Last night was the big sheep roundup so they stay dry until shearing day.
As usual one didn't want to follow the flock which made for some drama.
They're in the barn and the fields look empty.
I'm taking reference photos for painting later. The barn is very noisy.
This is an unknown type of lizard who lives in the pile of slate out back. The
grand boy likes to visit the 'lizard house'. Sure would like to know what kind
he is (the lizard). Looks more like a west coast lizard than our smooth
gecko types around here.
Reptile activity is high out here as it warms up. Driving our country road home the other
day I saw a diamond back stretched across the road. Makes me appreciate all the
black snakes on our property. Black snakes run off other snakes and keep the rodents down.
So that's all the exciting news here. Looking forward to some painting days starting
tomorrow.
What is about sheep...they are just so sweet looking. I didn't know you had to round them up before shearing to keep them dry...of course. Your dog paintings are wonderful in the post before this Patty. I hope you do sell more of them. Happy painting friend! xo
ReplyDeleteThanks Lisa. After they get sheared it must feel good because they leap around looking like goats! I'll try to post some photos of the big shear day.
ReplyDeleteI can't hear the sheep so they just look cute and peaceful. Do you hire someone to shear them or do you do it yourselves?
ReplyDeleteWould you send me some of those black snakes, I have a rodent problem;-)
I did a google image search to try and find a name for your lizard. closest I could come to was a Western Fence lizard.
ReplyDeleteHey, I think you've identified that lizard! I'll try to pick him up and look for
ReplyDeletethe blue areas on his belly, thanks, Jan! These sheep, Scottish Blackface,
are easy to take care of, which is why Bob decided to keep them. We
live close to Colonial Williamsburg. The Shepherdess there, Elaine, comes
yearly to sheer them, trim hooves and make sure they're all healthy.
In fact we're happy that a few of our registered ewe lambs are part of the
new Scottish farm area in Wmsbg.
About black snakes...I'm sure you could find some to populate your
land. I just came up with this site;
http://www.backwaterreptiles.com/rat-snakes/black-rat-snake-for-sale.html
Another thought...you probably have pest control people who remove snakes from property. You might call some to say you're looking to add
some black snakes to your property. I'd check with environmentalists in
the area to make sure it won't upset the eco balance first. There's the
ten dollar answer as my grandpa used to say ;) !