The Accidental Smallholder Forum
Livestock => Sheep => Topic started by: Lorenza on February 25, 2016, 02:40:29 pm
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Hello all,
I am 20 years old and have helped out on farms since I was 14. I have now moved away from my home area with these farms and have just got some land up in sunny north wales. I am looking for some Cade lambs to start off my flock but I am having difficulty in tracking some down. Can anyone help ? I am willing to pay. My family are not farmers so I do not have any contacts.
I have reared many cade lambs before with great success!
I am hoping that with help directly from the farming community I can finally start up my own flock and live my dream.
Many thanks in advance.
Happy farming all!
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Post on here: http://thefarmingforum.co.uk/index.php?forums/livestock-for-sale/ (http://thefarmingforum.co.uk/index.php?forums/livestock-for-sale/) you are bound to get some replies from them.
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Welcome Lorenza from Caithness, good luck with your sheep :sheep: :love:
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Keep a look out at local mart sales as they start to get cade lambs in from now on some farmers don't have the time to rear them and prefer to sell them also pop up a poster at you local mart and i'm sure local farmers will contact you, and ask around local sheep farms.
Good luck.
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Hi and welcome to the forum.
I know a guy which keeps pedigree Lleyn's, he lambs them around about this time and always has cades, males and females, available. I bought a ram off him last year and he was brilliant, so fantastic genetics! This is the guys website it might be worth your while getting in contact with him http://bearwoodfarm.com/ (http://bearwoodfarm.com/) All the best and keep us updated? :thumbsup:
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How far from Llanidloes are you?
There's a farm near me that sells their cades. I had some a few years ago to start me off suffolk x speckle face and welsh mountain. They're about to lamb for the second time. Brought me some great lambs last year by a shetland tup, the sale mart had them marked down as charollais,
Get in touch if you want their number.
Best to get them straight from the farm if you can, avoids the stress and germs of market.
Ask at the local vets.
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Local vets, agri stores and try logging into lamb bank
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Where are you based Lorenza? You could try Bryncir or Gaerwen markets if you're in North West Wales. Alternatively, if you are less keen to source from a market, have a day at market anyway and talk to farmers to find out where you can get them directly from farm.
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It depends what you are wanting to do?
if your esablishing a flock, it may be better to buy a ewe with lambs at foot, or wait till autumn and buy draft ewes off the hill and breed yourself?
The last 6-7 years less and less farmers have cades they sell - as its now worth bringing them on yourself, and I know myself, and many others, only sell the weakest / poorest bloodlines out as cades, anything worth keeping for breeding, Or any I can get fat cheaply - IE wean fast or that had good weight on them already, are kept.
As your in wales - Welsh mountain ewes are usually reasonably priced, often in the £30-£50 bracket with 2 seasons left in them - a great start to a flock.
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One of the farms near me are lambing 900 ewes, 320 have scanned for triplets and most of the rest for twins, I think they wouldn't mind selling a few good ones to someone starting out.
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If you're buying in cade lambs I would make sure that they have had proper colostrum before they sell them (and I don't mean the powdered kind). If they have had only powdered colostrum then I would water down some yoghurt in lukewarm water and add some honey and feed it to them as their first feed, this will help to promote healthy bacteria in the gut. :) All the best and I hope you find what you're looking for :thumbsup:
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Hello all. Thank you so much for all your help. I have managed to locate some lambs that have had loads of colostrum and are about a week old. I currently have 4 that are doing really well and have had them nearly a week. I also have been contacted by 2 other local farmers who also have some for me! Thank you all.
Happy Farming all!! And good luck with lambing. I am anxiously waiting for my 3 in-lamb ewes to uncross their legs as well!
Lorenza x
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Glad you are now started, and good luck with your new flock :thumbsup:
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sounds like you're in for a busy few weeks. good luck.