The 2024 spring lambs got their first taste of spring grass this week after being on a dry lot since birth. We like to give them a little time to settle, bond, and start on creep feed and hay before turning them loose on broad, rich, green pasture. I don’t know of anyone who can keep from grinning at the sight of them zooming, pronking, and swarming like a bunch of four year olds chasing a soccer ball. Scientifically, it's more accurate to say that Zoomies are manifestations of “Frenetic Random Activity Periods (FRAP)”  — a phenomenon whereby animals experience sudden and seemingly ma ..read more

As a Valais Blacknose Sheep breeder and enthusiast, there’s nothing I’d like more than to see as many people as possible add this wonderfully cute, social and affectionate animal to their “farmily.” I love chatting with those who dream of having a flock of Valais Blacknose sheep, and I also love chatting with those who are just curious about the breed. Now and then, someone will take a leap of faith and invest their time, money, and heart in our lambs or adult sheep and eagerly await the day when they can take their chosen one(s) home. We're always honored and blessed by their trust in us a ..read more

Finally! Ol’ Man Winter lost his grip. After eight days of being housebound, I admit I almost lost mine.  But our little flock didn’t seem to mind the subzero temperatures. These mommas-to-be (+ Gabriel) were put up in the big barn with the horses and got nightly turndown service from Shepherd Ed, who braved the tundra (pasture) each evening to tuck everyone into fresh straw bedding and offer the equivalent of mints on their pillows in the form of fluffy flakes of hay. Shepherd Ed is a really good sport and never once shook his fist at the cold, black sky. I, on the other hand, am n ..read more

https://video.wixstatic.com/video/436482_c41ba9f00ae54041ad4f7873dda4ec4c/720p/mp4/file.mp4 I love receiving videos, photos, and texts from the shepherdess of the three wethers born and raised on our farm this past spring. I especially love those that express the fun and quirky pleasures that come with shepherding “the cutest sheep in the world.”Dances with Wolves, move over. Dances with Sheep is a real thing and so is the joy it brings! Dancing is, after all, a holy, natural response to soul-stirring gladness. Scripture brims with tales of God’s people dancing and leaping with joy, from Exodu ..read more

This week we ultrasounded our two F2 proven ewes and our three F3 maiden ewes. All of our girls are pregnant via Lap AI! We're "expecting" at least three (possibly four) F3 lambs and at least five F4 lambs. If you've previously reached out to us with interest in acquiring one or more of our March 2024 spring lambs, or have an interest in purchasing one or more of our proven F2 ewes post-weaning, please reach out and reconfirm your interest. We don't require deposits until the lambs are born and will be retaining any F4 ewes. If you're not breeding-up or planning to, a wether (or two!) is a wo ..read more

Our little flock was shorn this past September, leaving behind piles of wool that were a far cry from the snow-white mounds I had once imagined there would be. Even after sorting out the dags and the dirt and the stains, what remained was still dingy and unimpressive to an untrained eye like mine. I was hard pressed to see how anything good could come of it. I resigned myself to spreading it as garden mulch next spring or offering it to someone who might have the time, patience, and skill to actually do something more ambitious with it. So, into bags the whole of it went, sorted by the lamb i ..read more

I recently saw a post that stated sheep can’t see the color red. They can see blue, yellow, cyan, and greenish hues, and clearly identify objects up to 20 feet away. Their eyesight is at its best when their heads are down and grazing, as their excellent peripheral vision (320-340 degrees) gives them a keen ability to see predators sneaking up on them. Their “blind spot,” however, is right in front of their nose and they have very poor depth perception. How people figured all this out is beyond me. I’m stuck on the idea that sheep can’t see red. Not only can humans see red, we can “see red” in ..read more

There’s something about Gabriel’s expression here — perhaps it’s the gleam in his eye or the cryptic half-smile that makes me think he knows something everyone else should. It reminds me of the iconic Mona Lisa, who for centuries has intrigued the world with the coy curvature of her lips and an enigmatic gaze that seems to follow her viewers around the room. If portraits could talk, I’m fairly sure both Gabriel and Lady Lisa would say: If you know, you know. Lately, I’ve been questioning what I “know." The older I get the less certain I am about many things. God knows, there’s great uncertain ..read more

We’ve all heard the expression that touts having someone or something “in the palm of your hand.” In the modern sense, it's an ugly brag about having control or influence over a person or situation, usually thanks to flattery or manipulation. But in this photograph, Gabriel has sweetly put his face in the palm of my hand, freely returning the affection I freely give to him. I think most shepherds have enjoyed moments like this; it’s not that I have some kind of special touch. While animals don’t respond to flattery, they do respond to security. For prey animals like sheep, safety is everythin ..read more

Ok, y’all. Be honest. Who doesn’t have hundreds of photographs of their SHEEP on their phone? “Swipe Right” only keeps the gallery of cuteness coming and we don’t even notice that the person who asked a simple question about our flock now has eyes that are glazed over with photo-fatigue (oops). But why do we do it? As a shepherdess, I’ll venture to say it’s simply because we find our sheep incredibly beautiful; it’s because we long to capture that natural beauty, the sunlight on their fleeces, the animated or soulful expressions on their faces, because doing so somehow make us feel more alive ..read more