What is the SponsorSheep program?     We know that there are lots of people out there who would love to have a farm full of woolly sheep, but for whatever reason, they aren’t able.  At Gladsheim Farm we offer a SponsorSheep program for anyone who would like to be a “virtual” shepherd for a year.  You will have the benefits of photos and stories of your selected lamb as he or she grows through the seasons, and a chance to visit the farm throughout the year.  What you will be missing is the regular mucking out of barns, the mending of fences, and the late night visits to the sheep…all the daily chores that go towards making a farm happen.  And at the end of the year, you will have some gorgeous lambswool to yourself, to make into something special, as well as a few other special treats.

The SponsorSheep program benefits our farm, as well.  The extra income helps pay for the best quality hay we can get our hands on, which means the lambs grow strong and healthy, as seen in their fleeces.  It also contributes to any medicine and vet bills that we might need.  But most of all, the SponsorSheep program allows us to share, in a meaningful way, our love of shepherding with others.

How does it work?     Read the descriptions of each of the lamb and choose one that interests you.  Then, select a SponsorSheep package  and receive all the benefits that each level offers.  All three levels include naming your lamb, monthly updates and photos about your lamb, a 2022 calendar from our farm, a bumper sticker, and either some cleaned fleece or some yarn.  (Please note that you will be choosing between an amount of washed fleece for spinning OR an amount of yarn, but not both.)  You will receive some of the goodies in the fall, with the rest to follow at the end of the SponsorSheep program in the spring of 2022.

How long is the program?     Each Sponsor-Sheep package is good for the first year of your lamb’s life.

What are naming rights?     This means that you get to name your lamb!

About the fibre…     We won’t be shearing until the end of your sponsor year in spring 2022, and there is up to a year wait after that with the wool at the mill.  Because of this delay, where you would not see your own sponsored lamb’s wool until 2023, we offer up one of two things.  You may choose some cleaned, sheared wool from your very own lamb after shearing (this is a good option for a spinner or felter), or alternatively you may choose Wool Maiden’s Lambie-Pie yarn.  This super soft yarn is made with a mixture of our own lamb’s wool mixed with soft alpaca wool from another Canadian fibre farm.

What happens to my lamb?     At the end of the year, we shear all the sheep and all the lamb’s wool goes into our Lambie-Pie yarn.  And after that first shear, the ram lambs will then be sold to other fibre farms in BC or Alberta as our farm is too small to keep every single newborn…oh, but I wish I could!!!  But we will be keeping up to 4 girls born this year.  Also, being a farm, sometimes things happen outside of our control and a lamb dies.  If that is the case, you may pick another lamb to sponsor (though the naming rights may already be spoken for) and you may follow all the updates on that lamb, and get all the gifts at the end of the year as before.

The SponsorSheep program is going live on Monday July 19, 2021 at 8am PST.

Here are the available lambs for this year :

Stella Blue’s only lamb this year is a little ewe (girl) who looks very similar to a Shetland sheep, like her papa Argyle, but bigger.  Her mama is Stella, a Gotland cross and she will most likely have an incredible fleece, which is already a soft greyish oatmeal colour.  This little one is very attached to her mama and the two move around together so close they almost look like one sheep.  However, when she spies her cousins leaping about in the grass, this little lamb frolics happily with the flock, quickly to return and check in with her mama.

Meet one of two adventurous little ram lambs (boys).  Little Luna had twins again this year and this little fella is the first.  He is snowy white and his fleece has some Blue Faced Leicester curls, which showed up from a distant relative.  His papa is a purebred Shetland while Little Luna is a Gotland x Shetland crossed with a CVM.  Deluxe fibre on this fella and his brother!  He has tons of spunk and bounces all over the paddock, darting around all the mamas and babes.  Often, he is so inquisitive, he can get a little too far from his mama and needs to baaa loudly until she decides to respond.  Back he goes to her for a little drink, then bounds off again on new adventures.

This gorgeous fellow is a twin ram lamb born to purebred, registered Gotland parents, Astrid and Axel.  He is tall and elegant, like all Gotlands, and his fleece is lighter than his brothers and may very well be a lustrous grey like his father.  He looks like he was dipped in white paint as the tip of his tail and the tip of his nose are both white.  The Gotland family of mother and sons is very connected and can usually be found cuddling together.  He has the sweetest disposition and is never far from his mother and brother.

There couldn’t be a more darling little brown Shetland ewe lamb than this girl.  She is adored by her mama, who is like her papa, a registered Shetland.  According to Shetland guidelines, this lamb is called a Moorit brown.  Her fleece is the most gorgeous chocolatey brown which is soft like both her parent’s.  This little girl is very sweet with a good balance of sticking close to her doting mama, and also venturing with the lamb flock.  She is still a little shy to us, but that is typical of lambs, particularly the primitive breeds like Shetlands.  My daughter will be working on getting her more used to us and I expect like her mama, will be cuddled up in our laps soon.

The second adventurer from Little Luna is this sweet snowy white boy.  His fleece has some Blue Faced Leicester curls, which showed up from a distant relative and while his papa is a purebred Shetland, Little Luna is a Gotland x Shetland crossed with a CVM.  And like his brother, this boy likes to explore, though not as much as his big brother.  The twins are usually not far from each other as they wander about, confidant and inquisitive.  This one’s favourite spot right now is lying in the doghouse for an afternoon nap!

The second ram lamb from Astrid the purebred Gotland is this spunky little fella.  He is darker than his brother, more black like his mother.  He also has a little band of white on his back ankle.  This Gotland family likes to stick together and they are beautiful to watch.  Fine boned and long limbed, I am excited to have these gorgeous sheep on the farm.

Our purebred, registered Shetland had twin girls this summer, and one is sold to another fibre farm.  But this daughter will be here at Gladsheim Farm.  She was born in  early June and is now a plump little butterball, one of the leaders of the lamb flock.  She is beautiful and inquisitive, and loves to romp around with her lambie friends.

Delilah had a set of twin ram lambs this summer, and this cutie was the first.  He is covered in soft, wavy black curls and the top of his head is white, like a little hat.  His fleece will be quite something, as his genes are Romney x Rambouillet x Cotswold on the mama side, while his dad is purebred Shetland.  Delilah consistently grows a beautifully soft, oatmeal fleece that regularly is over 9 lbs.  This boy is so sweet and I look forward to watching him grow.

This white fella is Delilah’s second boy, born at the end of July.  He is like a muppet with his fleecey face and thick white curls.  His mama is Romney x Rambouillet x Cotswold while his papa is purebred Shetland.  I expect him to be a big boy, and for now, he is quite attached to his family, never straying too far.  He and his brother like to curl up together, nose to nose, sleeping peacefully.

 

Now, choose from one of the SponsorSheep levels listed below, and follow the link to take you to the Wool Maiden shop…

*A shout out to Anna Hunter from Longway Homestead in Manitoba, Canada for her clever branding of the SponsorSheep program.  Anna has graciously permitted the name to be used by other farms like ours for our own unique programs.