Peg told me we were at the end of our grain mix this morning – 3 parts sheep food, 1 part whole grain corn. So I did my usual run – fill Moby with trash and recycling, stop at the Hartford dump/recycling center, then down to White’s Dairy Supply to replenish the grain. (Stopped by Wright’s Mill to see if Richard can supply us with 2nd cut hay when we will probably run out of George’s in about a month – shouldn’t be a problem.)
Back in the barn yard, we’ve got two metal garbage cans holding the grain behind the barn – one contains the mix, the other holds the grain in bags. We use bungee cords to keep the girls out. Before heading out, I mixed what we had left. Since there was so little in the mixing can, I let the girls get close and stick their noses in. But when I got back with two more bags, I cordoned off the cans from the girls with two fence panels stuck in the snow.
So, when I emptied out the 50 pound bag of sheep food, I tossed it over the panel for the lambs to sniff (the ewes aren’t nearly as inquisitive as the lambs). I turn back to close up the cans, and in less than a minute, the empty bag has disappeared around the corner of the barn.
I look around the corner and see this.
HIlary – I
Hilary – II
At first, Hilary (and somehow I knew it was Hilary) slowly and somewhat gently moved her head back and forth. After getting these two shots with my phone, I see her getting a little more agitated AND heading towards the fence, which has about 5,000 volts running through it. I slowly stomped through the snow and quietly talked to her, “It’s OK, it’s OK”. Before I was able to reach out and pull the bag off her head, she probably got one or two jolts from the lower hot wire on the fence. She let out a few feeble bleats and ran away from me and the fence as fast as she could.
I crumpled up the bag and went back to finish closing the cans and move the panels back to where we prop them against the barn wall. Hilary was the first to come by. I stroked her nose, and she looked at me. The look in her eyes said one of two things:
1. Thanks for helping me out there.
2. Don’t ever leave a big bag like that on the ground again, you idiot.
Todd
Until we realized that breeding season had passed we wondered if Hilary was exceptionally hard to look at and the bag was required to make the ram more receptive to the “arrangement”!
Another day ….Another adventure
Jack and Mary Ellen Friedman
LOL! Hilary is a cutie, BTW!
Ah, when smart men do stupid things. Don’t feel bad, Todd, I’ve been there. Once attempted to repair my automatic garage door with a handy screw driver. As I was about to unscrew that last screw (you know, the one that prevents the door from coming down?) I said to myself: “Ya’ know, when that screw comes out, this door might come down…fast. I’d better be prepared to run out of the way.” Did I mention I was on a ladder at the time? That screw driver and my eye didn’t make a good combination. All’s well now but I learned my lesson.