Move over Kate Humble. Most of us have seen lambs being delivered from the comfort of our TV screens but SSE’s Ruth Liddicoat proved she could go one better.
Ruth is a Liaison Officer on Major Projects including Strathy North wind farm and responsible for working with local communities. So what better way to experience a proper taste of rural life than to spend a day lambing?
Farmer Joyce Campbell is one of Scotland’s leading sheep farmers and is well known for her quality breed of Cheviot sheep. Joyce has over 800 ewes to look after on her 5,500 acre Armadale Estate and was only too happy to have another pair of hands during the busy lambing season.
Ruth took her time on the farm as a day’s holiday, but the experience proved anything but relaxing. “I’m amazed by the long hours farmers put in,” she explained.
“I initially offered to start at 7am, thinking this was nice and early, but in fact their day starts at 5am. I was keen to experience a proper day’s lambing, so I started with Joyce and husband Ian at 5am.
“They had already been up for a while helping a ewe out in the fields with a difficult delivery, so I think they were pleased that I was prepared to get so hands on. A few minutes later I'd delivered my first lamb with Ian which thankfully was a very straightforward birth.”
But things soon took a different turn as Ruth experienced the real challenges of lambing.
Ruth adds: “Later that morning I was shoulder to shoulder with Joyce helping with a much more difficult birth - as I held the ewe on its side I watched Joyce quickly assess the situation and carefully and skilfully deliver the lamb.
“That was a moment which will stay with me for a long time as without Joyce’s experience and skill, the lamb wouldn’t have made it, and it was literally life or death for the lamb within those few minutes.
“They named the lamb 'Ruth' after me which I was really touched with, and I now get regular updates on her progress.”
Would she do it again? “Yes”, says Ruth. “It was a very rewarding day and a huge privilege to be there. I now take a much greater interest in her fields when I'm out and about in Armadale, and I am hoping to head back next year to give them a hand.”