[Justin]

After raising weaners each spring for the past couple of years, I'll be picking up our first sheep this week, 6 Devon closewool store lambs, all castrated boys. After helping out a neighbour with his sheep here and there over the summer, we've decided to try keeping our own. Store lambs give us a chance to get used to having our own with the knowledge that they'll go to slaughter in the spring. If we decide it's something to do long term, we'll buy some ewes, possibly with lambs, in the spring to start the flock proper.

We have a 3 acre field with decent grass for them, so hopefully they'll not need too much by way of additional feed, they're hardy enough to not need housing and, if necessary, we have a few old haybales that can be fashioned into a shelter with some tin roof over the top.

There's a water trough already in the field so I'm building a shopping list of things to get from Mole Valley. Top of the list is 3 hurdles to create a moveable wall in the section of narrow field behind the orchard that we can use if we need to pen them up, plus some clippers for trimming feet and another can of purple spray.

I'd be grateful for suggestions of any other immediate things I should be picking up? Will I need things like a drench gun? What should I do about initial treatments such as worming? would it be wise to have the vet come out for an initial visit?

Is it wise to get them used to following a bucket of feed? If so, what sort of feed, regular ewe nuts?

Thanks.

[cambee]

Hi Justin we are doing the reverse of you next year. We’ve had sheep for 18 months and will be getting weaners next year. But in answer to your question definitely hurdles as you do need to pen them to do stuff to them no matter how tame. And we have had a lot of use from foot trimmers, dagging shears (to cut off any mucky bottom wool) and blue not purple spray. Ours is Erythromycin which is an antibiotic spray that deals with such things as scald. You have to get that from your vet I think. We did have an initial visit/ check over which then means that the vet will prescribe medication over the phone. As for worming we did an initial faecal egg count (the vet took that away on the first visit). Ours didn’t need worming straight away but have done once since pre lambing again after an egg count. I’m sure you’ll get lots of advice from more experienced people.

[twizzel]

You shouldn’t need foot trimmers for lambs. Routine foot trimming is not encouraged anymore especially if sheep are lame. I’d get them an energy lick- ask at Mole Valley they are pretty good and knowledgeable and will suggest the best to suit. If your land hasn’t had sheep on then you would be very wise giving them all a quarantine drench and keeping them off pasture for 48hours, is the seller able to do this for you seeing you don’t have a shed to house them in? Zolvix or Startect will stop them bringing worms onto your land that are resistant to wormers.


I wouldn’t bother with the vet, there isn’t much they will do unless you call with a problem, providing you’re already registered with one when you had the pigs.

Purple spray isn’t much use, blue antibiotic spray is best for feet. If they go lame give the vet a shout and they will be able to prescribe some.


Feed wise, get some lamb finisher pellets or lamb creep pellets, this will have ammonium chloride in which stops urinary stones in male sheep. Don’t feed ewe nuts. Bucket training them will be useful, a handful every other day to keep them tame. Don’t over feed or they will end up fat.


Another tip, you can never have enough hurdles ! We buy a few each year and always using them.

[Justin]

Thank you both, that's good info. We've had our neighbours sheep on our fields earlier in the year so we should be good to put them straight onto the grass. My neighbour just did a FEC last week and his sheep are all clear. I'm going to get a FEC kit from Mole Valley and test the new lambs to check they're ok too.

I'll ask the Mole Valley vet if I can get blue spray without him visiting, just to have on the shelf, if not, I'll wait and call him if needed and will pick up some dagging shears in case they're needed. Will ask about an energy lick while there too.

Planning to get 2 4' and 2 6' hurdles to start, that should let me create a suitable pen in the strip behind the orchard which is 10' wide.

I may be able to get a few doses of necessary wormer or other meds from my neighbour if needed.

[bj_cardiff]

Sounds like you've thought it through well one tip I'd try and sort out early is to bucket train them. So whilst they probably won't need additional feeding its best to get them interested in feed. Its also a good idea to fence off a small area and put a gate on it, so if you ever need to catch them you just put their feed in there and can contain them.


One of the most depressing things I found in my early sheep keeping days is having a sheep that really needed urgent attention and being on my own and having no way to catch her and treat it.

[Nelson International]

I'd second (third?) getting them used to a little cake so that you can gather them in easily. As discussed you need to be a little careful to ensure you get food that's ok for rams/wethers, but it's relatively straightforward. We use a combination of hurdles and pallets to form our pen in the field.

I'm only about 18 months ahead of you, and I've found sheep more complex than weaners, but more interesting.

I'd say you probably don't need foot trimmers - I only trim when the sheep are showing any signs of lameness, and even then i find a pocket knife easier than clippers.

I'd recommend the Jakoti shears for dagging/crutching - they're reasonably priced and IMO much easier than the traditional sort. 

The other thing I'd suggest is whether you can beg/steal/borrow a hay rack? I ricked up something impromptu last winter, but the sheep probably wasted as much hay as they ate - once it touched the ground they refused to even nibble at it. This year I've blagged the loan of a proper rack, so I'm hoping it'll work out better.

[twizzel]

Blue spray is vet only, mole valley workers aren’t vets, so you’ll need to see the vet for this. I wouldn’t get it until you have a problem though.

[DavidandCollette]

Definitely get them bucket trained. When I started out with mine there weren't so trying to catch them was a real game. A local offered to bring his sheep dog down to round them up, which I was grateful for. Unfortunately the fog ran into the field, confronted the see who promptly butted the dog! Got rid of those buggers!!

[honeyend]

Yes I would get them bucket trained. We shared 20 last year with a neighbour. Two that got flystrick were bucket trained to go into the pen where I could top up their treatment. When they were put in with the rest, my neighbour couldn't believe, A, how much bigger they where, and B,how easy it made the rest to round up.
  I do most of the handling on my own, the calves got out today, rattle a bucket and they are back where you want them.
  My first sheep used to baa for food in the field, at my car as it drove past.

[landroverroy]

I'd recommend the Jakoti shears for dagging/crutching - they're reasonably priced and IMO much easier than the traditional sort. 

The other thing I'd suggest is whether you can beg/steal/borrow a hay rack? I ricked up something impromptu last winter, but the sheep probably wasted as much hay as they ate - once it touched the ground they refused to even nibble at it. This year I've blagged the loan of a proper rack, so I'm hoping it'll work out better.

Think you'll still be very disappointed at the amount they manage to waste! Good job you're only borrowing the rack - then you'll have an idea what not to buy! (Unless you're lucky and manage to get hold of a good design first time.)  In my experience, minimum wastage is achieved where the sheep have to put their head through bars to get to the hay, and keep their head there (mostly) to eat it. Where they have to pull the hay out of the hay rack in order to eat it, you invariably get as much dropped on the ground and wasted, as what they eat. 

[Justin]

Well the new arrivals have settled in happily. They're not coming to the bucket, they run away when I go near them but I have a trough in the field and rattle the bucket then put the feed in the trough. Hopefully it won't take too many days until they make that little connection.

I've picked up a few hurdles and the Jakoti shears, thanks for the recommendation on those.

Landroverroy, do you have a suggestion of a style of hay rack? I'm pondering making one that will take a small bale and browsing pinterest for idea.

and we all like pictures, don't we

[SallyintNorth]

Congratulations! 

So those are Closewools, are they? 

If you keep them until shearing, can I put my name on a fleece?   And or can I point you at where you might market their fleeces? 

[Justin]

Hi Sally, yes they're closewools. They'll be going to slaughter in about April so won't need shearing. We're most likely to have the skins tanned for rugs I think, but if that changes I'll let you know.

If we get on with keeping sheep, then we'll be starting a proper flock next spring by getting ewes with lambs I expect and so there'll be fleeces available later on and we can certainly keep one for you, I'm sure.

[SallyintNorth]

If we get on with keeping sheep, then we'll be starting a proper flock next spring by getting ewes with lambs I expect and so there'll be fleeces available later on and we can certainly keep one for you, I'm sure.

Great, no rush.  I already have a stash that will keep me, my family and probably all my friends and acquaintances spinning for all of our lifetimes 

But I do also nab unusual fleeces when I get the chance, for the BritSpin Breedathon challenge, and other events our Tour of British Fleece group gets up to.  And I know Closewool is one of the nicer ones

[landroverroy]

Landroverroy, do you have a suggestion of a style of hay rack? I'm pondering making one that will take a small bale and browsing pinterest for idea.

and we all like pictures, don't we

Aha - it's so easy to criticise, but less easy to arrive at the ideal solution!

However, tomorrow, I'll get a photo of a hay trailer that I designed for my cattle. It is designed to take 2 round bales, but could be scaled down for sheep on the same principles, and could be stood on something instead of a trailer base so that what they drop doesn't reach the ground but has a better chance of them eating it.   
By the way, your sheep look lovely, and judging by all that grass, you shouldn't need hay for a while.