Hi Y’all! As I come to you this week, I’ve been helping the humans with lambing for the past few weeks, however, this 2018 chapter of spring lambing is quickly coming to a close. With only four ewes left to lamb at our ‘Weekly Five O’Clock Tuesday Tally’, we are almost done (two more sheep lambed since then and before I finished my blog).

However, our Five O’clock Tuesday Tally was 59 lambed with a total of 131 lambs! WOW!

I included a video this week of some of the fun we’ve been having! Check out this link: Fun With Lambs!

One of my favorite jobs is keeping the lambs faces clean during milk feeding time of the bottle lambs. As I said a couple weeks ago, most of our lambs are raised by their mothers, but sometimes their moms have more lambs than they can support or don’t produce enough milk, then we, the humans and I, help out! I also clean up the bottle rack when the lambs are done eating. It seems they always leave a few drips just for me to enjoy.

Next week, I will start bringing more news from around the farm. Have a Blessed Easter this Sunday, and come back next week for the conclusion of Spring lambing and some other awesome news from around the farm!

Warm Wishes, Wally the trusted Border Collie

Hello y’all! Tuesday was the first day of spring and although there is bound to be several more cool days yet and possibly even snow, spring is definitely on the horizon! All the animals are enjoying the fresh air, sun, and loving this weather. The humans and I are spending more time outside as well! Lambing is still on full speed with our “Five-o’clock Tuesday Tally” coming in at a total of 45 ewes have lambed with a total of 101 lambs.

Last week, we moved ewes into the lambing barn and some of the lambs with their moms out to the more open barn, and soon they will get to enjoy time in a grassy lot (once the grass grows)!

We also moved beef with calves to the barn where the pasture is and cows due to calf up to pens for calving. A few new beef calves have made their way into the world! We weigh the lambs and also the beef calves upon birth to see what their starting weight is so we can make sure they are fed well and continue to grow healthfully.

Next week, I will show you some awesome clips of animals playing! Also, we are building a new bottle holder for the lambs to drink out of so that should be fun to watch as well! So, HAPPY SPRING! Lots more is about to go on here at Sandy Acres so hold on to your seats!

Until Next Week!

Warm Wishes, Wally

Hey y’all! This week’s top highlight again is LAMBS! It is our busy season for lambing. “5 O’Clock Tuesday Tally” was 31 ewes lambed with a total of 72 lambs for our 2018 season, so far! We captured some clips and moments this week, therefore, we have a video this week of all the fun that’s happening with the lambs for you to watch. Please check out the link below!

Click this link to watch “Lamb Mania”

The lambs seem to enjoy utilizing their moms warm winter coat of hair (Katahdin Sheep are hair sheep and shed in the spring) to sleep on and also her back to jump off. It’s a funny sight watching the lambs chase each other and leap off their mothers’ backs like they are using it as a springboard.  

Mom, Marie,  brought out a picture of me this week to remind me I was a baby once too. First of all, wasn’t I adorable?! Secondly… Well, I sure turned out handsome as well (dog humor).

We are finishing our week by moving animals around! More cows and sheep are due to have their babies soon, so we are moving animals around so we can assure we take the best care of them possible.

Until next week, stay warm, have fun, and watch my new movie!

Kind Regards, Wally

The fun has begun! We all impatiently waited as Wednesday passed, therefore no one lambed a day early, then Thursday and almost all of Friday passed also. However, it all started Friday afternoon about 4:40. Sweetie had twin ewe (girl) lambs! Only a couple hours later Sunny had twin ewe (girl) lambs as well. Since last Friday, March 2nd, until my “five o’clock Tuesday Tally”, we’ve had a total of 17 ewes lamb (females have babies) with a total of 34 lambs. A few sheep had singles, while others had twins, triplets, and even a couple sets of quads.

Tuesday morning while Mom was bottle feeding a few of the bottle lambs, Jazzy and I got to spend some time introducing ourselves and playing with the lambs. It was awesome! We leave the lambs with their mothers usually, but if she doesn’t have enough milk to sustain all of her lambs, then my humans help out. Currently, six lambs are getting bottle raised. Everyone enjoys bonding with the lambs. They are so cute and sweet!

Saturday night, we also had a new kid born. It’s a girl! She’s a Boer Goat. Isn’t she adorable!?

A couple months ago, Mom and Dad (Marie and Jeff), went and got a baby Standard-sized donkey to join the farm. We haven’t introduced him yet! He is going to be a working donkey, just like I am a working dog! My family shows beef cattle and donkeys can help with the training of calves to lead. Gus absolutely loves people, hugs, and leads like a champ. 

Next Wednesday, I will update y’all with a new “five o’clock Tuesday Tally” as more sheep will be having lambs throughout the week! AHHHH, so much fun!

Until next week, Wally

Hi there! I am in LOVE with this winter weather we’ve been having!

I just spent another week in my happy place! We are awaiting the beginning of lambing season… Honestly, right now as you are reading this, the lambs may be starting to arrive. It’s going to be busy month ahead! I’m looking forward to sharing stories and cute pictures with you next week.

Anyways, I got the opportunity to take a chance to think about the small things over this past week. Like the morning Mom (Marie) looked out the dining room window and saw the most beautiful sunrise. She told me how much she appreciates getting to spend her days caring for the animals that live here.

No doubt, many of our days are busy with chores, projects, and business, but every once in a while we get a chance to relax or go on an adventure. I like those days. I LOVE working, but I also love adventures. One moment was captured of Turbo taking Mom, Dad, my buddies (the other dogs), and I on a sleigh ride…of course I sat in the front seat.

After a good nap or a fun adventure, I am always ready to go back to work. I’m a task master. Last week, in particular, I got the opportunity to move sheep, which is a job I absolutely love. It’s captured on video along with a couple other great moments including those above. Also featured in the video is Moose, a friend of mine (a puppy owned by Jeff and Marie’s daughter and future son-in-law), who occasionally comes to visit me. Check out the link under the following picture to watch the movie.

“CLICK to watch “Winter Adventures with Wally”

Let me know what you think! Would you like to see more movies in the future?

We aren’t “all work, no play” here at Sandy Acres. We try to smile and laugh (I bark) while we work, and we try to take a moment every day to just appreciate the small things: the beauty that is nature, this moment in time, the crazy things my animal friends and I do to make the humans go crazy—I mean laugh, and the love of our family and friends.

Anyways, until next time, have a great week!!!

Yours Truly, Wally-the trusted Border Collie

Hi there! I’m back with another week in review of “Wally’s Farm Adventures!” The babies are here, the babies are here!

Three more cows have calved since last week which makes a total of four Miniature Hereford calves born so far in 2018. So very exciting for all of us! We have one more due soon in this round of calving. So far, we have had two heifers and two bulls (that’s two girls and two boys): Valentina, Peppa, Herb, and Hank. Peppa will be shown along with her mother, Mona, this show season as a cow-calf pair. Check out the baby picture above! The cow is Mona, Peppa’s mom.

Before I forget to tell y’all about the other exciting kids at the farm, one of our nanny goats kidded at the end of January. We have two rambunctious little bucklings (boys) now in the barn hopping up and down the stairs entertaining everyone.

OHHHH… I almost forgot, we also had two other calves over the winter! Two Braunvieh heifer (girl) calves were born, one in November and the other in January! Their names are Natasha and Elsa. (Check out the picture of them below, the calf on the right is Natasha and the one on the left is Elsa! Oh and the dog is my buddy, Trixter.)

Next week marks the beginning of lambing! Plus Mom said she has a couple awesome winter farm pics that I should share. I better get some sleep since next week there will be a whole bunch of work to do. Check back next Wednesday for the next addition of “Wally’s Farm Adventures”.

Yours Truly, Wally the trusted farm dog.

Hi. Hi! HI! My name is Wally! I am the trusted farm dog. Today is Valentine’s Day, so first and foremost, I want to wish everyone a Happy Valentine’s Day!

Here’s a little about me and my love for the farm I call home:

I was born on Christmas Day 2015 and found my forever home at Sandy Acres with the Pagenkopfs. I LOVE my work at the farm. I enjoy spending my days working cattle, moving sheep, and assisting my mom, Marie, with all of her farm chores.

Most mornings, I am up bright and early at around 4:30 with Mom. At that time, I get to run outside and check on the weather while Mom gets my breakfast ready. After breakfast, I usually spend a few minutes letting Dad talk to me and pat my head before heading out for a busy day on the farm. I love going out and making the rounds checking on each of my animals: sheep, beef, goats, donkeys, horses, pigs and even the occasional cat comes by to say hi to me first thing.

My favorite days are the busy ones. Those are the days we need to move some of the livestock from one pen to another. I’m so excited because today, we are moving pregnant ewes to the lambing barn. At the beginning of March, we will be having over 80 baby lambs born over the course of two weeks. My mom gets really excited when the babies start being born. SPRING IS NEAR!

On this, Valentine’s Day, I’d like to welcome our newest addition. Valentina! She was born in the afternoon on February 13th. She weighs 60 pounds and is our first heifer calf born this spring.

Happy Valentine’s Day everyone! I hope you have a wonderful day with the ones you love! Check back next Wednesday for the next edition of “Wally’s Farm Adventures”.

Yours Truly, Wally