Five minutes after we got the call from the States that CJ’s dad had died, Jenny showed up at the door with a baby ewe lamb. The little white fluff ball needed care – bottle feeding every 3 hours – and CJ needed something to make him happy. It was, some would say, a match made in heaven.
CJ had been wanting a ewe lamb ever since our neighbors told him that Jack, the ram lamb he cared for last year, would grow to be a pest and had to go to the works. It broke CJ’s heart to say goodbye to Jack.
Now, as he was dealing with the loss of his father from cancer, here was the ewe lamb he’d wanted for so long.
Lamb care 101
CJ named the lamb Freddie, after his father, and he began caring for her with a devotion that I find both moving and more than a little bit funny. The way he carries her around it’s amazing she can still walk.
He feeds her like clockwork, and has arranged for our neighbor John to give her the mid-day feed when we’re both at work. She sleeps in a large box in the laundry room with soft bedding.
Several times a day CJ swaddles up Freddie in an old towel and holds her on his lap in front of the fire. He pets her head, and she tips her chin back onto his arm. Her eyes take on a satisfied look of comfort and safety. So do CJ’s.
No animals inside
If you know me, you know that I am not a fan of having farm animals inside. I take great pride in the fact that so far I have managed to enforce my “No Pigs in the House” rule. (Okay, there was one brief exception, but that’s another story).
My “No Sheep in the House” rule, however, seems to carry as much power and authority around here as pile of limp spaghetti.
After we’d had Freddie for about a week and a half, I told CJ, “You can’t take on any more lambs.” I knew that Jenny and Tracey, who lease our paddocks, had other lambs in the olive grove that were failing to thrive. “Only one lamb in the house at a time,” I said.
“Of course,” CJ answered.
Shortly after that our friends Naya and Jeremy asked for help. They were caring for an orphaned ram lamb, but they were going away for the day and needed someone to look after it. That was how I came home from work one evening to find that we suddenly had two lambs in the house.
“We couldn’t say no to friends in need,” CJ said, holding a lamb in each arm and a wearing big smile on his face. He’d been home all day operating the lamb daycare.
I hadn’t been home ten minutes when Tracey came to the door. It was a wet, cold night, and tucked into the folds of her jacket she held – what else? – a third tiny lamb. This one was muddy, bedraggled and barely moving.
“I found it lying in a big puddle,” Tracey said. “Do you have a towel?”
I opened the door, ushered Tracey over to the fire, and quickly grabbed a dry towel.
CJ sat in the chair next to Tracey, his two lambs in his lap, while Tracey began frantically drying the sick lamb in her lap.
I did a quick count. Down in the grove there were at least 20 more lambs, and we were quickly running out of laps.
“We need to warm this wee one up,” Tracey said, an edge of panic in her voice. “Can you draw him a warm bath?”
It is one thing to allow lambs in the house. It is entirely another thing to allow them in your bathtub. But who am I to argue the finer points of civilized living when a poor little lamb is at risk of death? I went into the bathroom and turned on the bath.
Just then Jenny arrived. I nearly frisked her at the door to make sure she wasn’t trying to smuggle in another lamb.
“Is it okay?” she asked, rushing over to Tracey to check on the sick lamb.
“Jared’s drawing a bath for it now,” Tracey said.
“A bath?” Jenny looked horrified. She’s a lawyer but also a champion sheep shearer. (Anywhere else in the world this sort of urban-country combo skillset would surprise me. Not in New Zealand.) “You can’t get it wet,” she said. “You’ll kill it.”
“Fiona does it with her sheep,” Tracey said.
Jenny shook her head. “No bath. Absolutely not.”
The champion sheep shearer had spoken. I went into the bathroom and turned off the bathwater.
Then suddenly Naya was at the front door. She is a veterinarian, and I’m convinced she has a supernatural vet-sense that can detect a sick animal from miles away. She had appeared at exactly the right moment, like an animal-loving superhero. She was only missing the flowing cape and a big ‘V’ for ‘Vet’ across her chest. Behind her was her husband and side-kick Jeremy.
Naya took one look at Tracey’s sick lamb and announced, “You have to put it in the shower. Warm water will do him good.”
Tracey glared over at Jenny. “You hear that?”
“A shower?!” Jenny said, clearly shocked at such absurdity. “Really?”
“Oh, absolutely,” Naya answered. “It works a treat.”
Nobody, not even a champion sheep shearer with a law degree, argues with a superhero veterinarian. Jenny sighed. I went into the bathroom and turned on the shower.
Let me just say that if I thought my shower was overdue for a good scrub before we put a muddy lamb in it, you should have seen it after.
It was amazing how quickly that little guy revived. I got yet another dry towel (we had quite a pile by that point) and Tracey dried him thoroughly.
Then, in a wild blur, Naya and Jeremy took home their lamb and Tracey and Jenny headed off with theirs. I breathed a sigh of relief, thankful that we would have only one lamb sleeping in the laundry room that night.
Bedlam
The next morning I received a picture on my phone from Tracey. There was her sick lamb, clean and dry now and looking healthy. He was happily lying in Tracey’s bed. Yes. In the bed.
At that point I made a serious mistake. I showed CJ the picture and said, “We’ll never have a lamb in our bed.”
“Of course not,” CJ said.
Two days later, as I was sitting up in bed and checking my emails, CJ got up and came back to bed.
When I looked over, there she was, little Freddie. She was happily wrapped up in her towel and lying on CJ’s stomach. Yes. In the bed.
Clearly I need to keep my lamb rules to myself from now on. They only give CJ ideas.
Do you let pets in the bed?
__________
I have had a lamb that slept with me as a kid! This year we have a lamb which we have called Bed, the kids don’t get the joke but suits the household to a T. However should CJ fancy another lamb (sadly a boy) then I am sure we can pass him on!
Excellent name for a lamb. Especially if it goes in your bed. And no. No more lambs for CJ! :-)
How do you get to have such good-looking lambs?
We give them showers.
Every cat lover knows that cats own the bed, they just share with you, as long as you sleep around them
Yes. It’s a shame CJ’s not a cat fan. I’d be much happier with a cat in the bed…
We have our kittens in bed with us. We tried shutting them out of the bedroom but they attacked the door trying to get in. Then George got heavy enough to open the door by hanging on to the door handle, so we have to give in. Now I have to fight with two cats and a human for the duvet at night!
You just need a bigger duvet — and a bigger bed, of course!
Our dog is only allowed in the guest beds, upon invitation of the guests, not the master bed. So if we feel like having her in bed with us (which happens a couple of times a year), we have to sleep in a guest bedroom.
So it’s sort of like your dog has his own bedroom, which is rather grand.
Loved this, Jared. I am a bit squeamish about animals in the house too – but actually I quite like the idea of a lamb in the bed, much nicer than a dog – no icky shedding hair. And they are vegetarians so no creepy farts. And, well, so nicely woolly. My bloke agrees, but when I showed him the pic of Freddie he said, Ah, lovely, and then added: She looks delicious.
Can you please pass on my sincere condolences to CJ? It is terribly painful to lose one’s dad, no matter how old he might be, or how much warning one has. One’s parents teach you how to be a person. It’s devastating to lose them. I know we’ve never met, but please tell him I’m sorry.
Warm wishes to you both and Freddie. x
Thank you Charlotte. That’s very kind of you. I’ll pass on your condolences. It’s never easy losing a parent.
But I do have to say that I distinctly heard a lamb fart the other day…
I’m beginning to see this blog as a movie…
I’m thinking TV show, given the episodic nature of it all. Not that I’ve given this any thought, of course.
First a book, then a movie! Yes! Freddie is adorable and yes we allow our pets in our bed! It’s a great way to wake in the morning…cuddling our pups! They are not allowed on any other furniture in the house however. I don’t like the hair but I am willing to put up with it for the cuddle time. Love your stories Jared!
Thank you. And Charlotte’s right that at least lambs don’t shed! :-)
A movie? Yes, but let’s think ahead. Who would play Jared & CJ?
An excellent question that has sparked a great debate!
Diane, I’m thinking Jake Gyllenhaal or Viggo Mortenson for Jared, and maybe Gerard Butler or a young George Clooney for CJ. And maybe we can source the lamb talent locally, ditto the pigs.
Bless you Susan. I was offended when some suggested Keanu Reeves play me!
Charming, as usual. And yes, I have slept with cats all my life, or rather, been permitted to sleep with them….and under them.
So funny to be permitted to sleep under a cat. :-)
You and CJ are fast becoming the Dr Dolittle’s of Martinborough. What next I wonder?
God only knows. Heaven help me.
Ryan Gosling as Jared and the actor who played Robin in the latest Batman flick as CJ! Agreed?? My golden retriever, Ted, weighed in at about 120lbs, lept up onto the bed and slept like a baby. So,you see, CJ cannot be held accountable; it’s a genetic thing this pets in the house/shower/bed caper.
Oh, well if it’s a family trait that explains a lot! :-)
And Joseph Gordon-Levitt to play CJ? I like that!
I was expecting to read that you blow dry the lamb after the shower..pedicure maybe LOL ..baby lambs are cute thou
If we ever got to that point I think it would be time to leave the country. Our practical farming neighbors would disown us!
No question that cats are allowed full use of the bed, including the right to gently nudge human occupiers over if the space is not completely to their liking. Baby lamb maybe but where does one draw the line as baby lamb becomes full-grown?
Yes, well, fully grown cats are still sort of lamb size aren’t they? I fear CJ may suggest we will need a bigger bed.
Dogs are allowed on the bed BEFORE lights-out for some snuggle time, and allowed on the bed AFTER lights-out by invitation only. Cat does whatever cat wants to do, we are obliged to work around him.
Have you played the “alphabet” game yet? That’s where the animal moves into her chosen spot, and you form letters around her so that she doesn’t feel crowded or get too warm. Last night was definitely a “q” night on our bed.
Hehe, I love that the alphabet game, usually a Y night in our house! Luckily the cats have stopped sleeping on our bed (we have four). Unfortunatly can’t keep the kids out tho!
No alphabet game around here. The lamb has visiting rights in the bed but definitely sleeps in the laundry room! So far.
Hard to resist such a cute little thing, you know we have all become obsessed with lambs since the conference!
It must be noted that there are much worse things for a bunch of bloggers to become obsessed about.
So sad to hear about CJ’s Dad, but nice to see that little Freddie is clearly healing a little place in his heart. Amazing the capacity of animals (whether you are a lover or not) to do that. I guess because, unlike humans, animals are always “fully present” in their own way that they seem able to gravitate to those who need to heal.
It was great to hear you talk at Food Bloggers Conference, and wonderful also to get some of your gorgeous olive oil which I am loving. Thanks so much for both the oil and your time.
Sue
Thanks Susan. Yes, animals are always present in a way it seems we humans sure struggle to be. Glad to hear you liked the talk and the oil. I love that you made rocket, fennel & mozzarella salad with it!
Oh no… pets in bed… I try very hard but sometimes one of the cats manages to hide under the bed in the evening, and then when we are asleep makes herself comfortable on the bed. If course if I wake up I put her out (of the bedroom) so she checks if one of the kids’ door is ajar… I know it sounds cruel, but the cats have plenty of places to sleep on, to me beds are a no no no. To come for a cuddle is one thing, to sleep another :-).
I guess that that lamb will never be dinner? :-)
I’m happy to say that Freddie the lamb is living outdoors now, and gets nowhere near the bed! And you’re right. She’ll never be dinner. She’ll join the flock and make babies who will be dinner I’m afraid, but she herself will have a long life.
So sorry to hear of CJ’s loss. Please send my very best wishes.
I would love to cuddle a lamb in bed, but not sure I’d like it when he is all muddy and wet! Our two dogs are only allowed inside one room in the house – the main entrance room and they don’t enter any others even if you leave the door open. Neither are they allowed on the chairs or sofa. The reason is this: they do not know when they are wet and smelly, so if it’s OK when they are all warm and dry, they might think they’ve done something wrong if you suddenly change the rules. That said, when Dan has to go away for a few nights – I sleep on the sofa in that same room they have their baskets – just like their company.
P.S. I learnt that this was a “Blue Moon”. Never knew what that was before. It’s two full moons in the same month – nothing to do with the colour apparently. They are quite rare, hence the saying, once in a blue moon. So, by rights, you should have posted twice!
Thanks Casalba. I love that you sleep near the dogs when you’re alone. That’s charming. And yes, the blue moon did make me work twice as hard in August. I posted a story on August 4th AND on August 31st. Good thing for me the next blue moon isn’t until July 2015! :-)
Oh I missed your double posts. 2015 eh? ( I should tell you that the sofa is very comfy, so it isn’t any sacrifice. Just that I do get woken up once or twice by a cold wet nose on my face. S’pose theyre just checking out if I’m OK, or if they’ll have to find their own food the following day.)
Sadly I’m allergic to nearly everything that has fur, feathers, hair (bar humans, thankfully!) and fleece, so nothing comes indoors let alone in the bed. That said, my husband and I have a wonderful friendship with lot of lovely wild birds and they are welcome in the garden and on the patio. We feed them, they nourish us with their beauty and their friendship.
I love this post. Despite my allergies, I’d have wanted those lambs indoors too!
I’m sorry to hear you’re allergic to animals. Thank goodness you’re not allergic to humans! That little lamb was hard to resist, I’ll admit. She’s older now and in the paddocks, but still very cute.