SageHill
Herd Master
Wow - have you ever got a huge project ahead. Sounds like you've jumped into the deep end of the pool so to speak. You've found a great group here with tons of years of experience.
You've got a big soft spot in your heart for these critters
. They are very lucky to have you.
For the ones that you can not catch, can you rig up a small area to get them into? My sheep are used to me, will take animal crackers from me (trick I learned here
) - but when it comes to catching them --- I need a dog and/or a small pen (my panels are 7ft -- so it's a 7x7 pen) I get them into which makes catching much easier.
Now I've got chutes with a head gate and life is oh so much easier. But you can make a small "catch pen" with what you have on hand. Palettes are free and work great (but have gloves they are splinter nightmares). Barbs could easily jump out if pushed too hard - but since yours are not 100% well they may be easier to get in. You can always feed in the small pen to get them used to it.
Good luck and fingers crossed for all of you.
You've got a big soft spot in your heart for these critters
. They are very lucky to have you.For the ones that you can not catch, can you rig up a small area to get them into? My sheep are used to me, will take animal crackers from me (trick I learned here
) - but when it comes to catching them --- I need a dog and/or a small pen (my panels are 7ft -- so it's a 7x7 pen) I get them into which makes catching much easier. Now I've got chutes with a head gate and life is oh so much easier. But you can make a small "catch pen" with what you have on hand. Palettes are free and work great (but have gloves they are splinter nightmares). Barbs could easily jump out if pushed too hard - but since yours are not 100% well they may be easier to get in. You can always feed in the small pen to get them used to it.
Good luck and fingers crossed for all of you.
