The Accidental Smallholder Forum
Livestock => Sheep => Topic started by: PaulM on October 02, 2011, 08:21:03 pm
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I've been offered a few acres to rent on Hampshire/Wiltshire border for a smallish fee.Previously the field has just been used for hay etc. It has no buildings. I've always wanted to keep sheep but I can't afford to do it as an expensive hobby. Can I keep a few sheep and at least break even or ideally make a profit? I haven't decided on a breed yet but don't want anything too high maintenance,so I would welcome any recommendations, especially if anyone has a flock nearby that could help me start or has a ram for hire etc.I would prefer a UK rare/minority breed.
I am trying to cost out all the factors so I don't bite off more than I can chew financially, so any figures people can share as a guide for initial outlay, vet bills, food costs other than grass, etc would be gratefully appreciated. Also what can I expect to get back if I breed for meat or stock?( I know this will depend on breed etc)
I have ordered some books from amazon to help me,as this is something I really want to do, but I also want to do it well and with very limited means.
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There are so many variables as to prices, sheep etc. all I will say is watch out because sheep are very addictive
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If you cost in all the equipment you find you need, plus tagging costs, transport etc then I think the aim has to be to get the ones you sell to cover all their own costs and also the costs of the ones you eat yourselves. Profit beyond that is tough with a small flock I think.
Unregistered primitive breeds are cheap and some eg shetland fairly readily available. I have paid as little as £35 for in lamb older ewes and £25 for shearling gimmers (young ewes ready to go to the ram (tup). The downside is that primitive sheep have the same abbatoir costs but produce less meat. Fine for your own consumption but not as commercial. But flavour is far better.
Bear in mind that any that require vet visit plus treatment will wipe out their own value pretty much in one go at this kind of level of price. Mine get full treatment and nursing if they get sick, but if its something that will affect lamb raising ability will then be sent off for the chop next time I go unless it's something that is minor or shouldnt recur.
Prices are very high at the moment for more commercial breeds, mad prices. So if you could get a few primitive-ish sheeep (easy lambing and good mothers) but breed them with a not too big more commercial ram, you might be able to get good prices for the offspring. That might mean getting the loan of a ram. Make sure he isnt too big tho, cos of easy lambing, and also that the ladies are not first time lambers if you go down this route,
I started off with 6 in lamb Shetland ewes and at peak this year had 38 ewes and lambs and a ram! addictive is the right word!
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Get Tim Tyne's book - all you need to know, maybe not so much about profits (or more likely losses) etc, but what is involved in keeping a small(ish) flock.
Also if you don't want to lamb - around here lots of people buy store/breeding lambs (commercial breeds), and then sell them on as breeding gimmers the next autumn. At the moment there seems to be money in it, but it depends on how much you need to feed in winter.
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Not counting land rental or fencing, BH works on a rule of thumb that a store lamb will need £10 spending on it on top of its purchase price. This includes all commissions, levies and transport costs for both the purchase and the sale, any feed, meds, etc. (This is selling the lambs through the ring or deadweight to a supermarket.) You'd be unlucky to lose one or have a large vet bill (if you get one you often get the other too - and then you can add disposal charges to the costs, too) but of course it can happen.
Store lamb prices are very high this year, at these prices you only need to lose one to wipe out any profit and then some.
I've heard now of a few people getting a very decent price for Texel cross lambs out of Shetland ewes. Buyers of such lambs don't care two hoots whether the mum was registered, so that sounds like a good place to start. But for sure they need to be ewes who've lambed before if you're going to put a Texel on them.
If you plan to lamb yourself, you'll need to think about any facilities you may need - you say the field has no buildings, so you would need some sort of field shelter for any problem families and orphan lambs, or be able to move them to somewhere with facilities for them.
Sorry that's all rather random scraps - but hopefully of some use anyway.
Enjoy the planning and choosing - it's an exciting opportunity!
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Its a bad time to be getting into sheep, prices are the highest they have been and holding well.
That said if you bought some cheap primitives and crossed them with something, for instance I cross Shetlands with a North Country Cheviot, then your first crop of lambs would be worth more than the cost of the ewes (if they all reared at least one and barring disasters of course). It would be a year from when they lambed before you could realise that money however, and prices could fall meanwhile.
I was just looking through some old paper work and found a mart docket for 2006 for 6 cross ewes. They made 6.50 each! Now they'd be making 65 each. Everyone is hoping the price remains buoyant but no one has a crystal ball.