The Old Folks Home

[Wisher1000]

I'm so sorry. My prayers for you are for miraculous healing, or remission, and the strength to handle whatever you have to face. I will also pray for peace and comfort for everyone affected.

 

[getaclue]

Thank you everyone for the prayers. I will keep you posted. I will talk to my cancer surgeon on the 20th., so I'll know more then on how he wants to proceed. My insurance allows for Cancer Treatment Centers of America to fly me to one of their centers as well, so that's another option I'm considering.

 

[ronott1]

Thank you everyone for the prayers. I will keep you posted. I will talk to my cancer surgeon on the 20th., so I'll know more then on how he wants to proceed. My insurance allows for Cancer Treatment Centers of America to fly me to one of their centers as well, so that's another option I'm considering.

Find out which is the best for the type of cancer you have.

Out here, UCSF is the best for endocrine and skin cancers. I do not know if Cancer Treatment Centers of America work with them though.

 

[chickadoodles]

For those of you that pray, please lift me in your prayers. The cancer is back. For those that don't pray, I mean no offense.

I most certainly will keep you in my prayers.

 

[microchick]

Getaclue, not only will I remember you in prayer but also your doctor and caregivers. Consider yourself hugged.

 

[Alaskan]

@getaclue

I will keep you and all those who care for you in my prayers.

So sorry for this struggle.

 

[CanuckBock]

We kept sheep briefly and one day asked our vet if he could give us any sage advice about keeping them healthy.

He just chuckled and said, "The first thing you do when you get sheep is dig a hole to bury them in."

Yep, turned out to be VERY true.

I have to disagree as our situation is totally different...sheep are the easiest of all our animals to keep healthy and long lived. If you do not step up and begin with clean stock...yeh, you'll get to live thru the horrors of OPP, Johnnes, abscesses, parasites, etc....just open up that Sheep Vet book by Henderson...as big as a telephone book and look at all the nasty nasty illness you can avoid by starting out correctly.

My flock does not have hoof rot, keds, lice, pizzle rot, abortions, pneumonia, organ diseases, mastitis, ulcers, orf, OPP, Johnnes, ringworm, fly strike, liver flukes, etc. Why...because I educated myself long before we acquired sheep and we had the facilities, triple perimeter fencing, cross fencing, corrals, the equipment, feed, clean water source, etc. IN place before we ever even though about bringing the beasts on home. I know about the correct mineral and salt mix, I know which plants are toxic to sheep and have removed and restrained myself from ever planting any of them here. We have never lost a single ruminant to predators, stray dogs or what have you's. Yes we have had sheep die of old age and that to me is why we got them in the first place...to eat our grass, bring us pleasure and be enjoyed till their time to go is called upon...due to old age! Not untimely deaths from diseases we could have avoided completely from a good start.

Left to right -
Last set of twins I lambed here, ewe Regina and wether Rex...2005
Then my second ever lambed out lamb ewe Nascor (set of triplets)...2003
Then my first ever lambed out lamb (set of twins) ewe Nix...2003 ​

I studied sheep for decades, joined sheep clubs, went to symposiums, lectures, taught myself to shear and clip them so we did not have to expose them to shearers bringing something in...I took courses...I even volunteered my time at biosecure farm to get some hands on experience BEFORE we ever brought a sheep home. We chose to acquire only clean healthy animals to start and keep biosecurity protocols to this day...I can count on the fingers of one hand the THREE visitors we have had on our property in the past year. I do not attend auctions, sales or other places where I may expose myself as a vehicle to bring home nasties to infect my flock with. One day, some day our luck may run out, but for now, every day is blessed with healthy and happy sheep to share our lives with.

Sheep are down right TOUGH animals that do not show illness easily. When some people actually notice a sheep is sick...that sheep is pretty much near death's door. A good shepherd/shepherdess knows their flock like the back of their hand and they instinctually KNOW when a sheep is coming down with something...so they can do something about it.

We do the same for our poultry. Have our original Buff Chantecler Chantelle from 2008, original heritage turkeys from the same importation, twenty year old geese, 15 year old ducks and pheasants...like me who is an oldtimer...we have old livestock and old poultry & dogs. We pride ourselves in keep them safe, keeping predation to ZERO, never having EVER administered antibiotics to any of our poultry...ever...but having some on hand should our vet advise us to use it.

The work and effort you do to acquire CLEAN healthy animals from the beginning will reap you untold rewards for years and years of fun and happiness...for all those concerned.

​

Here are my original Jacob lambs out on pasture yesterday...never had ruminants until 2003 and these are the lambs I lambed from them and next lambing in 2005.

No...sheep are the healthiest and long lived when you start out with the right stock. Kinda like chickens...you can get the run of the mill exposed to everything and anything already sickly ones at some auction mart...with parasites, internal and external, diseases of all kinds, non-thrifty and poorly bred...OR you can get a good start and never EVER know about all the horrible things your vet obviously witnessed in ruminants. I am sorry you did not enjoy your start in sheep--that is not what had to happen.

Haley in 2013​

Sheep are an absolute pleasure to own and you may expect proper animals from a good start under the care of a competent shepherdess/shepherd to live ten, fifteen and even eighteen years without much troubles at all...jest like my beloved Haley did...big smile permanently imbedded on her angelic face.

My new hair sheep flock...from a clean and closed flock--jest add grass and look out!

​

Yes, you may fall head over heels in love with sheeps...if you choose to start out with the right stock. Bring home diseased stock and you will fight like the dickens to keep them alive and keep them from infecting others. Keep it clean from the beginning and you never know the misery you avoided. Sheep are wonderful...absolutely wonderful and extra easy to keep!

'Nuff said.

Doggone & Chicken UP!

Tara Lee Higgins
Higgins Rat Ranch Conservation Farm, Alberta, Canada

 

[chickisoup]

Thank you!

Me too of course. If you need to chat, I'm here.

 

[microchick]

With one big exception, Canuckbock. Our sheep were given to us by the Amish farmer that we had bought our farm from and who wanted to establish a grazing agreement with us. The sheep were Katadhins. He didn't believe in worming or testing. Sheep were dropping like flies. We got the results of a necropsy and the vet told us that the sheep were being eaten alive by parasites. We spent hundreds of dollars in an attempt to save them and finally gave the sheep back to our neighbor without a grazing agreement. He did not want to worm his sheep and was grazing them on parasite infested stubble.

Sometimes you just have to know when to fold them and get the heck out of Dodge.

Our vet was speaking from experience and from our POV he was absolutely right.

 

[CanuckBock]

With one big exception, Canuckbock. Our sheep were given to us by the Amish farmer that we had bought our farm from and who wanted to establish a grazing agreement with us. The sheep were Katadhins. He didn't believe in worming or testing. Sheep were dropping like flies. We got the results of a necropsy and the vet told us that the sheep were being eaten alive by parasites. We spent hundreds of dollars in an attempt to save them and finally gave the sheep back to our neighbor without a grazing agreement. He did not want to worm his sheep and was grazing them on parasite infested stubble.

Sometimes you just have to know when to fold them and get the heck out of Dodge.

Our vet was speaking from experience and from our POV he was absolutely right.

Then in that particular situation, your vet and you made the correct judgement call...good money & efforts after bad to no avail!

Now if you had to do it over again, to get sheep...start with clean healthy flock, right?