Dear Curiosity Journal,
The breeding season for the Driftless Curiosity flock began this week, and 2025 lambs are in the making. We completed a major overhaul of the manger area, scraping out some really nice compost material, moving the fence line, installing new gates, liming the floor, and adding fresh bedding. We split the flock into 3 groups for breeding. The first group, excluded from breeding, includes the goats, the weathers (neutered boys), and the lambs born this summer. The second group, the Babydoll Southdown crew (Joy Jr, Pearly, and Birdie), are visiting the neighbor’s brown Babydoll, who I’m calling Mr. Brown. Joy Jr and Pearly are getting older, so this will likely be the last time I breed them. I was on the fence about them this year, but Joy Jr was such an amazing mommy this year, that I wanted to give her one more season. Pearly is probably still considered “over conditioned” (aka overweight) but I think she is in better shape than the past 2 years we’ve tried to breed her. I’m hopeful that exposing her to the ram closer to the natural cycle of the breeding season will help her to get pregnant this fall. Birdie, one of Betty’s 2023 twins, is 75% Babydoll, so I’m curious to see how she crosses with a Babydoll baby-daddy. The third group, which is settled into their love nest on the farm, includes Betty (BFL/Shetland/Babydoll), Cauliflower (BFL/Shetland/Texel), Beauty (Betty’s other 2023 twin – Babydoll/BFL/Shetland), Faloon (Jacob’s), and Junebug (Jacob’s). These ladies are being bred to an Icelandic ram named Cole (who I’ve been calling “Tux” because his markings look like a tuxedo and he’s giving husband material). I picked him up from Rainbow Meadow Farms on Sunday, and he’s been wearing himself out with his new girlfriends, who all seem to be pretty fond of him. I chose an Icelandic ram because I want to learn about the breed. I was looking for a smaller ram with better fiber than the Babydolls. Of course, it will be a surprise how the lambs actually turn out and with so many crosses, there is bound to be some interesting outcomes. My intention is to work toward a few purebred lines of primarily fiber sheep, but I’m enjoying the creative crossing as I work through the animals I’ve been given and learn what breeds fit our farm. The gestation calculator clocks 2025 lambs coming into the world around March 23rd, and with 8 ewes being bred, we could have up to 16 lambs (possibly more, maybe less), which would put our total flock count at 33! Yes, Rufus is nervous. I am too, but also really excited!
~Joy
