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00:00Come on Fletchers.
00:02We're heading into our fifth year of farming in the stunning Peak District.
00:07Here we go.
00:08They're coming!
00:10That's it, that's it. We've got to go.
00:12And we're making big plans from our new HQ.
00:16Being back at the farm 24-7, it just feels like the best feeling.
00:20In a caravan.
00:21It's pretty bougie.
00:23Alongside our four kids, who are each carving their own path as young farmers too.
00:28If any of my Jacobs give birth, I've got to do it.
00:33This year, we introduce new breeds to the farm.
00:37I'm going to get a new flock of hens.
00:39I'm not even telling Kelvin. I'm just doing it.
00:42Come here, piggies!
00:44I forgot how much I love pigs.
00:46They're really cute.
00:48And continue our journey into arable farming.
00:51It's my wife, that.
00:53We've grown in confidence as farmers.
00:56I will not be defeated.
01:00Embracing the fun and chaos.
01:02Why could I not just have five minutes to eat?
01:05And together, we're working hard to live our life to the full.
01:09That was really good.
01:10You know what this calls for?
01:11What?
01:12A bro.
01:12A bro.
01:13A bro.
01:22This week, on our farm.
01:25Mid-winter brings a blanket of snow.
01:28But that doesn't stop us tackling jobs around the farm.
01:31It genuinely looks like you've just crawled out of a bush where you've lived for the past few weeks
01:34and just carrying on my farm jobs.
01:37That's how I like it.
01:39And the kids get roped into helping us too.
01:42As we need to do our monthly poo sample collection to check for worms.
01:46I'm going to put our hand inside the glove.
01:49So our hands don't get full of poo.
01:51Yeah?
01:52And then, once we get a sample, we get a bee, we get loads of them.
01:57I'm going to make a poo necklace.
02:00Yes.
02:01It's just like a poo necklace.
02:04And with our Christmas event behind us, we start planning our next project in the barn.
02:10So tonight, Matthew, I'm going to be at Farmer's Market.
02:14That's what this building's saying.
02:16You can put a coffee van at the end there, so you do a bit of shopping.
02:19Get a coffee, carry on shopping.
02:22I know how to shop, that's what we like.
02:43Christmas is behind us, and we have it mid-winter on the farm
02:47and woken up to a blanket of snow.
02:51As we head out to check on our flock,
02:53me and Liz get a chance to enjoy our very own winter wonderland all to ourselves.
02:58I love a bit of snow. I love the winter.
03:02Farm looks just so idyllic.
03:05Look how thick that is.
03:08Guys, how much is frozen.
03:11Wow.
03:14Kids would be eating that now, wouldn't they?
03:15Yeah.
03:16That would be straight in the mouth.
03:18The kids didn't want to go to school today.
03:20They woke up.
03:22It's school open, so yes it is.
03:26The kids will have to wait until later for their fun in the snow.
03:30But it's nice for us two to enjoy the snow-capped hills before we're dragging a sledge up on.
03:36This is the first snow we've had this winter, really.
03:39We were warned about this.
03:41We had such a good summer, and then they said, as the farmers say,
03:44it's going to be a long winter.
03:46It'll be a long winter.
03:48And we're there.
03:49I quite like winter, though.
03:51But yeah, that's what you want.
03:52You want the extremes, don't you?
03:53You want it to be roasting hot, and then you want it to be absolutely freezing cold.
03:57We love seeing how the farmland that's so familiar to us now changes in the winter.
04:03The wildlife finds places to hunker down within the woodland,
04:06and we have to be super vigilant to make sure our livestock have everything they need.
04:11It's been about minus eight these past couple of days,
04:15and what that means is that we've got to do the rounds, really,
04:19because a lot of the troughs will freeze,
04:22our pipe freeze that the hose pipes are on.
04:25There's a lot of bucket runs, and just general maintenance.
04:30This is not a two-man job by any stretch,
04:35but Kelvin pretends it is because I know he just likes to hang around with me.
04:39He likes to be romantic with me on the back of the quad,
04:41or I'll just watch him do this.
04:44My job here is pointless.
04:47Love the snow.
04:48I'm drawn to the snow. I'm drawn to winter.
04:50That's because you're an ice queen,
04:51and someone throws your heart when you was a kid.
04:54That's why you like it so much.
04:57Are you being real true, you know?
04:59I am.
05:01Kelvin's got a new outfit, so he's looking ready for the snow.
05:04Santa was good to me.
05:06It's nice and toasty.
05:08Got some little pockets there to keep my hands warm.
05:10I just feel on it under.
05:11Put your hand in there. I feel how cosy that is.
05:15That's lovely.
05:16Isn't it?
05:17Yeah.
05:19You look like a proper farmer now.
05:21Full on beard as well.
05:23Winter, I didn't realise how long my beard was.
05:25Winter, I need a shave, actually.
05:26It genuinely looks like you've just crawled out of a bush
05:28where you've lived for the past few weeks
05:29and just carried on with your farm jobs.
05:32That's how I like it.
05:34Let's have a go on that.
05:35It's quite enjoyable.
05:42You could really de-stress with this, couldn't you?
05:46With the troughs totally frozen,
05:48we'll have to get water and more hay up to the flock,
05:51who will be staying out all winter.
05:56Yeah.
05:56Grass stops growing when it's less than seven degrees.
05:58So there's...
05:59Well, not only is there not much grass,
06:01but there's no grass cos the snow's on top of it,
06:04so you've got to make sure there's some hay out for the sheep, so...
06:06And then that's why we harvest in August,
06:09so we've got feed for them in winter, isn't it?
06:13Yeah, yeah.
06:14So we've already prepared for this.
06:16Everyone prepares for this.
06:18Once you've kind of got over the idyllic sense of excitement
06:23and, you know, sense of adventure with the kids,
06:25you've got to genuinely think,
06:27right, OK, how are the animals?
06:29Have they got some food? Have they got some water?
06:31And are they alive?
06:32And you've got to, you know, make sure they're all there, so...
06:35It's not so bad, that front field, though, is it?
06:40Shall we go and check the sheep?
06:42Our Welsh clins, North Country mules and Manish jacobs
06:46have fig fleeces to protect them from the elements.
06:49They're all hardy breeds that thrive outdoors
06:52and a quick headcount tells us
06:54that they're all present and correct and feeding well.
06:57So here we have it.
06:59It just smells like summer.
07:02It does...
07:04That smells good.
07:07That's what's going to stain the sheep over the winter.
07:11So this is obviously our oats field that we had in the summer.
07:18And we're going to use this field for the winter.
07:20We've never done this before on the farm,
07:22but we're actually going to run all our livestock on this field
07:25and somewhat sacrifice this field for the winter.
07:27So we're going to keep them off the rest of the pasture,
07:30the rest of the farm, and allow that to recover.
07:33And as tupping season has now ended,
07:35we're hoping most of these ewes are in lamb
07:37and eating for two or even three ahead of our lambing season in April.
07:43We've mastered it a little bit more now as well
07:45because we used to do it where lambs were due the 1st of April onwards.
07:50But now we've worked out that if we push that tupping season back
07:55that we'll be lambing when the kids are off school and they can help us.
08:01And that to me, the fact that you can make farming work for you,
08:05I'm there for it.
08:07Five years in and we're finally getting to grips with our farming calendar.
08:11But one thing we'll never be able to control is the weather.
08:15But it doesn't stop us cracking on.
08:17We've never been snowed in, have we?
08:21No, I don't think you can say you're going to get snowed in if you want a tractor.
08:24Well, that's the thing, I mean...
08:26So no matter what the challenges are, we've got a tractor that will get us out.
08:29Yeah, true. We can see the sheep.
08:30They've got shelter, they've got food, they've got water, so...
08:34They're all right. You know, they've got thick fleeces on.
08:37Right, Kelvin, everything's looking good.
08:41Feed out.
08:42They're looking happy.
08:44My toes aren't happy, let's get some hot cups of tea on.
08:47Come on.
08:50I can actually stay...
08:51Before my toes fall off.
08:53I could stay out here all day.
09:13Morning routines on the farm are anything but quiet.
09:18Whether it's tending to the growing herd inside...
09:22Or checking on the livestock out in the fields.
09:26And when temperatures plummet, it's essential we have the additional feed in stock to support the animals until the ground
09:32thaws.
09:32Liz has drawn feeding duty for arguably the greediest members of the clan, our pigs.
09:39This is pig feed. We've not had this get delivered for a long time.
09:44The pigs are doing so well.
09:47They're really growing. They go from super cute to huge really quickly.
09:53For us, it's still a very slow process feeding the pigs.
09:56We don't fatten them up quickly and intensely.
09:58We give them a lot of time.
10:00But this is what they love.
10:01They know when this is coming and they let you know about it.
10:06It's like they've never been fed before when they hear that bucket go...
10:11We haven't had pigs on the farm for over a year.
10:13And if rearing them goes well, we could keep a couple of the females to breed from.
10:18But for now, we just want to enjoy having these mischievous characters around.
10:23Come on this way.
10:25Come on.
10:31There.
10:33Breakfast.
10:38That is cute, innit?
10:40They're growing, they're happy.
10:42Yeah, they're good.
10:44It is nice to have them back actually.
10:46There's something about them.
10:49They don't like the animals bringing the farm to life.
10:52We've got the pigs back, we've got sheep, we've got more Jacobs, we've got mules, we've got clins, we've got
10:57cows, we've got new hens.
11:00And this barn just becomes lively.
11:04And the smell, the noises, just...
11:10It just...
11:11..does something to me.
11:12Which is really hard to explain.
11:15I like to have all the animals out but I do love it when they're here and I'm just immersed
11:20with them.
11:21Right, let's get on with some more jobs.
11:42The Peak District may be covered in a beautiful blanket of snow but snowball fights and the making of snowmen
11:48will have to wait, as there's a few jobs we need to tick off.
11:53It's so cold.
11:56I can't feel my fingers.
12:00A little warm up and then back to work.
12:05Over the last year, our holiday cottage has had back to back bookings and this upcoming weekend is no exception.
12:12So cold hands or not, Liz has some work to do.
12:17So a little cottage changeover.
12:20So part of the holiday cottage is a log burning hot tub.
12:25This takes as long to sort out as the whole cottage.
12:29It's got to be clean.
12:30It's got to be fresh.
12:36Believe it or not, when it snows, that's when you want to be in a wood burning hot tub, isn't
12:41it?
12:42So we'll get this nice and clean, get it filled back up and good to go.
12:52It's nice to be in it but it's not nice to be here cleaning it.
12:56Not in this weather.
13:01There's no escaping dirty jobs.
13:04And arguably me and the kids have got the worst end of the stick.
13:08Let's go and get a poo sample.
13:10We regularly test the flock's poo for worms to avoid medicating the sheep when it's not necessary.
13:18And part of that is routinely checking there's no infected sheep in the flock.
13:24We're going to do them like this.
13:26We're going to get a sample each time and we're going to put our hand inside the glove.
13:30So our hands don't get full of poo.
13:33And then, once we get a sample, we get a bee, we get loads of them.
13:38I want to make a poo necklace.
13:42Yes, it's just like a poo necklace.
13:47So we've got some poo.
13:48But wait, who are we giving that to?
13:51We're going to give it to the vet.
13:53We're going to give the vet.
13:53And it sees if they've got worms.
13:55So I'll put the glove over my arm.
13:57So now, whatever I pick up, the gloves there protects me.
14:01So I'm going to get some poo here.
14:03Oh, nice lovely poo.
14:05And then bring it back in.
14:08There we go.
14:09That's ridiculous.
14:11Can I have a try?
14:12You can have a try next.
14:13And then we tie a knot.
14:15Right, so.
14:16We've got three.
14:18Yeah?
14:18Three in the back.
14:20Now, because every day is a school day.
14:24Boring.
14:25Boring, I know.
14:26But we're going to do some maths.
14:27Oh, no!
14:29No!
14:30So ideally, you want to get 10% samples of your flock.
14:36So, easy maths.
14:38If your flock is 100 sheep, 100 ewes, and you want to get 10%, so you want 10% samples,
14:46how many samples would you take?
14:48What's 10% of 100?
14:52Imagine it as a pie.
14:53Right, okay.
14:54So if you were to put 100, and break it up into a pie of 10 slices, how much would
15:00each slice be?
15:0210.
15:0310.
15:0410.
15:05Good lad.
15:11How many sheep have we got here?
15:1370.
15:1470.
15:15So what's 10% of 70?
15:1870 divided by 10.
15:20I'll move the decimal place.
15:22Yes, I will now.
15:247.
15:257.
15:25Yay!
15:267!
15:28Yay!
15:28Yay!
15:29Yay!
15:29Yay!
15:35It's definitely from a different sheep.
15:37Maybe near the feeder.
15:38Right.
15:38There we go.
15:39So when you see a piece of poo, pick it up.
15:43It's little jobs like this that sound no fun.
15:46That actually, end up being great tasks to do with the kids.
15:52That's a good one.
15:53Me?
15:53Yeah.
15:54Don't get any mud in it, that's it.
15:55And now, pull it through, like that.
15:59Push it to the bottom.
16:01Yeah.
16:03And then...
16:05Tie your knot in it.
16:08Yeah.
16:09Right.
16:10One, two, three, four.
16:13Five more.
16:15Er, three more.
16:16Three more.
16:16Three more.
16:17Three more, Marnie.
16:18Yeah.
16:19Okay.
16:20Right.
16:21Another piece of poo.
16:22Let's go to a different area.
16:23Down here maybe.
16:24Bit of poo there.
16:26Scoop it all in.
16:29Ew, that was gross.
16:35Right.
16:36I'm going to push it all the way down.
16:38That was slimy.
16:40Are you cold?
16:41Yes.
16:42Right.
16:43Go and get warmed.
16:44Go and get a warm drink.
16:47I think we'll only get one more in.
16:52So.
16:54Seven samples.
16:56A poo necklace.
16:58Ooh!
16:59Come on.
17:02Let's get it to the vets.
17:03That's what we've got to do now.
17:04We've got to take it to the vets.
17:06The vet will put it under the microscope.
17:09Oh!
17:09Oh!
17:12Oh!
17:13Oh!
17:17Hopefully the vet gives the flock a clean bill of health.
17:20At the cottage, Liz is almost finished cleaning the hot tub ready for her next guests.
17:28It's like going round in circles.
17:30You suck it up, you rinse it again and then you do a little process again.
17:46So there, nice and clean.
17:48That'll fill up.
17:50And then it's up to them if they're brave enough to go in it in this weather.
17:56See, this is the site people don't see when your fingers are like freezing cold and they
18:01arrive and we're like, welcome!
18:04Done and dusted.
18:06I literally need to go and warm my hands up.
18:29The snow has arrived and the kids are loving it.
18:34Oh, I just love to eat snow!
18:37That is gross!
18:39Ahhhh!
18:39You know Max did a whiff on the snow.
18:42He's there.
18:43Well, I'm building an igloo.
18:44I don't know what the hell Milo's building.
18:47Milo, what are you building?
18:48I don't know!
18:50No, you don't know.
18:51But I'm building an igloo.
18:53I'm just playing.
18:55No play for Liz and I.
18:58As the season changes, so does the way we use our land.
19:01Barns and outbuildings.
19:03And at the heart of our farm is the old stable block that gets a makeover every month as
19:09our ambitions change and grow.
19:11So, with our winter event behind us, we're now looking forward to planning our next event.
19:18So, tonight Matthew, I'm going to be at farmer's market.
19:23That's what this building is saying.
19:25After visiting another farmer's market recently, we left feeling inspired and ready to give it a go ourselves.
19:32What they had in there, it was just their old corn shed or something, wasn't it?
19:36Yeah, it was just their old, exactly what we've got.
19:39So, exactly the same here.
19:41We invite local vendors to sell their produce.
19:45And we just have a bit of a nice day on the farm.
19:48Yeah, hopefully we get some customers.
19:52What we're thinking?
19:54Well, if we had 10 to 15...
19:57Vendors.
19:58Vendors.
19:59Well, we could literally...
20:01This makes the perfect walkway.
20:04So, you'd have tables all along there, then they've got room behind.
20:07Yeah.
20:08Then you'd put a coffee van at the end there.
20:10So, you do a bit of shopping, get a coffee, carry on shopping.
20:14I know how to shop, that's what we like.
20:17I reckon we get 10 vendors.
20:19Mine is Lamb Shack, is one.
20:22Yeah.
20:23And we have one.
20:24So there's 12 in total.
20:26We have one for what? Blankets and stuff?
20:28Yeah.
20:29The Fletcher Farm Shop, where we're going to be selling our blankets and stuff.
20:35One of us is going to man that.
20:37And then the Fletcher Gin van.
20:39Are we selling gin?
20:40Yeah, oh yeah.
20:42Yeah.
20:43Yeah.
20:44Hot gin.
20:46Shall we do the hot gin?
20:47Shall we do the hot gin?
20:48Well, I'll do the blankets, you do the gin.
20:51Well, because what?
20:52Well, you are the gin.
20:54You are Mr Gin.
20:55OK.
20:56I'll do the gin, you do the blankets.
20:58And see yourselves, Mum.
21:00We need to see us coming first.
21:02Well, we need to, yeah, reach out.
21:04Yeah.
21:04You want veg, pies, meat, pottery, candles, honey?
21:12Yeah.
21:13Stuff we haven't got, basically.
21:15A proper farmer's market.
21:19Marnie's lamb shack is the main attraction, isn't it?
21:23Marnie does the lamb shack, and that's Marnie's responsibility.
21:26Obviously, don't forget her meat will be packaged, it'll be priced.
21:29Everything will be there.
21:29Oh, so she just gives it a big gift.
21:31All she needs to do is literally get it, key it into a little till, and give her the money.
21:36Someone should supervise that.
21:38I'll ask Uncle.
21:39Uncle Braden.
21:40Yeah.
21:41See if he's available to supervise that.
21:43Yeah.
21:44Since buying Marnie her own small flock of Jacob's, she's really stepped up to care for them.
21:50So these are Teas and Jacob's.
21:52What?
21:53So these are Marnie's sheep.
21:55See, it's all the black and white ones and the black ones.
21:58These are all my sheep.
22:00Can you believe that?
22:01Hello, my babies.
22:04So my favourite bit about animals, the farm, is probably looking after my Jacob's and the
22:12farmer's market I'm really looking forward to, because I've not done a farmer's market.
22:16I've got to make sure these sheep are actually looking good and looking fat, so then they're
22:23ready to eat.
22:25Four of last year's lambs are finally ready to go, and after working so hard raising them,
22:30it'll be great for Marnie to see the return when she sells her products at the farmer's
22:35market.
22:36We're so passionate about our livestock and where the food comes from, and it feels like
22:41it's so right that you come here and get it from here.
22:45And it just shows value, doesn't it?
22:48And we want to pass that on to the kids, that understanding.
22:52I mean, this is a great opportunity for Marnie.
22:54This is her own little project.
22:55They're her first lambs.
22:58And she's going to kind of see, you know, commercial return really.
23:02Bit of a life lesson.
23:03And understanding what Mummy and Daddy do, and understanding work and reward and things
23:11are not plain sailing.
23:12All of those lessons.
23:13I think it's important.
23:14Yeah, no, it'll be good.
23:15I can just imagine Marnie, honestly, I think she'd really come into this.
23:18She'd have a little pinny on.
23:19Yeah.
23:19She'd just be there.
23:20Gift of the gab.
23:21Selling it.
23:22Upselling.
23:24Upselling.
23:25Just six sausages.
23:26Go on.
23:26Treat yourself.
23:27Come on.
23:28Come on.
23:28They're lovely.
23:29They're really tasty.
23:29Next minute.
23:30Boom.
23:3136 sausages.
23:32Do you want a tip?
23:3310% tip?
23:37It's exciting.
23:38Yeah.
23:39It is good.
23:39And if no one comes, our parents will come.
23:42Yeah, we always think that.
23:44If no one's going to turn up, our mum will come.
23:45Cost our family a fortune to come to every event, just to make numbers up.
23:50People will come.
23:52What we don't want, though, is have, like, the stampede of people.
23:57No, I think we do a little...
23:59I know.
24:00Slots.
24:00Why don't we do slots like we do a lot of our events?
24:03But you're not buying a ticket to come.
24:05You will buy a place, but all the money...
24:08The money to charity, yeah.
24:10The money to charity.
24:11And then we know how many people are coming and that we can park them and all that.
24:17Vendors will typically pay a pitch fee normally, but we'll waive that.
24:21We won't charge them.
24:21We won't charge them.
24:22And we just want them the opportunity to, you know, to enjoy it and it be commercially viable for them.
24:30The focus for our first farmers market is to get the local community together.
24:35And while we do want to make money from every event, this event is more of an experiment
24:39to see if it's something that has potential to grow.
24:44We've just got to start dressing it now, haven't we?
24:46Yeah.
24:46Give it a good brush up.
24:48Right.
24:48Well, first things, we need to invite some people.
24:50Invite some people.
24:51Oh, we need to tell people it's home.
24:53I'll organise vendors.
24:55I'll get people to come.
24:56You'll get people to come.
24:57Sounds like a plan, Stan.
25:00Fletcher's Farmers Market.
25:22No, Kelvin.
25:27I don't care what colour my hat is as long as I'm warm.
25:31Just before the cold snap, we sadly lost Cherry, one of our cows, to a form of pneumonia.
25:37Since then, we've kept the herd in the barn so we can give them, and more importantly her young calf
25:42Ezra, time to recover.
25:47Cherry died before he was fully weaned, so we've been making sure he's been well fed and keeping nutrition levels
25:54where they should be.
25:56He's done really well to say it was quite brutal how he was parted from his mum.
26:04I do feel like there's a look in his eye that he's a little lost, do you?
26:10It would have, it's probably only a month or two short of when he would have been weaned anyway, so.
26:16As Ezra gets a little bit bigger, we'll probably stay in the shed for another, at least another month or
26:23so.
26:25But then what we'll do then is probably put him in with the boys, so he'll go into the pen
26:31next door and join Crowther and Ray.
26:36Then we've got three males, they're all intact, and it just allows us to be, we can focus a little
26:45bit more then on Ruby.
26:48She'll still have a calf at Thornton, she'll be, what we're hoping, she's in calf currently.
26:56Thankfully in Cherry's absence, Ruby's young calf Elizabeth has been keeping an eye on Ezra.
27:02Elizabeth has been kind to him, to be fair, hasn't she?
27:06It's like she knew, and has been his little partner.
27:10Oh, is it not like taking the age of sitting in McDaniels with them curly tops?
27:14They've all got a curly fringe, they've had a perm in the fringe of the 18th.
27:35After a few weeks running together in the same field, we've now moved the tucks away from the ewes, hoping
27:41they've done their jobs, and we have a successful lambing season come spring.
27:46So the reason why we've pulled them away is because, a couple of reasons.
27:50Firstly, we don't want to be lambing for weeks on end.
27:54Obviously whilst the boys are in there, if anything's not got in lamb, and it gets in lamb later, then
27:59it just prolongs the whole process.
28:01So, we're pretty strict after 34 days, the boys are out.
28:08So, for whatever reason, if they've not performed, if the females have not caught, you know, in lamb, then it
28:15is what it is.
28:15And we'll find out in, come scanning.
28:21Until our next tupping season, we'll keep the tucks together and in tip-top condition, as their wellbeing hugely impacts
28:27the quality of our next flock.
28:29Rather worryingly, our youngest tuck Kelvin looks like he's still limping, following treatment for foot-run.
28:36I'm just looking over now, it doesn't look like he's recovered much, to be honest.
28:40He did recover, but it looks like he's come back, so that's not good.
28:44So there's a good chance we might have to bring him in and treat him again.
28:47I think I'll have a wander over and just have a way up and see.
28:52After treating Kelvin with antibiotics, he did seem to recover, but it seems to have flared up again.
28:58And to make matters worse, Viper is now limping too, which could be a sign of a more serious infection.
29:05There's an infection called cod in sheep, in the feet, and it's highly contagious.
29:13And it's treated with antibiotics, and it's a bit of a long process to get it, you know, to cure
29:19it, but it can spread pretty quickly.
29:22It can stay in the ground for up to two weeks.
29:25So you can see Kelvin's reluctant to put any weight on his front right, Viper on his front left.
29:32I need to get them in, get them treated as soon as possible, really.
29:36I mean, the good thing is they're obviously not with the main flock, and the other flock are looking pretty
29:40good.
29:40So, however, it is contagious, and amongst the four of them that are here, it looks like potentially it might
29:47be spreading.
29:48So, which is not good.
29:50Come on!
29:55I'm just going to get them in this small corridor, go and get the trailer, load them in the trailer
29:59and drive them down.
30:01It's a faff, but it's probably going to be easier.
30:06Go on, then.
30:09Go on, then.
30:11Go on, then.
30:11Go on, then.
30:13Go on.
30:27It's perfect.
30:28I mean, look at that, guys.
30:30Just get a close-up on that.
30:32Just get a close-up on that.
30:34That is what you call a good eye for it.
30:37And look at that side as well.
30:38I've got an inch there and half an inch there.
30:42Spot on.
30:51I thought you'd be going in there.
30:53Sh, sh, sh.
30:53Go on.
30:54In the trailer.
30:56Come on.
30:58You're not going in, are you?
30:59Come on.
31:00No.
31:01Go on that way.
31:02Go on.
31:04Up, up, up, up, up, up, up, up, up, up, up, up, up, up, up, up.
31:07While I bring the sheep down, Josh is setting up the pens so he can get them comfortable
31:12and start their treatment.
31:14I start by inspecting and cleaning the hooves, which is not a job for the faint-hearted.
31:23Any job?
31:24No, not yet.
31:26There's no nappy.
31:28There's no dog poo.
31:33There is absolutely nothing that comes close to the smell of foot rot.
31:39Ah, ah, ah.
31:40Come on, boy.
31:41You're doing well, lad.
31:42You're doing well.
31:43Sh, sh, sh, sh, sh.
31:45Right, he's been done now, so he just needs a job in.
31:58Right.
31:59Come on, Kelvin.
32:07So you can see where his nails just completely, completely come off there.
32:13I know it's tender, but I promise you I'm trying to help you.
32:17The purple antiseptic spray will help curb the infection.
32:22If not treated early, cod can result in the loss of the hoof, which will be devastating for our tubs.
32:28But Kelvin's turning out to be quite the character and seems to be made of the strong stuff.
32:34Better work out of that.
32:35Yeah, I'll leave him in here now.
32:38So two of the four are showing obvious signs of foot rot, so we've treated them.
32:43But as a precaution, because they've all been running together, it's highly contagious.
32:46We've treated all four of them anyway.
32:47So they're all penned up separately.
32:50Going to get some water now, bed them up and then keep them in here for at least five days
32:54and just monitor it.
32:56We'll have to inject them again in another 48 hours.
32:59And hopefully, it'll improve slightly.
33:03Kelvin is hard to handle.
33:09Unwilling, very strong, very stubborn.
33:12Nothing like me.
33:15Right, cup of tea time for me, I think.
33:40Tonight, Josh and I are braving the snow and heading out.
33:43After a day of wrangling sheep in freezing conditions, I thought we deserved a break.
33:48So in true farmer style, we're off to join a load of other farmers to talk about our sheep at
33:55Flock Club.
33:56We meet up once every three months and we discuss whatever the season is, you know, is ahead of us.
34:02So we're meeting now to discuss ahead of lambing in springtime.
34:08And I love it. It's great.
34:10Honestly, the knowledge, the stuff you pick up is unbelievable.
34:12And tonight, there'll be people here from all around in and around Cheshire.
34:16People who have got a thousand breeding ewes, people who have got five breeding ewes
34:21and just have, you know, hobby farmers, proper farmers.
34:26Tonight's hosts are multi-generation farmers Mick and Sarah.
34:30Their farm sits on the border of Staffordshire and Cheshire.
34:33And they've also diversified to become a wedding venue.
34:44Thanks Mick and Sarah for hosting the meeting tonight. I don't think that we can get any fancier than this.
34:52So on the questionnaire, you were asked a few questions that would be pretty much the topic of tonight's conversation.
35:00As we know, lambing is a quite hectic time of the year.
35:04You were on top of your lambing books.
35:07So well done guys for actually like keeping on top of this.
35:12Vet Angelica had the idea of bringing farmers together two years ago and it's been thriving ever since.
35:20And one surefire way to get farmers to open up and share ideas is to feed them first.
35:26Chicken, chorizo. Yeah, I'll have that then please.
35:33Each session tackles a new topic.
35:36And with lambing season approaching, tonight, Vet Advisor Matt is sharing his knowledge on ways to ensure a good return.
35:44Lambing time is very busy.
35:47And are the shortcuts we can take or are the things that we're sometimes thinking about recording that don't really
35:53make a difference?
35:54Or are the things that we're missing that really will make a difference?
35:58No matter how big your flock, every farmer in this room is running a business.
36:03And sharing knowledge could be the key to saving a failing farm or boosting productivity.
36:10How old do you graze when you're quite tired when you're grazing at all?
36:12My grazing policy isn't just good enough yet because some of my fields are too big for the number of
36:17sheep we've got.
36:18So I'm no expert by any stretch of the imagination. I'm learning all the time.
36:2240 years and you're still learning?
36:23I consider myself a novice. After 40 years I still consider myself a novice.
36:29Farming can be a very lonely existence, so nights like this are also a great way to bring together a
36:35community that is fighting for survival.
36:38Look how happy I am. It's just like being back at school.
36:43That was great. As it always is, it's so interesting.
36:47I remember when I first came to one of these and it was quite overwhelming and a lot of it
36:50was lost on me.
36:50Whereas now there wasn't anything said that kind of, you know, we're not either already doing or we can't kind
36:57of get our heads around.
36:58And it's reassuring, it's inspiring.
37:02And yeah, you just feel like you've got that common ground, that common love.
37:06Dare I say it. But you have all got, that's what knits us all together.
37:10Yeah, hearing Mick there saying, you know, I've been doing it 40 years and still feel like a novice.
37:15That just inspires me and that really excites me.
37:19In a sense of what other job can you be in for 40 years and still be saying that there's
37:25so much more to learn, there's so much more to pick up.
37:27That I think is just unbelievable and says everything about this life, this industry.
37:33I've made a good few notes and there's a couple of changes that I want to make this year.
37:39I just love it.
37:41The food and the cakes help massively, yeah.
37:45I've had seconds.
37:47It's just a good social, isn't it?
37:50Years ago I used to be.
37:52Whether it's racing cars or in pub with a few mates, now it's sheep chat with a few farmers.
37:59Some carrot cake.
38:02I love it.
38:03I love it.
38:24Look at this chicken just here.
38:27Just, you know what I mean?
38:30They just do whatever they want.
38:33Our leghorns really are the rulers of this farm.
38:36They do what they want, go where they want and refuse to lay eggs where we can find them.
38:43So while they embrace their free-range existence, Liz has invested in some new hens in the hope of finally
38:50getting some chicks.
38:55These are my posh chickens, they're my feral chickens.
39:00And Kelvin says I treat these better than the ferals but they're just, there's nothing I can do about them,
39:06they've got a life of their own.
39:07Look at them.
39:09Look at them.
39:10I love them.
39:12These beautiful aracuna hens and Daniel the cockerel have fast become the most pampered creatures on the farm.
39:19Come on.
39:21Come on.
39:23Playtime.
39:33They've been together in the coop for about two weeks.
39:36They've definitely bonded.
39:38It's not the first time I've let them out.
39:39I've been letting them out slowly and they do come out.
39:44They're a little docile, these chickens.
39:48So when I come to put them in at night, you'll get the odd one that's just like, here, completely
39:57catchable, completely, you know, a fox's dinner.
40:01So I have to make sure that I look after them and make sure that they're all in the pen
40:07each night.
40:08They won't last two minutes outside like those white ones do.
40:12These are not street smart chickens.
40:15We've already lost the cockerel to foxes, so the coop is back in action.
40:19And hopefully in time, it'll also be where they start laying.
40:25But look at them.
40:26When they get wet, they look like, they look like I looked when I gave birth to twins.
40:31Completely dishevelled.
40:33But when they're dry and fluffy, it is like something from a L'Oreal advert.
40:37It's ridiculous.
40:38They are so...
40:40I just love them.
40:43They are thick.
40:45They are so thick.
40:47The doors are wide open and the food's outside and they're pecking an ice cube.
40:54I like to let them out.
40:55I don't think chickens should be locked in.
40:56They should be free.
40:57They're birds.
40:58They've got a beautiful run here of a forest with loads of trees.
41:02Loads of stuff they can forage.
41:03Worms and bugs and all sorts here.
41:05I want to see if they've got any eggs in there.
41:08They're a little immature to be laying eggs yet.
41:10But I do...
41:11We're getting close to it.
41:14No.
41:15No eggs.
41:18No eggs yet.
41:21So, they're holding up well in the cold weather.
41:24It doesn't seem to affect them.
41:26They, er...
41:27They just get on with it as...
41:30...as normal.
41:30So, the good news is we've let them out now and they know every night to go back into that
41:35coop.
41:35So, that's step one.
41:37Step two is to then get some eggs.
41:39Step three is to then get some chicks.
41:42And it's just a waiting game.
41:44They've just got to do it in their own, you know?
41:47Their body clock will do it when they're ready.
41:50You cannot rush a woman.
41:52You absolutely cannot.
41:54They will do it in their own time.
41:59Or maybe they're just going to stay young, free and single and...
42:04...party their life away.
42:07Not fantasising.
42:08Not fantasising at all.
42:10I'm living my free life through them.
42:12At least they've not got Kelvin to deal with.
42:32A blanket of snow can make farming twice as hard.
42:36Yet here on our hillside acres, there's one big advantage.
42:40The perfect excuse for a bit of sledging.
42:44There's a hill over there.
42:45Miney Milo will remember.
42:47That's like that.
42:50It's steep.
42:51It's fast.
42:53It's short and sweet.
42:54So, you get a really good speedy bit.
42:57And then daddy will pull you back up at the quad.
42:59So, when you get down the bottom, I'll pull you up or you can walk up.
43:02If you want to put your hands in the snow, that's fine.
43:05But, it will make your hands colder and we will have to go home.
43:08So, if I was... even you.
43:10If I was you, I'd keep your hands out of the snow.
43:14Pep talk done.
43:15It's time to get sledgy.
43:24That steep bit's the best. My bum's all wet.
43:28Me!
43:29Hold on!
43:31Hold on!
43:36You're never too old to have a go.
43:39And a sheep feed bag makes an unlikely but brilliant sledge.
43:44Whoa!
43:44Whoa!
43:56Oh, this is good.
43:58Let's go.
43:59Oh, good, good.
44:05Oh, well, we've hit the fence.
44:07Oh!
44:08Right, you ready?
44:09Oh!
44:11Oh!
44:16Where can we go now?
44:19Oh!
44:20Oh!
44:25Right, Milo!
44:27Matthias incoming!
44:28Yay!
44:30He just lies down, doesn't he?
44:37Ah!
44:38Ah!
44:38Ah!
44:39A great way to end a winter's day on our own wonderland.
44:44I'm feeding!
44:46I'm feeding!
44:48I'm feeding!
44:49I'm feeding!
44:49Come on, Milo.
44:51Come on.
44:52Oh, let's head back.
44:53Woo!
45:02Next time on our farm.
45:05Marnie has big plans for her stall at our very first farmer's market.
45:09Could I have kebabs?
45:12That's a great idea.
45:13You could have kebabs.
45:14After months of restoration work, the twins' very first tractor is ready for the big reveal.
45:24It takes some footwork or once you saw it, you're coming!
45:29And scanning gets underway as we find out if our tubs have delivered for lambing season.
45:34If you like it, it's everywhere you go.
45:36It must be.
45:36Uh, no.
45:37No!
45:37No!
45:38No!
45:38No!
45:39No!
45:40No!
45:41No!
45:41No!
45:42No!
45:42No!
45:42No!
45:43No!
45:44No!
45:44No!
45:58No!
45:59No!
45:59No!
45:59No!
46:00No!
46:01No!
46:01No!
46:02No!
46:04No!
46:06No!
46:06No!
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