About
Hi! My name is Annika, and I raise sheep. I got started when I was a senior in high school. I applied for a $5,000 loan from Farm Services Agency, and bought five registered Icelandic sheep, 2 guard llamas, some fencing and materials, and a book about raising sheep. My parents gifted me with a spinning wheel that year for Christmas. I thought I was really in business!
My flock grew from five sheep to fifty very fast. I learned a lot about hay quality, worms, different feeds, worms, minerals, worms, shearing, worms, spinning, and did I mention - worms? Sheep are very susceptible to worms, and quickly become resistent to dewormer medications, so regular fecal exams, field rotation, cleanliness, natural dewormer practicies, and careful use of dewormers becomes paramount.
I love living out in the country, striving to be as self-sufficient as possible, to embrace a greener lifestyle. I’m on twenty-six acres in central Wisconsin with woods, hills, a small pond, and some rolling pastures. I can tell you now, there is nothing quite as peaceful as standing out in the pasture early some summer morning, watching the flock graze. Or watching a ewe with her new lambs. Or listening to the soft sounds they make. I remember even thinking it was kind of cool finding new little sheepy turds in the pasture! I got over that really fast.
I had a milk cow for four years - I plan to replace her eventually as I got really spoiled drinking my own raw milk, consuming my own butter, ice cream, yogurt, and cheese - although I do seem to have a lot more hours in my day now that Blossom has moved on to that big greener pasture in the sky.
I was homeschooled all the way from Kindergarten through Senior High. My parents homeschooled my brother and two sisters as well, although they all chose to attend public high school for at least a year or more. They went on to college, but I chose to stay home with the sheep. Some day I may travel to Iceland, or New Zealand, to meet other sheep breeders and study from them, but for now I’m content right where I am.
And for anyone else who has ever harbored the notion that they would like to own sheep, here I am! I hope to encourage you, inform you, and perhaps entertain you a little. And with any luck, I pray I never bore you.
Annika
