Days 27 & 28: Berserk

Becca Jr. and lambs.

The least motion-blurred closeup I could get.

Another two-day post! Not much has been happening here at Hestur. The good weather has continued, as has the pressure washing, which has been going more slowly than it should because the replacement pressure washer is not as powerful as the original one. The leader lambs have been moved outside, to their delight and our slight disappointment.

Can you find all the sheep in this picture?

Eurasian oystercatchers. Not sure what they are doing here on the farm.

In the evening, Carly and I teamed up to make supper for the following day, since both chowder and whoopie pies are better on the second day than the first. She made the chowder, following her grandmother's recipe, and I made the whoopie pies (definitely at least my grandmother's recipe, quite possibly older). The shortening to butter substitution caused the cookies to spread more than rise, and the texture and color of the frosting was noticeably off. However, extensive quality control tasting suggested that the flavor of the whoopie pies would turn out just fine.

Conjoined twins???

Nope.

Polled ewe after I interrupted her scratching session.

We finally had a break in the labor strike during my night shift. I was hoping it might start a chain reaction of lambs, but alas, it did not. The first of the two lambs was so large and had such large hornbuds, they popped off during the delivery! This should not cause permanent disfigurement. Another ewe alarmed me by suddenly starting to breathe like Darth Vader. Snaedis and Helgi believe it is a mild, opportunistic bacterial infection that will resolve itself after the ewe gives birth, but she will be closely watched and treated if necessary. When Carly arrived, she also noticed that there is a ewe who is shedding down to her skin; Helgi explained that this sometimes occurs after a ewe has recovered from a fever. This particular ewe has been treated for mastitis, which is the likely cause.

End of the labor strike!

The subsequent day I pulled one long day shift in an attempt to finish the pressure washing and associated tasks. Snaedis and Helgi know that Carly and I don't like to leave a task unfinished, but they'd also like for pressure washing to not be the last thing we remember doing in Iceland, so they gently suggested we try to finish promptly (we both tend to clean more than is necessary in the interest of being thorough, which of course takes additional time). When I told Carly of this, she got a weird look in her eyes. I didn't know it then, but it was the beginning of some kind of berserker rage like they talk about in the Sagas. After a double shift for me and a single shift for Carly, we stopped for dinner. In addition to heating up the chowder from yesterday, Carly prepared some "lobster" rolls. "Lobster" because Icelandic lobster is actually langoustine, which tastes and resembles a lobster/shrimp hybrid (the rolls were still quite good). The whoopie pies were indeed a little off in texture but as tasty as normal. The chowder was a hit as well. To our surprise, since milk, potatoes, and fish all factor prominently in Icelandic cuisine, neither Snaedis nor Helgi had tried chowder before!

Majestic sunlit ewe visible from the laundry room.

Dyri inspecting our work.

Lamb chewing on... something. Really not sure what.

The minute dinner was over, Carly dashed back to the barn to cover both my night shift (which was going to be covered by Helgi) and her own, intending to pressure wash the whole time. Helgi asked her if she was sure, and she was. After having worked with her this afternoon, I certainly wasn't going to get in her way! I can only assume that the poop jumped off the pens in terror of her presence.

Milk break.

Moving on.

Group siesta.

I have run into this ewe twice now. We are not friends yet.

Off to complain to the others about me walking by her.

The scenic loaf.

Farm fields, and sheep, and mountains. Still not tired of the view.

Day 26: Labor Strike

They enjoy sunning themselves on the warm gravel.

Gravel pile ewe.

They are multiplying???

Well hello there.

Today was another lovely, sunny day. The ovine labor strike has continued, however. We have now gone three days with absolutely no births! In the meantime, Carly and I continue to chip away at the pens (sometimes literally, as particularly stubborn clumps require the use of a chisel or shovel to remove). We'll probably have some kind of celebration when we are finished with all the pressure washing.

I usually have to wash this off at least once or twice a session because I can no longer see through it.

Ram lamb that was born backwards and needed mouth to mouth resuscitation. Doing much better now! 

In my time off, I converted my family's recipe for whoopie pies (thanks, mom!) to metric units, which sounded intimidating but turned out to be really easy due to some handy online guides. I hope making the whoopie pies will go well, but there is one slight snag: shortening is not a thing in Iceland! Snaedis had never even heard of it (and when I explained what it was, she said it sounded gross, and honestly I can't even argue with that). I will have to use butter instead, and hope for the best. Carly and I took a quick trip to Borgarnes for confectioner's sugar for the frosting and a couple of chowder ingredients. We're planning on cooking some Maine food for everyone since we have been treated to so much nice Icelandic food. While getting the groceries I picked up two sweater's worth of yarn (yes, in the same store!).

We didn't get any pictures of this magical store (Netto), but Carly took some on the drive there.

Back at the barn, Gull has finally stopped associating me with food and subsequently screaming whenever she sees me. I almost miss it (almost). Now that I am not assisting with the delivery of lambs I've been spending more time cleaning and sweeping in the pens. By far the hardest part of sweeping an occupied pen is the lambs! They all seem to want to "help." And by "help" I mean stand directly in front of the broom, nibble it, try to climb me, etc. It's hard to get mad at them for being curious, but they sure do hold up the process. The sister of the little ram lamb that was euthanized yesterday is extremely mellow and friendly. Many of the lambs bounce around even when they want attention but she just stands there as long as she is being patted.

The sweet little ewe lamb.

Kruna's ram lamb looking offended that I hadn't been taking the picture of him.

I thought this ewe's smile was sweet and funny until Helgi explained it's actually a dental disease. Oops.

A polled ewe takes advantage of the salt block. Pink blocks have additional minerals added.

Not siblings, just enjoying the cuddle warmth.

Hi!

The triple cuddle puddle.

When Carly arrived, I had a task ready that required the two of us: Lil' Bean's mom had one udder that was SUPER full for some reason, perhaps due to being a bit lower to the ground and less desirable to nurse from. I stripped the teat and found plenty of milk and no clots, and there were no other signs of mastitis. However, with plenty of running away space in the double-wide lambing jug and three lambs underfoot, milking her was a two-person process. We filled an entire soda bottle plus a little extra with the milk from just that one udder! The ewe may not have enjoyed the process, but I think she looked relieved afterwards.

Watching me to see if I'm a threat.

Myla being a good dog and NOT herding for a little while. She really is a good dog, she's just a little too excited by sheep sometimes.

Loaf and mini-loaf.

A ewe and her two lambs that look a lot like her! The raggedy stuff on her underbelly is just normal springtime shedding.

Another picture of a ewe with her mini-me. I see these two a lot.

Ewe shall not pass!

The rare 8-legged ewe.

This one may or may not have been investigating some freshly dug ditches and the reddish soil within.

Midday siesta.

View from the front steps in the evening.

The Sun was out today!

Today was a beautiful day in Borgarfjordur.  It has rained nearly every day for a month , hailed, and been quite windy so a beautiful day, one where only a sweatshirt is needed and not a jacket is a big deal! The birds have begun to chirp and the grass if finally becoming lush and green. Melissa and I continue to power wash our shifts away.

Here is a picture of Melissa in our everyday garb.Face shield is not optional, unless you want to pick sheep poop out of your teeth...












 Here is a clean pen! Awe yeah













I continue to rub mint cream on our lopsided mastitis ewe. Here is a picture of her udder. The right side is actually the normal side. The larger side is still sensitive to the touch and needs to have the pressure relieved/milked out. She is on a cocktail of antibiotics and seems to be improving as today she tried to kick me less haha.




Here are some photos from inside the barn. This first on I call. Motherhood. Our leader lambs. Eating hay and looking at me as if to say, we are adults now.



Below are two beautiful pregnant ewes still to give birth.






Here are some more pictures of lambs and mums around the home fields. The landscape looks so fake in pictures. No matter how long I stand outside, I do not get used to this view.





    I love this picture. haha

  The- Its time to stop ramming my udder move




A yearling and her lamb enjoying the warm gravel



I spent the afternoon with the horses. A new foal has arrived( the black one). When I go visit the horses I approach the pregnant mares first, and offer them some second cut timothy. Once they have inspected and approved of my presence I move closer to the mares with foals. This seems to be a good initiation into the herd. Today the foals slept and I felt lucky that the mums allowed them  to continue to sleep while I snapped pictures.

Iceland gets so much rain that the fields must have drainage ditches set into them. Here is a cool picture of a bridge to allow the ewes and lambs to cross from field to field.

  A beautiful day here at Hestur. I feel so blessed to be here.