Shearing & Sheep Grazier's Warning
I had booked in my shearing to happen on Friday, 15 October. And as usual I had to shed the sheep the night before so that they would be dry and 'empty' prior to shearing. But I also had to keep them in the shed after shearing because there was a very cold snap and so I kept them in the shed for two days after the shearing and fed them sheep pellets and lucerne. During this time I unfortunately lost one of my original ewes, Flystrike. An unfortunate name I know, as she had flystrike the first year. In the before photo she can be seen at the right looking rather shabby. She was showing signs of weakness the week or so before shearing (sitting down more often and having trouble when trying to stand). She was giving all her strength to her lamb. The shearer noted that she had started shedding her fleece, in that it broke because it became weak due to lack of nourishment, which was going to the lamb. She died two days after shearing, while still in the shed, the shock of being shorn was too much for her. It was pretty sad but I have to realise that my original sheep were bought in 2004, six years ago, and they weren't lambs then. So they have all been very good producers, some more than others, but they have all been valued.
Edit: 14/12/2010 - I finally sold the wool today. I received $347.12 - not bad for a handful of sheep. The shearing cost $106, so I made a profit of $241.12!