Building A Small Farm | Sheep

In this update about building my dream farm, I share a little about the love of sheep!

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In my previous post Why I'm a Wannabe Farmer I talked about my dream of farming. In a nutshell; I'm to inherit 40 acres of land that's been left to go wild over three decades. The challenge? To move there and start a new, farming life. There are a few hurdles in the way that prevent any immediate move so over the coming two to three years, I'll be working the land and 'preparing', if you will, for our arrival.

So far, I've begun planting a 3.5 acre wildflower meadow, have young saplings growing at home for later transplant, have installed owl boxes, sown the beginnings of a brand new English bluebell grove, started to clear bramble thickets and undertaken a new project restoring and revitalizing a couple of old ponds.

The challenge and goal? Nurture the land back into life, both in terms of biodiversity and land fertility, so that when I'm given the green light to move and build a home, I can hit the ground running when it comes to launching the small farming business.

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My granddad was pretty old by the time I was able to toddle around the farmyard after him. Days of the vibrant farm were gone, with pigs and cattle memories of old. He did, however, still keep a small flock of about 30 sheep. Mostly Suffolks, with a few frenetic and flighty Jacobs thrown in. In those lambing days, you'd find my sister and I kitted out in our overalls and wellies and spending ALL our time in the sheds watching for babies or bottle feeding.

Before my sister and I, it was my Dad feeding the orphan lambs.

And so it's rather unsurprising that I have every intention of keeping sheep on the farm. And to continue my granddad's work, and in keeping with our plan to have locally developed breeds, the majority will be Suffolks. One of the great thing about sheep is they pair beautifully with cattle (the real love of my life). Each animal grazes different lengths of grass, so they're perfect paddock companions.

Whilst I have memories of being around sheep, my sheep expertise is lacking - basically it's little to none. Unlike cows, I'm happy handling sheep, but in terms of actually rearing, looking after and fattening up for the butcher? Absolutely NO clue! However, that doesn't stop me cooing over them every year when I go to agricultural shows.

For instance, there's this smiling sheep...

And then this lovely little mountain sheep that was interested in the camera...

Then there are these sheep that look like badgers...

And these ones that look like rabbits...

There's lovely little Texel lambs...

And then this magnificent Ram...

I mean, PLEASE, you can see how hard it is to JUST PICK ONE! If money, space and time were no object, my farm would be like a Pix'n'Mix shop; one of every type. Buuuuuut, I can't do that (as I found out with my layer flock of hens) because you run out of space quickly and then have difficulty when you want to start breeding pens of specific breeds.

Until I can actually live at the farm, I'm trying to find some local cheap pasture that I might be able to run a few wethers on. This would give me handling and rearing experience, but not tie me down to year-round maintenance. Though, knowing me, I'd end up getting a few gimmers and ending up with a mini flock!

But, for now, I'll have to make do visiting shows and sheep-owning friends!

THANKS FOR READING - PLEASE CONSIDER UPVOTING, RESTEEMING AND REPLYING BELOW

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