The Accidental Smallholder Forum

Livestock => Sheep => Topic started by: OhLaLa on March 29, 2012, 01:17:39 pm

Title: How long before all the ewes can go back in together?
Post by: OhLaLa on March 29, 2012, 01:17:39 pm

I have the ewes with lambs at foot in one field. And all the ewes with no lambs this year in another. No ram.

How old should the lambs be before they and their Mums can all mix together with the 'barren' ewes? Is there any particular way I should go about it?

I also have a couple of 'orphan' lambs which I have taken on, and as such they have no Ma to look after them. Is there anything I need to sort out for them?

Thanks in advance.

 :farmer:  :sheep:

Title: Re: How long before all the ewes can go back in together?
Post by: Mel Rice on March 29, 2012, 03:38:34 pm

I have only a tiny flock....two ewes with two lambs each and last years two lambs One pair a month older but still smaller than the second pair. (the only boy is one of the younger lambs)

They are housed over winter alongside each other in the barn and now they go out during the day and in at night. There is not enough grass yet for them to be out all the time, its only just started growing.

ther has been no problem for me running them all together .

Title: Re: How long before all the ewes can go back in together?
Post by: Rosemary on March 29, 2012, 05:35:29 pm

I run my ewe hoggs, which aren't in lamb, with my in-lamb ewes.

As ewes lamb, they go from the lambing shed to a fresh field that hasn't had sheep on for months. As they go out, they are wormed, fluked, spot-on, feet and bums done. As I had one ewe lamb early, I gave two of the ewe hoggs their "makeover" at the same time as the lambed ewe and put the three of them, and the lamb, into the nursery field so Jinx wasn't on her own.

The other two ewe hoggs are with the in-lamb ewes and will stay there until the last one lambs, then all three will go to the nursery field.

The ewe hoggs seem to like the lambs and the lambs like the hoggs, so it seems to work OK.