Animal welfare

Once again while were were up at the farm it was time to drench the sheep by injection(which is roughly done every 100-120 days). We did  the sheep at our place the week before and then it was time to head up to the Brother and Sister in laws place to help them with theirs(we also have some stock up on their property because of the  drought last year.) I had  cooked up some apples that were not going to get eaten and had made a lovely spiced apple slice, so I took that along to have with our picnic that we had packed.

We got the sheep in with a little difficulty as there is a natural spring that runs through their property and the sheep and alpaca  didn't want to cross the muddy ground for us( even though they do it daily when no one is around.)The wet gateway where Brian and Tilly are walking is the wet spot.

we yarded the sheep and did the injection drenching,and sorted out a few to take back to our respective smaller  properties to butcher down the track.(These sheep were drenched with an oral drench that  stays in the their   system for a much shorter time , so that they are safe for human consumption.)
After the  drenching was complete(The alpaca Rusty was not a happy chap when it was his turn) we sat down and had a wonderful picnic lunch.

We have had wonderful rain and the place is looking lovely, the flowers in the pictures below were growing every where making a lovely carpet of white.(I think they are  native Crocus.)

After lunch the boys went for a ride around on their toys just for a bit of fun(they certainly earn it, those two fellows) My sister in law and I had a bit of a wander around and just enjoyed the scenery.

It is a beautiful farm with a wonderful outlook  to the Hills in the distance.
We then returned with the sorted  sheep to  the farm and  did a few jobs with the remaining sheep and then released them up on the smaller farm.

It was a good days work.
The next morning it was the cattle that ran the drenching gauntlet, We all  headed down the road to the big block, and   our In Laws just call them and they come running.Lead by the black and white heifer called Bandit.

We  got them into the yard and  they were drenched using a pour on liquid that is absorbed  through the skin  to do its job. This has to be done also  about every 100-120 days to keep them healthy.There were a few new calves  with them, and they were very sweet.The drought really was hard on the livestock, but now they are starting to pick up again.
There was one cow that had an issue,  the Brother in Law had noticed the day before that  she had an abscess  on the side of her head and another one on the front of her neck.

They got her into the race and inspected it more closely ,they lanced the abscesses with a knife, drained the pus out and sprayed the wound with a antiseptic solution.
Later that day, after consultation with the vet it was decided that she would come and check the cow and administer an antibiotic injection.

We were returning home after a long day, but as we were traveling the short distance ,(the brother in Law had brought his three little dogs with him in the vehicle). I just snapped a photo, not really expecting to get a good pic, and this was it....Nibbles,Lucy and Lulu.Three little sweethearts.

While there we also tested out the new cool room, it runs like a dream. Brian butchered two sheep for  us and we hung them in the cool room for about 4-5 days, he  then cut them up on our electric meat saw.

We had a very productive few weeks at the farm, got lot's of  important jobs done and did a few excursions away which I will put into another post later.
I hope every one keeps well until we meet again.
Cheers for now,
Jane.