The Accidental Smallholder Forum
Livestock => Sheep => Topic started by: Womble on December 28, 2017, 12:30:01 pm
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So since it's both Christmas and flippin' freezing, I thought I'd give the ewes a bucket of nuts this morning.
I bravely entered their field carrying said bucket in one hand and a scoop in the other, wading through the thick mass of sheep until I reached their trough. However, when I put the first scoop of nuts down, one stripy nose pinned the scoop to the ground, a second ewe jumped up and got its head into the bucket, whilst a third stuck its head between my legs, and then looked up rather suddenly :o .
I ended up lying on the frozen ground clutching my b :censored: cks, whilst the remaining ewes trampled all over me to get to the now spilled bucket.
So, as I lay there staring at the sky I thought to myself, Surely the good people of TAS have figured out a better way to do this by now? :roflanim:
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I fed mine on the ground the other day, no pushing, no trampling, no one getting left out :thumbsup:
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I think it was a coordinated attack and you didn't stand a chance. :roflanim: :roflanim:
Lots of sheep or bullies - put feed in a bag and then empty from one end of trough to the other. Distract with a handful on the floor whilst filling trough. Hard ground, don't bother with trough. Wide troughs so you can still get food in even with heads in trough.
Other tips - keep your legs closed, send the wife, don't feel sorry for them......
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Your sheep must have been in contact with mine on a secret facebook channel in order to create some bid for a world take over.
Its nice to have bucket led sheep in all honesty - my misses has a better time leading the sheep from field to field. I can never be bothered getting food in the bucket and they have learned the sound of gravel and not to be fooled by it :)
The only sly and stealth method I can offer is - dont feed them in the same place and careful not to jangle the bucket as you fall over a hedge trying to get to a bit of the field that allows you to run 100m in 10 seconds before they arrive ;)
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Put the trough just inside the gate, or the other side of a fence so you can lean over.
Have enough troughs so there's plenty of room per sheep.
Measure the right amount into a small bucket before you go out there, start at one end and keep ahead of the crowd.
Don't let them near your eyes or other delicate bits.
Give them a good talking to, and don't put the food out until they behave - well, it works for Mr F
Don't bother with the tups or you really will be butted to death.
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Womble, your posts need a spoiler alert or health warning "not to be drinking hot tea when reading" :roflanim:
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2 troughs ..... throw handful pellets into one trough then leg it to other one with bucket before sheep realise you still have most of the feed .... works well except when very muddy (when sheep can travel faster than you) or on steep slopes!
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I put three troughs in a Y shape with a space in the middle. Stand in the space and throw a handful of feed into each trough, hard enough so it runs along the trough. Then when they pile in you can nip into the gaps and share out the rest. This plan works unless you have ewes like some of our Badger Face which keep their noses glued to the bucket and follow it around hoping for the chance to put their heads in it, rather than reading the script and eating from the trough.
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If I can, I have a hurdle pen just inside the field entrance with the troughs in there. Can go into field, fill up troughs while the sheep queue up from the other side, open gate (sometimes with difficulty) and if I need I can close them in quickly as well. Once they finish, get shoo-ed out and hurdle shut... works well until OH goes to do the feeding, gets bored waiting for the girls to finish and leaves hurdle gate open... so they wait for me next day inside the pen...
If you feed a pelleted feed, then it's easy to fee don the ground when frozen/snowed.
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How about making a corridor/walkway in using hurdles or fencing, troughs lining the outside so you can walk round the inside throwing feed over into troughs.
Not half as much fun and wouldn't give us such a laugh though ;D
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Tiptoe out whilst it's still dark, oh and don't forget to oil the gate hinges. :hugsheep:
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I gave up and mine now have to walk orderly down a race to the pens with the feed already put out. Once trained it saves a lot of swear words.
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Womble I feel your pain, Ive had this ,not with sheep but playful pigs after fruit treats
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2 troughs ..... throw handful pellets into one trough then leg it to other one with bucket before sheep realise you still have most of the feed .... works well except when very muddy (when sheep can travel faster than you) or on steep slopes!
This is my technique. Plus, with the very large and over-familiar Zwartbleses, demanding respect. Anyone getting in front of me, or otherwise impeding me, gets a lesson in manners - and no food until she's maintaining a respectful distance.
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stand over the trough at one end and walk backwards pouring as I go. Those behind me must go round to the front to get any. Oh yeah only got Ouessants.... easy :-)
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I'm going to have to give that one a go Kanisha, and have Mrs Womble video me as I go! :roflanim:
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I'm going to have to give that one a go Kanisha, and have Mrs Womble video me as I go! :roflanim:
It'll be a short video, but very funny :roflanim:
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I'd agree with Backinwellies - spread out the troughs, drop a bit in the first one then leg it to the other end of the last trough and back fill as you walk back down the line. That seems to confuse mine sufficiently to be able to get the feed in the troughs. Defo make sure you have the right amount in the bucket/bag to begin with, don't bother with scoops, some daft ewe will just head butt it out of your hand. :) Having more troughs than you need helps a lot. Alternatively use rolls instead of nuts and feed direct on the ground if you have a dry bit somewhere.
A dog that will keep to your heel also works well to clear you a path!
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A dog that will keep to your heel also works well to clear you a path!
Depending on your sheep and their numbers. ;). I had a collie would run along in front of the quad which was pulling a ‘snacker’ cake-dispensing device as we laid a line for 450 Swaledale ewes on the moorland top. Same dog hunkered down and refused to jump off the dog-carrier on the back of the bike when we went to feed the 80 North of England Mules. If I tried to get him off he’d flatten himself and give me a, “What?! You think I’m getting off in front of that ravening horde?! I ain’t got no death wish!!” look. :D
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Depending on your sheep and their numbers. ;) . I had a collie would run along in front of the quad which was pulling a ‘snacker’ cake-dispensing device as we laid a line for 450 Swaledale ewes on the moorland top. Same dog hunkered down and refused to jump off the dog-carrier on the back of the bike when we went to feed the 80 North of England Mules. If I tried to get him off he’d flatten himself and give me a, “What?! You think I’m getting off in front of that ravening horde?! I ain’t got no death wish!!” look. :D
Haha, ok then, a dog that has some presence about it (aka balls).
(If you have a lot of sheep then get yourself a Welsh Sheepdog :D , they will do this and more)
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Er, folks, the whole reason we train them to come to a bucket is to SAVE us the cost of the dog food! ;D
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Er, folks, the whole reason we train them to come to a bucket is to SAVE us the cost of the dog food! ;D
True :), but clearly sometimes the bucket training works a little too well! Hahaha!
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Er, folks, the whole reason we train them to come to a bucket is to SAVE us the cost of the dog food! ;D
When we were planning the move to the 1000-acre moorland farm with hefted 530-ewe flock of mainly Swales, and I was searching for a couple of working collie dogs, one of my friends said that surely we would just need to train the sheep to follow a bucket. I often used to think of him as I ran the quad full pelt, dispensing cake from the snacker, while being pursued by the 450 Swaledale ewes... If I could’ve spared a hand, I’d have videod it for him, but truly, it took all my attention to avoid running over the colllie, any of the sheep, landing in an irrigation ditch, or being rendered immobile by a press of woolly bodies I’d failed to outrun :roflanim: (All of which happened at least once :/)
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OK, so I've figured it out! :dunce:
I was soooo confused that the sheep seemed somehow hungrier this year than last, since last year I was able to scoop food into the trough without any issue, by putting it in the spaces between where the sheep were.
This year, we're using the same trough, but there just aren't the same number of spaces....... it's almost as if the flock has increased by a third...... oooooh, wait a minute..... :idea:
So, I went down to the feed store this afternoon and bought a second Paxton LF3 trough (http://www.paxtonagri.com/Troughs_and_feeders/Floor_standing_feed_troughs/LF3-Feed_Trough.aspx). Problem solved! ;D
(https://c1.staticflickr.com/8/7004/6760491779_5e9c9cac24_b.jpg)
Actually, I have to say I really like this design. It's really easy to pick up and carry (unlike an equivalent sized wooden one). The downside is that they're £50+VAT, but if it's one of those things that "just works", and lasts a long time, I don't mind paying that.
P.S. before somebody points it out, I know those aren't sheep! :innocent:
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The plastic feeders are awesome, I have got a few now replacing metal.
They are easier to carry both on foot and straddled across your lap on a quad. - and they bend and bend back after hitting hedges in transport or getting stomped on. The old metal troughs seem to be ok but recently in the last few years the quality of IAE troughs has been 'lightwieght' good for transport but they bend when blown across a field in a storm
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No-one else waltzing for feeding sheep nuts/rolls on the ground?
Part filled feed sack under arm, hole cut in corner. Tip out whilst rotating in almost a full circle (not a full one or you won't get out alive), then step out of it in a random direction and repeat but rotating the other way. You'll end up making a series of circles over where you want to feed them and with groups facing each other they are so engrossed in making sure they get some before others in their ring do that they're less prone to charge away and see what another lot have got. Looks a bit daft, but allows opportunties for persuading more gullible members of the public that you're teaching them to dance for one of the celebrity TV programs.
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This year, we're using the same trough, but there just aren't the same number of spaces....... it's almost as if the flock has increased by a third...... oooooh, wait a minute..... :idea:
Also applies to hay and time, and seems to be a lesson I have to relearn every year.
For troughs I do the already bent/repaired ones from auctions, just stear clear of any with sharp edges. £9 each, spray paint postcode on bottom. Better ones for about £12 go out of sight in the shed under hayracks.
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Folks, I just thought this thread might be worth revisiting for this winter in case anybody else is having similar issues.
Our system is now to have two of the long paxton plastic troughs laid end to end, and perpendicular to the fence.
The feed bucket then goes on top of an upturned bucket at the other side of the fence, before I go through the gate to confront the hungry hordes.
I firstly tip the troughs over to empty out any rainwater, then walk up to the end of the nearest trough, stand astride it and reach over and pick up the bucket, before walking backwards, distributing food as I go.
The ewes then have to go round to my front to get any food, and the bucket has so far stopped any from nutting me in the b*lls!
Then I run off and do the hay feeders quickly before they run out of muesli!
It sounds really obvious now I come to write it down, but I thought I would, just in case it's helpful to anybody else.
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Mine felled me the other day.. all anyone would have seen was an arm aloft holding a pair of glasses out of the way of many feet !!! Much more firm with them now.
I find using a scoop and scooping mix out of the bucket works fairly well.
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I only have 5 and i felt threatened as i was pushed about this morning. Its those fleeces, i dont think they realise how big they are :)
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I find the safest feed troughs are the bases of blue plastic 45 gall drums. The barrels are @£5 each and you get 2 robust troughs from each - one from each end.
I used to use long yellow plastic ones - made from high pressure gas piping. Like Womble I would race to one end and run along to fill the trough but there would always be at least one sheep that had to overtake me and attempt to trip me up. This would slow me down sufficiently that I was surrounded by sheep before I got to the end and they always had to have their head in the trough so I couldn't even pour the food in. :rant:
Then - enter the blue plastic troughs. :excited: they will comfortably fit 6 sheep round at a time, although up to 100 will attempt to fit in the first trough before the rest are filled. Because they are circular, you can throw a scoop into the first. This diverts the entire flock and while they are fighting over a single trough, you can safely go and fill up the rest. They don't try and get ahead of you like they do with a long trough because they don't know which one you're going to fill next. ;D Then gradually the sheep disperse to the remaining troughs and have been safely fed without tripping you up, nor the necessity for foul language and an increasing hatred of sheep. They really do spread out to a max of 6 sheep/trough so you know instantly whether you have sufficient trough space. The troughs are also easily tipped up to get water out or clods of earth etc.
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My sheep troughs were full of snow this morning, so I had to empty them before I could tip the feed in ..... there I was with a bucket of feed in one hand and clearing out the troughs with the other ... and the sheep kept a respectful 2-3 metres away at all times until I was ready for them to come to the troughs :)
The same goes for when I fill up the hay racks - the sheep keep away until I am done - this also prevents stuff flying all over them and bits getting in their eyes when it's windy!
A good welsh dog is very handy :)
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I'd forgotten everything I'd learned last year as I went out with a bucket to my pregnant ewes for the first time yesterday..... intending to put nuts into trough area at base of mobile field hay rack …..
just tipped bucket ………… sheep to the left of me... sheep to the right..... and one between my legs …. I am now totally pinned up against the hay rack by fat bellies …. holding bucket in air to stop any other bug*** grabbing it ….. there was no way I could move either leg …… so I just stood their laughing :roflanim: :roflanim: shame the is no photo!