We have some two new faces to introduce on The Ridge! At long last we have finally welcomed our two Finnsheep lambs, Finn and Archie. Luckily, one of our good friends raises Finnsheep and when she told me her ewes were going to be bred for this year–I just knew it was our time to venture into raising our own sheep!
Since I was a teenager I have wanted to keep sheep. I also love knitting and crocheting and have wanted to take those hobbies to the next level. The natural progression is of course to raise our own wool sheep to start producing fiber products.
Finnsheep are known for being a smaller, multipurpose breed (meat, dairy, and fiber), that are polled and without fleece on their legs. They also have exceptional personalities. Which makes them a great breed for our micro farm, since they’ll be primarily pets–just with a purpose!
We have now had our sheep for over 6 weeks. It has been a bit of a learning curve, but despite all of the challenges I wish we had gotten sheep sooner. Finn, the youngest of the two, was born on some of the hottest days of April and within 2 days presented with hypothermia and pneumonia. We brought him to our home and nursed him back to health, but within a couple weeks he was rambunctious and ready to be with other lambs again!
Since his older brother, Archie, was nearly double the size of the other lambs it made the most sense to pull him and put him on a bottle. So we brought him home to be with Finn!
They are now over 2 months old and growing like weeds. We only have another month or so before they are weaned. Since they’re getting so big, we built them their own “sheep shack” so that they can move out of the house for weaning.
Now we get to train them to stand on the grooming stand for shearing and hoof trims and let them be sheep! We’ll shear them for the first time at the end of summer / early fall so they have enough time to grow more fleece for the colder months. Which means we should have wool to process and spin for Christmas gifts!
We’re excited to share this journey into raising wool sheep with you all. Be sure to subscribe to get our blog right in your inbox!
Ravens Ridge Micro Farm 