TROUPEAU DE MOUTONS

 

 

 

 

Avec des chevres (with some goats). And yes, they are a troop, as you can see from this sign:

 

This particular troopeau consisted of about 100-200 sheep + a few goats, and were less than a kilometer from my house on the back road I take to the village of Mazan. I was so astonished I had to take a photo or two. They do not live around here, the fields where the photos were taken are fallow or in vines. I've never seen a herd of sheep around here.

 

Here is the shepherd and his dogs. He is wearing the official shepherd outfit with black broadbrimmed hat and carrying a stick. He was a fairly young man.  At this stage of the meal the sheep were on both sides of the road.

This is the group on the other side of the road. Really a lot of sheep. I couldn't tell if they were wool sheep or food sheep, or I suppose both. I saw no younger looking sheep, they were all quite similar in size.  

 

I would have liked to know how he got them here. Not in a truck, too many. They had to have walked here, which would involve crossing numerous roads and going through areas with quite a lot of houses. I will try to remember to ask some of the local people if they know anything about it. I felt like I had driven into another century.