Sheepish, but it's a good thing
This is your permission to do things exactly how you need to do them, even if it’s different from how everyone else does it. Take the long way around if you want to, it’s your journey. — Juliet, who definitely is on a journey all her own.
Here’s What’s Happening At Good Spirits Farm
The trip to the University of Tennessee last week was fruitful! The vets and their resident farrier made Juliet special shoes with these long heel tabs that prop up her heels. They really are making a huge difference. Unfortunately, my truck broke down on the drive home (the danger of a 21-year-old truck!), but a neighbor is looking at it, and Juliet was an ideal companion as we waited for help.
Of course, if it’s not one thing, it’s another with this little lamb. The shoes trap moisture in between her two little hoof bits, so now we’re dealing with a case of hoof scald, a bacterial skin issue that thrives in wet conditions. Poor Juliet has had to stay in the barn all week, as the weather has been rainy and we have to keep her feet dry. I keep trying to tell her it’s a small sacrifice that, if endured now, may let her live the rest of her days with legs that don’t buckle beneath her.
We’re going to artificially inseminate both Benni and Julia this year - our farm is simply too small to make caring for a bull logical. The bull “straws” arrived yesterday packed in liquid nitrogen. Right on cue, Julia showed signs of coming into heat last night. This morning will be our first trip through the cattle working setup we installed a few weeks ago, and I’m very nervous about getting it all right to keep everything low stress for Julia. There are a lot of levers and pulleys!
Here’s What I Loved This Week
My favorite Carhartt work pants deserve a shout-out. Yes, they’re almost laughably ugly. Yes, they’re “utility leggings,” which seems objectively ridiculous. No, they can’t do double duty as cute pants you wear out to the coffee shop. But you don’t want me wearing my work pants into town anyway, because I truly work in them. The knees are usually covered in garden soil and there’s almost guaranteed to be a streak of animal poo somewhere. I love that these move with me but are thick enough to last. My current pairs are going strong after two years of abuse. I just saw they’re currently on sale, so I ordered another pair. [This is a non-paid endorsement and I get nothing out of you buying your own pair. I just really have been pleased with these and want everyone to have work pants they like!]