Hi
I have recently started with sheep and a friend asked me for a rough idea of how much it cost to start up. I thought that I would put together some rough costings for members as a guide for other newbies who might be interested in working out a budget.
The cost of the sheep vary on age, breed, quality and availability and can cost anything between around £90 and £1,000 but for the purpose of this excercise lets say they cost an average of around £100 - £150 per ewe.
Feed varies again depending on the content but a bag of sheep nuts would cost aprox £8.00 a sack.
Hay is £2.50 to £4.00 a bale dependant on quality or if you are able to get it straight off the field.
Mineral licks are roughly £15 a time and there are a number to choose from.
Parasite control in the form of wormer, Click, Crovect etc is available in smaller quantities for those with only a few sheep but works out more expensive per head that way.
0.8Ltrs Crovect £28.00, Click £53, Maggot oil £13, wormer £50
Foot shears £15 and Alamycin spray £6.00
Mains electric shears for shearing, dagging or trimming - £200 or hand shears £25
Rope halter £5.00 or webbing headcollar and lead £12.00. Shepherds crook £15
Hurdles £24 each, Double Hay Rack £20
Plastic bucket £3.00 Rubber skip bucket £8.00 Water trough £55, Feed trough £25,
Other things to consider are,
Fencing materials either permanent or electric,
Bedding materials in case you bring them indoors to lamb etc
Breeding and Lambing products of which there are loads!
Field shelters, Insurance, Vaccinations, Vets fees, Breed society registration, Books, Courses, Butchery, Transportation.......,
If your lucky like me you will have some of the kit already or be clever enough to make or recycle some bits and pieces that you will need.
I hope that you find this helpful and that it hasn't put you off