The Woolly Patchwork Sheep Sanctuary

September started loudly with the Rali Ceredigion weekend which saw the FIA European Rally Championship and British Rally Championship roar past the farm and through our village in two stages! There was a lot of excitement with some of the World’s top rally drivers taking part. There were skids and crashes to add to the drama. Thankfully the sheep slept through it all!

Summer finally arrived in September and we enjoyed a good spell of settled warm weather. This allowed us to get the straw hauled in for the Winter. Although our straw merchant is only 3 miles away, it’s not a job to be done on a wet day. Two trailer loads all stacked in the shed ready for when the Winter arrives and the sheep will come in at nights to bed down out of the bad weather. It’s a good workout getting that lot stacked up to the rafters!!!

Donald developed a swollen testicle which was concerning. My vet prescribed a course of penicillin injections and anti inflammatories. Donald decided he didn’t much like me that week!! At the end of his treatment there wasn’t a noticeable difference in the swelling. As Donald is well in himself, not in any pain or discomfort with the swelling and there are no adhesions in the testicle the vet decided it was better to leave well alone at this stage unless things take a turn for the worse. Donald is largely infertile and it’s thought this may be due to a historic injury or infection that he suffered in the testicle and this is now showing in the form of epididimetitis, which is apparently quite common in rams. Should this progress and cause problems in the future, we do have the option to castrate him, but it’s not something i would rush into as Donald is of course a senior gentleman and he does tend to bleed profusely from wounds and this in itself would be a problem if he were to undergo any surgery.

October started well, warm and dry but we moved to rain and gales by the end of the first week.

I brought Crystal onto the special care paddock in early October as she was looking down and depressed and showing signs of anaemia. My vet couldn’t find anything specific when he examined her so took bloods to see if they showed anything to be amiss. In the meanwhile Crystal had a course of steroids and multi vitamins to try and boost her up and get her eating again as her appetite was very small. She picked up well whilst on the steroids. Her blood tests showed several irregularities which pointed towards bowel issues and the vet thought she may be suffering from inflammatory bowel disease. Sadly before we could conduct further tests her health crashed and i had to have her put to sleep as an emergency before she started to suffer. I asked my vet to perform a post mortem as i needed to know what had caused her such a rapid decline. This revealed a huge rectal tumour which was bleeding, causing the severe anaemia that Crystal was experiencing. Even if we had managed scans and further tests, sadly the outcome would have been the same. It was a terrible shock, completely unexpected and left me absolutely heartbroken. Her twin sister Coral and niece Lucinda had come down to the paddock with her as they are a close knit family and i could see they were equally heartbroken when they had to say their final farewell to dear Crystal. She was the sweetest ewe, a beautiful soul inside and out. She is very much missed but will never be forgotten.

We were able to get the Winter haylage into the shed at the beginning of October. Three trailer and truck loads all stacked and covered ready for when the bad weather sets in and the sheep come in at nights for feed and shelter. It’s always a relief to have the haylage and straw in the shed ready for Winter. A huge thank you must go to all the wonderfully generous supporters who donated to our Winter feed Gofund.me earlier in the year. It’s thanks to you that this is in the shed and thanks must also go to Marisa who so thoughtfully set up the Gofund.me to raise funds for the Sanctuary.

A big thank you also to Victoria from Pins and Needles yarn shop in Devizes, who chose the Sanctuary to benefit from their annual Yarnstravaganza raffle and to Linda who put us forward to be considered as a beneficiary. I purchased a 15kg bag of Turmeraid pellets with the donation, so a big thank you from the sheep.

During the heavy frosts in the latter half of November, dear old Limpy really started to feel her arthritic joints and her mobility became seriously compromised. We were forecast a nasty storm and i knew she wouldn’t thrive in these ongoing conditions through the Winter. I had already taken the decision that she would be quietly put to sleep before enduring another Winter. I spoke to my vet and our darling girl was peacefully relieved of her aches on a sunny afternoon, with her head resting on my lap. It’s a heart wrenching decision to make but when you have responsibility for an animals quality of life it’s a decision you must take for their welfare. Limpy came here as a 3 day old lamb in 2013 with a broken hind leg. She’s led a good, full life but arthritis has seriously set into the hind leg that she broke and despite strong veterinary prescribed pain relief it wasn’t really working for her any longer sadly. She will always be remembered for the quiet, easygoing girl that she was, never any trouble.

Denis is another cause for concern. His arthritis is quite bad these days and he is now on a daily NSAID. His legs are getting weak and he doesn’t want to travel far from the comfort of his shed. I’m not sure how much longer i can keep him going if i’m totally honest. This Winter will be a challenge.

He’s had a difficult year, since having the respiratory infection and skin reaction last May. He recovered from that well but lost a lot of weight as a result which is unlikely to go back on at his age despite the fact he eats like a hungry horse!

In early October he developed a very swollen left front fetlock joint. My vet said he had a joint infection due to his arthritis and there was nothing to be done for it other than put him to sleep.

Had Denis been unwell in himself i would have accepted that, but he is otherwise in good health so i felt i must try something to help him. He lost all the hair on the joint and i was pretty convinced he was brewing an abscess so after advice from my vet, i poulticed it and eventually it burst out. He is taking homeopathic Hepar Sulph and Silica which are both great remedies to “draw” and he also has Rhus Tox for his arthritis along with his NSAID and turmeric. The affected area was poulticed with Mag Sulph paste and i can tell you there was a whole lot of gunk coming from that joint! I’m not sure how long it will take to resolve or if it will resolve, but i won’t give up on it. It’s vastly better than it was and i hope it will continue to improve and heal with the daily dressings. My vet is watching with interest as he is somewhat sceptical about homeopathy. Denis is happier on the leg and up and about a lot more than he was so i hope what i’m doing is working. He’s not in any pain with it. His most pressing problem is his hips getting weaker. It’s one of those situations where we go from day to day and can’t really make a long term plan…..As i said, this Winter will be challenging for him at best. He’s an old boy and i know the clock is ticking. These big old Texels were never designed for long lives. For now he enjoys pottering about up on the lawn or in the yard by his shed. Donald is never far from his side. I know they are best mates but i’ve really been surprised to see just how sentient Donald is towards Denis, how protective he is of him.

Having an elderly flock that seem to develop problems one after the other is not easy to cope with and i have to admit my mental health has taken a real bashing lately with the worry and stress of it all.

We had a night to remember when the Northern Lights lit up most of the UK in early October. Did you see them? We had an amazing show here. Not too bad for photos just taken on my mobile phone in night mode!

The latter part of October and a first half of November have been dry. It’s been a very welcome bonus after 2 wet years giving us long hard Winters. The old sheep have been able to stay out at nights much longer this year. Finally on the 19th November the pensioners and delicates came in at night to a cosy warm straw bed as we had hail and snow forecast. The snow didn’t actually materialise here thankfully although the hills around us all had a covering. This was swiftly followed by Storm Bert, a nasty weekend of high winds and torrential rain.

The younger sheep are still happy out in the fields. They have plenty of natural shelter from trees and hedgerows and good warm, waterproof fleeces. They have had feed blocks put out now to provide extra energy with vitamins and minerals. They will be coming into the shed at night time in the near future though, where they can bed down and have some tasty haylage to munch on throughout the night.

Our thoughts will soon be turning to Christmas. Please consider a sheep sponsorship as a gift to a friend or loved one. It’s £20 for 12 months and the recipient will receive a personalised adoption certificate along with the story of their sheep, photographs and quarterly newsletters.

If you are online shopping, remember we are signed up to easyfundraising. It’s free to use and the amount raised each quarter really does help the Sanctuary at no cost to yourself. If you’re not already signed up, please consider doing so, it would be great to have more supporters. Any online shop with participating retailers will raise money for us whether it’s your grocery shop, a holiday, gifts, clothes, insurance etc.

If anyone is in a position to purchase a gift from our Amazon wishlist for the sheep for Christmas, they would be incredibly grateful. Feed and supplements are always in daily use, but everything on the wishlist however big or small is an item that we regularly use.

The evenings are drawing in now, it’s dark here by 4.30pm. Just another few weeks and the days will slowly start to lengthen.

We’ve had good days and sad days throughout the year. Those we’ve lost will live on in our memories and never be forgotten. Throughout it all, you’ve all stood steadfastly beside me with your unwavering support for the Sanctuary for which i sincerely thank you.

I know 2025 will bring it’s challenges, it’s inevitable with an ageing flock, but we will face those as they arise..

Wishing you all a peaceful and happy end to the year.

With much love

Caroline & The Baa’s