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Moilliets’ ranch begins lambing

With 500 ewes it is a full family operation to help with the deliveries
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One-year-old Kelsey Rexin cuddles a newborn lamb during a recent visit to Moilliet's Aveley sheep ranch near Vavenby.

Lambing began in April at the Aveley Sheep Ranch. With 500 ewes it is a full family operation to help with the deliveries. Sixty ewes have already lambed! Large animals have a more accurate gestation period so Ian Moilliet has the ewes join the rams on Nov. 5 for two months to breed. That way the ewes will drop in April.

People can go on self-guided tours of the ranch. The cost is $12/person. Children two and under are free. The $12 includes a hayride which starts up every two hours. People might see a lamb being born, cuddle an orphan, see the chicks, and go to Crooked Creek for boat races. Fay Lutz will be hand spinning wool in the museum from Thursdays to Sundays. Wool products will be for sale. Everyone should read the signs at the gazebo where you pay.

 

Vavenby water system gets upgrades

Work was done on the Vavenby pump-house on April 4 and 5 by TNRD worker Ken Nystoruk and an assistant. They replaced the headworks piping inside the pump-house on the water system. The primary reason for the improvement was to change the chlorine injection point for compliance purposes and to improve troubleshooting and maintenance needs.

The old system injected chlorine into the wet well outside of the building and had underground lines that did not easily facilitate inspection or maintenance. Also, any maintenance needed inside the wet well would require Confined Space Entry procedures. This will not be required for the new inspection system.

The new chlorine injection point will now be inside the building just a few feet away from the chlorine injection pump and will enable the Vavenby water operators to check all the components at once and easily perform any maintenance on those needing it.

This upgrade has been planned for some time and includes a few other minor benefits that should improve the efficiency and help stabilize the water system.

After working on the system Vavenby went on a boil water notice until further notice.