June 29, 2010

I have been having a blast dyeing the coopworth fiber I got from Indianbrook Farm! here is more of it, in probably my favorite colorway:



When it came out of the dyepot I couldn't believe the color saturation!

It has been a little cooler here in Arkansas the past couple of days. Cooler is a relative term. It was only 89 degrees yesterday, but it stayed cloudy which helped quite a bit. Better than the 100 degree heat we have seen for a large portion of June. Folks, it has been hot.

My favorite dorper sheep, Rachel, scared me yesterday morning. I looked out the front window into the pasture and she was laying flat out on the ground, away from the rest of the herd. She wasn't moving. I slipped on my shoes and took off down the front yard calling her name. Isabella the donkey started braying, and Rachel still didn't move. It had rained most of the night before, so I am wondering if she was out in it, got struck by a falling limb, who knows what? About the time I got to the fence, she raised her head up and lazily looked around - she had been napping! When she saw me she came to the fence and wanted to be loved on. Rachel was a rescue sheep from a lady that loved her animals, but had too many but not enough space for them. The reason she came home with us is because when I waded out among the herd, she came up to me and leaned on me and looked up at me with her big brown eyes. Who could resist such a plea? When we went back with the trailer the next day, she did the same thing, and has lived happily here at Sarah's Sheep Farm ever since. She loves saltine crackers and kisses on her nose. She closes her eyes when you scratch her under the chin. Any doubt as to why she is my favorite?


This was Rachel last year with one of her twin lambs.