True Substance

Like everything in life, blogging is really difficult to do right, in that scratching below the surface to write something meaningful takes some deep digging, every day. To quote the English teacher on Easy A, "I don't know what it is with your generation's obsession with posting everything they do online, but I assure you, they're not all gems." It's easy to see why lots of people just don't make it in the blogging world, but I'm determined not to give up so easily. However, in an effort to really get to some hard stuff, some true soul searching as to my part in agriculture and why I wake up every day proud to associate myself with this industry, I'm going to have to refer to you. Ask me questions, the things you really want to know.

This past week marked the weaning season for us out on the Wenner Farm. Now, being a pretty small operation, this isn't as crazy as at some places, but the general ideas are the same. Sheep are ruminants and contrary to some opinions, they actually like to eat grain and forage, rather than milk-based products for all of life. As sheep get older, their stomach's other compartments begin to expand, converting them from the simple Abomasum (which handles milk) to the more complicated bacterial vat called the Rumen, with its associated cooperators, the Reticulum and Omasum. To facilitate this process which also leads to greater growth and a healthier life for the lamb, the mothers and us cooperate to introduce it to hay, and then feed. Once the lamb is eating enough, we separate it fully from the mother. This helps to dry off the mother so that she doesn't get mastitis and can recover from her pregnancy and lactation, as well as helps the lamb to focus on consuming the food which is best for it.

Of course, this separation leads to some anxiety between the ewes and their lambs, but not due to anything beyond an adjustment to the new system. Once the mothers have dried off we turn them out to pasture where they can start grazing on the brand new grass pushing its way up through the ground. It's a happy day when we get to turn the ewes loose to watch them prance around, excited to be turned out and running again. The excitement usually wears off in a day or two, but it's fun to watch until then. This sorting of the ewes also gives us an opportunity to evaluate all the ewes and determine which to keep for another breeding season and which to sell at market where other producers might pick them up, or they might end up in the food chain as mutton.

The lambs are kept indoors for more intensive observation because this is the critical part of their lives where they are growing and more susceptible to disease. Since we raise show lambs, for the most part, it's easier for us to decide which to keep and which to sell to other people when we find people who are interested. Of course, all of this will come later, as I update you as to what's going on at the farm. For now, it's weaning season and the ewes are starting to get turned out. Both us and them wish for some warmer weather as we sit through this abnormally low temperature Spring.

LED Sheep

Courtesy of Amanda, here's a light-hearted sheep video to spice up the blog for the holidays. Enjoy!

Back from Louisville

Today marks Day 1 back from one of my favorite shows in the world and I wish I didn't have to dive back into reality. Helping/observing my sister and brother getting ready for the National Junior Shropshire Show was a great learning experience for me whose minimal sheep experience stood in stark contrast to what my siblings have learned in a few short years. Luckily, with my first aid experience to repair my sister's finger, and Amanda's previous sheep knowledge, we were able to contribute to the show placings which are proof of the visible improvement in our family flock over the past few years. With rams placing 4th and 9th, and a ewe placing 9th in a large class, we are gearing up for next year now and our first sale in Eaton next spring. Hopefully this also includes new facilities on the homestead to accommodate the growing numbers of sheep on our place. Then hopefully we will start seeing return on investments although that was not the obvious first intention when we started showing sheep but it'd be nice to pay for the hobby.

While we were down there, I also saw something else which I thought I'd comment on. A girl took 2 of her sheep out on a walk in the grass behind the sheep area and was having a terrible time getting these sheep to move in the right direction. Compounding the problem was an air traffic landing pattern just above her that scared the sheep every time a plane came in low to land. What shocked me was how forceful and aggressive she became toward the sheep over the course of her difficult walk. By the end, we had even seen her kick the lambs a few times.

Now, I'm not saying this because I want the girl fined, or her show rights revoked or to publicly humiliate her (although she could use a little learning from the experience). She is young and the action is more concerning than the damage, but she is learning from someone. What I'm trying to do is call out to those older individuals to be positive role models in your treatment of animals. Youth look up to you to follow rules and to exhibit a high level of moral conduct both at the shows and at home on the farm. Not only are youth looking up to you, but the consumer also looks to you for your leadership in the way you treat the animals raised for food. They want to know that you care as much about your animals as you profess to, and as long as there are people out there making mistakes, consumer trust will be challenging to keep. Be a good example to those around you, both older and younger to care for your animals as you were taught so that consumers will continue to trust us. People are always watching; make sure you are glad about what they can see.

Week 2, Post 4

My first day on the kill floor was today. I have to say that up until last night I wasn't too nervous about it, but more anxious that I would be effective and safe. I was pretty nervous this morning, however, once people started showing up and I realized how little slaughter experience I have had before now.

I credit some of the co-workers and my advisors for making the learning process so much more accelerated. Quickly I was able to fit into the stunning and bleeding stage, and I was able to add my sheep experience to the mix to help sort the sheep smoothly. Frankly, I thought it went pretty well for my first day and I have to say that after doing stunning myself, there is little excuse for some of the videos I've seen online of people failing to do this correctly. I was properly trained, and capable of doing it within 20-30 minutes of being on the kill floor. Knock on wood, I made no stunning mistakes this morning and will plan on continuing in that trend.

All-in-all, this is not something I would want to do as a profession, but it definitely something I think I can be good at. I just need a lot of practice.