[Bramblecot]

You won't regret getting Shetlands - lovely little sheep .  Great for the kids to learn handle too.

[Jon Feather]

Absolutely lovely sheep and the grandchildren love feeding them but I'm supposed to be taking the weathers to be butched when they are ready.

[SallyintNorth]

If you keep the wethers until next spring, there'll be the new lambs to take everyone's minds off the older boys going away

[Anke]

Shetland meat is at its best at around 18 months.... not enough of it this autumn and if only fed hay through the winter and then left to grow until mid to late summer on good grass, they will be really good...

[Jon Feather]

They have plenty of mixed grass and herbage at the moment, plus a few handfuls of Furness (our local feed supplier) course calf and lamb mix.  Ill get some hay in towards the back end.  What is the normal amount to give them in the winter?

[SallyintNorth]

We normally say one small (25kg) square bale of hay feeds 40 commercial sheep for a day, outside. 

I do find that my primitives really can eat in winter!  So from assuming that what 40 girt Texels and Mules need should feed 60 primitives, I'm now of the opinion that the primitives will eat at least as much as the commercials - more if you let them.

I spoil mine rotten, so I can't tell you what they can 'manage' on 

[Anke]

My Shetland do NOT get any hard feed in winter - except if a) they are in lamb AND b )the snow cover is too thick for them to scratch through it. From Xmas onwards (or earlier if really cold spell) I fill hayracks in the morning, and do not refill until next morning. They will usually still graze well. I will feed pregnant ewes in the last 4 weeks before lambing, but not huge amounts. Non-breeding animals don't get any hard feed - at all (except when I need to catch them for any treatment)

Last winter my lot went through about a small bale per day (around 40 sheep). I did not need to give any hard feed as we really did not have any snow.

They all lambed easily outside in mid-April, and I sold some shearlings at market for quite a good prize in the summer.

But I normally have quite ok grass.

[Jon Feather]

Sounds like feeding shetlands is an expensive business.  We have 10, so I make that just over a small bale a week.  £3.50 a bale is the going rate.
Not much profit in sheep is there.
Glad Im thinking of getting in some day old geese next year.

[Anke]

Not much profit.... NONE whatsoever!

But really good meat, fleeces and easy-maintenance sheep! And they do keep the grass down and are a lot more picturesque than a ride-on lawn mower...

[SallyintNorth]

Sounds like feeding shetlands is an expensive business.  We have 10, so I make that just over a small bale a week.  £3.50 a bale is the going rate.
Not much profit in sheep is there.
Glad Im thinking of getting in some day old geese next year.

5p per sheep per day, and just for the winter-time - you probably won't need to start giving them hay before January, and likely the grass will be good enough that they'll stop eating hay in March sometime.

[Jon Feather]

Well that's a relief.
Only Jan to March.

[Kimbo]

Did you think you would make a profit Jon?

[crofterswife]

We decided we both work to keep our sheep in the manner to which they are accustomed.

[Jon Feather]

Did you think you would make a profit Jon?

Not really.  We plan to breed up to about 15 pure shetlands ewes, then put them to Llryns for a bigger lamb.  We might make a quid or two then.