Flora and Verity Sharpe with Arlington’s quintuplets
The team at Arlington Court have just welcome five new lambs to their flock – all from the same ewe.
National Trust Ranger, Murray Sharpe says, “This is the first time in the 15 years I have worked at Arlington that one of our ewes has had five lambs. Despite the eighteen hour days, I always enjoy lambing, but this year it was a real joy to have five healthy lambs born at once.”
“I had watched the ewe give birth to two lambs, and then, thinking there was only one left to come, left my daughters to supervise the final birth. Soon they come running in to the house calling for me, and reported that five lambs had been born within half an hour.”
“All five lambs and the mother are doing really well. However, to spread the demand of five hungry mouths, we’ve weaned two of the lambs on to one of our Jacob ewes, so she can help nurse them.”
Whilst Arlington is traditionally home to Jacob sheep, the ranger team have been diversifying their stock. The breed of the proud mother is Lleyn and so she has been named Blodwyn in deference to her Welsh roots. Blodwyn was crossed with a Romney ram, so the lambs are Romney-Lleyn crosses, and the first of their type at Arlington.
The quintuplet lambs, two boys and three girls, born on Thursday will soon be seen in the grounds at Arlington Court and may even take part in a lambing talk being given by the rangers each day at 3pm until 12 April.