The Accidental Smallholder Forum
Livestock => Sheep => Topic started by: Campip on October 01, 2016, 12:37:19 am
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Help please. I am very new to keeping sheep. I have had 4 Ryelands since the beginning of August...three ewe lambs and a wether. They were wormed soon after I got them and follow up faecal sampling has been OK. I have a small paddock that opens onto a field that has'nt been grazed for over a year. They are Ok while they're in the paddock but as soon as I let them into the field they start scouring, especially the wether. I have currently "borrowed" a horse to help graze the field but I am not winning. Someone advised me to leave them in the field and they would get used to the pasture but that hasn't worked. I can't keep them in the paddock all the time. And in the meantime I have 4 sheep with dirty bums....
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get field topped ... too much grass.
Don't worry too much about scouring from lush grass ... it wont harm sheep much provided fly strike isn't an issue. Try restricted time grazing the field each day.
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Might just be the grass is a bit rich, this time of year there is normally a spurt before winter sets in. You could offer hay/straw in a feeder for them to pick at. If it's very wet then they might need treating for fluke, there's a lot of it around this year- did you use a combined fluke and wormer in August or just a wormer?
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Thank you...that's helpful. I will try restricting the times they are in the field, and perhaps get it mown. It sounds as if if I'm patient seasonal change will sort the problem, and I think I'm probably just about out of fly-strike season now it's beginning to get cooler...or shouldn't I bank on it?
I Treated them with ivermectin so I suppose fluke is a possibility, though they do get better if I keep them off the field.
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Common complaint this year lots of rich very wet grass , they tend to adapt after a week or so
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I'd also crutch them - it'll help keep them cleaner for shearing next year. Do the inside of the back legs too. Also watch out for wool growth around their eyes over Winter - If it's too long they can go wool blind - just get someone to hold them firmly and put one hand over the eye whilst clipping back about 7cm around the eye. If you get a lot of snow in Winter clip back under their chin too, as it'll pick up a lot of snow.
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Thankyou. I live in the High Peak so it gets cold round here and we have snow when no one else does...so great advice