Gaston came to our farm as a yearling ram. Feisty and strong, he spent the first part of his life being pampered and raised for fairs and other sheep shows. His short time as a show ram has greatly shaped his disposition today.
Gaston all gussied up at the State Fair before he was apart of Whinmont.
Gaston was our first ram, and we did not have a name for him for quite some time. For a long time he was simply referred to as Ram, since nothing we came up with seemed to capture all that he was. He's a diva of shorts, insisting that he be pet first, knocking any ewe out of the way for attention. But he is also a bully, strong, and willing to take you down at any moment. He defines the word Ram, constantly ramming his head on the gate if you turn your back or if he does not get his way. He prances around like the show animal he is only to turn and flex his head strength.
Don't be fooled, he is cute, but he is DANGEROUS
Then it came to us one night. Gaston, as in the chauvinist from the Disney movie Beauty and the Beast.
It stuck. He demands all the ladies love him, he demands we all tell him he is beautiful, and if we don't, he'll try and murder you.
Please be aware: We pet and work with him but we never underestimate his power. Rams are very dangerous, even friendly rams. Never turn your back on a ram, or let children play in a pasture or pen where a ram is. Hitting a ram on the head does not discourage ramming instincts; in fact it does the opposite and encourages it. What makes Gaston easier to work with is that he was halter broken as lamb, he is patient when we safely put a halter on from outside his pen and tie him up, then we can enter his pen if he needs work.