Last year we were a part of the first ever Farm Stroll coordinated by the University of Illinois Extension in DeKalb County. Families and individuals could visit a number of small, specialized farms in the county, and many of them enjoyed their visit to Heatherhope Farm where we told the story of sheep farming and showed off the skills of our Border Collie herding dogs.
This year the Extension Service has asked us once again to participate in this event, and they have tentatively planned it for Sunday, July 24, from noon to 5 p.m. There will be 12 farms taking part in this year’s Stroll, from a nearby bee keeper to “you pick” berries to a local whiskey distillery. For further information about the Stroll contact Andy Larson, Local Foods and Small Farms Educator at 815-732-2191.
Young lambs delight in putting their new legs to the test! Come to the Farm Stroll/Meet and Greet to see them in action. Photo by John
We will make this event also serve as our 2016 “Meet and Greet the Lambs” event. John had shoulder surgery this year and so we decided not to breed from our own ewes. If a ewe had a difficult lambing John’s sore shoulder wouldn’t allow him to wrestle with the ewes and deliver the lambs. But we do have some lambs grazing here, owned by a friend of ours who needed to take advantage of our excess pasture. So we can show off those lambs on the day of the Farm Stroll.
We will put on sheepdog herding demonstrations at 12:15, 2:30, and 4:00 p.m. In between we will describe what it takes to raise sheep and let people tour around and meet Bilbo the “gentle giant” guardian dog.
Come along and bring a picnic lunch. We have plenty of space at picnic tables and on the two decks of the house.
You can e-mail or phone us for further information. Click on the “contact us” tab at the top of any page on our web site.
It’s great fun to pet a lamb. Photo by M. Gezing
