My first sheep Ebony died yesterday. She was 14 1/2 years old. I fell in love with sheep at a fair and then decided to get Shetland sheep after doing some research. At the time they were harder to find, but I noticed a card at the feed shore for Shetland sheep for sale on Whidbey Island at Mystic Knoll farm. So I went out there expecting to buy just Ebony but her half-sister Sadie climbed into my lap for petting, and I took them both home.
Ebony has always been a calm, tough sheep. They survived when they busted into the feed a little after one month after I got them. She produced 10 lambs for us without any assistance. We still have two of them, Coco and Jet. She has been thin and old for the last several winters but was always stubborn to keep her freedom and feisty with food. I started getting complacent that she would live through another cold winter and did not think to say good-bye to her when I last saw her. She was a great sheep, and I will greatly miss her. So join me and enjoy the slideshow of her and some of her lambs.
Lovely photos of your sweet sheep. Is she Onyx’s Mamma?
Thanks Colette! It is her mamma. How is she doing? She is 8 1/2 now. She is actually one of the lambs in the photo where Tom is holding 2 lambs.
A lovely tribute to your landmark sheep, Donna. I’m sorry she slipped away.
Thanks Michelle. It was certainly time for her to go but still sad they can’t live healthily forever.
I am SO SORRY for the loss of Ebony. She must have come from hardy stock and had EXCELLENT care to have lived so long and produced all those lovely lambs. She had a GREAT life with you and I know will be missed. You do a great job with your animals.
Jackie
Thanks Jackie. You are too kind. She was hardy as is her sister. I hope she had a great life and was not too uncomfortable in its end.
I’m so sorry.
Thanks for the sympathic comment QPB!
Sorry you didn’t get to say goodbyer. But she had a good, long life with you. how nice for her!
Thanks Becky. I hope she had a good life. She sure had spunk.
What a nice slide show and wonderful tribute. Who was that young woman posing in one of those pictures? Nice llama, do you still have it?
Thank you. That was a younger, thinner me. And that was my first llama Swirl. She also died of old age.
So sorry to hear about Ebony passing away. Sounds like she lived a long, full life.
Thanks Denise. I sure hope so.
I am so sorry. It’s never easy to lose a friend, even when they’ve had such a wonderful life with you.
Thanks Teresa. I was surprised how much I cried even though I knew it was coming and for the best.
I’m sorry for your loss, Donna – it sounds like she left a wonderful legacy.
Thanks Maureen. She did. I have two wonderful sheep and beautiful black wool still.
What a nice tribute to a lovely ewe! She lives on through her daughters…
Thanks Nancy! Unfortunately all I have is one daughter who was born very late in Ebony’s life (accident). Jet has awful wool but a nice personality. I do also have Coco who has gorgeous moorit wool and a nice personality also. He is a wether so cannot make more Ebony progeny.