So is Felix.
He got to be the first to try out our new sheep deck chair today.
The Man built it from used T-posts, an old Navy mesh laundry bag, and a bunch of zip ties.
(such a clever guy!)
It worked out pretty well, except we probably need to make the seat a little deeper.
Couple of those sheepers have bigger tushes than we approximated.
Think it’s going to make keeping a close eye on those hooves a little easier.
And here are some of the boys coming back after their turn in the sling to take a closer look-
Many of the hooves are still separated. Some look a little better, others don’t appear to have changed at all.
I’ve been doing a lot of reading, and it looks to me that what we’ve got going on can best be described as “Shelly Toe”.
Thing is,,there isn’t really any conclusive info on what causes it. Seems most often people say its a result of neglecting the hooves.
That keeping them trimmed them up solves the problem. But these guys don’t have overgrown, unkempt hooves. And they’re only 5-6 months old. Some people say that it’s somewhat hereditary. But I don’t think that any of their parents had this problem.
I think it must be something (or lack of something) in the environment that must be causing it.
So, I’m looking into getting our soil and forage tested.
Maybe once we have a better idea of what all the inputs are, we can develop a game plan.
In brighter news-
I’ve got about 70-75% of a sweater
And managed to get some spinning done this week as well-
Left to right: Shetland/alpaca, mystery wool, and random leftovers drum-carded into submission.
Your husband’s cleverness matches your own — sharp sweater!
Thanks Michelle-
Just how difficult is it to hoist one of the “boys” into this unique “deck chair”?
How much do they weigh now? Sure hope Shimon is helping you with this.
Have to admit you really look like a Northwester in your slicker. Wellingtons and knit cap!! Felix looks kinda spaced out and your blue glove almost looks like a bow at the top of his head. Interesting picture!
It’s not hard at all, you just have to get them positioned right, then kind of flip them back into it. Felix and Frank are the biggest- not really sure how much they weigh, though.
I hope you figure out what is causing the problem with their hooves Denise. What a cool chair thingy….we will be making one in the future too probably. The biggest ram in the flock (he’s almost 4) is also the easiest to handle and walks great on a lead. So we mostly need ‘the chair’ for the smaller ones.
Beautiful spinning and knitting. Natural colours always work together don’t they!
Yep, the natural colors always blend so nicely. I really hope we can get the hoof thing sorted out. It bothers me not knowing what is causing it, because I really want to keep the little woolly buggers healthy and happy!
Could you tell me what the ‘cross posts’ are on the sheep chair? Is this part of the laundry bag? I would like to make something similar, but can’t quite figure out what the cross sections are.
Thanks!
Tammy
The cross bars are from the T-posts as well. We cut off about 17″ sections of the two posts (they were long ones) and welded them in place.