Thinking About "EWE"

An everyday view for us is green fields dotted with sheep. The Cumbrian or local sheep around here are not used for their wool but rather their lambs and meat. Their wool is more coarse and actually ends up costing the farmer more to sheer than the wool is worth. They have to shear the sheep each year from May – July. One bonus or job perk for the shearer is velvety hands due to the lanolin found in the wool which is used for the production of cosmetics! Usually an individual can shear 250-300 sheep in a day with the record being 720! Wool has many beneficial qualities such as warmth in winter and coolness in summer, fire resistance, no static electricity and long lasting! Doctors have written that people who sleep in wool get approximately 15% longer deep sleep periods. (Pam, you better get a wool nightie!)

Over the half term break, I took the kids to the Cumbrian Wool and Sheep Centre to learn the answers to some of our questions about the sheep we see. Once, we got past the lovely sheep odor, we were able to enjoy the “show.”

Julieanne and AC pose with a Herdwick, their favorite of the 19 Cumbrian breeds we saw. They are hardy animals not bothered by the rain and cold and independent of the need for humans to feed or protect them during the long winters. They stick to their own fell (mountain) never mixing or mingling with other herds from other fell farms.

Nathan and his friend, Ben, check out the Merino Sheep most famous for its premium quality wool and ability to go two weeks without water. This sheep is more common in Australia as it doesn’t like the Cumbrian climate (too much water).

Nathan was not too sure he could trust the sheep so he was reticent to stick his hand out.

We all enjoyed watching the Collie display his superb herding using ducks as they fit on the stage better than a herd of sheep. They train for six months and then work in their prime for only 3-6 years before “retiring.” For large herds of 2000 or more like the herds in Australia, the Huntaway dog will walk across the backs of the sheep to accomplish its herding.

Sheep are totally dependent on shepherds for protection, grazing, and water. They would not survive long without a shepherd. That’s why the Herdwick is valuable here as it needs little to survive.

Isaiah 40:11 says of Christ, “He tends his flock like a shepherd; he gathers the lambs in his arms, and carries them close to his heart; he gently leads those that have young.”