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Author Topic: Starting with sheep  (Read 3530 times)

tommytink

  • Joined Aug 2018
Starting with sheep
« on: February 21, 2019, 09:06:39 pm »
Hi,

Just looking for a bit of info.

I have a CPH and I have a flock/herd number.

If I buy some sheep what do I do next?? Would they need vaccinations or medicine?

I don’t have ear tags done up yet. Do they need to have those straight away?

Is there an online resource that anyone knows of that gives an idea of the process?

Thanks and apologies. I’m always here asking questions!

twizzel

  • Joined Apr 2012
Re: Starting with sheep
« Reply #1 on: February 21, 2019, 09:24:27 pm »
The sheep must be tagged before moving onto your holding. It’s advisable to put them onto the heptavac vaccination programme to cover against a lot of nasty diseases... best bet is find your local large animal vet and register with them- they should be able to advise on vaccines and obviously dispense meds if needed.

Fleecewife

  • Joined May 2010
  • South Lanarkshire
    • ScotHebs
Re: Starting with sheep
« Reply #2 on: February 21, 2019, 11:29:41 pm »
Your new sheep will have been tagged on their holding of birth.  If they are tagless do not accept them.  They will keep those tags for life.
You only need your own tags once your sheep lamb on your holding, so the lambs are tagged with your information. You do not replace the tags in your bought-in sheep.


We rarely buy in sheep now as we run a nearly closed flock.  However, when we do, we get wormer and flukicide doses from the vet specifically for those animals. If you can get Zolvix then you know you will be starting with clean sheep on your clean pasture.  Treat the sheep in a pen or shed on hard standing, leave them there for 24 hours, then remove any manure and bedding and burn it, along with any shed worms.  Thereafter, you need only worm them if they look seedy, and then only the individuals which are off colour. Until you have learned how to recognise a wormy sheep, take a FEC (Faecal Egg Count) sample to your vet to see if your animals do have worms or if it's something else. Your vet, who will know the area, and may even know your land, will advise which wormer to use.  For fluke, it depends on your land, and the land your new sheep have come from.  We are lucky not to have fluke here so we do not need to treat other than on arrival, but again your vet will advise.  Current thinking is very much against routine worming, although you will still get this advice from neighbours sometimes.  Routine worming leads to wormer resistence - ie the worms are resistant to the wormers.


Depending on when you get your sheep, you will need to use a flystrike preventative in the 'fly' months - again discuss this with your vet.  There are various products to choose from depending on your numbers and needs.


Spend time watching your new animals.  Lean on a gate and observe what is their normal behaviour.  This will allow you to learn when there is something wrong with a sheep, which will act a bit off, and may need vet treatment
« Last Edit: February 21, 2019, 11:34:16 pm by Fleecewife »
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harmony

  • Joined Feb 2012
Re: Starting with sheep
« Reply #3 on: February 21, 2019, 11:40:44 pm »
Find someone with sheep you can help. Get Tim Tyne's sheep book. Find out about local problems so you know what to include in your health plan. Google Defra guide to keeping sheep for the legislation.

SallyintNorth

  • Joined Feb 2011
  • Cornwall
  • Rarely short of an opinion but I mean well
    • Trelay Cohousing Community
Re: Starting with sheep
« Reply #4 on: February 22, 2019, 10:07:47 am »
Great advice from Fleecewife and others as usual  :thumbsup:

Just one thing though (more for information for those of us dishing out advice than for you to worry about tommytink) :

If you can get Zolvix then you know you will be starting with clean sheep on your clean pasture

Sadly this is no longer as sure as it once was.  Some vets are now suggesting Zolvix as part of the annual on-farm worm programme, so although no resistance has yet been recorded, afaik, it will no longer necessarily be the case that any worms the sheep bring with them have never been exposed to Zolvix before.  Read this article from March 2017 for more.
« Last Edit: February 22, 2019, 10:10:35 am by SallyintNorth »
Don't listen to the money men - they know the price of everything and the value of nothing

Live in a cohousing community with small farm for our own use.  Dairy cows (rearing their own calves for beef), pigs, sheep for meat and fleece, ducks and hens for eggs, veg and fruit growing

pharnorth

  • Joined Nov 2013
  • Cambridgeshire
Re: Starting with sheep
« Reply #5 on: February 22, 2019, 05:56:45 pm »
As [member=24672]harmony[/member] says. Get Tim Tyne's book, it is very readable and will tell you a great deal and a useful,reference when you het your sheep. And look at the Defra site for legal requirements on transport, and movement licences etc.

Get your sheep from a suitable source, by which I mean someone who will tell you what has already been done(e.g vaccinations) and what needs to be done over say, the next 3 months. 

islaSkye

  • Joined Sep 2016
Re: Starting with sheep
« Reply #6 on: February 22, 2019, 08:05:39 pm »
Where are you based?
If you are in the north west the best vets for a vaccination programme is Ribble vets in my opinion, they have advised and vaccinated my flock and have given loads of advice along the way.

Backinwellies

  • Global Moderator
  • Joined Sep 2012
  • Llandeilo Carmarthenshire
    • Nantygroes
    • Facebook
Re: Starting with sheep
« Reply #7 on: February 23, 2019, 07:31:29 am »
  where you buy your sheep from will make a huge difference to your first year.....   I would recommend trying to buy direct from a smallholder who will generally have trained to bucket and have less flighty sheep. Don't just buy ewe lambs …. get at least one older ewe who can be mother and guide the rest.   A good smallholder will let you visit and see how they do things and will discuss their health plan.   Also remember no one sells their best sheep ….  you flock will develop over 3 or 4 years (I have 'disposed' of all my difficult sheep now and have an easy time of things compared to the first years. )
Linda

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pharnorth

  • Joined Nov 2013
  • Cambridgeshire
Re: Starting with sheep
« Reply #8 on: February 23, 2019, 10:32:34 am »
Our first 3 sheep were in lamb ewes who had lambed before. Maybe more luck than judgement on my part but experienced ewes are typically need less help lambing/ bonding

bj_cardiff

  • Joined Feb 2017
  • Carmarthenshire
Re: Starting with sheep
« Reply #9 on: February 23, 2019, 05:48:59 pm »
Do you have any friendly neighbours with sheep? Most are only too happy to talk about their sheep and give advice. Its also useful to speak to people nearby as there might be a particular type or breed that does well (or not) on your soil type, altitude etc etc.

cambee

  • Joined Feb 2017
  • High Peak
Re: Starting with sheep
« Reply #10 on: February 23, 2019, 06:44:03 pm »
Our tip (after only a couple of years), do think carefully about what you want your sheep for.  We got it wrong, bought Coloured Ryelands using our hearts and eyes and thought (without really looking into it properly but having watched a tv programme!) that we fancied showing. Turned out that the time and work involved in showing wasn’t for us and that our sheeps’ purpose is to manage our land (alternating with grazing horses) and to produce lambs to sell as meat. We paid a fortune for pedigrees when we could have done just as well with local mules at a third of the price. On saying that, they’re beautiful to look at, tame as anything and much loved but we could probably have saved ourselves quite a lot of money. Other tip, get to know a local sheep farmer. Sometimes you just need to phone someone!

Nelson International

  • Joined Aug 2017
Re: Starting with sheep
« Reply #11 on: February 23, 2019, 07:05:55 pm »
Do you have any friendly neighbours with sheep? Most are only too happy to talk about their sheep and give advice. Its also useful to speak to people nearby as there might be a particular type or breed that does well (or not) on your soil type, altitude etc etc.

Yup, I didn't like to say, since if you don't you don't, but having a sheep farming friend has definitely been the single biggest 'tip' I have.

thesuffolksmallholding

  • Joined Jan 2017
Re: Starting with sheep
« Reply #12 on: February 23, 2019, 09:22:00 pm »
Was in the exact same position as you around three years back, trying to set up a flock but not knowing 100% how to keep sheep and the legalities. I found a local shepherd willing to teach me everything he knew, I bought some ewes from him, and he guided me through any problems I encountered. I would really recommend trying to find someone who can do the same! Sheep folk tend to very willing to share there knowledge and time to those eager to learn.

tommytink

  • Joined Aug 2018
Re: Starting with sheep
« Reply #13 on: February 25, 2019, 01:29:31 pm »
Thank you all! I think I’m feeling like it’s really complicated when in fact it’s probably just overwhelming as I’ve never had an ounce of experience in farming!

The APHA sent me a booklet about sheep/goats which I’ve read through.

When I set up I said probably thinking about keeping sheep and pigs. Recently I’ve been considering goats as well, so I’d need to contact them again to get a herd number, right?

I was also confused about tagging. But, from advice given and what I’ve read, the tag remains from birth? So if a sheep comes to me it will have tags and if a sheep is born here we will tag them. The tag remains, with a unique number, and the movement of each animal and its number is notified to the relevant register? So if sheep that come on to my holding subsequently go for a wander they can be traced back to me? If so, am I right in that the flock number is mine and each sheeps individual id is registered to my flock number which I am responsible for updating? I always thought a sheep would be tagged with my flock number and CPH but I think that’s wrong??!

Having recently moved to the area I have been seeking out sheep farmers. So far: I’m aware of a more commercial one that I haven’t contacted (prob because I think they won’t have time for me!); have semi-befriended a couple that bought a load of sheep but only have family-related experience, therefore are learning as much as I am; and lastly have had an interaction with an old-time farmer that’s winding down (when he kindly let me take some cow muck off of him!).

The older farmer has Wiltshire Horns (with the horns bred out). We looked at these due to reputed ease of care (and they’re from our home county!). They shed their fleece so no shearing, and are apparently good mothers that lamb easy. I like Beltex and Texel but think they may be too heavy for me to handle. Unless I get down the gym and bulk up a bit!
The older farmer said that Wiltshire’s have a better success rate reproductively than more modern breeds, but may be worth less. So swings and roundabouts I guess. But I know for definite there are Wiltshire’s, Texel, and Lleyn in the area.
Again, I also read about getting second year ewes as they’d have already experienced one pregnancy and would have more experience and less chance of problems.
I went on a lambing course last weekend and whilst lambs would be lovely I’m just really keen to get some sheep now!!

The Woodsiders

  • Joined Aug 2011
  • Near Horley in Surrey
Re: Starting with sheep
« Reply #14 on: February 25, 2019, 03:55:35 pm »

If you look up a lady by the name of Leslie Perret on You Tube, she is a very experienced sheep keeper / breeder, there is a series of blogs she has made that give you all the correct info you will need before starting with your flock.


There is also a lot of good advice given by members on your post.
« Last Edit: February 25, 2019, 04:13:13 pm by The Woodsiders »

 
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