Glensaugh is continuing to de-stock in advance of the onset of winter. Fattening sheep (lambs and cast ewes) are now running on a mixture of forage rape and stubble turnips. A supplement of concentrate feed is also on offer, the aim being to sell as many as possible before Christmas.

This quieter period of the year allows time for maintenance and improvement projects. At the moment we are cutting up scrap wire for disposal to our scrap merchant. It no longer has a value to us as on costs mean that the merchant takes what little margin remains, but we want rid of it nevertheless. Also on the books are the completion of the dry stone dyke between Drive field and the Lodge garden and fabrication of the remaining pair of doors for our new shed.

Our grant application has at last been submitted for formal approval following considerable effort in putting the proposal together. The planning application for the wind turbine project is also coming together, as hurdles like noise and flicker have been overcome. It looks as if all consents could be in place early in 2009, which will be a very busy year if all our projects go ahead.

Javier Perez-Barberia is setting up an interesting experiment on an exposed site overlooking the Slack Den. Two model animals (a sheep and a deer) will be built, containing monitoring equipment to determine heat loss through their skins. The Glensaugh staff recently built a fence round the plot; many quips about how this was to stop the “animals” from escaping, and questions about whose job it would be to feed them at the weekend!