The Accidental Smallholder Forum
Livestock => Sheep => Topic started by: Cjnewton82 on November 10, 2013, 02:36:23 pm
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I'm going to buy in ten sheep hurdles 6ft long but how high should they be 3ft or 4ft?? Just going to use them for checking the sheep foot trimming dreaching etc.
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My Shetlands are good jumpers but haven't jumped over the standard 3ft hurdles so I would say they are ok. The trouble with the taller ones is that you can't lean over them which can be a pain, plus they cost more. Might be useful for a semi permanent race if you fit a gate into it tho.
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Depends on your breed of sheep. If its a lowland breed 3ft is fine, but if they are a highland or primitive breed 4ft would be safer. Also depends how you handle them, keep them calm and confined close, your ok, but scare them or make them panic and they could be off to the hills!
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Think ours are 3 ft and that's for Soay. Know they could clear them if they had a mind but as thenovice says we keep everything nice and calm and our daughter makes a good collie guarding the end they are more likely to escape from. Also as small an area as possible ..... less likely to run and jump when there's less space.
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I keep Castlemilk Moorits and made my own hurdles to handle them. They are 3 feet high and the sheep don't attempt to get over them. I pinched the design from Tim Tyne's book.
Regards, David
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Only ever used 3ft don't fancy climbing over a four foot