11 lambs born on Sask. farm during blizzard, 11 more born since then
While a blizzard moved through parts of the province last weekend, one Saskatchewan farmer was busy helping his sheep give birth to 11 lambs.
Josef Buttigieg of Fenek Farms said between Friday evening and Saturday, two sets of triplets, two sets of twins, and a solo sheep were all born within hours.
“It was a bit of an error on my side, we were planning that lambing should have started this week at some point, but apparently my calculations didn’t work out so well,” he said.
Buttigieg recalled the night, saying the experience was interesting because of the blizzard.
“Visibility that night was nonexistent, at least where we’re at. The barn’s only about 100 yards, 150 yards from the house, but you can maybe only see maybe 20, so you couldn’t see the barn,” he said.
“So the concern I guess, at the end of the day, becomes if there’s any complications, if I need a vet, how’s the vet going to come to you? So you know that you’re pretty much stuck by yourself that whole time,” he said.
Eleven lambs were born at Fenek Farms during last weekend's blizzard. (Photo submitted by Josef Buttigieg)
He said since visibility was so bad and since he was tired, he found a spot to sleep inside the barn.
“Just set up a nice corner, a nice comfy corner in one of the stalls and just took a quick power nap there. Now, I was rudely interrupted with that power nap in the sense that one of the ewes that was sitting in the pen decided to start licking me, figures because I smell like her baby,” he said.
“Nice good morning wake-up kiss from a sheep apparently.”
Buttigieg said there did end up being one complication that night with one of the sets of triplets.
“We had a set of triplets and one of them was backwards, so it was a matter of trying to reposition them at the same time and then start helping mom to pull it out,” he said. “It becomes that you’re a little bit on the edge so to speak, trying to make sure that mom is happy and the babies are happy at the end.”
Since the 11 lambs were born last weekend, 11 more were born on Wednesday.
Eleven lambs were born at Fenek Farms during last weekend's blizzard. (Photo submitted by Josef Buttigieg)
“Either it happens all at once or you’ll have periods or days where nothing happens and it’ll drop a whole bunch more again,” he said.
Buttigieg said not including the babies, they have a flock of 140 sheep. Of those, there are about 110 that are currently pregnant.
Fenek Farms is located about 10 minutes north of Regina.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Deaths of 4 people on Sask. farm confirmed as murder-suicide
The deaths of four people on a farm near the Saskatchewan village of Neudorf have been confirmed a murder-suicide.
Multiple bridges in Calgary shut down for police incident
Calgary police have shut down a number of bridges into and out of the downtown core as officers deal with a distraught individual.
Sunshine list: These were the Ontario public sector's highest earners in 2023
Ontario released its annual sunshine list Thursday afternoon, noting that the largest year-over-year increases were in hospitals, municipalities, and post-secondary sectors.
Why some Christians are angry about Trump's 'God Bless the USA' Bible
Former U.S. President Donald Trump is officially selling a copy of the Bible themed to Lee Greenwood’s famous song, 'God Bless the USA.' But the concept of a Bible covered in the American flag has raised concern among religious circles.
George Washington family secrets revealed by DNA from unmarked 19th century graves
Genetic analysis has shed light on a long-standing mystery surrounding the fates of U.S. President George Washington's younger brother Samuel and his kin.
Baby boom amongst nurses leads to maternity ward closure in Listowel, Ont.
The emergency room at Listowel’s hospital is open today, but come summer, their obstetrics unit will be temporarily closing its delivery rooms.
Humboldt Broncos bus crash survivor qualifies Canada for Paralympics in rowing event
Former Humboldt Broncos goaltender and bus crash survivor Jacob Wassermann has qualified Canada for a rowing event for the 2024 Paralympic games in Paris.
Krispy Kreme doughnuts coming to McDonald's in U.S., but not Canada
Canadians will be missing out on a sweet new partnership between McDonald's and Krispy Kreme, which will see doughnuts available at McDonald's locations across the U.S. by the end of 2026.
'We won't forget': How some Muslims view Poilievre's stance on Israel-Hamas war
A spokesman for a regional Muslim advocacy group says Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre's stance on the Israel-Hamas war could complicate his party's relationship with Muslim Canadians.