We have always lived in the "country", but didn't have animals other than domestic pets. When I resigned from my public school teaching job in order to spend more time with our three children and homeschool our nine year old son, we decided to get some sheep to eat down the grass on our two acres. We fell in love with the breed of sheep we had purchased and decided to get a few more. This is our third year breeding and learning about our Jacob Sheep. Everyone in the family loves this life. We now have a Pyrenees Mountain Dog to guard the flock as well as four geese and some laying hens. Our children have learned compassion for animals, some responsibility and the fun of educating and sharing with others about our sheep. My husband is getting into felting the wool fibers and our eventual goal is to create and market products from the wool. It is a lot of work, and yes, plenty of dirt! However, we would not trade this life for the old one. One thing that really helped the first two years was connecting with others with sheep experience. There is a large learning curve when it comes to caring for farm animals, especially ruminants as they have special biological needs and problems. It is very expensive in the beginning with ranch vet calls more frequent, but as you learn routine prevention and care and if you are willing to give vaccinations yourself, the vet will only need to come out for emergencies.
Best Wishes on your venture!
Family Farms make the world a better place*U*
Robin