The Accidental Smallholder Forum
Livestock => Sheep => Topic started by: Chris H on December 27, 2012, 11:18:32 am
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Bob my ram seems to have a slightly splayed front hoof, he is not limping but the side of the hoof comes out slightly, if that makes sense. I am moving the four ewes he is with on Saturday (hopefully) and this seems the best time for a closer look, whats the best way? I have trimmers and violet spray? also any ideas on how to seperate and move. I need to get the 4 ewes across the lane, down a drive and into the field, only 2 of us newbies and if we open the field gate where they are heading the other sheep will come out :gloomy: :gloomy: any ideas will be most welcome :hug:
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There is a wonderful way of moving sheep one at a time, which causes great amusement to passing townies, and just confirms their perception of countryfolk as sheepsh@??£3$.
One person straddles the shoulders of the sheep and holds it under the chin whilst the other person shoves from behind. That would be one way of moving your ewes, one at a time.
Or you could try halter training them as you go - they should have the idea by the time you get there and it will be useful for next time.
Have they been in that field before? If so, then they may well be happy to lead the way and just walk - maybe you could rope a friend in to open the gate at the last minute. It might work to put some food down for the sheep already in the field to distract them from the open gate.
Another possibility if they will follow a bucket is for one of you to lead with the bucket of food, whilst the other follows to mop up stragglers.
We used to walk our sheep across and along the road, but our traffic is fast so we had to get a couple of neighbours to do traffic control. We would put hurdles right across the road to direct the sheep, but I have a sneaky feeling that is possibly not legal. Once they had done that a couple of times they knew where they were going and would flee and fly across at top speed.
Now we load them into the trailer and tow them.
It sounds as if the ram just needs a normal hoof trim to cut back the overgrown bit, but it's as well to have purple spray there in case there is more of a problem than you think.
To separate out one animal, we would put a spare hurdle across one corner of the catching pen (tied securely top and bottom) so that animal would be safely confined while we concentrated on the others.
You will eventually work out a system which suits you, your land and your animals.
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Thanks fleece wife, I think the straddle method might be best, they are 'new' ewes and have only been in that field. As I hope they are now in lamb I want as little stress as poss! I will see to Bob's feet once they are moved.
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If it aint limping, don't trim it. It only acts as a weak spot and a potential site for rot/scald to enter.
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Have been training myself to the 'not limping no clipping school of thought and have only had the odd one to deal with even with the wet conditions - today I had the first castlemilk moorit with a limp - they come close for a wee feed but only one really likes a fuss - patiently I stood by their trough and managed to catch the ewe who then reared up, I kept hold lost balance and fell backwards and ended up with the ewe on top of me. Quick trim and spray followed and all was well for the ewe but I had a bit of a sore head!!
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How tame/easy to lead are the sheep they are joining?
If easy sheeple I would let them out, turn the newbies out with them and then take the whole lot back en masse ;D
This is the way I do it, but my original girls would follow me anywhere, so I always take them to the new sheep then take them all back again!
I agree with Steve H by the way, if he ain't limping and his foot isn't becoming deformed don't trim especially if the ground is muddy :raining:
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My girls come when I call them :innocent: They do seem to be more like dogs than sheep though, so that's not much help.
Do your new ones come to a bucket? That's probably the easiest way to bring them to the new field, with someone following behind to stop them doubling back again.
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The new girls that need moving come to a bucket or a biscuit, but they are a bit nervous, as I need to tether Bob the ram first this is bound to make them jumpy. I am worried about them getting past us on the lane, then they could head out onto the moor and I will never catch them :'( I suppose I could lead Bob down to the new field and back again, but I am new to the whole procedure. Thanks for the advice on the hoof, now totally confused :-J
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I think the advice not to trim sheeps feet unless they are actually limping came about originally because in larger flocks, which might only be brought in for major events, it seemed a good idea to trim all feet whether they needed it or not and if this was done severely then it would do more harm than good, or might even stir up a problem where there wasn't one before. If the first sheep to be treated had footrot, then the following ones would risk being infected by the foot shears, for example.
In smaller flocks though you can treat feet when you see a problem with an individual animal so the temptation to do the lot every time they are in is less. I suppose whether or not to treat a foot which appears to be out of shape depends on experience and what it's actually like on inspection. The foot you describe sounds to me as if it's overgrown on at least one side - this allows mud and dung to be pushed up between the hoof and the foot, where anaerobic bugs can get to work. With a foot like that, we would trim it back, whether the sheep was limping or not, the idea being to prevent a more severe problem, to catch it early. If your animals are on ground with plenty of rocky bits, then the hoof will be worn down during normal activity so you wouldn't want to intervene. If, like us, you have just soggy grass, then you would be more likely to do something.
As with so many of these situations, the answer depends on your specific circumstances - the choice is yours. I would suggest that you have a look at the foot and make the decision then.
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Fleece wife any chance of you being up for adoption :innocent:
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:roflanim: Actually I think I'm more trouble than I'm worth :innocent: