While Shepherds Washed their Socks by Night

There’s two ways to round up sheep, it seems. You can get yourself a border collie puppy from a long line of champion sheepdogs, train it up until it obeys your slightest command, and trek out with it to a remote hilltop and stand whistling complicated instructions until the sheep are safely gathered in.

OR

You can just drive to the edge of the field, honk your horn a few times and watch the sheep come running. I’m guessing the latter approach involves tasty sheep treats (erm, grass?) and sheep that haven’t worked out where the last batch of lambs went to.

6 Responses to “While Shepherds Washed their Socks by Night”

  1. Suburban Mum Says:

    Strictly speaking you only have to get ONE sheep to respond to that method, and then they’d all follow anyway.

    And sheep are stupid: fact. They probably think all the lambs are just in the next field.

  2. disgruntled Says:

    yeah but it has to be the right sheep…

  3. john gibson Says:

    OK I love lamb and fell very guilty when I have it for sunday dinner, also I am a welshman.

    Ten Welsh Commandments

    Thou Shall…

    -Worship Sheep
    -Drink Beer
    -Wear 3 Feathers With Pride
    -Not Slay Dragons
    -Love Rugby And Football
    -Not Be Too Friendly With The English
    -Keep A Welcome In The Hillside
    -Learn Our Anthem (Not Just Chorus)
    -Eat And Enjoy Leek Soup
    -Congregate And Drink On International Match Days

  4. justwilliams Says:

    There is a third way, as brilliantly demonstrated by a neighbouring farmer a few years ago (yes, in Wales!):
    Run frantically from side to side waving your arms, preferably holding empty blue plastic sacks. This drives the sheep in all directions in front of you until, at the end of the field, they double back and stampede past you to start all over again.
    Meanwhile your utterly hopeless sheepdog (who can blame him!) follows a few yards behind you laughing hysterically (well it looked like it anyway).

  5. disgruntled Says:

    John – that’ll be why the hills are overrun with dragons then

    Justwilliams – that sounds more like a way of exercising sheep than rounding them up

  6. justwilliams Says:

    Now that you mention it, those sheep did have a lean and hungry look about them. Maybe I got it wrong. Maybe he was exercising them. We’ll never know.

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