The Accidental Smallholder Forum
Community => Introduce yourself => Topic started by: 3033split on November 05, 2013, 07:39:20 pm
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Hi All,
I stumbled across the website while searching for details on keeping a few sheep or something else to act as lawnmower.
Firstly may I say the site looks great and will hopefully give me most of the answers I am looking for.
What I am trying to find is a four legged friend or friends to keep my grass down on a piece of land behind my house which is about the size of a football pitch.I have been mowing it,but now may be thinking on the lines of a few sheep or something else to keep it in trim.
Any suggestions or ideas welcome
Cheers
Neil.
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Hello and welcome from Carnoustie :wave:
Sheep are better lawnmowers than goats or cattle - but you'll need three to make a flock. Geese might be another alternative though :-)
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Hello from Cambridgeshire :wave:
I should recommend a traditional cob :horse:! But best lawnmowers are sheep and alpacas, just have to be kept as herd.
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:wave: and welcome from soggy Shropshire. In view of my name I should be recommending goats but I think sheep would be best. Get a few, breed from them and you'll have a freezer full of lamb as well as a well-mowed paddock.
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Hi from devon. Ditto what's been said already. Great site, a godsend on so many occasions
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:wave: :wave: ...not got any live stock now, although I did have chickens and a pair of ducks, as we are selling we only have our dogs now, we used to live in Woodhouse Eaves until we moved up here 7 years this coming Jan, here is Central Scotland and we love it!!
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Sheep are very efficient grazers but make sure you have fencing of some kind around the land or a portion of it. Some breeds are more biddable than others so do some research. A bucket trained breed would be your best bet as you're only wanting a few. You'll need feed in wintertime for your beasties to stay well and warm-just some good quality hay/haylage-as the grass doesn't have much good in it at this time of year. They'll still munch the grass though. Suit your sheep to the type of land you have too. Some have foot problems on clay for instance. You want something that you'll like keeping most of all. We'll all tell you our breed is the best ;D .