In my previous post I mentioned that it's often touch and go trying to keep abandoned lambs alive. While Woolly Joe has survived and thrived, this post is about another lamb that didn't make it.
On Saturday a.m. John and I went off on the lambing beat. After a cold, hard frost that night it was a beautiful, sunny, spring day. It was so nice that we decided to extend our walk and go down to the end of the Old Road. Lucky we did. There in the corner of a paddock we found a little lamb huddled. She'd been born the previous day, apparently through the fence, so hadn't been fed at all. She was close to death but had been kept alive by her survival instincts and the warmth of the sun.
John picked her up and we raced back to the Homestead to heat up a bottle of colostrum. We kept her wrapped in a blanket on the deck in the warm sunshine, feeding her milk as often as we thought she'd take it. She couldn't stand or hold up her head, but we thought she was gaining strength, particularly when she started to "baaa." I christened her "Spotty," as you can see she had a beautiful spotted face and three black spots along the back of her spine.
Unfortunately at the end of the day Spotty died. She tried her best and we did too. I know that life on a farm is about life and death, but I wanted to honor her sweet yet fighting spirit.
Poor little guy. You did everything you could. He was adorable.
Posted by: Marilyn | 08/26/2011 at 08:36 AM
It was a she, but yes :(
Posted by: Karen | 08/26/2011 at 01:55 PM