Yesterday we had our first Dorper offspring born at the farm – not one but two healthy little lambs! Twins are fairly common for sheep but still an exciting surprise for FarmerJen. The only concern was they were born late in the day – just before sunset – and fortunately I noticed when I was feeding out to that paddock.
Even more fortunately I decided to check on the lambs about 9pm before bedtime, just to check all was ok. Because when I did, I found a fox in the paddock, stalking the new arrivals, only about 15 feet from the mother and babies by the time I arrived. Livid but with few options, I raced back to the house, grabbed a hound to chase the fox away and sought the assistance of FarmerRic to round up the mother and babies to the safety of the stables.
Almost an hour later they were safely tucked away from the fox but would the mother reject the babies after our handling of them? Fortunately this morning all was well, as you can see from the photo. Yes – the lambs are tiny – about the size of a small cat so no wonder the foxes hang around.
At least, for now, these two little ones will live to see another day.
