Yesterday I let Hannah and her twins out into the small enclosure in front of the barn. We have had some horribly cold, snowy, windy weather this past week. So this was the first sun the babies had seen.
I love watching lambs discover there is a world beyond the small stall they were born in. It takes about half a minute of little heads bobbing up and down... cautiously sniffing the new ground... and then a tentative bounce with a bit of a kick thrown in.
And all of a sudden their brains grasp the limitless space of their new world and they are leaping through the air... twisting and bucking... showing everyone how canty and clever they are.
I will admit to being disproportionately attracted to my one and only spotted lamb. For every picture of plain little black Justina I took about four pictures of Trans Am. What a little superstar he is!
I am a bit curious about Justina, though. I have noticed that the skin around her eyes is lighter compared to the other black lambs I have this year. Does that indicate something? I thought it might signify modified genetics. But I am not aware of Hannah or Courante carrying modified. So maybe it is my imagination, or maybe it is just the way she is. Regardless, she is a darling lamb. :)
And then there is pretty boy... Gotta nip that itch...
7 comments:
Nice photos of the lambs, isn't it nice to see the sun again? And yes Hannah carries modified genetics. She's produced several modified lambs over the years inlcuding shaela, fawn, and mioget. It will be fun to see how Justine's fleece ends up.
Oh! Thank you for the information, Becky. I will keep watch now. If Justina shows a modified fleece, that would mean Courante carries modified too, right?
Sun... it's a very good thing! And it's been a bit rare this spring.
I was going to guess modified, but then I see Becky cleared up that mystery. We just never know what surprises are in store for us with Shetlands.
Beautiful lambs, I am kind of partial to the little black ewe. Black lambs being a personal favorite of mine.
You didn't ask me, Sabrina, but I do believe a lamb will be shaela or fawn with one copy of the modified gene, and emsket or mioget with two copies, so no, Courante doesn't have to carry modified for his daughter to be.
I appreciate your chiming in Michelle. I've been partial to that theory for a long time too. Has anyone proved it yet or is it still a theory?
There is so much to learn from these little sheep!
I know what you mean about the spotted lambs being so eye catching. They certainly do stand out in a crowd! I find it the same with a white lamb in a flock of colored babies. I think that's why I love having a variety of colors and spots in my flock.
Enjoy all your beautiful babies!
I think I've gotten that from Linda Wendelboe's "Shetland Sheep Info" site, and she's done a LOT of research into modified genetics.
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