started drifting off to one side to continue grazing, and Alvin wheeled his bike around to usher them back towards the herd.
Once the sheep reached the road they started to cross it, and Lewis pedaled over to try to steer them back towards the road. Unfortunately he moved too quickly and too close and spooked the animals, so before he could get where he wanted to be they began trotting off at a diagonal from him and the road both.
Jane, observing from farther up the road, circled far around to get in front and to the side of the oncoming animals and with some whistling managed to get them headed towards the road again, where Pete and Alvin waited to hem them in and keep them from crossing back to the original meadow. It took a bit of finagling, but finally they managed to get the herd moving down the road the direction they wanted at a decent pace.
Herding sheep wasn't exactly rocket science, but that didn't make it easy, either. They had to be in constant motion around the edges of the small herd, keeping the strays from breaking away and bolting off, which at best meant the stray had to be rounded up, and at worst could lead to more of the sheep making a break after the stray to keep together.
Jane proved to have the temperament for that sort of task, keeping cool and calm even when the animals balked, and more importantly keeping her tone soothing as she talked to the sheep. Lewis wasn't able to stay quite that levelheaded, but at least he managed to keep his temper bottled in so he wouldn't spook the herd.
Matt . . . not so much. The first time a stray got past their friend he made the mistake of chasing it rather than trying to circle around and head it off back towards the rest of the herd. Which caused the sheep to bolt in fright, leading him on a merry chase for several minutes as he shouted after it angrily.
Even on his bike he had trouble keeping up with the running animal, and whenever he closed the distance the stray would veer away in an unexpected direction. He'd have to brake hard, unable to skid on the grass, and then pedal even harder to catch up again. From what Lewis could see Matt's efforts weren't doing any good, and probably quite a bit of harm as the fleeing sheep got more and more frightened and exhausted.
Finally the animal rejoined the herd on its own. Once Matt realized it he hopped off his bike and pushed it back towards them, stomping and muttering angrily about whether it was even worth it to bring in all of them. Their friend's bad mood was so apparent that even the sheep noticed it, and he couldn't get to within twice the distance of the rest of them before the herd started shying away nervously. Which led to other strays breaking away and even more hassle.
Finally Lewis pulled his friend aside. “Someone needs to ride ahead and let Aspen Hill know we're bringing the herd in. They'll need a fenced in area, fodder, that sort of thing.”
Matt glared at him. “Are you just trying to get rid of me because I'm making a mess of this?”
“A bit of both,” Lewis admitted, trying not to smile.
His friend didn't share his amusement. “One of these ewes is going to be mine, and we'll probably keep our own herd together. I need to learn how to handle them so I can help you.”
“There's plenty of time to learn. For the moment you should probably give them some space until you can earn their trust again.” Lewis leaned far off his bike and clapped him on the shoulder. “It
is
important that the town gets a place ready for them. And if you've got any spare time you could maybe see about getting your family and Jane's group busy building an enclosure for our animals when they arrive.”
Matt sighed. “I guess you're right. To be honest riding ahead sounds pretty tempting, so I don't really mind admitting defeat this time. I'll see you guys back at home. Tomorrow or the day after at the latest, right?”
Lewis nodded, then watched as his friend circled cautiously around the herd,
Once the sheep reached the road they started to cross it, and Lewis pedaled over to try to steer them back towards the road. Unfortunately he moved too quickly and too close and spooked the animals, so before he could get where he wanted to be they began trotting off at a diagonal from him and the road both.
Jane, observing from farther up the road, circled far around to get in front and to the side of the oncoming animals and with some whistling managed to get them headed towards the road again, where Pete and Alvin waited to hem them in and keep them from crossing back to the original meadow. It took a bit of finagling, but finally they managed to get the herd moving down the road the direction they wanted at a decent pace.
Herding sheep wasn't exactly rocket science, but that didn't make it easy, either. They had to be in constant motion around the edges of the small herd, keeping the strays from breaking away and bolting off, which at best meant the stray had to be rounded up, and at worst could lead to more of the sheep making a break after the stray to keep together.
Jane proved to have the temperament for that sort of task, keeping cool and calm even when the animals balked, and more importantly keeping her tone soothing as she talked to the sheep. Lewis wasn't able to stay quite that levelheaded, but at least he managed to keep his temper bottled in so he wouldn't spook the herd.
Matt . . . not so much. The first time a stray got past their friend he made the mistake of chasing it rather than trying to circle around and head it off back towards the rest of the herd. Which caused the sheep to bolt in fright, leading him on a merry chase for several minutes as he shouted after it angrily.
Even on his bike he had trouble keeping up with the running animal, and whenever he closed the distance the stray would veer away in an unexpected direction. He'd have to brake hard, unable to skid on the grass, and then pedal even harder to catch up again. From what Lewis could see Matt's efforts weren't doing any good, and probably quite a bit of harm as the fleeing sheep got more and more frightened and exhausted.
Finally the animal rejoined the herd on its own. Once Matt realized it he hopped off his bike and pushed it back towards them, stomping and muttering angrily about whether it was even worth it to bring in all of them. Their friend's bad mood was so apparent that even the sheep noticed it, and he couldn't get to within twice the distance of the rest of them before the herd started shying away nervously. Which led to other strays breaking away and even more hassle.
Finally Lewis pulled his friend aside. “Someone needs to ride ahead and let Aspen Hill know we're bringing the herd in. They'll need a fenced in area, fodder, that sort of thing.”
Matt glared at him. “Are you just trying to get rid of me because I'm making a mess of this?”
“A bit of both,” Lewis admitted, trying not to smile.
His friend didn't share his amusement. “One of these ewes is going to be mine, and we'll probably keep our own herd together. I need to learn how to handle them so I can help you.”
“There's plenty of time to learn. For the moment you should probably give them some space until you can earn their trust again.” Lewis leaned far off his bike and clapped him on the shoulder. “It
is
important that the town gets a place ready for them. And if you've got any spare time you could maybe see about getting your family and Jane's group busy building an enclosure for our animals when they arrive.”
Matt sighed. “I guess you're right. To be honest riding ahead sounds pretty tempting, so I don't really mind admitting defeat this time. I'll see you guys back at home. Tomorrow or the day after at the latest, right?”
Lewis nodded, then watched as his friend circled cautiously around the herd,
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