diary of a comedy sheep farm

[Chopsy Varmint]

Matters arising from 'Matters Arising'................

1. Thanks for clearing up the 'peely wally' thing - I couldn't work out WTF you were on about

2. BAT BRIDGES
View attachment 898736 Are the chuffin' Norfolk bats not capable of flying over a fudgin' lorry

The world's gone mad or at least the East Angular bit of it has

1 You hid it very well.

2 The batty issue seemed to be caused by the removal of trees that they used for navigation when the new bits of road were put in. On the A11 stretch the bridges appear to try to link up remaining thin strips of trees and the bridge wires are supposed to help with echolocation in theory, but in practice the bats ignore them. I'd guess that when there's no traffic they can just nip across the road at any height that suits them, and when there is traffic they can't hear themselves squeak.

Normal for Naarfuk

 

[spin cycle]

overslept today...i never oversleep .....admiral on the phone 7:45....feed delivery......got him unloaded then pottered in grain store til K arrived....checked round then off to treat small batch ewes+ lambs.....pulled 6 ram lambs out that were getting a bit fruity....home to fatten

morning gone i had a long lunch....the afternoon choices were pasture topping or continue in grain store.....i also had a feeling that i'd forgotten something...but what.....i opt for pasture topping.........get field done,,,,,,,back at farm and in my absence the 'balloon has gone up'....that thing i thought i'd forgotten.....pick up cinders from train station.....HH sorted it out,,,,fil collects.....i get home and get bollocked by HH good naturedly.....cinders returns 'i'm not talking to you' (bitta plus perhaps)....lush arrives.......i explain my position....i was tired and anyway cinders got picked up...i got my field topped AND fil offered me 14 ac for hay when i saw him ......HH not amused but lush takes my part purely for the fun of it

talking of being forgetful...i forgot to tell you about the admiral/ mule escapade the other day.....she only ran over a ewe....TBF it was from a standstill and i was there...just couldn't see her...went right over her....anyhoo up got the ewe...staggered a bit....trouble was did she internal injuries.....by her mark she was a 'snot'.....i check her coupla times during the day....seems ok.....and she was.......suffice to say she was out this morning c/w lamb

 

[Cowslip]

Just had to watch the combine video againI hope it's not now a daily thing otherwise I will be asleep before the 3 year old.

 

[Chopsy Varmint]

Just had to watch the combine video againI hope it's not now a daily thing otherwise I will be asleep before the 3 year old.

It is quite restful.

Perhaps @yellow belly will find another bedtime story film, History of the Plough or something, so you can have some variety

 

[yellowbelly]

It is quite restful.

Perhaps @yellow belly will find another bedtime story film, History of the Plough or something, so you can have some variety

Tractor Ted is a big hit with the 'little person' (nearly 2) that is now able to come and see us again after this lockdown malarky.............

P.S. You tagged the wrong @yellowbelly - I'm the one without the space

 

[spin cycle]

woke up well rested .....admiral phones....chap with straw rang yesterday....i nip over and see him....he's baled them but can only let me have about 30 odd...'there's no straw' he exclaims.....back at farm admiral is in panic mode and spends day pestering ppl for straw...no luck as yet but does find 10 ac of reasonable grass for hay.....unfortunately fil's grass was no good for hay.....hadn't grown in drought then bottom greened up...it would disappear whilst making....back to straw....thing is usually its winter barley...spring barley.....wheat.....so late on you can pick up some wheat straw if short.....but this year wheat is being done before spring barley.....it's vanishing from fields nearby rapidly

up to stalag 17 to catch+ treat.....the last 6 are b'stards to get...54 snot ewes.....take the last dozen lambs home that we couldn't catch last time)....3 were struck....one i was particularly worried about but he'd chipped up by the afternoon


after lunch bitta pottering then popped into naam for sheep marker,,,horse + pigeon food

NOW every now and again life and ppl surprise you.....so i want to give a quick mention to a reader who is obviously 'a cut above' the norm .....to this individual i shall award 'Spins Highly Intelligent Trophy'.....'sh!t' for short.......now don't get to excited cos i'm not gonna give 'sh1!s' out willy nilly.......but unbeknown to me @delilah went on a pilgramage to arkwrights and left me a present of 30g of baccy....thank you so much

ps....if anybody wants to pop into the YOMB theres a nice deutz c/w loader

 

[Lodekka]

I can offer you special rates on a good moisture meter...
Always up for a good SH!T...

He says whilst worming his way into Spin’s good books - and most disgruntled he was never considered for a calendar.

 

[clod hopper]

woke up well rested .....admiral phones....chap with straw rang yesterday....i nip over and see him....he's baled them but can only let me have about 30 odd...'there's no straw' he exclaims.....back at farm admiral is in panic mode and spends day pestering ppl for straw...no luck as yet but does find 10 ac of reasonable grass for hay.....unfortunately fil's grass was no good for hay.....hadn't grown in drought then bottom greened up...it would disappear whilst making....back to straw....thing is usually its winter barley...spring barley.....wheat.....so late on you can pick up some wheat straw if short.....but this year wheat is being done before spring barley.....it's vanishing from fields nearby rapidly

up to stalag 17 to catch+ treat.....the last 6 are b'stards to get...54 snot ewes.....take the last dozen lambs home that we couldn't catch last time)....3 were struck....one i was particularly worried about but he'd chipped up by the afternoon


after lunch bitta pottering then popped into naam for sheep marker,,,horse + pigeon food

NOW every now and again life and ppl surprise you.....so i want to give a quick mention to a reader who is obviously 'a cut above' the norm .....to this individual i shall award 'Spins Highly Intelligent Trophy'.....'sh!t' for short.......now don't get to excited cos i'm not gonna give 'sh1!s' out willy nilly.......but unbeknown to me @delilah went on a pilgramage to arkwrights and left me a present of 30g of baccy....thank you so much

ps....if anybody wants to pop into the YOMB theres a nice deutz c/w loader

@delilah ! Now that's just cheating!

Do you finish all your lambs inside Spin?

 

[spin cycle]

@delilah ! Now that's just cheating!

Do you finish all your lambs inside Spin?

mostly yes...we have the barley....i'm hoping that the forage rape might do some this year ......also wondering if i could use alka grain barley..i think @yellowbelly.....uses alka grain but not sure what for?

 

[clod hopper]

mostly yes...we have the barley....i'm hoping that the forage rape might do some this year ......also wondering if i could use alka grain barley..i think @yellowbelly.....uses alka grain but not sure what for?

Not judging you mate was reading in-between the lines.
On average how long do you feed them grain to finish ? I presume they are grass only up to that point. Never done it so I'm interested.

 

[yellowbelly]

.i think @yellowbelly.....uses alka grain but not sure what for?

No, we use Alkakarb.
It's just animal food grade sodium bicarbonate - a rumen buffer to help stop acidosis if we're feeding high rates of cereals.
About 1% inclusion rate - I could go on, but I can sense some of Spin's 'diary regulars' eyes beginning to glaze over now

 

[Lodekka]

Spin's 'diary regulars' eyes beginning to glaze over

Ooooh! No... do continue, i’m Riveted..

 

[delilah]

but unbeknown to me @delilah went on a pilgramage to arkwrights and left me a present of 30g of baccy....thank you so much

Pleasure. We did go for an ice cream but I think Mrs Spin saw us coming, I'm sure that I detected movement in there...... .

 

[Flat 10]

so 'lesbians' are lexions?....and 'peely wally'.....claas in general

anyhoo.....coupla bitsa 'housekeepin' from yesterday.....forgot to mention the bat bridges over the NDR....i'd been puzzling but boy knew what they were....seems a do they/don't they work debate....also seeing those fisherman by the sewage plant reminded me why cromer crabs are so 'good'....it's the seaward sewage outlet at west runton

blink and you'll miss it ...the wheat next to me has gone.....i round up some confused snot and they traipse back to the field....decide to take rest of the morning off and have a late 'lay in'.....not to be...as i retire the resta the household gets up.....boy rounds up the bonfire but puts some boxes on...cue smoke....cue neighbour BT complaining...i'm oblivious but just as i'm drifting off mrs spin arrives home...hears of BT and chastens me for not defending 'her little' boy...FFS he's 6ft and black belt/numerous dans karate...i mean i'm old fat and toothless (still)...how am i more scary...plus she used ti get upset when i did trim the neighbours up.....you can't win....she is scathing about BT though...'he's odd...next door neighbours gardener saw him running round the lawn in his underpants one morning'....probably cos i knicked his trousers

next HH had done her usual good job clearing up after her do.....and had gone to work at pub.....mrs spin cajoles me into helping carry chairs tables back in....but thats it...there's no rest/mooching for me so i decide to go pasture topping.....i've had to 'modify' my broken linkage....some chains+ d shackle lend support...it works and pasture topper + me chug along on my grazing marsh...it didn't get cut last autumn cos it was to wet and the alder took full advantage....K says it's good winter horse food

my late dad's favourite film was 'ice cold in alex'....he would often say when we fixing something 'what would you do if you were in the desert?'.......i was often tempted to say 'not grow barley+ beet for a start'.....but i knew what he meant...i do often stretch the maxim to it's limits though

I think pre

Pleasure. We did go for an ice cream but I think Mrs Spin saw us coming, I'm sure that I detected movement in there...... .

View attachment 899192

That’s what you get for being a creep

 

[Lodekka]

That’s what you get for being a creep

Yes, i think she has instructions to treat all of us like that from King Spin...

Perhaps we have to go for a '99' when HH or Cinders are there...

If they hide again then let the tyres down!

The way this king treats his subjects... Pah!

 

[spin cycle]

last two days

hay we 'alighted on' is cut....with cs outta action the black/red nash had to do it.....and she did albeit a little slower

in between it's been fettlin sheep/horses and any time left over half hearted attempts to distinguish which lambs belong to which ewes amongst the captured snot.....i had a plan.......separate the ewes + lambs for coupla hours then reunite....the lambs should dash to the ewes.......it didn't go smoothly.....drafting was a sinch until we realised a hurdle was undone and the ewes were getting out as fast as i drafted.....most recaptured but a couple took off back to the field to torment me another day .....two hours later i reunited them.....ZILCH interest.....lunch

moving water this afternoon + taking mower off /hitching magic box.....which requires minor repair (bodge)....into the yard trots a snot ewe from this morning looking for her lambs.....i catch her and mark her and her lambs...888...where upon she turns round and jumps clean outta the race....encouraged by this HH's pet milly jumps outta another pen

right quick break why i have a little cry....i mean once upon a time i swear i was a reasonably good organised farmer....now i'm just a gibbering wreck

long story short i have three ewes/lambs marked so far....only trouble is two of the ewes are running around the yard not wanting to stray from their lambs ...mexican standoff

in other news i managed to tip over an ibc but fortunately didn't break it......bloomin muggy this pm...not lookin foward to turning hay in the heat tommoz.....mart sat looking doubtful

quick reread of today's offering another little cry and off to a darkened room

 

[DrWazzock]

Glad its not just us it happens to. We have resorted to cattle hurdles at the end of the lamb shedding off pen. They seem to just bounce over sheep hurdles. I reckon it’s all the extra muscle in these modern breeds. Chasing one round the garden was no fun in the heat last week when the wagon was here taking a load. Finally caught it when it wedged itself in the hedge.

 

[primmiemoo]

I can't decide whether it's deer or antelope genetics been sneaked in, somehow. >poing!< >poing!< >poing!< where 'twas >trit-trot<.

 

[spin cycle]

don't be cloddy....the admiral thinks it's hilarious.....anything that frustrates my attempts to sell her 'babies'

 

[clod hopper]

don't be cloddy....the admiral thinks it's hilarious.....anything that frustrates my attempts to sell her 'babies'

In all fairness I keep 'down' types and crosses. I find they adapt to electric fences better even when squeezed. Shorter legs and heaver body's and calmer temperament. A calm animal will fatten easier. Works for me