3FM came and chatted with Farmer Al and Farmer Dave about environmentally responsible farming at Ballakelly Farm.
September 2017
2018
Combine harvester in action in 2019
The farm’s bubble of key workers continues during lockdown, to keep producing all that 100% Manx Ballakelly Farm meats. This week, we moved the sheep to get ready for lambing season, and had help in moving the sheep by Jill Dog, Quinn Dog, and the incredible Elsa the Terrier who now things she’s a sheep dog.
Keep moving while staying at home to look after your body and mind. Farmer Al is showing Tinky that just about everyone can do some strengthening gymnastics, but you be the judge of who is leading who! Farmer Al is as fit today as he was when he was in his 20s.
Lots of new lambs born overnight and throughout the morning, and they keep coming! Little newborns jumping around having fun, some just minutes after being born.
Facebook Live broadcast with Rachel and Rachel in the lambing shed, helping a mummy sheep with the lambing of twins. Rachel is checking that the lambs are not stuck, or at risk of getting their heads stuck in the placental bag. Lots of live questions coming in during the broadcast as Mummy safely delivers her twins. Well done, girl. Filmed and broadcast live on 22 March 2021.
Rachel popped down to the lambing shed to see the team, and has been informed that the big lambie (Rambo) is now a whopping 10.5kgs. Big lambie is snoozing before he goes off to the field to eat grass.
The twins are now named as Pebbles and Bam Bam with their mummy, Wilma. Farmer Al stops by to explain why these are really good sheep. Filmed and broadcast via Facebook Live on 23 March 2021.
Rachel is back in the lambing shed weighing the new lambs after lots of newborns the day before, including the twins. We also meet the biggest lamb of the season: Rambo.
We\'re in the field near Ballasteen to let the lambs and mummies out after some busy days of lambing. Beautiful field and day, despite being overcast. Red colouring marks mean one lamb for the mummy. Blue means twins, so you know if you see the mummy sheep with the blue mark you have to spot two babies. Lots of eating of the lovely green grass.
When some mummy sheep lose their lambs they foster or \'adopt\' other lambs who may be rejected from their mummy. In this video we share adoption success stories, including meeting Rocky, one of Alice\'s meg lambs, who now has a foster mum. Loads of happy mummies in the pens today with their own or foster lambs.
During Lockdown 1.0 in early 2020, the Ballakelly key workers kept up their social distancing while having some fun playing with one of the Lockdown\'s most valuable assets: loo roll.
