The start of our adventures with Katahdin sheep.
In 2010, we were the Beverly Hillbillies. Our minivan was overflowing with Border Collies, Brittanys, an Australian Shepherd, to boxes of personal belongings, and just stuff. Our Dodge Ram was pulling the horse trailer with the first load of, you guessed it, horses. Did I mention that our chickens were riding on top of the dog crates in the van?
Our move from Colorado to Missouri was in motion. You might say that our retirement from teaching elementary school and working at the phone company was in full swing. Our daughter was in middle school looking forward to a change. Our adventures with Katahdin sheep were about to begin.
The Voshel family, that’s us – Karen, Gerrit, and Catherine – established ourselves on a small acreage near Long Lane, Missouri, that we now call Rowdy Mountain Farm. Our border collies began itching for work, kind of driving us crazy, but we couldn’t find anybody nearby to help train the dogs and us for competition.
So, what does one do in that situation? Research, research and more research after which we bought seven registered Katahdin ewes and one wether from a respected breeder. Hair sheep, of course, because shearing sheep was never an option. What came after seven ewes? Yep, a ram arrived. The best ram that we could afford at the time from the Midwest Stud Ram Sale in Sedalia, Missouri. Then cute lambs followed and more ewes and more lambs. That’s how it all started. Rowdy Mountain Farm (RMF) registered Katahdins.
P.S. Our border collies now have sheep to try to herd.
