. Sheep Tales . Tale # 13
"Fraidy Cat"

Home pageSheep TalesMajacraft Spinning wheelsHandcraftsFleeceTable of ContentsHand Spindles

...........Here we tell short sheep stories with a little wit and occasional pearls of wisdom. This area will be changed on a fairly regular basis. The pictures are copyrighted, please do not use them.

..........There is a link at the bottom of the page to go back to the previous tales............This story was written in March, 2000.

... "Fraidy Cat"

"Fraidy Cat" is huge for a Navajo Churro and uses her mass to protect her babies. And she does it in a most unusual way.

She does not look like a typical Navajo Churro (if there is such a thing), even though she is a purebred and could be registered.  She has a stout and "meaty" look that probably came from the many breeds that have been mixed to become a "Navajo Churro". (See short history- Sheep Tales # 3). The average mature ewe on the range weighs about 100 to 120 pounds.  "Fraidy" weighs in close to 300!

fraidy1.jpg (29572 bytes) Click to enlarge the picture.

Every so often we need to catch the mothers and lambs in the barn for inspection, vaccination, coat replacement, etc.  Within the fairly small area, there becomes a swirling, flowing mass of sheep and lambs as they all try to avoid being caught.

Mothers and lambs dodge and zip, trying to keep themselves together, but trying desperately to stay away from we humans.

That is ....... all except for "Fraidy Cat" and one other Navajo Churro named "914".  "Fraidy Cat" enters the barn and goes immediately to the back right hand corner and stands at an angle to the walls, hiding her babies in the corner, protected by her body. 

"914" goes immediately to the front left hand corner and assumes the same angled position with her babies tucked safely in "her" corner.

As the mass of ewes and lambs ebb and flow around and around, they pass smoothly past the two mothers who stand immobile across the corners.

fraidy2.jpg (50822 bytes) Click to enlarge the picture.

Working on "Fraidy Cat's" babies was ever so easy while they were small.  Just walk up to her, reach into the corner, grab the lamb by the top of it's coat and lift! "Fraidy's" eyes will track her lamb, but she did not move from the corner. Set the lamb back on the ground, and in a flash they are back behind their mother and into the safety of the corner.

The instinct to protect is so strong, that on a couple of occasions, Jean has been able to give "Fraidy Cat" a vaccination shot while she stands "frozen".

Now that Friday's lambs are bigger, they both will no longer fit behind her.  Most of the time we find her daughter standing protected in the corner, with the little ram waiting to try to push his way in from behind.

  fraidy3.jpg (70802 bytes) Click to enlarge the picture.

"Fraidy Cat" is not afraid.  She IS a smart and wonderful mother, protecting her lambs to the best of her abilities.

You can click on these numbers to continue, or use the pink buttons at the top of the page, or the *Jump links* that are below, to go somewhere else.

#1."Me-sis" #2. "Gem" #3. Short History #4. Stupid? #5. Rule #1 #6. Chris #7. Leonard #8 Lamb Wave #9. You know...when, #10. "Wimps" #11. "Fidget" #12. Invisible sheep #13. "Fraidy" #14. Words

When you have finished reading, if you have enjoyed our "Sheep Tales",
I would really appreciate an e-mail note that simply says "Sheep Tales, Yes!"

E-mail Tracy

  .......Thank you,
**Copyright 1997- 2009 Woolly Designs**
*** Send us an E-mail ***
*Jump links within this web site*

Home . Sheep tales . Majacraft . Handcrafted Items . Fleece . Ball winders and Swifts . Table of Contents . Spindles . Jewelry  . Farm Pictures .Links to others .