I am the tweeting Irish farmer this week which means I tweet about Zwartbles sheep farming on my farm also the public can ask me questions about sheep farming. The twitter address is @tweetingfarmers
I made a short film as my Monday morning start to the day was feeding the skinny ladies their breakfast. The ladies dutifully galloped over bleating a greeting all the way across the field.
When I shot this short film I had not yet gotten the code to start tweeting as the tweeting farmer. I had to drop a friend off who had been staying with us to the bus. When I left all was well but when I returned someone had left the gate open and all the ewes had gotten out. So my first tweet as the tweeting farmer was about escaped sheep & closing gates.
“My first tweet as tweeting Irish farmer: I drop off house guest to bus coming home to chaos someone left gates open so ewes escaped”
And second tweet:
“Rule number 1 when your in countryside! If a gate is closed & you go through it close it behind you!! A city slicker helper left gates open”
It was soon sorted with some emergency running about.
Ladies sorted & heading back to where they belong!! In a field with a closed gate!!
I then went up to see how the orchard ewes were doing.
Grass inspection & look who’s watching my every move thinking I might drop an apple or 2 by bumping them with my head
I then began introducing some of the other members of the menagerie.
We’ve a few other animals here besides a flock of Zwartbles sheep. A flock of doves who breakfast on this window ledge
Our most famous resident is Mr.B aka Bodacious aka #catshepherd Here this chilly morning getting warmed by the Aga
The only really interesting farm job on Monday was pulling down a dead tree branch from within a tree which took a bit of lassoing skill.
Lassoing dead tree branch 25 feet above my head when standing on pickup roof. It took 6 goes due to branches in way
Branch lassoed & ready to pull
Good old truck pulls branch down
As the evening drew to a close Pepper had his photo taken leaning on a gate having looked at me then heard or thought he had heard a squirrel.
Squirrel? Where is the Squirrel
Today Tuesday as Tweeting Farmer started busy and fast so no time for too much tweeting or photos as I had to get to the local radio. I was being interviewed about my cousin’s book which has just been published. When I was going in to the radio station I met this sweet thing coming out. This sweet otter baby had been caught right across the river from where I live. It was wonderful meeting a Nore river neighbor.
Otter cub, who was injured on it’s paw
When farming you never know when your going to have a day off and today seemed to be it as I had a wonderful afternoon with a childhood friend who was visiting with his grown children. We had lunch over at Knockdrinnan’s farm shop cafe and I had their wonderful Sheep cheese made from the milk of a flock of sheep over in Tipperary.
My Favorite Local All Irish Sheep Cheese
After lunch they came over to visit the sheep and farm.
Hello Who Are You?
Soon the rest came galloping around the corner
Watching a Small Sheep Stampede
Little Wren Making Friends
Pippy Getting a Good Head Scratch
Marco Polo Has an All Natural Ladybug Decoration on His Hoof
After the guests had gone it was soon evening rounds and feeding time so the cat shepherd showed up for work.
Bodacious Inspecting Feed Buckets
Those Sheep Don’t Exist Behind Me
The last job of the day was getting shearing blades ready for tomorrow. This involved changing blades as I had taken the top off my old one last spring when the shears flew apart and bits went all across the yard.
A farmers pockets & what is in them? I empty my pocket & this is what is in them. Note only small amount of change
Broken Tips on Left New Blade on Right
Old Broken on Left New Replacement on Right
Here is more about the tweeting farmers and the short piece about me.
http://www.agriland.ie/news/this-weeks-farmer-of-the-tweet-3/