Sunday, January 23, 2011

Deep Freeze

It's cold and getting colder. Horizontal snow in lovely Brookfield, the tiny town with it's own little micro-climate. Tonight we'll have quite a dip. The barn is one big ice box. I bought this big classy old barn on a wing and a prayer, totally oblivious of what it would take to run it. It's a miracle I'm still here. I could keep six sheep in a little shed warm, but 60 - 70 sheep, goats and chickens in a giant barn meant to house a hundred cows? Impossible. Oh, well, gotta deal. We'll thaw out eventually, lick our frostbite wounds, and go forward. I love the winter and don't mind being pitted against the elements if I have a few creature comforts like firewood and running water. Electricity is a beautiful luxury and I never take it for granted. Someday I'll have a working generator on hand just in case. On the sheep front, no lambs yet. No tiny frozen bundles when I went out this morning, thankfully. The dexamethasone labor-inducer has not brought any relief to my prolapsed ewes yet. Very depressing. I'm fearing the worst and preparing myself to let them go in some way, I haven't decided yet. Libby Llop warned me, if they lamb the lambs may still not be viable. I wouldn't mind losing the lambs if I could save the ewes. At this point, I'm tired of seeing them suffer and I'm tired of pushing that mass back in so they can pee. Very depressing. I had a competent vet here twice and that didn't help. We'll see what the day brings. I'm preparing for my daughter's wedding and will try to focus on that.

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