“She was like, ‘Oh, my God, this is my song. I’ve been listenin’ to the radio all night long. Sittin’ ’round, waitin’ for it to come on and here it is.’ She was like, ‘Come here, boy, I wanna dance.'”
The music is blaring on my radio. The whole barn is rocking out to Luke Bryan’s country song, “Play It Again.” Not only does the music help the time fly by, but it is desensitizing my sheep to the sounds of madness that go on at shows. Hopefully my gang will be less jumpy.
Maxwell, one of our livestock guardian dogs, is not impressed with the noise. Quick as a flash he hightails it out of the barn to the pasture to get away from the racket.
Bad Hair Day
Katahdin sheep have hair, not wool. That surprises people that have limited knowledge of sheep. No shearing necessary for our flock. They shed like our Great Pyrenees/Anatolian guard dogs.
Our sheep have very bad hair days in the spring. The Bossman and Pretty Boy are prime examples of this phenomenon. Since it’s early June they are a mess. Grooming begins with hair removal.
It is not ethical to shear Katahdin sheep for a show.
Brush, Pluck, Comb
Since it is not honorable to use shears, we brush, comb and pluck at the hairs. Then we grab chunks of threadlike strands and gently pull. In spite of an hour of pulling we still have tons of work to do.
One of my favorite Carrie Underwood songs plays on the radio so I take a pause to listen. I just love this song.
“She threw her hands up in the air. Jesus, take the wheel. Take it from my hands. ‘Cause I can’t do this on my own. I’m letting go. So give me….”
I kind of feel this way about these hairy sheep. I throw my hands up in the air and hope for a miracle. Make this hair disappear! Unfortunately nothing happens. I’m not as fortunate as Carrie. But in the end we are making progress. Nothing better than team work.
Finally, The Bossman, Pretty Boy, Red Boy and Chucky are becoming hairless. Ha! Not really hairless, but less hairy.
Clip And Snip
In addition to the extensive brushing and combing I have to pay attention to the feet; to the hooves. Hooves need to be trimmed. Not a fun job, but nobody takes a shine to a limping sheep. Subsequently an unmanicured hoof can cause painful walking conditions and can trap dirt tightly to the sole of the foot.
For years now my wish list has included a tilt table.( Other names for this devise include a spin chute or a turn table, depending of the company that makes them.) Trimming hooves is said to be a breeze with this piece of equipment.
First, the sheep walks into the table. Second, the table clamps around the sheep’s body. Third, the mechanism spins and the sheep rotates onto its side. Now the feet are sticking out of the chute as the floor drops away. Next, I clip the hooves, turn the sheep upright, release the Katahdin and I am done. All in my dreams.
That’s all fine and dandy, but I don’t own this type of table. Remember, it is only on my wish list. My method is different.
To begin with, I halter and tie my rams to the fence. After that I select a hind leg and struggle to pick it up. A tug-of-war begins with the limb. Back and forth. Push and pull. Then the flailing ram’s leg gets loose. In a flash, I get sideswiped on the chin. No squirting blood this time.
Calmly I seize the leg again and struggle to gain control. Again I fail. The leg is free. I take hold again. Chucky is not going to give up. I use a technique that I see farriers use on horses: I firmly grasp the muscular leg between my legs and go for it again. Clip and snip. Success!
Handling the front legs is immensely easier. A little harmless back and forth action is much easier to control than the forceful striking out of a hindleg.
Using my ARS serrated sheers I initally remove the mud and manure from each hoof. This makes it easy to see any overgrown parts of the foot. I trim off the excessively long toenails being careful not to cut the hoof too short. An inaccurate cut can cause massive bleeding, not that I have ever done this. Finally, I clip away the overgrown hoof wall so the sheep is able to walk with a comfortable gait. This whole routine, this drama, will occur again several days prior to the show.
Unimaginable Thoughts!
Country songs are still blasting in the barn, but my head conjures up another song as ram washing time is just around the corner. The song was popular in 1960 and sung by someone that none of us have heard of; Brian Hyland.
“She was afraid to come out of the locker. She was as nervous as she could be. She was afraid to come out of the locker. She was afraid that somebody would see. Two, Three, Four Tell the people what she wore. It was an itsy, bitsy, teenie, weenie, yellow, polkadot bikini….”
Oh yeah. Picture me wearing that yellow, polkadot bikini while washing my Katahdin sheep. Laughable, isn’t it? At least the neighbors don’t live close by. Maybe Gerrit will join me to help out in his speedo. Horrifying thought. Two senior citizens prancing around like college kids on spring break. Washing sheep. No photos are available of this scenario. Sorry! Use your imagination. Not! Jeans and a tee-shirt will have to do.
Shower Time
The bathing area is all set up and ready to go. Stanchion? Check. Hose and nozzle? Check. Dawn dish soap? Yep. Brushes and wash cloth? Of course.
What’s up with the bottle of vinegar? I was once again doing research online, to find out how to remove stains and render a sheep white, especially removing the stains on the front knees acquired from laying down in who-knows-what. Using white vinegar kept coming up. Rub it in and let it sit for awhile. I’ll give it a try.
I have to admit that one person said to use ketchup on the stains too. I happen to have that in my cupboard, Let’s give it a try. What a fool. The person that posted that would be laughing his head off if he only knew I gave it a go. The before and after photos look identical. Oops! I’ll stick to the vinegar treatment.
Rub-A-Dub
The Bossman walks stoicly towards the stanchion like a deadman walking towards the gas chamber in a movie. One foot in front of the other. He leads quite well now when walking by himself. The large ram steps on to the stanchion platform, but refuses to put his head onto the headpiece.
This time I have food in my pocket. I reach in and use it as a bribe to get The Bossman’s head secured in the stanchion. Hopefully this keeps him from running away.
I turn on the water to wet The Bossman down. Brrr. Water dribbles down his back.
He dances around in place, I rub the vinegar into the knee hairs and let it set.
Something snaps in his brain. Both front feet are being flung around in the air. I almost panic. It appears that The Bossman is going to impale himself with the headpiece, yet in a blink of an eye he is calm again. i take that moment to massage in the Dove liquid soap.
Who doesn’t like a massage? The Bossman becomes still. His eyes close. The ram gives you the impression that he is enjoying this part of his spa day. He is bewitched by my touch. The ram is in a trancelike state. He resigns to the manipulation of his hair. Towards the end, The Bossman smiles.
At last, time for a quick rinse off. Shower number one is complete. The vinegar trick seems to clean up the knees. At least the knees appear more presentable.
The Bossman might not enjoy the whole process of his showertime, but in the end he looks rather stunning. He’s an impressive ram.
All things considered, The Bossman came out of his experience in one piece. For the most part, I am a suvivor. I am dripping wet and covered with bubbles. Not too ravishing. Not exactly drop-dead gorgeous today.
Next on the block is Pretty Boy. He goes to the beauty parlor, not the spa. He gets his hair done by a fantastic stylist.
Ha. This might be a story for another time. The show is fast approaching: it is a week from today. My rams will be as prepared as two inexperienced sheep handlers can make them. Halter broke, calmly walking, desensitized to noise, well groomed. We are the best. Conquest complete.
By now you might have figured out that, as Alicia Keys sings, “Oh-oh, she got her head in the clouds and she’s not backing down. This girl is on fire. This girl is on fire. She’s walkin’ on fire. This girl is on fire.”
Coming up….Showing Sheep 101: The Show
An experience that you won’t want to miss!
