It’s now Day 14 of lambing and we have had 110 ewes lamb so far, giving us 246 lambs. They can be seen dotting the fields of Metchosin, along William Head Road and Taylor Road. For anybody who wants to check them out, some of our twins are in the big field beyond Devonian Park, along William Head Road, and some more of them are in the field to the left of Taylor Road, as you drive down to Taylor Beach, south of William Head Road. Singles are up in the woods alongside Taylor Road, the other side of William Head Road.We’re often asked why there are numbers painted on our sheep. It’s a little known fact that Metchosin is where the “counting sheep” live. No, I’m just kidding. (But Sleep Country/Serta, if you want real sheep for your commercials, just call us.) We ear tag all our sheep but those tags are impossible to read from a distance, so when we send a ewe and her baby lambs out to the field we paint them with matching numbers. This way we can match them up easily if they get separated from each other. Sometimes a lamb will do poorly if the ewe is having a problem with her udder or with post-lambing complications, so being able to see clearly who belongs with whom helps us to intervene quickly and remedy those situations. After a few weeks, the paint washes off, but by then the lambs are more independent and able to survive on their own anyway.

First lambs born last night. In a week there will be a lot in the fields of Metchosin.