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2023 LAMB IS READY TO ORDER

flowerandfruit

Fall Greetings to You All!

I'm really excited about so much this year! This crop of lambs looks the best ever (scroll to "Ordering lamb" for details), we've had a rewarding mountain bike season, I've used up every canning jar in the house, we grew more things than ever before, we got a new freezer and it is FILLED with the most fantastic proteins and more, and things are feeling generally groovier. We've also sold off almost all the tractor implements in favor of grazing and we continually streamline, increasing efficiencies. We had a really rough early spring, losing two ewes and a special doeling (goat kid) within a couple weeks; things could only go up from there. Which they did. The photo below is our last lamb born of 2023, under an apple tree in the late afternoon...a perfect ending to lambing season.


Our new mineral program


An especially exciting change that deserves more attention is our mineral program. All livestock need minerals. Many farmers provide minerals in a block of salt and some provide granulated ("loose") minerals in a free choice mineral feeder. There's cheap conventional stuff and slightly better quality mixes to choose from. We used a top mineral mix but it's still similar to giving every human the same multivitamin their entire lives. Not only is this going to fail in fixing many problems, it can create problems, problems we need to diagnose and treat throughout the year. Typically this meant herbal dewormer mixes and running to Farm and Fleet to buy some specialized mineral products for that animal- calcium gels, baking soda, selenium injections, zinc hoof treatments, etc. Now, we have a mineral system with 18 different minerals, each offered loose and separately!

Animals know what they need. We breed for this and we always start with breeding stock equipped for pastures and the smarts to seek good forage and health for themselves. Our sheep and goats can eat whatever mineral is lacking in their bodies or forage, then deposit a lot of the minerals back into our soils via excrement, regenerating our soil to be more sustaining and balanced over time. Cool, right?! We started this mineral program in March and the only issue we've had was one ewe with too much/too rich of milk- not a bad problem to have! Not one parasite, disease, skin or hoof issue, immune weakness, infection, etc since. Our breeding stock is robust and this mineral system empowers us all to elevate their (and our!) independence and well-being even more.


Ordering lamb

With that, we are ready to offer our grass-fed lamb for sale! It's all mild, delicious and nutritious, being hair (vs wool) breeds and grass-fed and finished (much higher in Vit A, E and Omega-3's). Your lamb is entirely pharmaceutical-free too as we avoid the commonly used antibiotics, dewormers and vaccines.


Harvest is in early December. You'll fill out your cut sheet (I can fill out a cutsheet for you after a consult or help you do it via a phone call) and the meat will be ready to pick up within approximately a week of going in. You can pick your lamb up at our farm same day I pick up or at Pinn Oak in Delavan (TBD). Our favorite cuts are probably slow roasted leg of lamb with garlic and rosemary, ground lamb for all the meatloaf, chili, meatballs and taco dinners or breakfast sausage, and fall apart shoulder roasts. Our kids really love the gyro too.


The recipes here are always inspiring and helpful, and always lamb.


- $100 nonrefundable deposit payable via check or Venmo holds your order

- 1 lamb is $7/lb hanging weight (+/- 40lb) plus $140 processor's/butcher fee - additional butcher fees based on your cut sheet selections. (Pinn Oak offers gyro for $4/lb, but I think that's the only upcharge option)

- when you pay your deposit, we'll send you a document with advice on how to get the most out of your whole lamb- we encourage using everything- even parts for dogs or hides for tanning.


Thanks for looking! Please reach out with deposits or with any questions to littleheathensfarm@gmail.com or flowerandfruit@gmail.com



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