Festival of Giant Sheep at Prébenoit Abbey

It’s amazing. It’s t-shirt weather today. It’s been a long time coming … but finally it’s properly spring. So time to do some spring-cleaning round the farm, starting in the poultry shed. Things tend to get a bit out of hand during winter. Here’s the before photo. You’ll get the after one in a few days’ time.

It’s the annual wool fête at beautiful Prénoit Abbey today so Chris and I paid a visit. Even the promise of stroopwafels couldn’t lure Ruadhri to join us, but he was happily playing in the sunshine so we left him to his older brother’s tender mercies.

The fête has grown since last year. There was the expected array of handicrafts, all very beautiful but out of our price range. However, it was nice to look.

And anyway, we’d only come for the sheep and the shearing demonstration. Here’s Edouard, who makes our hay, and who I imagine must be quite a rare lady sheepshearer hard at work. Edouard had his sheep relieved of its heavy woolly coat in a few minutes. Very impressive.

In the shed were a variety of sheep. And most of them were colossal. I mean, really huge. This guy was immense, as big as our alpacas I’m sure of it. However, the photo doesn’t get that across sadly.

There are thirty breeds of sheep to be found in Limousin. We have two in our herd of three – Suffolk and Charollais. However, I might try and get hold of some Chamoise and Rava, as these have been recommended as being very hardy breeds and therefore eminently suitable for the harsh Creuse climate.

Here’s a rather attractive sheep with horns.

But this one had too many horns I think!

This breed was very attractive. It was Zwartbles I think.

On the way out I noticed the wonkiness of the walls and roofs and gateposts of Prébenoit – and that fabulous blue sky so it was time for a last photo.