The sheep were looking weighed down and scruffy with their winter coats of wool so I telephoned New Zealand sheep shearer Michael Churchouse who told me that he had a free hour and would be over at 2 o’clock. We herded the sheep into the field shelter and closed the gates and penned them in with some extra hurdles. Five minutes later the blunt speaking kiwi was in our kitchen drinking a mug of tea and eating some cake before rolling up his sleeves to catch the sheep one by one and turning them on their backs to shear them. It was a performance to savour and the sheep were none too pleased. But, lo and behold, when their fleeces were off they must have felt pounds lighter and some of them were pronounced to be pregnant! Good old Tufty the ram might become a father very soon. Watch this space.

Photos of the flock before, during and after.