The Accidental Smallholder Forum
Livestock => Sheep => Topic started by: TheSmilingSheep on January 03, 2015, 05:49:47 pm
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Appealing, as ever, to the wealth of experience out here...
Have just had our seven ewes tupped but.....we suspect that this has not been successful. The hired ram left us in December, and we think we should try to get our girls scanned in February. My question: if our fears are well founded, would it be pointless to get another ram over later in February?
For sake of argument - let's assume the ewes are all well and fertile etc...
Sheep are Balwens - welsh mountain breed.
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It would mean potentially having young lambs in winter that haven't finished and haven't had much good grass so will need extra care/ feed/ shelter.
Can you provide that?
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Yes. We have a small flock on about 8 acres (divided plots). If born in July would be fine for us. We breed for hogget in any event. Just wondered whether the girls would be out of season by February?
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Its highly unlikely you will get a Balwen to take the tup in February.
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Why do you think they are not in lamb?
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I scanned a mob of wiltshires once in late jan and due to toxo 60 were not in lamb-----I put them immediately back with a ram
Lambed them in June/July, mostly with singles
Weaned early at 10 weeks and got the ewes back into cycle with the main mob
lambs soon made up for lost time
Main problem was keeping them lean enough before lambing (lots of grass around in May/June)
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Thanks all....
Moony - that was exactly the sort of reply I was looking for! And Tim W thanks for making me realise that I hadn't actually thought about things 'at the other end' (duh!) - since we like to wean fairly naturally at about 5/6 months - so I guess we need to think about a plan B...
Me: we think possibly empty since our (half) rammy lamb is taking a very directive (17 day type of) interest in the ewes, and they are letting him mount them (on their special days)... Still, there's always a chance that our rammy lamb may be a little bit fertile after all, and we'll just be lambing in late spring.....
So much still to learn.....
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what does "half ram" mean? is he visectomised? or just young?
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Last year (by mistake ::) ) a Shetland ewe was put in with our ram and wethers in early Feb. around Valentine's day :love: . She lambed on 10th July. Flies were a big worry throughout the summer.
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'half ram' is my way of saying that we failed to fully (effectively) castrate him at birth - so one testicle still in tact but internal...he's unlikely to be fertile, but you can never be sure....
I'm told that in new zealand many sheep farmers perform 'short scrotum castration' - which leaves both testicles in tact but internal....
anyway, I'm guessing that we'll just have to be watchful (as ever) throughout the spring and summer!
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Since your ewes are still cycling why don't you just get another ram in straight away ,lambs will be born first half of june , your half ram is probably infertile ( unless it's been very very cold for a while ) if he's mounting and they let him then scanning would be a waste of time and money , if you don't want to lamb very late then put raddle on half ram and every ewe he marks is empty !
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To give you an idea - I have a heb ram in with 4 Heb ewes now, who are certianly still cycling - I was holding them back but they were lined up by the fence for him....... and hes at it steadily.
I would expect you will get 1 or 2 in lamb if you do but most will be finished cycling by then.
If you could do it NOW you may get more success. I know a fair few small holders who lamb in June jUly time.
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I have a ewe hogg that was born from a Cheviot ewe in mid-August this year. So her mother must have cycled in March and somehow managed to team up with one of the neighbour's Blackface tups! I found the wee one on the hill at the end of August with an open wound on her back (crows ?) and she is now as big as most of the other hoggs. Definitely lucky to be alive on several levels.
But this is the latest anyone can remember a lamb being born and I certainly wouldn't count on my ewes to be cycling in March :-J