“To my mind, the life of a lamb is no less precious than that of a human being.” My keys jingled as I made a mad dash out of the house. Bidding my small pups Magni and Mye goodbye, I yelled instructions to my disgruntled and distracted brother who was playing video games (I hoped he heard at least half of the chores I’d listed). I reached my car and double checked I had everything: Keys. Library books to return. Shopping bags. Lunch. Hay and milk and bottle for RiverSong. And Riversong… “River! Where are you?!?” I turned to see her right at my heels, looking at me expectantly. We had been doing this for two weeks now and she knew the routine. I opened the car door and she jumped in, settling herself on the passenger’s side floor. “Good girl” I piled my bags in the back, yelled goodbye to my brother, and reminded him a second time to feed the horses while I was out. It was the start of another typical work day! River chewed her cud and gazed at me dolefully as I turned the car on and cranked up the heater. I cranked down the volume on the S.J. Tucker music so as not to hurt her ears. A social lamb, she was going to spend the day at her Grandmaaaa’s (sorry, I couldn’t resist!) otherwise known as my mom’s place, while I was at work. I could have left her at home, but with two pups who were teething and an absent minded brother with a new video game, I could foresee too many potential hazards for a small lamb. I got River when she was only a few days old. She spent much of her first weeks asleep on my lap while I painted and worked on my computer. She loved to follow me around and acted more like a dog than a sheep. Not surprisingly, it had only taken River a few days to become completely comfortable riding in the car. She seemed to enjoy it and would be eager to jump in the car with me (while my pups looked on with jealousy at being left behind!). Unfortunately, River got a little too enthusiastic about eating Mom’s garden and was quite dismayed when she was not allowed to come visit anymore, haha! There is a major misconception that sheep are dumb. However, in my experience, sheep are just as easy to train as dogs if given the chance and, like River, are intelligent and full of personality. We may be surprised by what we discover when we engage with animals with an open mind and heart.. After reading my story about River, has your perception of sheep changed in any way? Let me know! Thanks for reading Love & Light, Siobhan
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Siobhan is a Visual Artist Painting the Animals who leave their prints all over your HEART.
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