The gathering of flocks in Iceland

Posted on February 28, 2009 by cinzia

In Iceland sheep are left in a wild state during the summer, and they may cover long distances. In September, after gathering them for shearing, the shepherds check the microchips of each sheep to verify to who the sheep belongs. For the lambs born during the “freedom months” and that don’t have the chip, the Icelanders have thought up a peculiar process: in an area near the farm they prepare a round sheep cote, sometimes temporary sometimes permanent, made either of masonry or a simple fen.

The enclosure is divided into two areas and in the middle they create another circular closed area. The adult sheep are separated from the lambs and each group is assigned to one of the areas of the enclosure.

Then the mothers, one by one, are put at the centre and the lambs allowed to walk freely around. Each lamb will join one adult female sheep: its mother. At the end of “the family gathering” and after microchips controlling, the shepherds start the shearing. The sheep meant for slaughter are sheared completely, while the shepherds leave to all the others enough wool to face the cold winter.

During summertime, farmers harvest the hay four times, and make then cylindrical balls. Each ball will feed a sheep throughout the winter. Therefore, counting the numbers of hay balls that a farmer owns, you could almost guess how big is his flock!