YU in the Community: Adopting a Lamb!
- by Nicole Tavares
We have exciting news to share with you: Yarns Untangled has adopted a foster lamb through our friends at Topsy Farms!
We’ve dubbed our wobbly little friend “Cardigan” and he’s doing extremely well now. According to the Farm staff, he is the littlest of his group, but feisty and mighty of spirit. We are told he drank a full bottle immediately upon 
arrival, and then took a long nap.
Cardigan’s vibrant personality is already visible. He’s reported to be a loving, personable creature whose’s made fast friends with another adopted lamb named Purl. He’s also approaching farm staff for food, suggesting that he’s a smart little guy!
While the vast majority of lambs are born perfectly fine and will proceed to nurse and grow into healthy sheep, 1–2% will face dangerous complications. These lambs may born small, weak, injured, or they might be rejected by their mother. Lambs like Cardigan aren’t able to nurse properly, so they require special care in order to survive and thrive. That’s where Topsy’s foster lamb adoption program comes in!
Our donation assists the Farm in providing Cardigan with the extra attention he needs to thrive. He is being bottle-fed by hand in order to get the nutrition he needs and he’ll be cuddled by volunteers that visit the farm. Fortunately, there are lots of generous volunteers for such a task!
Once a lamb reaches adulthood they are officially sheep and typically shorn once a year. The fleece that’s produced is then washed and carded. Then, the resulting fibre is spun, dyed and made into the yarns we know and love.
Hopefully we’ll be able to take a field trip and visit Cardigan soon. Stay tuned for updates!