By day, I’m an office manager. By night…
…when no-one else is around to do it, I pick up my shepherd’s crook and do my best to bring this lot back to the sheep barn.
My first difficulty is actually finding the sheep to begin with. Their enclosure is spread over a couple of miles of pines and bushes and they can be hidden anywhere.
When I do spot them, I call, cajole and threaten them until they group togther and I can check that the flock hasn’t split into two parts. Do I have all 280? Or are 20 or 30 ewes grazing elsewhere? It’s hard to tell!
The last part of the trip back is dusty, steep and it’s usually almost dark by the time I get there. I try and avoid slipping on my way down as I have visions of being trampled before I can get up again!
By 10 pm we’re usually back at the sheep barn and if I can just get them into it, then I’m home and dry. Relieved but elated…
… and that sure beats the day job.
The mountain dweller 
I like that. Shepherd them in with a camera. 🙂
I love your night job!
Ha! Wonderful photos!
Put a bell on a couple of them so you can find them, call them loudly and then feed them a few tasty morsels each time they enter the barn. Then they will come running whenever they hear you and your evening will also allow time to relax and drink wine!
Kathy – real farmer in UK, trying to get to the Alps full time!
@Kathy : Lol! Hope you manage to get to the Alps one day, although Sussex must be a pretty nice place to live too!
Interesting post and nice photos. I guess the sheep must be newly cut, there is so little wool. In Norway they cut them late in the autumn, just when it gets cold. And they are never in a barn at nights during summer, but all day in winter..
Thank you for popping by! Our sheep were shorn in May, but they have very little wool anyway. Also, they spend the night in the barn mainly out of habit, but also because of recent wolf attacks on nearby flocks.