February 13, 2021
This is the longest stretch of bitter weather Wisconsin has had in recent years. It will be a wind chill of -25 to -40 until Monday. Have you ever wondered what winter chores are like in such extreme temperatures?
Mainly we spend time keeping the barns well bedded down. The barns are warm on their own but the sheep need some extra ‘nesting’ material. Keep those naked little legs warm, since they refuse my offer of leg warmers every year. Fresh water is important so we make sure the water tank heaters are doing their job. In weather like this there are times we still have to crack ice on the water tanks. The sheep also need extra corn mixed into their grain to help them keep warm. We feed hay from big square bales that are outside. Shoveling around them for the sheep is not unheard of- specially with drifty snow. We also bring some inside for them to snack on. The alfalfa hay keeps them in good shape in winter.
The most important thing to me is catching the illness or struggle of a sheep before it is out of hand. They are good at hiding illness, in the wild they are prey animals so that is part of their nature to stay safe. For US a sharp eye is needed to see it. Most of the time we are able to keep things from becoming a major health issue. We watch for sheep losing weight, pneumonia and anyone having trouble getting around. The weather can really wear down older sheep. Anyone needing a boost or some extra pain med stays inside full time- most likely for the remainder of the worst weather.
So far our older blind sheep Sweets is in for extra care. Keep good thoughts for her ok? Smooches from the sheep!
