Psalm23Farm: Good to be home

Thursday, September 30, 2010

Good to be home

I had to get a SVT (super ventricular tachycardia) ablation yesterday to remove extra electrical path ways in my heart which were causing tachycardia (fast heart rate). (I had an episode of some palpitations in the spring and after jumping through all the hoops and getting all sorts of tests done that's what they found out.) The scary thing is I was put on a monitor for a month and I had to send the reading through the phone for the NP to read and I only noticed the palpitations once or twice and there were five automatic readings a day that I had to send. Basically if I didn't find out or get it done I would have gotten heart failure.

So yesterday morning I went to the hospital (my Mom took me) and I got the procedure (technically not surgery) done. The cardiologist uses a wire and goes up through the artery in ones' groin to the heart and finds the extra pathways and ablates (kills) them. I was kept there over night for observation and now I'm home. It's so nice to be home. Now I can't lift more than 10 # for 4 days. The reason is they don't want the artery popping open and oozing or bleeding.

The couple days before the procedure I got my goats shorn and my 19 market lambs shorn-they look very nice by the way. I'll have to do a post on them. (I have 10 small market lambs that I decided not to shear as well as the 19. 8 are pure Shetlands and 2 are crosses who didn't grow well. They will be shorn in the spring and sent to the Easter market.) I didn't shear my little TX kid-Grace as she is very thin and has bottle jaw. I have been deworming (she got dewormed 3 or 4 more times than any one else) her all summer and she just seems not to be able to handle worms. I dewormed her with Valbazen and then I'm going to use Ivermectin. (I heard that in severe cases one should use one and then the other after ten days.) I just hope she'll be ok! The poor little thing eats, but is weak.

5 comments:

MichelleSeptember 30, 2010 at 9:17 PM
Now I get it! Rick has the same restrictions for the same reason -- that hole they made in his femoral artery. Glad you had it diagnosed and treated!
ReplyDelete
Replies
Becky UtechtOctober 1, 2010 at 5:18 AM
Wow, I'm glad you got the procedure done! Isn't it amazing what they can do these days? Rest up and take care of yourself.
I have one crossbred market lamb who is stalled out in his growth. He's out of a Shetland mule and a Dorset ram. The crosses sired by the Ile de France did much better and were shipped this summer.
ReplyDelete
Replies
KellyOctober 1, 2010 at 1:09 PM
Take care Laura.....glad they found it and were able to repair it for you.
Rest and heal.
Kelly
ReplyDelete
Replies
MimOctober 4, 2010 at 4:16 PM
Good to hear all went well!!!
ReplyDelete
Replies
LauraOctober 11, 2010 at 5:12 PM
Thanks everyone. I'm done with the weight restrictions, etc. and am back to normal.
ReplyDelete
Replies

Add comment

Welcome to Psalm 23 Farm

I'm breeding my NASSA registered Shetland sheep for fine and med. fine lustrous single coated fleeces in both the crimpy and the locky, wavy fleece styles. I have a wide range of colors and makings as well as the bright pure whites. I'm emphasizing on production, mothering ability and sound conformation. I have both horned and naturally polled Shetland rams and a few horned Shetland ewes.

I also produce fast growing grass-fed market lambs and commercial ewes with excellent fleece. (Shetland x Coopworth and Shetland x Australian Corriedale.) These F1 (first generation cross) ewes are great maternal ewes to put under a terminal sire for the ultimate grass fed market lamb.

Angora goats are my other love. I'm selecting for fine yearling grade mohair in adult animals. All of my goats are CAGBA (colored) or AAGBA (white) registered. I'm also selecting for sound healthy goats.

Posts will be about the Shetlands and Angoras with an occasional post about the other animals on the farm. Posts will also be about wool, spinning and a variety of other topics.

Psalm 23 Farm sells raw "jacketed" wool and mohair fleeces, mohair locks, dyed and natural Shetland and Shetland/mohair roving. Also sheepskins, quilt batts, handspun yarn, mohair lock yarn, and mill spun yarn.

From the Shetland Sheep Society

"Shetland sheep have for generations been noted for their very soft and well crimped fleece. The wool is the finest of all native breeds and shows an amazing variety of colours and patterns. There are 11 main whole colours and 30 recognized markings.

By selecting from coloured fleeces a range of naturally coloured yarn can be produced. This eliminates the need for dyeing and therefore retains the soft feel of the natural fibre and is favoured by those who prefer a totally natural approach.

Shetland wool fibres are of a simple construction witha central cortex covered by a thin scaly cuticle, and have an average diameter of about 23 microns. However there is a range from 10-20 microns for neck and shoulder wool to 25 to 35 microns for britch wool. the average staple length is 3.5 inches. The amount of crimp varies, and is most important in providing the 'bounce' required for knitwear. There is a positive correlation between fineness and crimp, with wool of the finest quality being crimped at between 8 and 12 to the inch. Wool from Shetland sheep is used to produce gossamer lace, the famous 'Fair Isle' knitwear, and fine tweeds. Pure bred Shetland sheep tend to shed their fleece in spring. The growth of new fleece can cause a rise or weak point and where this is present the fleece can sometimes be plucked or 'rooed' by hand. The timing of this can be different in each sheep, however, it is worth taking the care to get it right as rooed fleece can be amongst the softest because the fibers have no harsh cut ends as occurs with a sheared fleece.

Shetland fleece can be handspun straight from the fleece or made into rolags and then woollen spun. It can also be worsted spun by hand, used on a peg loom or handwoven. It also felts well using either dry or wet methods. When processed commercially the wool can be made into the finest lightweight worsted cloth or heavier weight, harder wearing fabrics and tweeds."

Psalm23Farm

Pages

Thursday, September 30, 2010

Good to be home

5 comments:

Followers

About Me