weather for the new-borns. Tupping later means better weather for the lambs but worse for the breeding process. “It’s a fine balance with implications at either end,” as Hamish says.
Something which makes the lambing process easier is the system of scanning which the Dykes use. Ewes are scanned with ultrasound to discover how many lambs they are carrying. Each ewe is then marked accordingly and ewes carrying the same number can be put together and given the same care and feeding programmes. As ewes have only two teats and can therefore only suckle two lambs each, scanning gives an important insight into how to best manage the flock; ewes with only a single lamb can be ‘twinned’ with a lamb from a mother with triplets, ensuring the maximum amount of offspring receive natural feeding. As Hamish says: “Without scanning it would feel like lambing with a blindfold on.”
Because the ewes are so prolific however there is always a surplus of lambs which are costly to feed by artificial means. The Dykes hire a milk machine for five weeks every year which cuts down on the labour required but the cost of the powdered milk still makes the process uneconomical compared to natural rearing. If there is a particular abundance of surplus lambs in a year, Hamish will often sell them to nearby farmers who ‘twin’ them onto their own ewes.
This year’s lambing was made even more special by the presence of a film crew as BBC2’s Lambing Live programme was filmed at the farm. Although at first tentative about getting involved, the Dykes ended up thoroughly enjoying it. “The lambing live experience for us was just fantastic,” says Hamish. “I couldn’t fault it at any point.”
Somewhat surprisingly the filming process also ended up providing an opportunity for introspection. “It was quite a self-reflective process,” says Hamish. “They’d ask us a straightforward, simple question but one you’d never actually thought about before, like:‘What do you like about doing this?’ There were a couple of times where my wife Susie was just about welling up with tears thinking about the questions.”
Hamish and Susie live on South Slipperfield farm along with their two children Rosie and Murdo and parents John and Kate. Hamish is slowly taking over the running of the farm from his dad but John is still far from retired, spending much of his time breeding their herd of Highland Ponies. South Slipperfield has been in the family since Hamish’s grandfather bought the land in 1956, farming it from a distance until 1967 when John moved there upon his marriage to Kate.
Farming then is in the blood, but what makes the job and the lifestyle so special? “I think it’s the feeling of space,” says Hamish. “The world seems to be getting smaller and the population is getting bigger so just having your own space around you is pretty special. You’re very responsible for all the things you do as well; all the livestock we have are under our watch; we’re responsible for all those animals so that’s quite a grounding experience when you think about it.”
