Nectarine Travels: SHEEPWORLD

Baaaaaaaa,

Welcome to Christmas Part 2. And Sheepworld. Especially Sheepworld. Because I LOVED Sheepworld. (Edit: Or, actually JUST Sheepworld. It seemed to need its whole own entry. :P)

Welcome to Sheepworld!!

Yesterday morning (the 28^th) CC and I drove to Sheepworld, 20mins away from Wellsford. Sheepworld is... a world of sheep. And of many other farm animals, who are extremely friendly and absolutely adore you (or, at least, the food in your hand you could buy for a dollar a bag in the gift shop).

Lambies!! Who actually seemed to prefer children than me

I love Kiwi kids. This one came up next to me to pet the lamb, said a happy "hello" and proceeded to tell me about his sandals.

We attended the sheep show at 11. We were sat in the barn with the rest of the audience (mostly kids) waiting for the show to commence when two sheepdogs bounded into the room. I'm glad no one was dog-phobic!

Making friends with the kiddos

Ten minutes later the lovely John the very Kiwi shepherd (I loved him) joined us, and introduced his two insane sheepdogs Sam and Boy. Sam is a mix of three different breeds with the brain of one breed, the personality of a Labrador and the bark of some other breed. He barks loudly.

Boy, on the other hand, never barks. When he yelped once, it was because he had just got traumatised, since a ewe with a lamb had decided to take him on and smash him with her head (and sheep have skulls three times the thickness of human skulls, said John.) It took him AGES to get over the trauma and actually start herding ewes and lambs after that incident.

Anyways, Boy's speciality is his stare. He stares at the sheep and they don't like it. It is quite creepy tbh.

Boy practising his stare

Each sheepdog would cost him about four grand to replace, and they do the job of ten people. In addition, dogs don't need employment contracts, John added. Apparently, it is due to the sheepdogs that NZ's economy is doing so well. He was an excellent presentator, with a bit of traditional awkward rural farmerness to him but also a very clear and fun way of talking.

Ah, it was really interesting. After introducing the doggies, we all went outside, had some more displays on stuff like how they were trained and how they are disciplined (all about the voice. The moment John starts telling them off in a very growly voice, Sam lies down onto the ground and looks very remorceful.)

Then Boy got to display his talents on sheepherding. There was a group of sheep on a hill, and Boy went to fetch them. Felt a bit sorry for the poor terrified sheep, but it was very cool!

Headed back to the barn, where two volunteers practised sheepgating. (That's not the official term.) The sheep came running in some sort of queue through a gate, and they had to make it that they went into the right pen depending on if they had a blue, pink or no mark on their heads.

After that John talked about shearing (I learnt the past of “to shear” is “shorn” (not “sheared”, though now writing it down I do feel a bit silly) hence Shaun the sheep lol) and then he sheared (edit: I mean shore. I think? I dunno lol) half a sheep, getting three little young volunteers to finish it off. Very interesting, but I could never ever be a farmer. I know everything's for the animal's own good but I doubt they are very happy being forced down and SHORN.

Shearing time!

Brilliant show anyhow. Oh, and at the end the kids milked lambs (I regretted very much not being a kid even though CC, bless him, kept on trying to get me to join them) AND I HELD A LAMB WAAAAAAAAAAAAAA <3 There was a thing in some quality magazine about a woman marrying a ship, I'm sure I could marry a lamb?

MY BABY WAAAAAAAAA

After that, went to visit all the other animals. Who, as I said earlier, LOVED everyone and rushed towards the fences when anyone approached them. The cows were eager and messy, the goats ridiculously eager and racist, the emus terrifying for CC, and one of the donkeys grabbed hold of the paper bag I had animal food in. CC saved the rest of it but the donkey seemed very happy munching the bit of paper bag it had managed to rip off.

MOO

They at least managed to share

Having a pony eat from your hand is a funny sensation

Keeping the bag away from the greedy donkeys

Dear Mrs Piggums and her snout were the only things that intimidated me too much to feed her :( (but CC did :)

Emus and CC keeping his distance

CC feeding the piglet who earlier thought my finger was the food

Nöf nöf

The goats were adorable, the two white more grown-up ones were the eagerest out of all the animals, stood up against the fences leaning their heads out when we were ages away. The younger black one with little horns and GORGEOUS eyes just stood in the distance. A few times CC managed to distract the greedie gutses and I could feed my beloved shy black goat, who probs in the end got most of the food. I loved him <3

Piggy goats feat. loner

And, the possum in the possum pen had woken up! THE NOTORIOUS POSSUMS bringers of all evil (destroying crops and eating kiwis) to NZ. Still, adorable.