Our students from Langtree School have been helping Emma the shepherd get the ewes ready!
First we had to gently encourage the ewes into a long pen, so that they could all be treated.
We then wormed them all, gave each ewe a multivitamin, dagged them (removed dirty wool from around their bottoms to prevent flystrike), took down the numbers from their ear tags, and drew on them with a huge crayon so that we knew if we’d missed one!
Last but not least, it was Billy No Mates’ turn. Emma showed us how to trim his feet so that he can run about and do his job properly.
Then it was Oscar’s turn to rub some bright orange paint onto Billy’s chest. This is called a ‘raddle’ and rubs off onto the ewe’s backs when they are ‘tupped’ (mated with). It shows Emma which ewes are likely to be pregnant, and which ewes need to stay with the ram for another cycle.
We all learnt a lot and had a very memorable afternoon! Now we are looking forward to spring and helping Emma with those lambs...
Thank you Emma for letting us come and help you!
