Meet the triplets

Today I want on a "viability walk" for the festival. The route I was planning to follow for the Looking and Seeing Walk has been condemned. There is too much flood damage and two areas of path are well nigh impassable.

A new route has to be devised. We started at Featherstone Castle, walked north by the South Tyne, climbed up through the garlic wood and on to Hargill House and the Quaker Chapel. Then we walked to Coanwood via Yont the Cleugh (caravan site) and along the river to the car. It is at least a mile too long but a good walk.

There are sheep and lambs everywhere. Here you see the farmer and his daughter and son checking on a mother with newly born triplets. She has not had time to clean them up yet and her placenta is yet to be delivered. (So many had given birth that we had to pick our way through the placentas at one point! Probably too much information.)

Three lots of triplets were born today and no singletons, so no ewe to take on an extra lamb. The farmer lets all three take colostrum before choosing one to be adopted or hand reared.

He was more than happy to explain it all.

His three sheepdogs were supervising the maternity ward from the quad bike. All were bred in Middlesbrough and came to the farm sequentially. One was only £1300 because he was a bit boisterous, but with plenty of work he has turned into an excellent working dog.

I banged Aggie on a slippery stile today so have been applying an ice pack this evening