GLOVER, Vt. (WCAX) – Days-old lambs on a Vermont farm are making history. The Dutch spotted sheep were illegal in the U.S. until 2022, due to lingering restrictions from mad cow disease. MKVT Farm in Glover just welcomed the first flock in the Western Hemisphere.
“‘I’m not sure when something happened in Glover for the first time in the Western Hemisphere. But it’s kind of neat to be a part of something that is going to be historic,” said Mark Rodgers of MKVT Farm.
The historic lambs were months in the making. In December, Rodgers’ surrogate sheep were impregnated with spotted sheep embryos from Great Britain. Last Sunday, the first baby came.
“Very stressful!” Rodgers said. “I didn’t sleep much at night.”
Rodgers’ 9-year-old granddaughter, Addie Webster, guided the surrogate sheep through birth.
“I thought it was cute when all I could see was his feet!” she said.
Then– the first bahhhhh!
“You cover them up with another towel and start with rubbing them to get their blood circulating so they can stay warm,” Webster said.
Reporter Sophia Thomas: What was going through your head when the first baby was born?
Mark Rodgers: It was pretty remarkable. It actually almost didn’t sink in until a few hours later when I saw him walking around that we’d actually done it.
There was plenty of pride to go around.
“No other child can do what I’ve done!” Webster said.
Addie and her grandparents welcomed seven spotted lambs, one sold to a farm in New Jersey.
Aside from their spotty coats, the Netherlands natives are known for their hardy build, strong maternal instincts, grazing thoroughly and fattening quickly.
When grown, the sheep will be bred and sold to farms across Vermont and beyond.
“They’re ideally suited for Vermont but their strength, their maternal abilities, their landing ease, their growth rate, their ability to thrive on grass are all things sheep breeders everywhere were going to be interested in,” Rodgers said.
He hopes his sheep add a new flare to Vermont agriculture.
“We believe that small ruminants have an integral part in Vermont agriculture and New England,” he said.
You can meet this historic flock at an open house in June.