The Black-Faced Ewe

She thinks I don't notice her, lying in the shade, ruminating with the mama ewes and lambs.

A few weeks ago, I noticed I was missing a ewe from the dry ewe flock--the group of yearling ewes and older ewes that didn't have lambs this spring. The dry ewe flock is the one that gets the sparser pastures, that is worked by the dogs.

How did the black-faced ewe escape? She is a hefty girl. I'm sure she didn't fly.

One gate between the pastures has a gap, and sometimes the lambs shimmy under it for a little romp away from their mothers.

Could she have squeezed under?

She's not telling. And for the past few weeks, she's been trying to appear that she belongs to the other flock. She joyously goes to the prime pastures for grazing, and at nap time, she nestles in among them. No appearing like an outsider for her.

Her game is up this weekend. We're vaccinating and deworming lambs and trimming the mama ewes' feet. After trimming the black-faced ewe, she will be diverted back to the other flock.