Sunday March 10

Hello farmers. Everyone must be busy today. I just came back from riding for 2 hours. The weather had warmed up to 45 so even with the wind it wasn't too bad for riding, but when I was an hour from home it suddenly got a few degrees colder and started to rain a little. I didn't get too wet, but it didn't turn out to be as pleasant as I had hoped. The thermometer says 33* right now, my toes and ears believe it. I wear a stocking cap but my ears get cold anyhow. The horse is blanketed, tied to my horse trailer, figiting because he wants to be somewhere else, so that will keep him from getting chilled. We scared up a small herd of deer out in the hills, but otherwise saw no wildlife except hawks and a few sage rats that just couldn't stay underground any longer. Lambing was quite tame last night, only one ewe with one lamb to bring into the barn. The ewe that lost 2 of her triplets claimed the surviving lamb with no problem since they never were separated. We warmed that lamb by rubbing it and fed it some warmed colostrum while she looked on. Now she is in a stancion pen and is getting a 2nd lamb to raise from another triplet set. Hopefully she won't know the difference. In a few days the lambs will smell alike and she will be used to having two of them. I don't know that sheep can count, but it has to register as a bit strange to suddenly have two lambs when there was only one for the first few hours she was in the barn. The "grafting" of an extra lamb is about 75% successful, sometimes the ewe will still reject the strange lamb, and every now and then we get one that just gets mad or something and decides she doesn't want to be a mom to either of them. It is time to do my chores now, have a good evening, count your blessings.