One of the things that happens over time is that you create working friendships with other farmers. I meet Farmer Y on kijji when she has fowl I wanted, I meet her on her first year on the new farm.. it was just there.. that was a number of years ago now..
Since then, we have worked together a number of times and in a number of ways, and so when she said, I am looking to sell a few of her mixed breed sheep, and I said.. if you have any that will be a outstanding milking sheep let me know..
Needless to say, she looked her sale girls over carefully and then said, yup, she had one, did I want to her open or breed.. I said.. breed and she kept her a extra two months to breed to the male of my choice.
She arrived on the farm yesterday.. What a girl! Meet Dumpling.. I adore her name.. its just perfect for her..
she is a lovely Canadian Mutt of a sheep lol, she is a mix of two dairy breeds crossed with a meat breed, breed to a purebred wool breed. She is huge! just shy of 200 pounds and most likely more now that she is breed and growing.. she is a proven mother, this will be her second lambing year. She is young and she is so sweet.
She arrived in the back seat of a truck, hanging out on her blanket over the tarp to keep it clean, she was in a halter and lead rope, only her second time and she was chill.. she introduced herself to me and she came out very calm and she is going to be very easy to break to lead, I will continue her training on this as I think she will be perfect to be my picture taking sheep.
She was added to the flock (we have traded enough stock back and forth, that at this point, if we didn’t have something the same at some point, we do now) and she was calm, steady and sweet.. she was just home! When I went to check on her she was napping and did not care that I walked up and chatted to get a photo..
On the evening check with hubby, she was right there, within two feet and saying hi to him, I am very excited.. she is came up to get a carrot treat from my hands already.. I think it will be very easy indeed to train her to be a milking sheep.. she had very milky lines and good teat placement. I am very hopeful that she will settle into it quite well, she has four older sisters and they are all excellent momma’s, lots of milk and very sweet as well..
Thank you Farmer Y for trusting me with her care and for letting her join my flock..
Just another Day on the Farm 
What a gorgeous sheep – and the way she behaves sounds just wonderful – what a coat! All that wool – do you spin? I wish i could spin but then i have no more sheep now. Though Dumpling is too sweet for words.. c
Hi C, She is just lovely, and I should have her for many years to come, she could easily live for at least ten plus years here on the farm. I agree, she has a lovely wool coat on her and she was sheared this spring of 2016 for lambing time so that means she grows a very nice one indeed. I don’t spin, I use the wool in felted soaps, I use the wool as insulation on the farm and I use the wool in my gardens. I love my sheep so much, if you had to make me choose what I would keep in terms of livestock, Sheep would be the first one on the list.. right next to ducks, I like critters that can pull many duties..