Shinnel Glen Shetlands and Smallholding

Shinnel Glen Shetlands and Smallholding Scottish smallholder and breeder of Shetland Sheep

It’s hot and the sheep are rooing. Being able to shear them myself might take longer but it means I can shear when they’...
24/05/2026

It’s hot and the sheep are rooing. Being able to shear them myself might take longer but it means I can shear when they’re ready rather than waiting for the shearer. I also blade shear so it leaves the new growth behind. Nini is definitely more comfortable!

I wasn’t intending on halter training today but these two were inquisitive and willing. Might need to find the smaller r...
23/05/2026

I wasn’t intending on halter training today but these two were inquisitive and willing. Might need to find the smaller rope halter!

Shetland colours always fascinate me. Last year we had a very dark lamb whose fleece is now pale grey. This year we have...
19/05/2026

Shetland colours always fascinate me. Last year we had a very dark lamb whose fleece is now pale grey. This year we have two lambs born black that now look dark brown. I’m hoping this girl stays brown as she’s on the shortlist to stay 🥰

I normally shear the sheep at the end of June. The weather has played havoc with timings this year. Katie is rooing, so ...
11/05/2026

I normally shear the sheep at the end of June. The weather has played havoc with timings this year.
Katie is rooing, so her fleece just comes away from the new growth underneath. No shears needed! 🤣

We normally shear at the end of June. The sheep have other ideas! Some of them have started rooing. This means they natu...
10/05/2026

We normally shear at the end of June. The sheep have other ideas! Some of them have started rooing. This means they naturally shed their fleece. You can see a beautiful natural wool rise which is what I normally shear to, and why I blade shear. Winter has been fairly mild and wet this year which can play havoc with the fleece.

After a fairly straightforward year last year, This year’s lambing has been tough. Given that we only had 7 to lamb, we’...
28/04/2026

After a fairly straightforward year last year, This year’s lambing has been tough. Given that we only had 7 to lamb, we’ve had an abortion, triplets, malpresentations, a ewe with no milk, tube feeding, bottle feeding and ultimately 10 healthy lambs, which I am grateful for. And Shetlands make the best mums!
It’s the problems that teach you the most, but also make you feel like you could’ve done things differently/better. Even with plenty of lambing experience, I’ve learnt a lot, not least that Shetlands have far less space to turn a lamb!
It’s emotionally draining and I know I will keep over thinking everything.
And to add to the drama, we have a poorly tup. Waiting on blood test results and keeping everything crossed.

‘Get sheep’ they said, ‘it’ll be fun’ they said 🤦‍♀️ Katie started lambing yesterday afternoon but by 10pm she still was...
19/04/2026

‘Get sheep’ they said, ‘it’ll be fun’ they said 🤦‍♀️
Katie started lambing yesterday afternoon but by 10pm she still wasn’t progressing.
I decided to check her. She was dilated-ready to lamb. First lamb was breach and sadly dead but clearly stopping her progressing. Second lamb a good sized twin. Final sweep ‘just in case’, but to be honest she had a pair of good sized twins. So number 3 was a bit of a surprise. And head back and took a lot of swearing to get him out. Once out, he wouldn’t get going, couldn’t stand. We got them dried off, milked Katie and tubed him with some of her colostrum (at 1.30am 😴 )

When I went out this morning, he was hunched in the corner of the pen, not moving. As I went to pick him up he moved his head. He was warm but hadn’t fed. Another round of milking Katie and feeding him. By lunchtime he’s finally standing and suckling. Now we need to get him feeding off mum.

Not out of the woods yet but I didn’t think he’d last the night!

Meanwhile Naomi (due Thursday next week) lambed a pair of lovely black lambs

Kirsty finally lambed a day after her due date. Two lovely ewe lambs. Last year she had twin lamb disease so aborted one...
18/04/2026

Kirsty finally lambed a day after her due date. Two lovely ewe lambs. Last year she had twin lamb disease so aborted one. This year has been much smoother for her and she is a fab mum!

Smallholding is full of highs and lows. Nora aborted her lambs two and a half weeks ago. It’s heartbreaking but it happe...
16/04/2026

Smallholding is full of highs and lows. Nora aborted her lambs two and a half weeks ago. It’s heartbreaking but it happens. I’ve spent two weeks on tenterhooks waiting…
Last night in all the wind and rain, Minnie had two gorgeous ewe lambs 🥰🥰🥰

Just under a week to go 🙈 nothing puts you off pregnancy like watching the ewes waddling around! 🤣
11/04/2026

Just under a week to go 🙈 nothing puts you off pregnancy like watching the ewes waddling around! 🤣

I’m glad the girls are lambing through storm Dave, although Katie is beginning to look like a table🤣
05/04/2026

I’m glad the girls are lambing through storm Dave, although Katie is beginning to look like a table🤣

Address

Thornhill

Website

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Shinnel Glen Shetlands and Smallholding posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Shortcuts

Share

Category