Look at that first photo, and tell me what's different in the second photo. No, not the position of the grazing sheep, or the girth of the white ewes, or the different angle of photography.....
See any resemblance between the two black sheep? The first one is Jethro, on loan from friends since December, and daddy to the lambs that both white ewes are carrying. The second one is Jethro's son, born at Hillbunker Farm in Woodstock, who we bought this spring to carry on the "Jethro" influence on our little property. The second one arrived on Wednesday, when Jethro's owners came to pick him up after a successful breeding season with our ewes, April and Iris (due to give birth any day now....or hour....or minute. I'm still waiting on those two, but it can't be long now.)
Meet "Brock", registered Babydoll Southdown ram, stunningly handsome like his father, quality breeding material for any future lambs born here.
We are trying for "B" names this year ("Buddy" and "Bea" the guinea hogs, for example) So we went down the list of names that begin with B, and even consulted the same book of baby names that we used for our children (gasp!) Brock was the name I liked from the beginning, as in: the Pokemon-trainer character, Brock, who is a girl crazy skirt-chaser and all-around flirt (the kids tell me). But we needed to convince ourselves that it was truly the best of all the other choices. (Yes, I know. "Brock" will have to live with the nickname "Brock-o-li" all of his life. No need to point that out. He's a sheep, so his feelings will be spared and he will not grow up with an inferiority complex from excessive teasing.)
Poor Brock spent his first night here calling out "Maaa-aaa-aaa", until his little lamb voice was hoarse by morning. I took pity on him the next day, turned him in with the ewes, who wanted absolutely nothing to do with the new little pest (they are very preoccupied with being uncomfortable and very pregnant). They were quite taken with macho, studly Jethro, thank-you-very-much.....and their little flock was complete, at least in their sheep sized brains.
He eagerly ran to their side, and they promptly butted him away. Now, 2 days later, no new lambs have been born (yet!), the ewes have more or less accepted that he is part of their flock now, and he is grazing contentedly between 2 soon-to-be-mamas.
He can be big brother to those new lambs until they leave for their new homes, and he will grow up to be a fine protector for the small flock made up of Iris and April. Maybe they'll come around and see him as the stud that he is, say.....October or so, when it's the right time of year for those sorts of sheepish thoughts.
Welcome, Brock! :)
Laura
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