The Accidental Smallholder Forum
Livestock => Sheep => Topic started by: ScotsGirl on February 01, 2015, 10:52:36 pm
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i want to put a mark on my black Welsh lambs so I can easily identify which mum owns each lamb. I don't want to tag at birth as they are so tiny. I was going to get some Siro Mark a Fluid but it's quite expensive and I only have a few sheep.
Anyone got a better solution? I spray numbers on the commercials which lasts a few weeks but it doesn't show on the black.
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I tag mine at 24 hours - just with the non eid tag as its the lightest. still makes the ear flop for several weeks though - some ears are better than others.
One guy i know uses numbered metal poultry wing tags, they are about 1-2cm long. means they will have an extra tag in their ear though, unless you remove them once you tag them properly.
Previously I have tagged a few weeks later, but it is a lot more effort matching up the lambs to the mothers ... a matter of grabbing one and seeing which mum it runs too! Fun, but time consuming :).
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Leg tags of some description?
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I was wondering if it was possible to get something akin to the wrist bands they put on you in hospital to put on their legs until tagging time.
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Ritchey spray-on marker in yellow?
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Ritchey spray-on marker in yellow?
They dont last more than a few hours. I don't know how different BWM wool is to other breeds but spray marker just seems to "fall off" mine!!!
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I find no marker sprays stick to hair very well, it often suits me to spray ewes for cull etc on the back of the head and these wash off straight away
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I've never marked mine but would raddle paste work? When I had the ram I put the powder mixes with some margarine on his chest. It stayed on the girls bums for ages.
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Nope ... it doesn't last long enough. Maybe a week on my girls bums, maybe a few more if Mr Ram was super keen on that girl, haha.
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How about the coloured sticky tape (I think it is called tail tape) wrapped around leg or tail. Or the lightweight aluminium ear tags?
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When I worked on a large dairy farm we used the rolls of electrical tape. The different combinations of the colours having different meanings.
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Check out ROXAN.CO.UK they have very light weight tags with a very thin sharp pin EASY TAGS @ 11p and a metal chick/lamb tag PADLOCK TAGS @ 50P AGRIFLEXANIMALID.CO.UK have a REYFLEX pastern tag
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SiroMark is worth the money.
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Thanks, some inspiring ideas. Siro mark is about £30 and will last me decades. I saw some cheapish branding irons on ebay ages ago and now I can't find them. Might have to resort to cutting numbers out on halved potatoes! (My mate works in a primary school, very resourceful!)
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Use the tiny chicken wing tags? or use ear notching? a notch doesnt weigh down the ear (well opposite actually) and can never get lost :thumbsup:
I ear notch all male lambs at birth in one place and any un keepable ewe lambs in another, makes sorting them through a race so much easier when they are grown in the summer :thumbsup:
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What solution did u go with in the end and did it work?
Incidentally, I sprayed some lambs over a week ago using a can from the Net-tex goodie bag and another ritchey one that I already had. The Ritchey spray mark was pretty much gone after a couple of days, the net-tex one is still going strong!!!! Just a shame they sent me red and blue, I don't think blue will show up on black, but I might give it a whirl. :)
Thanks Net-Tex/Rumenco :D
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I use velcro leg bands meant for dairy cattle on Shetlands from Abbey Dale Direct. Cut to size and individual number and ewe details put on with permanent marker. Different colour combinations together with bands on different legs give me enough options to be able to identify who is who at a distance. Eartags definitely too heavy at 24hrs - mine are ear tagged at weaning.