[Bionic]

sheep were due to be shorn yesterday evening and the shearer so wife asked if we could take them up to their place in our trailer. Usually the shearer comes to us but everything was set up at their place, only 1/4 mile up the road. Problem - OH's car, the only one with a tow bar, had just died.
Don't worry, he will come to you.
Later than expected shearer a mum and dad turn up with their landy and said they could take our trailer up for us.
Problem no 2 - our usually well behaved girls, Ryelands, broke out of their pen and legged it up the field.
4 of us were chasing them round. They were hot and bothered but wouldn't give up and we were the same. Finally funnelled them into a corner and got them into the trailer after about 45 mins. We would have been good candidates for You've been framed.
Anyway, the girls got their haircuts and look very nice. Farmer said what nice sheep they are and would be prepared to buy any lambs from us next year if we want him to.

[SophieLeeds]

If it makes you feel any better it took us just short of 8 hours to get the last 10 of our herdwicks in at the weekend! 

Photo's of the ladies with their annual haircuts please 

[landroverroy]

 Get a dog and you'll wonder how you ever managed without one!              

[Bionic]

Get a dog and you'll wonder how you ever managed without one!              

I have a poodle and he is frightened of the sheep. Getting a sheep dog specifically for 6 sheep seems a bit of an overkill.
The farmers who came to collect mine have a good sheep dog (they have 600 sheep and over 1000 lambs) but didn't bring her with them because my sheep aren't used to a dog.

[Anke]

The problem was that you had a) more than the usual number of people - I am certain that sheep can count at least up to 5! and b) these extra people were unfamiliar. Happens here all the time, actually this year was the first time when ALL sheep got clipped by the shearer, usually I have one or two that decide to keep their wintercoat for a bit longer and then require a hand shear from me... but the shearer had his dog with him and the one errant ewe is a bought-in one that came from a farm with a dog...

[Bionic]

Anke, I agree with you on the number of people and 'strange people'. My sheep happily come to one person but if a second, even someone they know, appears they know something is up 
Next year, assuming the shearer wants to do them at his place again, we will put them in the trailer ourselves. I am sure it won't be a problem if we get advance warning and can do them in our own time. 
Still, it was good exercise for us all 

[TheSmilingSheep]

IT IS SUCH A RELIEF to read that other people might give up many hours of their lives to herd pesky sheep!

And they can DEFINITELY count.

[ScotsGirl]

I agree too. I have a friend who I need to help tow sometimes and he thinks I am totally incompetent at catching my sheep. He just won't listen when I tell him it is because strangers have appeared in their field and are asking them to do something in a different way to me.


I try and round up on my own now. That said, I have disposed of troublesome sheep and my girls are producing friendly lambs like themselves

[Katrina]

Yes they definitely count - we had to move the 3 ram lambs & every day either OH or me had been in to see them and they would happily run round our feet, when we turned up together they wouldn't come anywhere near us.  After a long while trying to herd them in a pen (and a lot of words between us) we decided to leave it for another day. I had left the field for 2 minutes when OH called to say they were loaded in the trailer. They had followed him as soon as I left!!

[nutterly_uts]

I am sure I watched a tv program on sheep and how they can remember faces too

[Kerriech]

Last year was our first experience of keeping sheep. They were all pet lambs, so extremely friendly and followed me around the field. When we were moving them at the end of the year I tried to get them to follow me to the shed, but when they got to the hard standing at the end of the field they stopped. So we got a dog lead (yup seriously  ) and a bucket and led them individually!!
We must have looked ridiculous, but it worked.
We also have dogs, but the sheep head butt them!!

[Hellybee]

They did the face test thingie on the first lambing live, they had two faces and one sheep, think it was Adam. And yes it was going for the right face

[Marches Farmer]

All our fields have a gate at the top and at the bottom.  If we go through the "wrong" gate when checking them they are on Yellow Alert but as soon as we speak to them they go back to grazing or cudding.  Same thing happens when we first appear in our forage caps as it gets colder.

[Bionic]

I bought a bright yellow waterproof jacket with a hood last winter. It took mine a few days to get used to it. 

[Kimbo]

pending the arrival of our Ryelands we have our neighbours' Texels in one of our fields. The field ajoins the lane.  When cars go by the Texels take no notice at all, but when the neighbour's drives PAST to turn round in our drive and go back to the field gate with the feed the Texels start shouting and running to the gate! How the hell do they know which is the right car?