Farming Families

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0:00:02 > 0:00:06It's spring, and right across Britain our fields are full

0:00:06 > 0:00:07of expectant mothers.

0:00:09 > 0:00:13These sheep, like so many sheep all over the country,

0:00:13 > 0:00:15are just about ready to lamb.

0:00:18 > 0:00:22It's all about new life. And what's not to like about that?

0:00:24 > 0:00:26You're a real cheeky one.

0:00:28 > 0:00:32Ahead of the new series of Lambing Live, we're seeing what life

0:00:32 > 0:00:34is really like for farming families,

0:00:34 > 0:00:38as they gear up for the busiest event in their year.

0:00:38 > 0:00:39Beltex!

0:00:42 > 0:00:45We'll revisit our Lambing Live families - the Marstons...

0:00:45 > 0:00:47Give it a good push.

0:00:47 > 0:00:49..and the Beavans.

0:00:49 > 0:00:50Come on, girls.

0:00:51 > 0:00:53We'll introduce new faces.

0:00:53 > 0:00:56- This is Pam.- Come on, girls.

0:00:56 > 0:00:59- And we meet the Dykes...- Cheese!

0:00:59 > 0:01:01..this year's Lambing Live family.

0:01:01 > 0:01:04I'm glad I had my porridge this morning!

0:01:04 > 0:01:06As they prepare not just for lambing,

0:01:06 > 0:01:08but for a week of live broadcasts.

0:01:32 > 0:01:37Four years ago, I knew very little about farming or sheep.

0:01:37 > 0:01:41But all that changed when I started filming Lambing Live.

0:01:41 > 0:01:44One September morning, farmer Jim Beavan took me

0:01:44 > 0:01:47on the strangest first date of my life.

0:01:47 > 0:01:51The most important thing about a tup is you want two good balls.

0:01:51 > 0:01:54Is a girl allowed to do this?

0:01:54 > 0:01:59'It was an eye-opening introduction to the world of sheep farming.

0:01:59 > 0:02:03'And I couldn't get enough, soaking up everything that our two

0:02:03 > 0:02:07'Lambing Live families - the Beavans and the Marstons - could teach me.'

0:02:07 > 0:02:08Oh, missed it!

0:02:08 > 0:02:10THEY LAUGH

0:02:11 > 0:02:15One memorable morning, I delivered my first lamb.

0:02:20 > 0:02:24I was hooked. Suddenly I knew this was the lifestyle for me.

0:02:34 > 0:02:37'Four years on, my husband, Ludo, and I

0:02:37 > 0:02:39live on a smallholding in Wales.

0:02:39 > 0:02:41'We've got ten sheep...' Girls.

0:02:41 > 0:02:44'..lots of chickens, geese and ducks,

0:02:44 > 0:02:47'as well as our beloved mongrels, Badger and Bella.'

0:02:50 > 0:02:53I've also invested in a farm seven miles up the road.

0:02:53 > 0:02:56- It had a busy night, then? - It was a little bit busy, yeah.

0:02:56 > 0:02:59'It's run by farmer Tim Stephens...'

0:02:59 > 0:03:03I've made this little area here to loose the lambs out of their pens.

0:03:03 > 0:03:06And then they can get used to being with other ewes.

0:03:06 > 0:03:10'..who has another 120 ewes and a growing herd of cattle.'

0:03:12 > 0:03:15I don't think I'd dare describe myself as a farmer,

0:03:15 > 0:03:19but I have discovered over the last few years that there is

0:03:19 > 0:03:25something about this way of life that feels absolutely right.

0:03:25 > 0:03:27- These are new.- Yep. - Proud of them, aren't you?

0:03:27 > 0:03:30This tremendous feeling of connection,

0:03:30 > 0:03:34of being part of the countryside and part of the seasons

0:03:34 > 0:03:36that I absolutely love.

0:03:41 > 0:03:43Living by these ancient rhythms,

0:03:43 > 0:03:47many farming families feel a deep connection to the land they've

0:03:47 > 0:03:49farmed for generations...

0:03:52 > 0:03:56..and the stock they care for, day in and day out.

0:03:59 > 0:04:01The Cumbrian fells are home to one of these families

0:04:01 > 0:04:06that were featured in our 2011 series of Lambing Live,

0:04:06 > 0:04:08the Marstons.

0:04:10 > 0:04:14I'm Andrew Marston and that's my dad and my mum,

0:04:14 > 0:04:16- Donald and Christine. - I'm Rachel and I'm Andrew's wife,

0:04:16 > 0:04:21and these are our girls. We've got Catherine, Abigail and Olivia.

0:04:25 > 0:04:29This family's connection to this corner of Cumbria goes back

0:04:29 > 0:04:32four generations, to 1911.

0:04:35 > 0:04:39Andrew's love of his farm began at birth.

0:04:39 > 0:04:42I've lived here all my life.

0:04:44 > 0:04:48As children, we got up to all sorts of mischief.

0:04:48 > 0:04:51Running up and down trees, making tree houses.

0:04:51 > 0:04:53There was always loads to do. Sledging was great fun.

0:04:55 > 0:04:58There are always really big hills round here to sledge down.

0:04:58 > 0:05:00It was walking to the top that was the trouble.

0:05:00 > 0:05:03Yeah, just really happy times.

0:05:05 > 0:05:09Andrew's father Donald works alongside the rest of the family.

0:05:11 > 0:05:14And the children begin farming early.

0:05:14 > 0:05:17When the kids are born and they come back home,

0:05:17 > 0:05:20that's when they're introduced to farming.

0:05:21 > 0:05:24I can remember running around the lambing fields chasing sheep

0:05:24 > 0:05:28with Catherine in a pouch like this and thinking, "This is good fun."

0:05:30 > 0:05:32Mummy, I don't like it.

0:05:32 > 0:05:35- What don't you like?- The cows.

0:05:35 > 0:05:37- What are they doing?- Mmm...

0:05:37 > 0:05:40Catherine's getting to the age now she's really useful.

0:05:42 > 0:05:46That's my sheep there. I've only got about five or something.

0:05:46 > 0:05:49But I enjoy having a few of my own.

0:05:49 > 0:05:53She's quite strong. She can hold the sheep, she can turn them up

0:05:53 > 0:05:56and she is even sometimes telling me what to do,

0:05:56 > 0:05:58so it's going the full circle.

0:06:01 > 0:06:04Abigail's happiest when she's mucky.

0:06:04 > 0:06:08Loves being outside, got a boiler suit for Christmas of all things.

0:06:08 > 0:06:10A flat cap the year before

0:06:10 > 0:06:13and a walking stick, so what more do you want?

0:06:13 > 0:06:16Olivia, she's just coming into her own at the moment,

0:06:16 > 0:06:18loves being outside.

0:06:18 > 0:06:20SHE GIGGLES

0:06:28 > 0:06:32The Marstons live side-by-side with a flock of 1,000 sheep.

0:06:34 > 0:06:37These tough Swaledales live out on the high hill ground

0:06:37 > 0:06:40of the fell year round, even when pregnant.

0:06:47 > 0:06:52And like the Marstons themselves, these sheep have a deep connection

0:06:52 > 0:06:53to the land they live on.

0:06:56 > 0:07:00Each farmer's flock has an area of this unfenced land

0:07:00 > 0:07:01that they consider their own.

0:07:02 > 0:07:06This instinctive knowledge of their place on the fell

0:07:06 > 0:07:07is known as hefting.

0:07:09 > 0:07:12Hefting's a fascinating subject.

0:07:12 > 0:07:16It's something unique because there are no walls,

0:07:16 > 0:07:19so there are unseen boundaries known only to the sheep.

0:07:19 > 0:07:24But it's quite simple really, a lamb goes onto the fell with its

0:07:24 > 0:07:28mother, so the following year when it goes onto the fell it'll think,

0:07:28 > 0:07:32"Ah, this was my plot of ground last year, it's my plot of ground

0:07:32 > 0:07:36"this year." And the following year it takes its lambs, or lamb, with it

0:07:36 > 0:07:42and so it goes on for generation and generation.

0:07:42 > 0:07:43SHE GROANS

0:07:43 > 0:07:45Come on.

0:07:45 > 0:07:49Like their sheep, the Marstons are also hefted to this fell.

0:07:49 > 0:07:53It's passing your knowledge down from generation to generation.

0:07:53 > 0:07:56I suppose we take the sheep up and they teach their lambs

0:07:56 > 0:07:59and we're taking our children up and so in that we're teaching them,

0:07:59 > 0:08:01I suppose.

0:08:01 > 0:08:03We're nearly there.

0:08:03 > 0:08:06Yeah, they're hill sheep so this is their home.

0:08:07 > 0:08:12If I was a sheep, I'd probably want to be where I belonged.

0:08:19 > 0:08:21This is my favourite place on the farm.

0:08:23 > 0:08:26Couldn't be anywhere better, I don't think.

0:08:30 > 0:08:33Me and you can take a bag of cake out and they can put the hay out.

0:08:33 > 0:08:35Yeah.

0:08:35 > 0:08:39Cumbrian shepherds have grazed their animals here for hundreds of years.

0:08:39 > 0:08:42It's vital to feed them, there's not a lot of goodness

0:08:42 > 0:08:46in the grass at this time of year, so this gives them everything they need, really.

0:08:46 > 0:08:48And when they're in lamb as well.

0:08:49 > 0:08:52I think some people that don't know much about farming don't

0:08:52 > 0:08:57understand they're not just things, they're animals that you've reared

0:08:57 > 0:09:01and brought into this world. Yes, we are passionate about our animals

0:09:01 > 0:09:03and want to do what's best for them.

0:09:07 > 0:09:09Good evening. Britain's farms have been brought

0:09:09 > 0:09:12to a standstill as the foot-and-mouth crisis deepens.

0:09:14 > 0:09:18In 2001, like thousands of British farmers,

0:09:18 > 0:09:20the Marstons watched helplessly as their animals

0:09:20 > 0:09:23and their whole way of life was threatened.

0:09:24 > 0:09:28Food-and-mouth itself was terrible because, in a sense,

0:09:28 > 0:09:32you were waiting on it. Because as you listened to the news every day,

0:09:32 > 0:09:35it was gradually getting nearer and nearer.

0:09:35 > 0:09:40Cases could rise to 70 a day, reaching more than 4,000 by June.

0:09:40 > 0:09:43That's nearly ten times the number now.

0:09:43 > 0:09:46It was really hard, it was, you were lambing the sheep and thinking,

0:09:46 > 0:09:49"What's the point of lambing if they're going to go in a cull?"

0:09:49 > 0:09:52We could walk up onto one of the other hills and you could see

0:09:52 > 0:09:56the fires down the Eden Valley where they were burning animals.

0:09:56 > 0:10:00Here at Heddon in Northumberland, the diseased, slaughtered animals

0:10:00 > 0:10:03are being destroyed on the farms where they were discovered.

0:10:07 > 0:10:10The emotional stress, you can't really put into words.

0:10:13 > 0:10:15We all struggled. The thought of losing your stock

0:10:15 > 0:10:18and all you'd worked your life for

0:10:18 > 0:10:21could be gone in a matter of seconds.

0:10:21 > 0:10:25The cull of healthy animals within two miles of infected farms

0:10:25 > 0:10:27will now be extended to the whole of the country.

0:10:27 > 0:10:31Those who farm neighbouring land are resigned to the worst.

0:10:41 > 0:10:43Eventually in about September, I think,

0:10:43 > 0:10:45we did actually get food-and-mouth.

0:10:45 > 0:10:50And they said if we would allow some of our animals to be slaughtered,

0:10:50 > 0:10:52then they wouldn't go with the whole farm.

0:10:55 > 0:10:58At four o'clock that afternoon they came

0:10:58 > 0:11:00and...slaughtered them.

0:11:02 > 0:11:06It was really hard losing your stock that you'd bred up for years,

0:11:06 > 0:11:09I think particularly for Donald and Andrew.

0:11:09 > 0:11:10The joy had gone,

0:11:10 > 0:11:14you just wondered how long you were going to keep the animals.

0:11:14 > 0:11:19You'd had those bloodlines for generations,

0:11:19 > 0:11:21just to be wiped out like that.

0:11:21 > 0:11:24Yeah, there wasn't really a dry eye around, I don't think.

0:11:26 > 0:11:30Many farmers gave up after foot-and-mouth.

0:11:30 > 0:11:33But Donald and Andrew were determined to rebuild.

0:11:37 > 0:11:39We knew we'd carry on,

0:11:39 > 0:11:41but it certainly left its scars.

0:11:42 > 0:11:46Gradually, the Marstons restocked their Swaledale herd.

0:11:47 > 0:11:50And as the scars of foot-and-mouth slowly fade,

0:11:50 > 0:11:54it looks as though they're set to stay for many generations more.

0:11:57 > 0:12:00I hope our family have a connection to the land, and I hope the kids

0:12:00 > 0:12:06have the same understanding of the land and how to work it.

0:12:06 > 0:12:09I wouldn't want to go anywhere else.

0:12:20 > 0:12:23The passion and the joy the Marstons take in their land

0:12:23 > 0:12:27and their animals motivated me to start my own flock.

0:12:27 > 0:12:31Back in 2011, my husband, Ludo, and I decided we were ready

0:12:31 > 0:12:35to take the plunge and buy our first sheep.

0:12:35 > 0:12:38Welcome to Llanvetherine. Hi, Kate.

0:12:38 > 0:12:40Lovely to see you. Thank you very much for seeing us today.

0:12:40 > 0:12:42Come on, Mary!

0:12:43 > 0:12:47- Are they in here? Oh, yes. - Here they are.- Aw!

0:12:50 > 0:12:55So, on a sunny day in July, we went sheep shopping with Peter Beale.

0:12:57 > 0:13:00Peter breeds badger face Welsh mountain sheep.

0:13:00 > 0:13:03These are small sheep, not too heavy for me to handle,

0:13:03 > 0:13:08and ideally suited to the hilly landscape of my Welsh smallholding.

0:13:09 > 0:13:11He agreed to sell us six of his flock.

0:13:13 > 0:13:18It's going to be so difficult to choose. Did you want to sell all 23?

0:13:18 > 0:13:20If the price was right!

0:13:21 > 0:13:24- So we're trying to get them into the bottom pen?- Yep.- Good girls.

0:13:24 > 0:13:27- There's always one. - Where are you going?- Go on.

0:13:27 > 0:13:32- Go on. There you go.- This is where we can get up close and personal.

0:13:32 > 0:13:35'Peter has a keen eye for a good sheep.'

0:13:35 > 0:13:37Steady, steady, steady.

0:13:37 > 0:13:42OK, well, what we're looking for, Kate, is fairly small ears

0:13:42 > 0:13:45and a good way of doing that is to hold the two ears.

0:13:45 > 0:13:46- Like a handlebar?- Absolutely.

0:13:46 > 0:13:49- And make sure that it doesn't protrude.- OK.

0:13:49 > 0:13:51Her ears are definitely sticking out.

0:13:51 > 0:13:55So she should be a rejected one. I'm sorry! OK.

0:13:55 > 0:14:00Then we need a nice black stripe or a pipe down the front,

0:14:00 > 0:14:04right from underneath, right down along the belly and then

0:14:04 > 0:14:07down the tail, but not to the very end.

0:14:07 > 0:14:11- Lovely brown belly, yep. - No grey whatsoever.- OK.

0:14:11 > 0:14:14So that's what we're looking for.

0:14:14 > 0:14:18'These exacting standards only really matter in the show ring,

0:14:18 > 0:14:22'but I wanted to start my flock with some high quality animals.'

0:14:23 > 0:14:25She's got nice little ears, look at those.

0:14:27 > 0:14:31- OK.- Look at the tail. Ah, now, you see?- Bit of black in there.

0:14:31 > 0:14:34- Yeah, wouldn't advise that one. - OK, OK.

0:14:34 > 0:14:38It's quite difficult, isn't it? It's like Miss World for sheep.

0:14:40 > 0:14:42All right, all right!

0:14:42 > 0:14:46'Although not all the sheep wanted to take part in our beauty pageant.'

0:14:49 > 0:14:51It's not me, it's the sheep.

0:14:51 > 0:14:54I think we'll try you.

0:14:54 > 0:14:55What do you think?

0:14:56 > 0:15:02Shall we... Could we separate off the ones we've shortlisted?

0:15:02 > 0:15:04'We picked out our favourites.'

0:15:04 > 0:15:06Doing a wonderful job, Kate.

0:15:06 > 0:15:12And these six sheep, our very first, will always be special to us.

0:15:12 > 0:15:13Go on, girl.

0:15:16 > 0:15:20That's it. That's brilliant, Peter, thank you very, very much.

0:15:20 > 0:15:22I think you've chosen well.

0:15:24 > 0:15:27But I was still a novice shepherdess.

0:15:27 > 0:15:30So once I'd got them home, I called in some expert help

0:15:30 > 0:15:33from my first Lambing Live mentor, Jim Beavan.

0:15:35 > 0:15:39- They are pretty, aren't they?- Do you approve?- Yeah, they're all right.

0:15:40 > 0:15:43'My ewes were looking a little woolly.

0:15:43 > 0:15:46'They needed shearing, and I wasn't about to try this on my own.'

0:15:46 > 0:15:48They are light.

0:15:48 > 0:15:50'Jim talked us through the theory.'

0:15:50 > 0:15:54Grip through, step over. Step over, step through.

0:15:54 > 0:15:58- It's like Strictly Come Shearing. - Oh, yeah. Down the leg.

0:15:58 > 0:16:00'It looked pretty easy.'

0:16:00 > 0:16:03- Through. - 'I mean, how hard can it be?'

0:16:03 > 0:16:07- And then you're finished.- She's done.- I'm kind of nervous now.

0:16:07 > 0:16:09Come with me, lady.

0:16:09 > 0:16:11- You're the wrong way round. - That way?

0:16:17 > 0:16:18Step through.

0:16:18 > 0:16:20- Argh!- Next one now.

0:16:22 > 0:16:24OK. Whoa, whoa, we lost her.

0:16:28 > 0:16:30There we are.

0:16:35 > 0:16:38- THEY LAUGH - Oh, God, that's hard work!

0:16:38 > 0:16:40Look, she's got tufts!

0:16:40 > 0:16:42THEY LAUGH

0:16:42 > 0:16:47Well, I grew up in the age of punk, that was trendy then!

0:16:47 > 0:16:48It wasn't so bad at all!

0:16:49 > 0:16:53With Jim's help, we'd done it -

0:16:53 > 0:16:56our first ever shearing of our own sheep.

0:16:59 > 0:17:03Jim's own farm, which we featured in the first series of Lambing Live,

0:17:03 > 0:17:06is only a few miles away from ours, near Abergavenny.

0:17:08 > 0:17:12Rolling hills and plentiful grass make Wales the perfect place

0:17:12 > 0:17:14to fatten up lambs for our tables.

0:17:15 > 0:17:20There are close to nine million sheep here - almost a third of

0:17:20 > 0:17:22all the sheep in Britain.

0:17:22 > 0:17:27And 950 of them graze the Beavan family land.

0:17:27 > 0:17:29- Come on, good lad, steady now, steady.- Steady.

0:17:31 > 0:17:34The family have farmed here since 1939.

0:17:34 > 0:17:39And today, three generations live and work side-by-side.

0:17:39 > 0:17:40Wait for me, honey.

0:17:40 > 0:17:44For Jim and his wife, Kate, this is one of the joys of the farming life.

0:17:44 > 0:17:47Get off, you daft...!

0:17:47 > 0:17:50You have to have a very strong relationship, to be honest,

0:17:50 > 0:17:55otherwise working together, living together, doing everything

0:17:55 > 0:17:57together, it'd be very hard.

0:17:57 > 0:17:59I love working with Jim.

0:17:59 > 0:18:01We've worked closely together for 24 years

0:18:01 > 0:18:05and I think our relationship is pretty strong.

0:18:06 > 0:18:10But unlike many farmers' wives, Kate wasn't brought up on a farm.

0:18:10 > 0:18:14She's had to learn the skills needed to keep everything running smoothly.

0:18:16 > 0:18:20You don't understand multitasking until you become a farmer's wife.

0:18:20 > 0:18:24So you could be getting the kids ready for school, at the same time

0:18:24 > 0:18:25sorting the breakfast...

0:18:25 > 0:18:27Can always put another sausage on.

0:18:27 > 0:18:29..running to the sheep shed, doing the lambing,

0:18:29 > 0:18:34obviously accounts, paperwork, and you've got to be an unpaid farm help.

0:18:36 > 0:18:40We're going to move the electric fence that way.

0:18:40 > 0:18:42'You've got to be a mind-reader.

0:18:42 > 0:18:46'You've got to know what your husband means with all his grunts and noises,'

0:18:46 > 0:18:48which doesn't actually make any sense

0:18:48 > 0:18:51but he expects you to know exactly where to be at the right time.

0:18:51 > 0:18:55I think Jim's plan A was maybe pick up,

0:18:55 > 0:18:58because obviously we've unhitched all the electric fence now,

0:18:58 > 0:19:00and move it in one go.

0:19:00 > 0:19:04But it's going to end up in a tangled mess. OK, isn't it going to get...

0:19:06 > 0:19:07Hang on.

0:19:07 > 0:19:10She's got to be a bit 'telepathetic' sometimes

0:19:10 > 0:19:15when I'm telling her to do things and she's going, "What do you want?"

0:19:15 > 0:19:18- Jim, it's getting tangled back there, love.- Hang on.

0:19:22 > 0:19:23I know what I want,

0:19:23 > 0:19:26but it just takes a bit of getting through sometimes.

0:19:26 > 0:19:29Pig's ear, isn't it? Hang on.

0:19:29 > 0:19:30He's in a bit of a tangle.

0:19:32 > 0:19:33BLEEP!

0:19:36 > 0:19:37All right, hun?

0:19:39 > 0:19:42Constantly smiling, not complaining, nodding

0:19:42 > 0:19:46and keeping the farmer happy.

0:19:48 > 0:19:50Do you want me to do it?

0:19:50 > 0:19:51No.

0:19:56 > 0:20:01There are tough days, but there are way more good days than tough days.

0:20:07 > 0:20:11Lately, the farmers' common enemy has given Jim and Kate

0:20:11 > 0:20:12some difficult days.

0:20:13 > 0:20:16It's all to do with the weather and the seasons, how you feel as well.

0:20:16 > 0:20:20A year can be a total success or a total failure

0:20:20 > 0:20:21because of the weather.

0:20:23 > 0:20:24Come on, girls.

0:20:26 > 0:20:30We'll wait for them to get here, then they can all have food.

0:20:34 > 0:20:37This winter has been the wettest on record.

0:20:39 > 0:20:42We've had nonstop rain for bloody months.

0:20:42 > 0:20:46Like farmers across the whole of the UK, Jim and Kate

0:20:46 > 0:20:49are struggling with waterlogged ground.

0:20:49 > 0:20:51This makes every task that little bit harder.

0:20:51 > 0:20:57We've had a bloody hard time, as you can see it's wet.

0:20:57 > 0:21:03I've farmed here 30 years and I've never known nothing like it.

0:21:03 > 0:21:04It's seriously wet.

0:21:04 > 0:21:08But the sheep seem to cope and as long as they're having their food,

0:21:08 > 0:21:11as long as we can find a bit of dry ground to feed them on...

0:21:11 > 0:21:12It's getting harder.

0:21:14 > 0:21:16It'd be a lot nicer if it was sunny.

0:21:16 > 0:21:19- It'd be preferable. - Could do with it drying up now,

0:21:19 > 0:21:24cos we've had a tit full, to be honest, of this weather.

0:21:24 > 0:21:26It'll be just nice to have a bit of dry weather.

0:21:29 > 0:21:34At the moment it's dark, grey, miserable blooming weather

0:21:34 > 0:21:38but you know spring is just round the corner and

0:21:38 > 0:21:41when that comes, you'll have Dr Green back out in the fields

0:21:41 > 0:21:42and all will be the better.

0:21:52 > 0:21:55The pattern of the farming year is always the same.

0:21:55 > 0:21:59But it's getting harder and harder to make a living from the land.

0:22:03 > 0:22:06You'd never farm to be rich, to be honest.

0:22:08 > 0:22:10If you didn't love it, you wouldn't do it

0:22:10 > 0:22:14because the financial reward isn't there at the end, to be honest.

0:22:14 > 0:22:16Like many farming families,

0:22:16 > 0:22:20the Beavans have diversified in order to bring in extra income.

0:22:20 > 0:22:23The long-established family butcher shop has been joined

0:22:23 > 0:22:25by a country skills school.

0:22:25 > 0:22:29Oh, could you be my pelvis? Would you mind? I'm sorry.

0:22:29 > 0:22:31It might be easier. There we go.

0:22:31 > 0:22:34So there's the head. Is that the right way round? Yep.

0:22:34 > 0:22:37Today, Jim and Kate are demonstrating lambing techniques

0:22:37 > 0:22:39to wannabe farmers and smallholders.

0:22:39 > 0:22:41You go over the top of the head.

0:22:43 > 0:22:46We had a girl come on the first lambing course

0:22:46 > 0:22:49and she wouldn't leave and I said, "What's wrong?"

0:22:49 > 0:22:51She said, "Well, I've got to lamb a ewe."

0:22:51 > 0:22:57If you've got one leg back, then that can cause a problem.

0:22:57 > 0:22:59"It's on my bucket list," she said.

0:22:59 > 0:23:02I said, "Bucket list, what the bloody hell's that?"

0:23:02 > 0:23:05And she said, "It's one of the things I want to do before I die,"

0:23:05 > 0:23:07I thought, "Christ, marvellous!"

0:23:08 > 0:23:12Just as the Beavans share the tasks on the farm, they also share

0:23:12 > 0:23:16the satisfaction they take in their animals and in farming.

0:23:17 > 0:23:20I'm very proud of what we produce on the farm.

0:23:20 > 0:23:25And when you've got a pen of lambs, you think, "I produced them."

0:23:25 > 0:23:29And it is a nice feeling, to be honest, to know that you're

0:23:29 > 0:23:33producing lambs to the best quality you can and people appreciate it.

0:23:43 > 0:23:46Working as Jim and Kate's apprentice shepherdess on the first series

0:23:46 > 0:23:51of Lambing Live was what originally inspired me to begin farming.

0:23:53 > 0:23:56Now I've got my own land, the routine - the daily tasks that

0:23:56 > 0:24:00have to be done - is something I've come to love.

0:24:02 > 0:24:05It doesn't matter what the weather's doing,

0:24:05 > 0:24:08what day it is, this is the way it has to start,

0:24:08 > 0:24:11with feeding and checking the animals.

0:24:13 > 0:24:18It's funny, I think I've never been a person who's had much of routine.

0:24:18 > 0:24:20I just love the rhythm of it.

0:24:21 > 0:24:26There's always muck that needs dealing with in one form or another.

0:24:26 > 0:24:28It's become a bit of a joke

0:24:28 > 0:24:34with Ludo, my husband, and Tim

0:24:34 > 0:24:38up at the farm that if there's ever any mucking out to do,

0:24:38 > 0:24:40I'm their girl.

0:24:41 > 0:24:45Alongside the daily routines of farming comes a strict

0:24:45 > 0:24:46yearly timetable.

0:24:46 > 0:24:50Autumn is the time when we turn our attention to lambing,

0:24:50 > 0:24:53because this is when ewes come into season.

0:24:53 > 0:24:56I'm not sure I'm allowed to call myself a sheep farmer yet.

0:24:56 > 0:25:00But I have sheep and I'd like to get them in lamb so I'm heading off

0:25:00 > 0:25:03to a council farm just outside Caerphilly

0:25:03 > 0:25:05to see my friend Russ Jones.

0:25:06 > 0:25:10Russ breeds badger faced sheep like the ones I have at home.

0:25:12 > 0:25:17- Morning, Russ.- Morning. How are you? - Good.- Nice to see you.

0:25:17 > 0:25:19'I'm here to borrow one of his rams.'

0:25:23 > 0:25:26He's a little bit wild, Kate, I'll have to catch him.

0:25:26 > 0:25:27Steady, boy.

0:25:27 > 0:25:31This ram has proved his worth by producing good lambs last year.

0:25:34 > 0:25:37He'll come to my smallholding for two months.

0:25:40 > 0:25:43If he does his job properly, he'll get all my ewes pregnant

0:25:43 > 0:25:44in that time.

0:25:49 > 0:25:51Good boy. There you go.

0:25:52 > 0:25:54'He doesn't waste a moment.'

0:25:57 > 0:25:59Wow. It's like bees to the honey pot.

0:26:04 > 0:26:07It's the perfect day for romance, isn't it?

0:26:07 > 0:26:13I love this moment. I love the kind of sussing of each other out.

0:26:16 > 0:26:19As you can see, he's definitely interested in them.

0:26:21 > 0:26:24And so he should be. They're beautiful.

0:26:24 > 0:26:27'Now I just need to wait for nature to take its course.'

0:26:34 > 0:26:38Of course, most farmers buy rams rather than borrow them.

0:26:43 > 0:26:46Which makes ram sales like this one in Kelso,

0:26:46 > 0:26:49in the Borders of Scotland, a key event in the farming diary.

0:26:53 > 0:26:57It's a chance to catch up with friends, as well as buy

0:26:57 > 0:26:58and sell stock.

0:27:00 > 0:27:04Top notch rams can go for thousands of pounds.

0:27:06 > 0:27:10A good investment if they father healthy lambs for your flock.

0:27:12 > 0:27:15John Scott comes here each autumn to buy new rams

0:27:15 > 0:27:17for his flock in the Highlands.

0:27:17 > 0:27:19It's a bit of a carnival.

0:27:19 > 0:27:23You can get carried away very easily and spend more than you planned to.

0:27:23 > 0:27:26We spent 2,600 guineas on this guy.

0:27:26 > 0:27:28Looking forward to getting him home

0:27:28 > 0:27:31and seeing how he looks at home with the rest of the sheep.

0:27:37 > 0:27:42John's ancestors moved to the north of Scotland in the 18th century

0:27:42 > 0:27:46to act as shepherds. And they've been here ever since.

0:27:46 > 0:27:49Generation after generation of farmers.

0:27:54 > 0:27:57The Scotts have the biggest farm of all our families,

0:27:57 > 0:27:59with more than 4,000 sheep.

0:28:01 > 0:28:04They also have 120 cows and bulls...

0:28:07 > 0:28:09..500 acres of arable land...

0:28:11 > 0:28:13..more ducks and hens than they can count,

0:28:13 > 0:28:18two horses and, until recently, four pigs.

0:28:18 > 0:28:22And here they are now. And they taste really good.

0:28:25 > 0:28:30John chooses his animals according to their ability to survive

0:28:30 > 0:28:32and prosper in this harsh landscape.

0:28:34 > 0:28:36Some of the ground we farm especially up here

0:28:36 > 0:28:39in Sutherland is pretty challenging.

0:28:39 > 0:28:42That's why we've gone for a breed like the Luing cow

0:28:42 > 0:28:44who are really used to being outside all the time.

0:28:47 > 0:28:50In the case of these girls, as you can see, the wind is coming flying

0:28:50 > 0:28:53off the sea there, but these girls are tough.

0:28:53 > 0:28:55They'll outwinter no problem.

0:28:55 > 0:28:57They've got a cracking view, on a nice day up here.

0:28:57 > 0:28:59It's really a pleasure to be here.

0:29:02 > 0:29:04It's a beautiful place to farm

0:29:04 > 0:29:07but the challenge is to make money from it at the same time.

0:29:16 > 0:29:17Come on, girls.

0:29:18 > 0:29:22John is the fourth generation of Scotts to farm here - something

0:29:22 > 0:29:25that came as no surprise to his dad, James.

0:29:25 > 0:29:28I always knew John would follow me into farming.

0:29:28 > 0:29:30He was out on the farm whenever he could, there was no way

0:29:30 > 0:29:32he was not going to farm.

0:29:33 > 0:29:35Like lots of farming children,

0:29:35 > 0:29:38he took an interest in stock from an early age.

0:29:38 > 0:29:42When I was six or seven, I started to be of a little bit of use.

0:29:42 > 0:29:45I would have been out with Dad in the pick-up from a lot younger

0:29:45 > 0:29:48age than that, like James was.

0:29:48 > 0:29:52He started coming out aged two, and started to recognize cows

0:29:52 > 0:29:54and bulls and pick up their names.

0:29:54 > 0:29:55Beltex!

0:29:59 > 0:30:02We're weaning off my sheep, which are the Beltex,

0:30:02 > 0:30:04which are the ones on the right-hand side.

0:30:04 > 0:30:08I had my own Jacob sheep when I was about ten,

0:30:08 > 0:30:10and we would take them to local shows

0:30:10 > 0:30:12and we always used to come last,

0:30:12 > 0:30:16and if we had two in the class we came last and second last.

0:30:16 > 0:30:20Son James's record in the show ring is shaping up more impressively.

0:30:20 > 0:30:22This one here's Petunia.

0:30:22 > 0:30:25We got champion at the Nairn Show with her.

0:30:25 > 0:30:30This one here's Kirsten and she was also champion at the Nairn Show,

0:30:30 > 0:30:33but she was champion in 2009.

0:30:33 > 0:30:35Well, that's Poppy staring at the camera.

0:30:35 > 0:30:37She's a bit of an attention seeker.

0:30:38 > 0:30:41When family members are work colleagues as well as

0:30:41 > 0:30:45flesh and blood, relationships aren't always easy to manage.

0:30:45 > 0:30:49Working with Dad and family can be challenging at times,

0:30:49 > 0:30:51there's no doubt about that, but it can be really rewarding as well.

0:30:51 > 0:30:54- Is that the good one? - That's the good ewe, yeah.

0:30:54 > 0:30:56I don't think there was any official handover from Dad

0:30:56 > 0:30:57and myself on the farm.

0:30:57 > 0:31:01I'm very lucky in that he let me start buying stock when I was 17,

0:31:01 > 0:31:05and just gradually over the years, I've done more and more.

0:31:05 > 0:31:09We probably need to up the feed a bit or change it a bit, maybe some new rolls.

0:31:09 > 0:31:13I do give John the benefit of my wisdom.

0:31:13 > 0:31:15He sometimes listens, not very often.

0:31:15 > 0:31:20Don't give them more than they're getting at the moment - that would give them a balanced ration.

0:31:20 > 0:31:22Now and again he's utterly wrong not to listen,

0:31:22 > 0:31:25but that's the way of things.

0:31:25 > 0:31:27I'm quite pleased with them.

0:31:27 > 0:31:31- I just hope you are too. - No, no, they're decent.

0:31:33 > 0:31:37Affection for their animals is something our farming families share.

0:31:39 > 0:31:43But farming is a business,

0:31:43 > 0:31:47and for money to come in, animals also have to leave the farm.

0:31:48 > 0:31:52John is sending 420 of last year's lambs to the abattoir.

0:31:57 > 0:31:59There is a degree of sadness

0:31:59 > 0:32:03because you've spent time with those animals over the weeks and months.

0:32:09 > 0:32:12More so when it's an individual animal, for example,

0:32:12 > 0:32:17an old stock bull or an old stock tup that's been here for years.

0:32:19 > 0:32:22For example, we had an old ram went away last week,

0:32:22 > 0:32:25he'd been here for five or six years, he'd done a really good job.

0:32:25 > 0:32:27And it was sad to see him go.

0:32:30 > 0:32:33I've certainly shed tears on several occasions,

0:32:33 > 0:32:35I'm sure many farmers have done.

0:32:35 > 0:32:37You do get attached to animals.

0:32:37 > 0:32:39It's just farming.

0:32:39 > 0:32:41You've just got to deal with it.

0:32:47 > 0:32:51John hopes to be able to pass the farm onto his own children,

0:32:51 > 0:32:53as his father passed it to him.

0:32:53 > 0:32:56But working out what the future of the farm will be

0:32:56 > 0:33:00can be financially and emotionally challenging.

0:33:00 > 0:33:05There's always a debate surrounding handing the family farm on and how you do it.

0:33:05 > 0:33:08If you've got three or four kids, do you give it to one? Do you make it fair?

0:33:08 > 0:33:11Do you give it to the boys, not the girls?

0:33:11 > 0:33:15It's always an interesting topic of discussion.

0:33:15 > 0:33:18It can be a real source of fall-outs in families.

0:33:18 > 0:33:22But I think the key is getting the kids involved early

0:33:22 > 0:33:25so they buy into what we're trying to do

0:33:25 > 0:33:27and where we're trying to get to.

0:33:27 > 0:33:32And for John, a future without Scotts on this farm would be unimaginable.

0:33:33 > 0:33:36When you ask farmers about the next generation

0:33:36 > 0:33:40and whether they want their kids to follow them into farming,

0:33:40 > 0:33:43most of them will say, "Oh, as long as they're happy,

0:33:43 > 0:33:46"as long as they do what they want to do and live their lives, that'll be fine."

0:33:46 > 0:33:48That's absolute rubbish.

0:33:48 > 0:33:51Most farmers would be delighted if their children followed them

0:33:51 > 0:33:55into the industry, and I am definitely in that camp.

0:33:55 > 0:34:00I'd love to set all my children up with farms if they're keen to farm,

0:34:00 > 0:34:03but it's going to be a big challenge, but we'll have a go.

0:34:14 > 0:34:17No farm is complete without its sheepdog.

0:34:19 > 0:34:24The dogs come in all shapes and sizes, but the job is the same -

0:34:24 > 0:34:30helping the farmer to gather and move the sheep in a flock.

0:34:33 > 0:34:37The sheepdog is the shepherd's essential partner.

0:34:37 > 0:34:41I can't help feeling that I won't cut the mustard as a farmer

0:34:41 > 0:34:43until I have a sheepdog on my heel.

0:34:46 > 0:34:50A year ago I bought a Welsh sheepdog with the idea of training her

0:34:50 > 0:34:52for work, but I very quickly realised

0:34:52 > 0:34:55that I knew absolutely nothing about training a working dog.

0:34:55 > 0:34:58So I've been getting some help from someone who does,

0:34:58 > 0:35:01and I'm on my way to see how my little dog, Teg, is getting on.

0:35:02 > 0:35:07Teg has been away for the last six weeks learning how to manage sheep

0:35:07 > 0:35:10under the expert tutelage of Adeline Jones.

0:35:12 > 0:35:16I'm desperate to see her, and to find out how she's been getting on.

0:35:16 > 0:35:17Hi!

0:35:17 > 0:35:20Hello, my pretty girl.

0:35:20 > 0:35:24Hello. It's lovely to see you. And lovely to see my dog.

0:35:24 > 0:35:27Are you going to do a bit of showing off?

0:35:27 > 0:35:31Well, no, I don't do showing off. She can do the showing off.

0:35:31 > 0:35:32Come on, Teg.

0:35:35 > 0:35:39When I last saw Teg, she was far too boisterous to control the sheep.

0:35:42 > 0:35:43Come by.

0:35:43 > 0:35:45Now she's going to be a bit excited to start with.

0:35:45 > 0:35:48Teg, steady!

0:35:49 > 0:35:54- Come by.- The instructions "come by" and "away"

0:35:54 > 0:35:58ask Teg to move clockwise or anticlockwise around the flock.

0:35:58 > 0:36:02Teg, come by. That's it. There.

0:36:03 > 0:36:07There's been a huge change in my little dog.

0:36:07 > 0:36:11Come by. Teg, come by.

0:36:11 > 0:36:17She's hanging on Adeline's every word, responding to commands.

0:36:19 > 0:36:21Good girl.

0:36:21 > 0:36:25And between them, they have the flock just where they want them.

0:36:25 > 0:36:30It's just the most wonderful thing to watch.

0:36:33 > 0:36:36I feel like a ridiculously proud parent.

0:36:41 > 0:36:43I can't believe that's my dog.

0:36:45 > 0:36:48You're doing very well, but I don't think you're supposed to be here.

0:36:48 > 0:36:50You're supposed to be working.

0:36:52 > 0:36:55Teg is starting to look like a proper sheepdog.

0:36:55 > 0:36:59Now it's me that needs some training.

0:36:59 > 0:37:02So that hand gesture is to send her back round...

0:37:02 > 0:37:07That hand gesture is to tell her that she's coming a bit close and I want her down there.

0:37:08 > 0:37:11With you, she seems to know exactly what you're after,

0:37:11 > 0:37:15and that's going to be my big challenge,

0:37:15 > 0:37:19being able to inspire that confidence.

0:37:19 > 0:37:24My aim with her is to get her to a position where she can teach you.

0:37:24 > 0:37:27Hopefully, she'll teach you and I won't need to do much of it.

0:37:31 > 0:37:34Well, let's see. I hope I'm as good a pupil as Teg.

0:37:34 > 0:37:38- She knows where she's going. - She does indeed.

0:37:38 > 0:37:43Now the job today is to get these ewe lambs that need to come in.

0:37:43 > 0:37:46All right. Shall we try, Teg?

0:37:46 > 0:37:49Come on, then.

0:37:51 > 0:37:54I have to get Teg to drive these sheep up the field,

0:37:54 > 0:37:58through a gate and down the road.

0:37:58 > 0:38:00Steady, Teg. Go steady.

0:38:02 > 0:38:06I'm having to think hard about every word and gesture.

0:38:08 > 0:38:10I'm slightly out of control.

0:38:15 > 0:38:18It all looked so simple when Adeline was in charge.

0:38:21 > 0:38:24Thank goodness Teg knows where she's going.

0:38:24 > 0:38:25That'll do, Teg.

0:38:29 > 0:38:31Good girl.

0:38:31 > 0:38:34Teg is utterly transformed.

0:38:35 > 0:38:38I'm so proud of my little dog!

0:38:38 > 0:38:44She's just walking beautifully behind the sheep, keeping them all together.

0:38:47 > 0:38:52Now she's keeping them calmly together, waiting for me.

0:38:54 > 0:38:58Poor little dog - she's going to spend her life waiting for me.

0:39:01 > 0:39:07It's so fantastic having a working dog and seeing her work.

0:39:07 > 0:39:12- That's what it's all about.- That is what it's all about. Thank you.

0:39:12 > 0:39:13I can't thank you enough.

0:39:14 > 0:39:20Teg, stop working, come here. You are a very good girl.

0:39:29 > 0:39:31For all the farming families I've met,

0:39:31 > 0:39:34producing quality animals is a matter of pride.

0:39:38 > 0:39:40Roderick Runciman is a pedigree breeder

0:39:40 > 0:39:45with a reputation for producing some of the very best Cheviot sheep.

0:39:45 > 0:39:47They looked well in the ring.

0:39:47 > 0:39:50They've got breeding coming out of their heads.

0:39:50 > 0:39:54Roderick and his family live on just over 1,000 upland acres

0:39:54 > 0:39:56near Galashiels in the Scottish borders.

0:40:01 > 0:40:02I'm Roderick Runciman.

0:40:02 > 0:40:05I live here at Allanshaws with my wife, Amanda,

0:40:05 > 0:40:07and my two kids, Lewis and Libby.

0:40:10 > 0:40:15Roderick insists on doing almost all the jobs on the farm himself.

0:40:15 > 0:40:18Something that's not gone unnoticed by wife, Amanda.

0:40:21 > 0:40:25My granny told me and my mother not to marry a farmer.

0:40:25 > 0:40:27So we didn't really listen to her, did we?

0:40:31 > 0:40:34You can't choose who you fall in love with, can you?

0:40:35 > 0:40:41They're always out working and the farm comes first and you're second,

0:40:41 > 0:40:45third or fourth depending on how many children you have.

0:40:46 > 0:40:50If you work with the sheep yourself and the job's not done right,

0:40:50 > 0:40:52you've only one person to blame.

0:40:52 > 0:40:55It's up to you how good you want to do the job

0:40:55 > 0:40:56or how well you want to do the job.

0:40:58 > 0:41:00I'm bloody useless on a tractor.

0:41:00 > 0:41:02I am, honestly - shocking!

0:41:05 > 0:41:08I do enjoy working on my own.

0:41:08 > 0:41:11I probably don't trust anyone else to look after the sheep, like.

0:41:15 > 0:41:18Although he has devised the odd labour-saving device

0:41:18 > 0:41:20to make his life easier.

0:41:24 > 0:41:31This is my snacker for feeding the sheep inside to save carrying

0:41:31 > 0:41:33bags of feed along the sheep shed,

0:41:33 > 0:41:38which is a long way, 180 feet, with a bag of feed on your back.

0:41:39 > 0:41:43His flock of Cheviot ewes are expecting 1,500 lambs,

0:41:43 > 0:41:46so Roderick is treating them to a bit of TLC.

0:41:46 > 0:41:49That's a tremendous view when you look up the shed

0:41:49 > 0:41:52and see all the heads out eating and feeding.

0:41:53 > 0:41:57Pedigree animals like this are the supermodels of the sheep world,

0:41:57 > 0:42:00sold to other farmers as top quality breeding stock.

0:42:03 > 0:42:06You don't learn how to breed sheep, you either know or you don't.

0:42:06 > 0:42:08You either enjoy doing it

0:42:08 > 0:42:13or if you don't enjoy doing it you have to find another profession.

0:42:13 > 0:42:16To the untrained eye, his sheep may all look the same,

0:42:16 > 0:42:20but Roderick is attuned to the tiny variations between them.

0:42:21 > 0:42:25There's a pen of 30 sheep, and every one is different.

0:42:27 > 0:42:32You've got shorter ears, longer ears. Och, they are different.

0:42:32 > 0:42:35You've got wider ears, you've got darker ears.

0:42:35 > 0:42:38But I only know the ones I want to know.

0:42:38 > 0:42:40You've got taller ones, you've got shorter ones.

0:42:40 > 0:42:44The rest get treated the same, you know what I mean?

0:42:48 > 0:42:52Roderick is obsessive about improving his flock.

0:42:54 > 0:42:58You're always wanting to try and breed better sheep,

0:42:58 > 0:43:00and you're always wanting to buy a better sheep

0:43:00 > 0:43:03and also try to sell a better sheep.

0:43:05 > 0:43:08It's a never-ending circle.

0:43:08 > 0:43:10You don't get it right, you need luck.

0:43:11 > 0:43:14When a tup breeds well with your ewes you need luck there,

0:43:14 > 0:43:18you need an eye to see that it could happen,

0:43:18 > 0:43:20but if it does happen, it's also luck.

0:43:22 > 0:43:24He has had more luck than most,

0:43:24 > 0:43:28and has an enviable collection of silverware to prove it.

0:43:28 > 0:43:35These two trophies were for winning the Highland Show in 2013 for the third year in a row.

0:43:35 > 0:43:40These two are the Border Union. Great privilege to win that.

0:43:40 > 0:43:44He puts his heart and soul into it and he does work 24/7

0:43:44 > 0:43:47and he's reaping the rewards of his hard work.

0:43:47 > 0:43:53This is Synton Bullseye, the champion Cheviot at the Highland Show in 2012.

0:43:53 > 0:43:58In 2009, I won female champion and reserve

0:43:58 > 0:44:01and male champion and reserve male champion.

0:44:01 > 0:44:03They say it's the first time it's been done

0:44:03 > 0:44:07in the North Country Cheviot breed to win all four at the Highland Show.

0:44:07 > 0:44:11I'm very proud at the sides, clapping and everything.

0:44:11 > 0:44:13No, it's good. It is good.

0:44:14 > 0:44:18Last year's Highland Show winning ewe is a much-loved member of his flock.

0:44:20 > 0:44:21This is Pam.

0:44:21 > 0:44:25She's got the character that folk look for in a show ring.

0:44:26 > 0:44:31Beautiful hair. Ach, it's great winning the Highland Show.

0:44:31 > 0:44:33It's amazing.

0:44:33 > 0:44:37To win there is the pinnacle, like, it's tremendous

0:44:37 > 0:44:41because it's the whole of Scotland, it's the whole of Britain in fact.

0:44:41 > 0:44:45And the quality sheep in Scotland are just second to none.

0:44:47 > 0:44:51I got asked to meet the Queen, and this is me meeting the Queen.

0:44:51 > 0:44:54And she says it was a great honour to meet me.

0:44:57 > 0:45:00A great honour to meet me!

0:45:07 > 0:45:11Whether they're breeding sheep as pedigrees or for meat production,

0:45:11 > 0:45:15our farmers are united in their love for a particular time of year.

0:45:17 > 0:45:20The best thing about sheep farming for me is lambing time.

0:45:21 > 0:45:24I absolutely adore lambing time.

0:45:24 > 0:45:28Your first lamb that's been born up on its feet next to its mother.

0:45:28 > 0:45:31Skipping or the sheep all lying, chewing the cud.

0:45:33 > 0:45:36Bouncing in the field, and you go out and watch them

0:45:36 > 0:45:38and they're galloping around.

0:45:38 > 0:45:39Absolutely amazing!

0:45:39 > 0:45:43That's one of the most satisfying sights for me.

0:45:43 > 0:45:48I love the business of it, I love the pressure of it. I just love it.

0:45:57 > 0:46:01Back at home, my ten ewes are heavily pregnant.

0:46:04 > 0:46:06But up the road on our farm,

0:46:06 > 0:46:09Tim's are already proudly showing off this year's lambs.

0:46:11 > 0:46:14Oh, my goodness! Suddenly you're overrun!

0:46:22 > 0:46:26So this one was a pair of twins born about four o'clock.

0:46:26 > 0:46:30Early hours in the frost and cold so it's lucky they were in, really.

0:46:32 > 0:46:35Another nice lamb. You're a real cheeky one!

0:46:36 > 0:46:39Good girl. I do love this time of year.

0:46:39 > 0:46:42It's a brilliant time of year. Yeah, it just brightens the day up

0:46:42 > 0:46:44when you've got lambs being born and they're healthy

0:46:44 > 0:46:46and you see them skipping around outside.

0:46:46 > 0:46:48Anything looking close now?

0:46:48 > 0:46:53This one, she's been up and down a bit today, so I'm sort of expecting

0:46:53 > 0:46:56she'll probably lamb later on.

0:46:57 > 0:47:00But lambing time also means long hours

0:47:00 > 0:47:04and extra jobs like bottle-feeding lambs.

0:47:04 > 0:47:08It's the one thing I don't like about lambing.

0:47:08 > 0:47:11Bottle-feeding, I love, but mixing up the milk,

0:47:11 > 0:47:13it's just got the most horrible smell.

0:47:20 > 0:47:22Hang on. We're not going very far.

0:47:22 > 0:47:25This lamb is struggling to find its mother's teats

0:47:25 > 0:47:27and needs a bit of extra help.

0:47:31 > 0:47:33Did a good mix this time, obviously.

0:47:35 > 0:47:41There is something very, very adorable

0:47:41 > 0:47:46about the idea of bottle-feeding a lamb.

0:47:46 > 0:47:48However, when you've got lots of them

0:47:48 > 0:47:53and they all need bottle-feeding a minimum of three times a day

0:47:53 > 0:48:00and they all take ages, it is every farmer's nightmare.

0:48:00 > 0:48:03But I have to confess I still quite like it.

0:48:03 > 0:48:05The novelty hasn't worn off yet.

0:48:08 > 0:48:10This is my fourth lambing season.

0:48:11 > 0:48:13However many times I see it,

0:48:13 > 0:48:17the miracle of new life never loses its power to astonish.

0:48:18 > 0:48:23We've got a ewe in the last stages of labour.

0:48:23 > 0:48:26I think if she lies down, I might go and make sure she's OK.

0:48:29 > 0:48:30Can see her straining there.

0:48:38 > 0:48:43My midwifery skills have improved over the last few years.

0:48:43 > 0:48:46Ooh, that's a big 'un.

0:48:50 > 0:48:54There you go, girl. There you go, girl.

0:49:00 > 0:49:02I just never, ever, ever get bored of that moment.

0:49:04 > 0:49:08There's something just wonderful about a lambing shed.

0:49:08 > 0:49:12I can't really believe that four years ago, five years ago

0:49:12 > 0:49:14I'd never been into a lambing shed,

0:49:14 > 0:49:17and now if somebody said what would my favourite building be,

0:49:17 > 0:49:19I know I should say Westminster Abbey or St Paul's,

0:49:19 > 0:49:22but I'd say this shed right here.

0:49:33 > 0:49:36One lambing shed I'm going to become very familiar with

0:49:36 > 0:49:37is in the Scottish Borders,

0:49:37 > 0:49:43where this family aren't just preparing for lambing,

0:49:43 > 0:49:45but also for our cameras.

0:49:46 > 0:49:49The Dykes are this year's Lambing Live family,

0:49:49 > 0:49:51and over the next week, they'll be sharing the highs

0:49:51 > 0:49:54and lows of their lambing season with us.

0:49:56 > 0:49:59Hamish and Susie both work full-time on the farm,

0:49:59 > 0:50:01wrangling their sheep and cattle together.

0:50:06 > 0:50:10Hamish's dad John has taken a back seat after years in charge.

0:50:11 > 0:50:16Today, he and Mum Kate breed Highland ponies.

0:50:18 > 0:50:20That's a good boy.

0:50:22 > 0:50:26Children Rosie and Murdo love living here.

0:50:26 > 0:50:28Hello.

0:50:28 > 0:50:31Well, we're going to put the ferrets into the garden

0:50:31 > 0:50:33and see what they think of snow.

0:50:33 > 0:50:39- But they currently prefer ferrets to farming.- No, no!

0:50:46 > 0:50:50But it's the Dykes' sheep which will be the stars of our show

0:50:50 > 0:50:53during Lambing Live. 1,000 of them are pregnant

0:50:53 > 0:50:56and due to lamb in March and April.

0:50:57 > 0:51:00Susie is diligently looking after them

0:51:00 > 0:51:03and is responsible for supplying meals on wheels.

0:51:09 > 0:51:15She delivers the expectant ewes their breakfast and dinner,

0:51:15 > 0:51:16whatever the weather.

0:51:20 > 0:51:25Well, I think Susie's new job title is sheep feeding technician.

0:51:26 > 0:51:28Frozen, absolutely frozen.

0:51:29 > 0:51:31My fingers are numb and I can't feel my toes.

0:51:33 > 0:51:36I had to check up the wages schedule to find out how much it would

0:51:36 > 0:51:39cost me, but I think that was the lowest one I could find.

0:51:42 > 0:51:44Apparently, there's no such thing as bad weather,

0:51:44 > 0:51:46just inappropriate clothing.

0:51:48 > 0:51:53I'll have to ask the boss if I can get some new thermals, I think.

0:51:53 > 0:51:55These ewes are on a special diet

0:51:55 > 0:51:58depending on how many lambs they're expecting.

0:51:58 > 0:52:02Nutrition could make the difference between a good lambing season

0:52:02 > 0:52:05and a disastrous one for Hamish and Susie.

0:52:06 > 0:52:08Sheep, if you overfeed them,

0:52:08 > 0:52:10and they're only carrying one lamb,

0:52:10 > 0:52:13you can have horrendous bother at lambing time -

0:52:13 > 0:52:17the lamb would be enormous, and very difficult birth,

0:52:17 > 0:52:21so we have to be careful what we feed who

0:52:21 > 0:52:24and we have them all in different batches.

0:52:44 > 0:52:48Like our other farming families, the Dykes are wedded to this

0:52:48 > 0:52:51patch of land and the lifestyle it provides them with.

0:52:54 > 0:52:59The openness of this view, and it is beautiful, this open vista...

0:52:59 > 0:53:00It doesn't matter about the weather,

0:53:00 > 0:53:02if it's a nice day or a rotten day,

0:53:02 > 0:53:07if the wind's getting you in the face and it's hailing up your nose, it's still just a lovely spot.

0:53:10 > 0:53:14It's not just a job you go to in the morning and come home at night.

0:53:14 > 0:53:18This is our life and, yes, we're working maybe longer hours

0:53:18 > 0:53:19than some people might.

0:53:19 > 0:53:23But views like this, whether it's raining, snowing, sunny or warm,

0:53:23 > 0:53:25it doesn't matter.

0:53:31 > 0:53:35Maybe I own the farm but I don't regard it as owning it as such.

0:53:35 > 0:53:37I'm here for a short time

0:53:37 > 0:53:40and I have the duty of care to look after it and then pass it on.

0:53:42 > 0:53:45When you consider all the people who've been here before

0:53:45 > 0:53:51and the things they've done, it is a privilege to have that opportunity.

0:53:58 > 0:54:01The Dykes began thinking about lambing five months ago,

0:54:01 > 0:54:03when the ewes got pregnant.

0:54:05 > 0:54:08Soon they'll see the results of all their hard work.

0:54:10 > 0:54:12They have a long list of jobs still to do

0:54:12 > 0:54:15before they're ready for lambs, and the Lambing Live cameras.

0:54:17 > 0:54:21As soon as you turn that corner into January and you start counting it

0:54:21 > 0:54:27down almost to lambing time and it's very obvious it's round the corner.

0:54:27 > 0:54:30All of a sudden you're into March and yes, the ewes are starting

0:54:30 > 0:54:33to get big and heavy and their udders are growing,

0:54:33 > 0:54:37so lambing time does come round very quickly at the start of the year.

0:54:37 > 0:54:39You start to prepare your sheds and your fields

0:54:39 > 0:54:42and make sure the environment

0:54:42 > 0:54:44and everything else is correct for when the sheep do start lambing.

0:54:46 > 0:54:52Hamish is turning one of his sheds into an antenatal ward for his expectant ewes.

0:54:52 > 0:54:55Today, we've just emptied this shed out of all the rubbish that

0:54:55 > 0:54:58was in here in preparation for the sheep coming in, so putting

0:54:58 > 0:55:02down the straw, sheep are probably better off in here for a wee while.

0:55:03 > 0:55:07Normally, Hamish's sheep live outside year-round.

0:55:07 > 0:55:11But this year's terrible weather conditions have meant a change of plan.

0:55:11 > 0:55:14This is the reason we're bringing them in.

0:55:15 > 0:55:18This is where I find out I've got holes in my wellies!

0:55:18 > 0:55:21The sheep would not do very well in this - they would just get wet

0:55:21 > 0:55:24and miserable and get diseases.

0:55:24 > 0:55:28They certainly wouldn't thrive and produce nice lambs.

0:55:28 > 0:55:29Can I come back out?

0:55:32 > 0:55:34The sheep need to come inside.

0:55:34 > 0:55:38But first Hamish has to finish building their indoor feeding stations.

0:55:40 > 0:55:45It's useful to be a handyman as well as a stockman when you're a farmer.

0:55:46 > 0:55:50I do like building things that are going to make my life easier.

0:55:50 > 0:55:53Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't.

0:55:55 > 0:55:58The feeders are installed in the maternity shed

0:55:58 > 0:56:01and it's ready for its new occupants.

0:56:05 > 0:56:07John is bringing the pregnant ewes off the hills,

0:56:07 > 0:56:10and into their warm indoor accommodation.

0:56:12 > 0:56:16Today, we're getting the ewes inside.

0:56:16 > 0:56:19With things getting so wet, it's difficult feeding them.

0:56:21 > 0:56:24A bit kinder to them, keep them in good condition.

0:56:25 > 0:56:28The Dykes have done all they can to make sure the sheep

0:56:28 > 0:56:32are comfortable, healthy and well prepared for impending motherhood.

0:56:34 > 0:56:36Can you stop the sheep going down the road, please?

0:56:40 > 0:56:44We're going to stop the sheep coming up here. Here they come now.

0:57:05 > 0:57:08Not that keen to go in, are they?

0:57:12 > 0:57:14There we go.

0:57:14 > 0:57:16Come on, ladies.

0:57:16 > 0:57:19It's quite a heavy gate, this one.

0:57:19 > 0:57:24It is quite heavy. It's a good job I had my porridge this morning.

0:57:25 > 0:57:29The feeders Hamish designed and built seem to meet with approval.

0:57:29 > 0:57:32Look at that! Perfect height.

0:57:32 > 0:57:36Don't show people that. I need to get a patent on it first.

0:57:38 > 0:57:40Now the sheep are feeding themselves,

0:57:40 > 0:57:44Susie's role as sheep feeding technician is redundant.

0:57:44 > 0:57:46We'll find another title for her, I think.

0:57:46 > 0:57:49Another job, I think you'll find for me.

0:57:49 > 0:57:53Yeah, she could be the farmer feeding technician, perhaps.

0:57:56 > 0:58:00This barn is about to become our Lambing Live studio.

0:58:00 > 0:58:03The sheep and their lambs may not know it,

0:58:03 > 0:58:05but they will be the stars of our show.

0:58:07 > 0:58:10It's going to be quite rewarding to be able to show people

0:58:10 > 0:58:12what we do on a daily basis.

0:58:13 > 0:58:16I hope we live up to their expectations

0:58:16 > 0:58:20and portray this farming community in a good light.

0:58:22 > 0:58:26From Tuesday night we'll be watching the Dykes' flock 24 hours a day.

0:58:28 > 0:58:33We'll bring you all the drama of spring's most exciting event.

0:58:33 > 0:58:37So, join us for Lambing Live 2014.