The Woolly Patchwork Sheep Sanctuary

Bleatings from the Woolly Patchwork Sheep Sanctuary

Welcome to another edition of Bleatings!

Memories of the long hot Summer are now distant. We’ve had a few Autumn storms but on the whole the weather has remained fairly kind and relatively mild.

Late Summer and Autumn is usually a fairly quiet time with the sheep which gives me an opportunity to start the Winter preparations. As you saw in the last newsletter, I had stocked up with plenty of nice bedding straw. In September the haylage for Winter feeding arrived. I had to find a new supplier for haylage this year as my regular supplier had decided to retire. The haylage made locally all seems to be in large round bales. I no longer have a tractor to handle these and the other issue with big bales is that they heat up and go off before I have chance to use the whole bale, so there is a lot of wastage and the worry of the sheep getting listeria from the heated bales. This is why i’ve now been using small bales of haylage for the last couple of years.

The flock were all out 24/7 until early October, when I brought the oldest, arthritic girls in at night. They each have their own pens to snuggle down in to as they have individual requirements re feed and meds. A couple are shy feeders so they can take their time to eat their meals without loosing out to the greedy ones! I’m also able to monitor their health better, noticing if they are off colour by not eating etc.

Once we had more wet weather, a few more slightly needy/delicate girls came in at nights. These are penned in groups of 2, 3 or 4 with their family or friends for company as they don’t require such individual management. They’re mostly senior girls who’ve lost their teeth and don’t graze as well as they used to so a little bit of a boost before Winter sets in helps to see them safely through the worst of the Winter weather.

Early November saw Denis and Donald come into their Winter sheds at night. Donald is ageing but hardy. Denis is a year older than Donald and is getting quite arthritic in his hips and doesn’t like to be out in the rain. They both have a year round daily handful of soaked beet and Turmeraid to help their joints, but the added warmth of a shed and straw bed is worth a lot to their comfort and health.

The younger flock will stay out until mid December time, they do have access to the shed at night but it’s not strawed up yet. Whilst it’s still mild though, they are happy to sleep out. Once they do come in at nights for the Winter, the big shed will be strawed up and they’ll have racks full of tasty haylage to much on.
We’ve had quite a few wet and windy days so far in November and the gateways soon turn to mud. Thanks to Sanctuary supporters who’ve purchased rubber mats and hard plastic mud grids from our Amazon Wishlist we are combatting our worst muddy areas bit by bit. It’s still an ongoing project.

I had a phone call from a good friend in Mid August asking for advice about a lamb she’d rescued which had managed to break it’s leg. I suggested she brought the little lamb over to me and i’d look at it. I’ve sorted many broken legs in lambs over the years. This was a particularly bad break on a hind leg, just above the fetlock (ankle) joint. It felt completely severed and just held together by tendons and skin. I manipulated it as best as I could and strapped it up over gamgee padding held in place with cohesive bandage. Little Piglet as she was called, was given painkillers as she was obviously in great discomfort. I really wasn’t sure what the outcome would be. With such a bad break, septicemia can easily set in. Piglet generally wasn’t in a good state of health, I think she’d come from a farm with little to no management of the stock. She was tiny for her age and looked wormy. As she kindly left a little blob of poo on the floor I did a faecal egg count on it and she had a very heavy worm burden. So she was wormed as well

Thanks to a wonderfully caring owner she made a full recovery very quickly and when I went to visit her a few weeks later little Piglet came racing down the field as if nothing had ever ailed her. I can’t attach a video to the newsletter, but if you check the Sanctuary youtube channel, you will see how fast she can run!! She looked so much brighter and healthier and I’m sure in time she’ll catch up with herself and grow into a big ewe.

We’ve enjoyed seeing visitors over the Summer and Autumn months and some have stayed over for a few days in our caravan. The caravan has now been packed up and covered over for the Winter but if anyone fancies a short stay over next year (April – October) please shout. We’d love to see you.

Sadly I’ve had to close the door to any new sheep. I don’t generally say much but I’ve been struggling badly recently with a back problem which is affecting my mobility and ability to do my job. I’m managing but some days it’s hard and i’m in a lot of pain. I do have help here and I am receiving treatment, but I’ve got to be realistic about what I can manage long term. I still have 51 sheep here at the Sanctuary ranging in age from 2 – 13 years old and there is a lot of physical work involved ensuring they are kept in good health. Alongside that there is the land to be kept in good order, fencing, shed repairs etc. the list of work is endless, so I felt I really had to make a conscious decision to be able to carry on and care for what I already have but not add to the workload. I’m still able to help sheep that find themselves needing a new home as I have many contacts in the Sanctuary world and have recently found homes for 5 herdwicks and 2 north country mules, so at least I can still help in that way.

Thank you to everyone who continues to support us with gifts from our Amazon wishlist.
Also to those who’ve signed up to Easyfundraising. It’s free to you but raises money for the Sanctuary every time you shop online. If you’re not already signed up please do check it out. Every little helps.

If you’re concerned about postage strikes and sending Christmas presents this year, how about considering a Sheep Sponsorship as a gift? All sponsorships are digital so it takes the worry out of postage and if/when things will arrive! Sponsorship is £20 and is a present that keeps giving as it lasts the whole year. Full details can be found on our sponsorship page.

The days are now short and the year slowly draws to a close.

It’s been a good year here at the Sanctuary and I thank you all for your continued support. It means so much to me to know that you care for these wonderful sheep as much as I do. I couldn’t do it without your help.

Much love,
Caroline & The Baa’s xxx