Rose driving the sheep from the meadow to the pasture behind the house.

June 25, 2008 – A farm is a series of responsibilities, some wonderful, some not, that never go away. Every morning, when I get up, the first question I ask is “where are the animals?” Do they have enough food and water, and shelter? This is often a chain-reaction decision, in that one thing affects another.
  Annie told me they are predicting more severe storms for today, so that means making sure they sheep and donkeys can get under appropriate shelter.  The best shelter I have is the pole barn behind the farmhouse, so Rosie and I moved the sheep from across the street to the pasture behind the house. Because of all the recent rain, the pastures have recovered a bit, and my hay crisis is a bit easier.
  Moving the sheep is tricky because there are a lot of yahoos on my road who pay no attention to “Sheep Crossing” signs and you have to assume they won’t slow or stop, even if they see sheep and dog in the middle of the road. Rose has been hit by cars twice in this manner, both glancing blows.
  But herding is unpredictable and sometimes the sheep will take off suddenly, and it can be dangerous. Rose keeps the sheep moving across the road, and we have plenty of water there. So I just have to make sure everything is unplugged when the lightning hits.