The Accidental Smallholder Forum

Livestock => Sheep => Topic started by: Hazelwood Flock on July 07, 2012, 10:18:04 pm

Title: Wet time!
Post by: Hazelwood Flock on July 07, 2012, 10:18:04 pm
Well today has been a most incredible day weather wise - we have had 4 inches plus of rain in the last 24 hours here in West Dorset and it is still raining!
The results were a lot of water with nowhere to go!
(http://i198.photobucket.com/albums/aa43/crazysheep-795/P7071891.jpg)
Netherbury - only passable in 4x4s.
 
(http://i198.photobucket.com/albums/aa43/crazysheep-795/P7071894.jpg)
It was higher than this a bit before...the river is to the right of the railings, road to the left, honest!
 
(http://i198.photobucket.com/albums/aa43/crazysheep-795/P7071903.jpg)
Some of my lot, although stranded were on the higher ground, so I left them there.
 
(http://i198.photobucket.com/albums/aa43/crazysheep-795/P7071905.jpg)
I moved their troughs to them and shut them in, although they wouldn't cross the water as it was over wellie height.
 
(http://i198.photobucket.com/albums/aa43/crazysheep-795/P7071901.jpg)
Some more of my crew cut off by an overflowing culvert.
 
Title: Re: Wet time!
Post by: deepinthewoods on July 07, 2012, 10:22:39 pm
wow! great photos. :thumbsup:
Title: Re: Wet time!
Post by: Small Farmer on July 07, 2012, 10:57:03 pm
Blimey!
Title: Re: Wet time!
Post by: Fleecewife on July 07, 2012, 11:51:12 pm
I feel you are the culprit in the eyes of that sheep which is always facing this way  :sheep: ;D   There's something accusing in her look :D
Title: Re: Wet time!
Post by: Mammyshaz on July 08, 2012, 07:39:35 am
Goodness, I hope the weather improves for you pretty quickly.  :fc:
Title: Re: Wet time!
Post by: MAK on July 08, 2012, 09:21:37 am
That is a lot of rain - hope it has drained a bit. Good photos though. Hope things improve there as I suspect flooding means a lot of hard work and worry.
Martin
Title: Re: Wet time!
Post by: Bionic on July 08, 2012, 09:25:49 am
Great photos and at least you are all safe.  Lets hope it improves for you today as it has here in Carmarthenshire. Currently its sunny and warm yeah......
Title: Re: Wet time!
Post by: Rosemary on July 08, 2012, 09:32:57 am
Hope everyone is OK in thos awful weather
Title: Re: Wet time!
Post by: feldar on July 08, 2012, 10:10:57 am
I know where your coming from Hazelwood! our small stream is now a river and we had to cut the fence to get shep out onto higher ground, we thought they would be high enough up but they were not :'(
We have ewes we want to split to go to ram and we cant split them as two of our fields are under the river at this moment ::)  it's not what you expect in July is it. These fields we don't expect to use in winter but not this time of year. Anyway i hope they lifted the hose pipe ban :P
Title: Re: Wet time!
Post by: Blinkers on July 08, 2012, 11:11:57 am
Hi mate - blimey, kept wondering how you were faring down there.  Fab photos and the sheep all look fine although a tad puzzled.   Was everything OK at home?
x
Title: Re: Wet time!
Post by: SteveHants on July 08, 2012, 11:43:39 am
Most of my sheep have been sent 'up the hill' to Salisbury to graze this time of year, which is lucky. Its not quite as bad as that by me though, I have to say.



Title: Re: Wet time!
Post by: Hazelwood Flock on July 08, 2012, 08:31:55 pm
What a difference a day makes!
Yesterday...
(http://i198.photobucket.com/albums/aa43/crazysheep-795/P7071894.jpg)
 
Today...
(http://i198.photobucket.com/albums/aa43/crazysheep-795/P7081931.jpg)
 
Yesterday...
(http://i198.photobucket.com/albums/aa43/crazysheep-795/P7071905.jpg)
 
Today...
(http://i198.photobucket.com/albums/aa43/crazysheep-795/P7081941.jpg)
 
Yesterday...
(http://i198.photobucket.com/albums/aa43/crazysheep-795/P7071901.jpg)
 
Today...(http://i198.photobucket.com/albums/aa43/crazysheep-795/P7081946.jpg)
 
All sheep back together and none the worse for their soggy ordeal, the fencing has taken a battering though..
(http://i198.photobucket.com/albums/aa43/crazysheep-795/P7081949.jpg)
 
And one of the main routes up to Somerset from here passes through Beaminster tunnel, but not now for a bit due to the top being wiped out by a landslide - good job no one was driving underneath it when it came down!
(http://i198.photobucket.com/albums/aa43/crazysheep-795/P7081910.jpg)
Here's hoping for some summer at least.... :fc:
RIP to the couple who tragically lost their lives, their car was buried under this landlide and was not discovered until 9 days later when Somerset police followed up leads on the missing couple suggesting they were in this area. So very sad :(
Title: Re: Wet time!
Post by: jaykay on July 08, 2012, 09:23:52 pm
That is the trouble with floods - the next day it's as though nothing had happened, except for all the chaos to clear up  :P

Glad all is well, hope that sheep isn't blaming you too much  ;)
Title: Re: Wet time!
Post by: Bramblecot on July 08, 2012, 10:38:32 pm
Hi Hazelwood!  Thanks for all that water (we are downstream 5 miles from HW) ;D ;D .  Chaos here and we made the national news :o (briefly).  Landslide in the village, and a huge oak tree came down which took us all day to saw up.  Such a shame but logs for the whole winter for a friend of ours.
And today...glorious sunshine and a BBQ...crazy weather.
Wish me luck tomorrow -flock being tested  :-\
Title: Re: Wet time!
Post by: Hazelwood Flock on July 08, 2012, 10:46:43 pm
Good luck Bramblecot, i'm sure it will be fine!  :fc: :thumbsup:
Title: Re: Wet time!
Post by: Mammyshaz on July 08, 2012, 11:11:12 pm
Hope everyone is drying out fine today  :thumbsup:  the photos are amazing before and after shots 

Good luck for the testing Bramblecot  :fc:
Title: Re: Wet time!
Post by: Tilly on July 09, 2012, 07:39:41 am
 
Gosh  :o ,
 
 Hazelwood , excellent photos :thumbsup:  ,I guess that's called  flash flooding - good job the sheep had a hill to get up  ;D .
 
Bramblecot, I`m wondering now  ???  -what are your sheep being tested for?
 
 
Tilly  :wave: 
 
 
 
 
Title: Re: Wet time!
Post by: Haylo-peapod on July 09, 2012, 11:43:34 am
So relieved your flock is OK Hazelwood.
Any idea how other GFD in the South West fared?
Title: Re: Wet time!
Post by: sabrina on July 09, 2012, 11:55:04 am
WOW great pictures, glad its better now but more rain on the way I fear.
Title: Re: Wet time!
Post by: Mel Rice on July 09, 2012, 12:30:09 pm
Just so you dont think you are alone weve had lots of rain here too. Not as bad as the flood a couple of years ago (3 million euros+ of Dammage in this village alone)  But still everthing is rather soggy. My veg patch paths have all fllooded...it went over the top of one of my muckboots yesterday whe I went to pick raspberries.
Title: Re: Wet time!
Post by: Hazelwood Flock on July 09, 2012, 05:18:44 pm
I'm waiting to hear how other flocks in the westcountry fared, the south hams were badly hit.
Title: Re: Wet time!
Post by: Haylo-peapod on July 10, 2012, 09:19:09 am
It's a real worry - let us know if you hear anything. Hoping everyone managed to get their stock on high ground  :fc:
Title: Re: Wet time!
Post by: Hazelwood Flock on July 10, 2012, 10:16:36 am
We're still on flood watch in the area as groundwater flooding is occurring, dormant springs are now flowing again! and there's more heavy rain forecast for thursday  :o . It's raining now!
Title: Re: Wet time!
Post by: Haylo-peapod on July 10, 2012, 10:28:58 am
Good luck Hazelwood - hope you and the sheep manage to weather the storm!
 
How are your carpentry skills? Is it time to start thinking about building an ark?
Title: Re: Wet time!
Post by: Bramblecot on July 10, 2012, 06:45:06 pm
Thanks for the good wishes - testing is on the brucellosis thread.   
There is flooding and small landslips all round the area and I'm just glad our house is at the top of a hill  ::) Our fields are waterlogged but the sheep were all in the home field - because of the testing - so we were lucky there.  We have lost most of our hay crop this year but the sheep are so fat on all the grass they probably won't need much  ;D .  Will be asking for waders at Christmas!
Title: Re: Wet time!
Post by: feldar on July 11, 2012, 10:55:11 am
Hope you're ok down there Bramblecot, you've caught more rain than we did, but OH was working trying to do a fencing job in Templecoombe Somerset and he got soaked poor thing.
Hope testing goes ok
Out of interest what do they do if you get a reactor?
Title: Re: Wet time!
Post by: Bramblecot on July 11, 2012, 06:53:53 pm
Call for the men in white suits :o :o .  We did have a very interesting chat about SBV though ;) . 

Meanwhile I am devising a wellie boot for sheep :sheep: - more rain due tomorrow.  OH is out at the moment  :innocent: :innocent: collecting hardcore for our track - washed down off the hills.  Council cleared the landslide in the village, only for it to slip again!  Maybe we should not be on top of the hill :-\ :-\ , at least we will still end up in our own garden if we have a slip.
Title: Re: Wet time!
Post by: Hazelwood Flock on July 11, 2012, 10:19:51 pm
The cows I milk are in at night now, they don't usually come in until november! I've told my sheep to keep on high ground tomorrow....hope they were listening!
Title: Re: Wet time!
Post by: Hazelwood Flock on July 12, 2012, 09:40:53 pm
It's been raining all day and the rivers are up again, the sheep have been fed and have gone back up on the hill. I live 2 miles away so will be out to check again later - have just heard Netherbury is being swamped again. At least I managed to see the Olympic torch in Bridport today, poor girl was wet through, but her smile lit up the town!
(http://i198.photobucket.com/albums/aa43/crazysheep-795/P7121987.jpg)
(http://i198.photobucket.com/albums/aa43/crazysheep-795/P7121988.jpg)
Yealmpton show have cancelled, and Honiton have postponed until 30th august...how many more shows will fall victim to this relentless weather? (well here in the 'wet'country anyway!)
 
Title: Re: Wet time!
Post by: feldar on July 13, 2012, 08:51:03 am
Well The New Foest Show has to go on, cause the Queen is coming they announced on the Radio.
Title: Re: Wet time!
Post by: CaroleBulmer on July 13, 2012, 12:09:32 pm
Has anyone heard if Mid Devon are going to go ahead as they cancelled once before because of the weather and it is far worse this year! >:(
Title: Re: Wet time!
Post by: Hazelwood Flock on July 17, 2012, 01:09:34 pm
News is breaking that a missing somerset couple have been found dead in their car beneath the landslide at Beaminster tunnel. I can't believe it has been over a week and no one checked the slide for trapped vehicles. So very sad, rest in peace  :bouquet:
Title: Re: Wet time!
Post by: Haylo-peapod on July 17, 2012, 02:18:19 pm
How dreadful, as you say it is incredible the rescue services didn't think to check it out earlier.  :bouquet:
 
Title: Re: Wet time!
Post by: Hazelwood Flock on July 17, 2012, 10:36:58 pm
They say it was checked with heat seeking equipment before the road was cordoned off 10 days ago, they showed recovery of the car on the news, it was squashed flat so mercifully it looks as though the couple died instantly rather than being buried alive. It was only when a neighbouring police force traced the missing couple's credit card and phone records they were pinpointed to the Beaminster area. So very sad  :'( :'(