The Accidental Smallholder Forum
Livestock => Sheep => Topic started by: Drumnagair on January 08, 2015, 06:06:49 pm
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We are going to be moving to a smallholding and as well as my ponies I would like a small flock of sheep. Multiple reasons really; mainly as we will have too much grass for the ponies but also I would love to raise some pet lambs (& keep them for pets) I would also have an interest in possibly a rare breed and doing some local shows. Also would like to have a couple to raise for the freezer.
Any recommendations and where to start looking in Aberdeenshire area? Perhaps I’m looking for too many things for one breed? Whatever we choose has to be an easy breed for a first timer and have a placid temperament as we have a young family and would like a friendly flock that we can handle.
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As far as sheep for beginners go, I have found Hebrideans the most forgiving. They can still get all the problems other sheep do, but they are a lot less prone than most. They are also second to none for tidying up pony paddocks and taste rather nice, although take longer to mature than more commercial breeds. There are many more docile breeds, although ours are easy to get a a pen with a bucket, will feed out of our hands, and are small enough to handle. I also like them as they are quick enough to get out of the way of our ponies if need be. Pet lamb wise, its more likely you would have to get commercial breeds, as most people that have the less commercial types do it on a hobby basis and keep the pet lambs themselves.
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Hi.I can recommened Black Welsh mountains,We have kept them for 7 years now,They are very friendly sheep, all ours eat out of our hands which makes them a pleasure to keep.They are very hardy sheep coming from the welsh mountains, eat weeds and we have never had a case of fly blowsrike.They also taste good and are ready to slaughter about 9 months on good grass.We are in Aberdeenshire and there is now 4 flocks here and I am sure any one of us would help you get started with them and offer advice when needed,they also have a very good website.
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Everyone is going to recommend their own favourite I guess - so I'll recomment the Ryeland or Coloured Ryeland depending on whether you like your sheep white or various shades of brown.
Docile, non-escapologist, lambs finished at 7 months or so so in the first year, lovely meat, good fleece. And very pretty IMHO. There are photos in the Gallery above.
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I am not sure how young your children are, but my boys are 4 and 2 and have Shetland sheep, and they are brill. The only box they wouldn't tick on your list is the 'rare' one. But, as Rosemary said, there are lots of options, so go for something you like the look of too.
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I am not sure how young your children are, but my boys are 4 and 2 and have Shetland sheep, and they are brill. The only box they wouldn't tick on your list is the 'rare' one. But, as Rosemary said, there are lots of options, so go for something you like the look of too.
thanks everyone, a few for me to google!
Mowhaugh, we know each other from highland pony talk ;) My wee one is a similar age to your youngest. You wouldnt recommend the Kerrys then? They are v pretty :love:
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I would recommend lleyn or zwartbles, very easy to handle, not exactly rare, but their temperaments are good, good milky ewes which produce strong healthy lambs. their meat is good too.
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We have Gotland x Shetland sheep and they are naturally very docile and tame. They aren't too big and my wee ones (now 4 and 7) play with them in the fields. The meat is lovely and there is the added bonus of fabulous fleeces which hand spinners love.
Whereabouts in Aberdeenshire are you?
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thank you :) we are currently in the south but moving and not sure where yet although will be within commuting distance of Aberdeen and highly likely north/west of the city.
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Ooh - you might end up over towards our way then (Huntly) :thumbsup:
My friend is selling a fabulous property with 23 acres near Gartly :innocent:
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Ooh - you might end up over towards our way then (Huntly) :thumbsup:
My friend is selling a fabulous property with 23 acres near Gartly :innocent:
haha is that deveron way by any chance?
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I'm another voter for Shetlands in your circumstances, although the main breed I keep is Hebrideans.
Coloured Shetlands are rarer than the whites, and tend to be a bit more 'primitive' somehow. They are small, very cute, soft a cuddly :hugsheep:, small enough for a large child to handle, plenty of classes for them in local shows for an interest for the children, the males can be eaten with relish, are sometimes ready for slaughter at 7-9 months, but more likely 16 months. The fleece is an easy to spin type, but with plenty of interest in the coloureds - just spinning white fleece can pall after a couple of years. They tend to be hardy, good feet in the coloureds, good easy lambers and milkers.
I should emphasise two things: never keep your ram lambs entire (ie always castrate them in the first 7 days of life), if you are intending to keep them beyond a year, with children about.
If ultimately you don't like the breed, sheep are all tasty so you can put them in the freezer and try something else, so this doesn't need to be a breed for life..
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I am not sure how young your children are, but my boys are 4 and 2 and have Shetland sheep, and they are brill. The only box they wouldn't tick on your list is the 'rare' one. But, as Rosemary said, there are lots of options, so go for something you like the look of too.
thanks everyone, a few for me to google!
Mowhaugh, we know each other from highland pony talk ;) My wee one is a similar age to your youngest. You wouldnt recommend the Kerrys then? They are v pretty :love:
Hmm, now I need to work out who you are!
To be honest, although I adore my Kerrys, I would not recommend them as first sheep, and I am also wary of taking the children near them, and definitely don't at lambing time. Even the well handled ones that I show are still pretty bonkers. Although other people do seem to have quieter ones than me, I expect they are handled very regularly.
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Shetlands :thumbsup: - exactly as FW commented
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Know who you are now! I still think shetlands.
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It would be shetland that I would recommend, Can be very friendly, come in a few colours and patterns, usually easy to source, a good support group the club is very friendly. If I was you I would buy a few ewe lambs or young ewes who are bucket trained and very friendly so you get to know them and they get to know you. When the time comes to breed hire in a tup then you won't have a tup to look after and that could be better with children about as some tups can be a bit cantankerous, that would apply to most tups. What ever you choose the very best of luck.
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best of luck with the move. I want to recomend Castlemilk Moorit sheepies. I got a couple to go with my comercial Cheviot sheep this summer and they are great. It seems everyone likes Shetlands, and yes they are an ideal sheep for the area. But if you are seriously looking for a rare breed that needs your help as well as being easy to handle(escpecialy compared to some others), charming in character, very very pretty to look at and are also very tasty if you want to eat them as well as look at thier lovelyness Castlemilk could be for you. They are "Vunerable" according to the rare breed society, less than 700 regesterd, and the only sheep listed more endangerd then them are Borarey and they are very hard to manage for the beginer. i am certain there is a woman who has a decent flook in the Aberdeen area, i do not have contact for her but the breed scociety might, and there are a very few folk like me in the North who mave a couple, and are always looking to add to this select/mad group.
as i say best of luck, and whatever you get sheep wise will give back everything you spend and expend upon them and then some, good luck.
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i no they aren't exactly rare..(maybe rare to the uk) but are real friendly and easy kept sheep are ile de france, there are a good few breeders up your end of the country,they are easy kept and are great for meat, fast growing too and weather conditions dont seem to bother them much :)
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Plenty of suggestions for you there, LOL! I'd narrow it down to a few different breeds, then try and visit some flocks to see what you think of them. Beware that different flocks of the same breed can behave differently though - for example some Castlemilk Moorits are really friendly, wheras others are very nearly wild sheep!
What you've said is pet lambs, rare breed, showing, eating, easily handled, placid and good with kids. The Shetlands tick all of those boxes except the rare breed, as they're not considered rare any more.
The other thing that hasn't been mentioned is cost. We bought two Zwartble ewe lambs this autumn at auction, but they cost five to eight times what we'd have paid for two Shetlands. In fact, for the average Zwartble price, we could have bought the show champion Hebridean ewe at the next day's auction.
(http://i81.photobucket.com/albums/j216/Blutack/TAS2011/Sheep/BiscuitandBonnie2.jpg)
Zwartbles are lovely BTW - very placid in nature, and popular as companions for ponies. They can also be finished for meat in the same season they're born (unlike Shetlands, which wouldn't finish until the next Summer). I think the downside of them for you is their size though - they're flippin' huge! So whilst they're ever so friendly, they'd still knock a child flying to get to a bucket of coarse mix!
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I agree with Womble - I have shetlands and Castlemilks and my shetlands are super friendly compared to my Castlemilks and they are all treated the same - although one of my castlemilks is very friendly as we took her to shows etc. Once penned I can manage all jobs on my own which is great.
My neighbour has Zwartble, Hebs and a few Gotlands, the Gotlands are friendly and a similar size to the shetland - the hebs are wild but as said before that can greatly vary from one Heb flock to another. The Zwartbles are friendly but I struggle to deal with them due to their size but they are nice sheep.
I had Jacobs when I started but due to the size and strength of my 4 horned tup I had to change and was advised to go for shetlands and I am very happy with them. I got the Castlemilks because of their rarity but am glad I did a lot of learning with the shetlands first.
Enjoy looking at all different breeds at the end of the day you have to like the sheep you choose.
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I'd agree that the temperament varies within any breed - I've known extremely flighty Shetlands as well as very tame ones, and my first Castlemilks never became very tame but the later ones arrived totally soppy, having been born in a Children's Farm Park. (Pic attached.)
Once you have some tame sheep, it's easier to get others to join in (second pic - the Manxes, who were not from the same origin, didn't want to be missing out on the treats the Castlemilks were getting!), but some will remain naturally more wary than others.
A lot of the natives will jump fences and walls if they want to be somewhere else, which can include when you are wanting to get close with them for treatments etc. So far, I've found Castlemilks less likely to scale walls than Shetlands or Manxes - but that's on a very small sample of each breed.
One thing that may be a factor with children in the equation is that most Shetland ewes are polled (not horned) whereas many (if not all) Hebs, all Manxes and all Castlemilks are horned in both sexes.
If you are looking at other breeds, be aware that, as Womble highlights with respect to the Zwartbles, some very docile breeds can nonetheless be quite dangerous especially to small persons. Blue-faced Leicesters, and many crosses thereof, are really quite affectionate sheep, but they love their food and will dump you to get at what's in your bucket. They'll do it with no aggression whatsoever, but you're still dumped!
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I'll add my bit about Castlemilks. My four originals came from Cotswold farm park and only one has become tame enough to approach me. The others will sometimes be very daring a take a bit of food from my hand. Castlemilks I have bred or bought in from three different sources are all very friendly some to the extent of getting under your feet when you are working round the farm in a never ending search for a tit bit.
I have had my ten Cotswolds ewes for two months now. They were a bit on the suspicious of me at first but now come when they are called. Three of them will take food from my hand and I expect this number to increase when they are brought in for lambing in three weeks time.
I have no dog and am the wrong side of old age pension entitlement so having sheep that come to me is essential.
Regards, David