pet home situation, but that would be more cruel than death for a dog that has only ever been outdoors, gets highly anxious if brought indoors and also is decidedly an alpha dog where other dogs are concerned. The fits he throws when anxious about thunder or gunfire is another issue...he goes completely wild eyed crazy, clawing anything nearby, digging holes, jumping and yelping or running flat out for the wild blue yonder. Who would want that in their homes or around their children?
I don't know about keeping Ben's back shaved...he's out in the sun and elements all the time, so that fur of his protects him in so many ways. I don't even agree with people who clip their GPs in hot weather....those long guard hairs insulate the dog from the heat, so removing them just makes the discomfort worse and exposes them to more biting pests. It could come down to that, all the same, as I really want him to be able to live here, work here and remain free upon the land as much as possible without endangering him...weighing a hair cut against killing him is an easy choice. Good suggestion!!!!
thistlebloom
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You wouldn't have to keep it shaved. Shave once, set it up for him to get a good shock and he'll remember it. It would have to be a deliberate scenario. One where you have made an easy way for him to want to crawl under that wire, after you've given him a haircut, and where you are removed from the situation but can keep an eye on him to know he's done his homework and learned his lesson.
frustratedearthmother
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And wet him down too! I had to take drastic action when my LGD's were jumping the fence and the hot wire. I took a lightweight chain and hung it off of the hot wire and laid it out in an "s" pattern on wet ground. Then I took the dogs for a walk. With luck, after a few tries they would step on that chain and realize that they could be "bitten" by the fence without even touching it. Moved the chain a few times to different areas and did the same trick. These dogs don't even get close anymore, lol.
