over the river, and through the woods…

to Grandmothers house we go. to catch our fleeing sheep. 

Today we were going to go for a hike in the woods around our house and dig up some native flowers and grasses to transplant into our front flower bed.  We began the morning letting the chickens out of their coop and debating once again when we were going to finally let the sheep out to pasture, and figured why not give it a go for today, it is a bright sunny day with minimal wind, the electric fence is completely hooked up and functional: I spent a good portion of yesterday mowing the perimeter line tightening the strands and rerouting the fence to encompass the rear barn door so that the sheep would be either in the fenced pasture or in the barn with no unprotected areas.  Aba checked our voltage reading; a good 2500 on all 3 strands and we opened the door to their pen.  With a little persuasion of the cracker kind (and our herding sticks we use with the chickens) they were all out in the pasture and looked so happy!  Taking large mouthfuls of bright green grass, looking around their new surroundings with glee.  N rested in the doorway of the barn and gazed at them with pride.  And I wished I had my camera to capture this memory and accomplishment.  Aba seconded the sentiment and N and I went back to the house to retrieve it.  When we returned I spotted Aba sitting at the side door of the barn feeding the chickens again, and N asked why the sheep were in the brush pile.  What? Sheep in the brush pile?  That can not be! The brush pile is on the other side of the fence from the sheep!  The brush pile is not where the sheep are supposed to be! 

So we  set to work, N, Aba and I with our chicken sticks, some crackers and muttering under our breath.  An announcement by Aba to keep them out of the woods no matter what, or else!  The crackers, the little tidbits they relish in their barn room had no affect on them when surrounded by acres of green pasture, attempting to push them back towards the fenced in pasture also did not have the intended effect.  Do you know where they went?  Yep!  Into the woods and started climbing the hill (remember we live in a hollow?) so into the woods Aba and I went and left N in charge of the little ones.  We hoped this would be a short adventure, one we could laugh about in a few moments as we scratched our heads and wondered how they got out.  But it was not to be. 

The sheep kept climbing higher with every attempt we made to turn them around.  They darted up to the left, up to the right, through thickets of saplings so thick I could barely see them, the tinkling of their bells guiding me.  At one point Aba who was down in the field as I attempted to cut them off by getting higher on the hill started yelling at the sheep telling them how they should just come down and stop being so stupid.  This did not have the desired effect, they thought this meant run up the hill faster!  We were fast approaching the ridge where our property line ends and it opens up to a corn field.  I had to get above them and cut them off, if they went in that field, it would be near impossible to get them back, and damage would be done to a neighbors field, which would not sit well with any one.  I finally got above them, they saw me and stopped climbing.  They stared at me, I stared at them, We both stood not sure what to do next.  I was unsure where Aba was, I was unsure where I was.  All I knew is I could see the ridge behind me and knew in another 10 foots climb so would they and the wide open field beyond. 

All of a sudden Aba appeared at my side with a rope.  He had ditched his chicken poles and gotten a rope somehow, The plan was to now try and rope one of them and hope the other 2 would follow.  This should be easy!  Considering neither of us has ever successfully roped  anything, N is the best roper in our family and even then not at moving targets in the woods!  Somehow though the sight of the 2 of us up hill gave the sheep cause to turn around, they took a few tentative steps down hill, and then took off at a trot.  Aba was right besides them and I was well, lets just say a little farther behind, but I was directly behind.  They made it back down to the open field , near where the corn patch will be next week ( hopefully) and headed towards the river.

Good!  Aba and I both thought this was a step in the right direction until he asked me if the sheep would cross it.  Would the sheep cross the river?  I had no idea. No where had a read anything about sheep and water.   So we continued to push them towards that water and it appeared to be working!  They didn’t want to cross it so it kept them pinned, a few more feet back towards the barn and they would be trapped between the rabbit fence and the river and we could get them.  Good plan right?

Not right, they crossed the river,  Aba crossed the river, they were now trapped between the pond and the river, I forged  through the river (at a deeper spot) urged by Aba to hurry before they spotted the  path and took off up the other side of the hollow and into the woods again.  A jumped through the ravine and met them head on just past the final bridge crossing the pond and stream and up to the street and woods going out the hollow the opposite way.  They attempted to go around me, I split my chicken rod, lunged right and blocked 2, I blocked left and thwarted the 3rd.  Finally success!!!  well, kinda,  the first 2 Daisy and Mirabelle got by, but Candy, who is apparently the leader (at least for today) was stuck in a bush at the waters edge.  I grabbed her horns (See why I like horns?)  Aba helped pull her out from the rear and we slipped the rope over her neck.  The other 2 had paused waiting for her.  I would love to say this is where our adventure ends, but we still had to get all 3 back to the barn.  Candy acted as an untrained dog on a leash and pulled so hard she kept choking herself, Aba slowly led her with 100 feet of rope backing towards the barn, the others followed, while I brought up the rear, having to unhook the rope every so often as Candy would attempt to make a run for it sideways.  We safely returned them to the barn after our 2 hour adventure.  

 None were very happy about this.  We are still unsure how they got out.  We did not go and collect plants to transplant into the front yard. We did not take pictures of our sheep happily grazing in their new pasture.  We did not come home happy, just sweaty tired, and unrested.  B thinks we should give the sheep back and get a cow instead; Aba muttered something about lambchops under his breath and stated aloud we should have gotten fainting goats, we wouldn’t have to chase those for 2 hours through the woods!  and I am thinking back on when I suggested that we just tie them out, like Laura Ingalls Wilders family did with their cows instead of putting in a fence. 

We are not to sure what to do at this point, but we would love to hear some input on what has worked for you, how to keep our sheep inside and how to make them love the grass in their pasture!!! 

 

~ by Robin on May 24, 2008.