That was Baaa-aaa-aaad in the cool sense of the word. We are studying sheep with the boys right now and ventured to a sheep farm 45 minutes from our home. There were about 100 sheep on the farm and they are hair sheep, not wool sheep. They shed and don’t need to be sheered. A few of them were cross-bred with wool sheep, so they look fluffy. But the wool falls out like the hair. They looked like goats to me, but I’m a citified girl for sure. These sheep are raised for their meat and the ones at this farm are for training sheep dogs.
When we arrived there were several large fields with sheep dogs being trained and little groups of sheep running in circles. Reminded me of the boys’ first years of hockey. We got to hold sheep and feel the difference between hair and wool. We learned all about the four stomachs and how the sheep are called different names after surgery. (eeeweee) The grand finale of the day was when the 12 kids were put in the huge field to do the job of a sheep dog and herd the sheep into a small pen in the center.
It was highly entertaining. It was obvious which kids have played defence in some sport. The kids lined up and got the sheep moving in the right directions, but at the last moment the sheep passed the pen and went back to a safe corner of the field. Back to the drawing board. Much discussion was had and lines were formed again. They did get the sheep in on the second attempt… after only 10 minutes. The lady at the farm told us that a group of adults from American Express were doing the same thing for a team building experience. It took them 45 minutes to get the sheep in the pen. Figures. Adults all have their own hair-brained ideas of how everything should go. They probably needed to shed a bit of the wool over their eyes. Puns fully intended.
There were also five month old sheep dogs pups that needed to be socialized. It was providential that we had 12 homeschool kids that also needed to be socialized. :o)
We were invited back in the spring when the lambs are born! Yippy Skippy.
Tags: field trip, homeschool, homeschool socialization, homeschooling, kids, lambs, mom, motherhood, raising boys, sheep, sheep dog, wool
My Sister's Jar 
September 24, 2008 at 12:31 pm |
That sounds like an awesome day.
September 25, 2008 at 11:03 am |
What a cool field trip…learning about animals and team buiding at the same time.
It is neat to find how supportive many individuals and groups are toward homeschool children and families. There are so many people who can really help each other and do the things that a “community” can do…without the government force it done.
October 2, 2008 at 2:46 am |
I was looking at the pictures of you all at the sheep farm and I thought, “I recognize this place!” Then I scrolled down and saw the puppies and WOW one of those puppies is mine! (Unfortunately Marc will NOT let me get him unless one of our current animals die…not likely). We got our current dog, Riley, nine years ago from June and Linda – owners of Priceless Aussies. We still go out there several times a year and they ALWAYS babysit Riley when we leave town. What a small world!!