The arrival of two lambs has taken Holme Valley farmers by surprise.
The rare breed Soay lambs arrived four months before traditional lambing season, something farmers Peter Crook and Tricia Stewart described as very unusual.
One of the tiny lambs, which Tricia described as being as small as cats, arrived on Sunday and the other was born on Tuesday to different mothers.
The couple, who run the Elysium Farm on picturesque hills above Holmfirth, are now clearing out a barn at their 15 acre small-holding to bring the flock in for the winter.
Tricia said: “We’ve been doing this for 18 years now and we’ve never heard of anything like this.
“It’s come out of the blue but they are a joy to behold, such gorgeous tiny lambs.
“But it’s made us wonder if the rest of the girls are pregnant - it’s not so easy to tell so we’re having to quickly get the barn ready and filled with hay just in case.
“They are primitive sheep, so they’re like how sheep were 3,000 years ago and they never breed out of season so it’s very unusual.
“We were planning for lambing season in March.”
The couple are now having to prepare lambing pens and clear out a shed so the lambs have a hay-filled barn to rest, play and grow in.
“We are 1,000ft up here so it’s definitely too cold for them to be outside,” Tricia added.
Soay sheep are descended from sheep native to the Soay island, part of the St Kilda islands off western Scotland.
Both lambs are boys and the multicoloured lamb was born to Oregano and the younger black lamb was born to Heartsease.
Tricia began naming their flock after herbs and spices but after having over 500 sheep in their 18 years she’s run out of names and is now extending her naming list to include edible plants.
They now have 62 sheep and she has a special plan for the tiny duo.
While the farm sells registered, pedigree sheep, mutton and lamb, the new lambs won’t end up on our dining tables.
The males will be castrated to become wethers - which means instead of them being sold for meat they will become conservation grazing sheep and suitable for horse paddocks to keep the grass in a good condition.
Tricia was an English teacher at Huddersfield Grammar School until she retired this year.
Her husband also worked in teaching as an IT specialist. Both have now retired and are focusing on farm life.
Animal lovers can keep track of the lambs’ adventures on a Facebook page the couple have started and they will be asking their followers to help select names for the duo.
Search ‘Elysium Farm’ on Facebook and like the page to get involved.
