[LeeHambone]

Hi all, my partner and I were hoping to have our small holding by the end of this year but having been outbid twice in property auctions we have given up for now, but my research continues!!!

I have a plan eventually to buy in a small number (4-6) weaned lambs of say Badger faced breeds, keep them over summer and send them off in Autumn for meat and skins. As long as everything goes to plan, is this a common thing to do or do people usually just breed their own lambs from resident ewes rather than buy in weaned lambs? Please assume I will follow guidance on how a novice can raise sheep in the first place in the hope of avoiding pitfalls etc

Any advice or observations welcome.

[SallyintNorth]

Buying store lambs, as they're called, is how we advise people to get started with sheep

That way you learn some basic sheep husbandry before getting into breeding your own.  Or you may decide that it works best for you and your spot to be sheepless over winter, so then you could just carry on buying a few stores each year.

Lambs are usually weaned off their mums at 12-16 weeks old, so if your local farmers of badger-faced sheep lamb in March, then store lambs will start to be available from July-ish.  If they lamb in January then stores will be available from May-ish.

Lambing times can be a bit regional and also breed-specific.  In Cumbria where I used to be, on hill, moorland and upland farms they lambed the hill sheep and Mules in March/April, Suffolks in January (lambing indoors).  Weaning was more usually at 4 months old in those parts.  Weekly store lamb sales started at the marts in June/July. 

Hand-reared lambs will be weaned younger, at 6-8 weeks, so might be available earlier. 

[twizzel]

It depends how much experience with sheep you have. Buying a few store lambs (don’t be set on one breed, be open to anything that would suit your setup as if you want them gone by autumn a slightly more commercial type might suit better) can help you get accustomed to daily sheep checks, treating lameness etc before piling in the work with in lamb ewes. So yes, store lambs before in lamb ewes. You can then work out how many ewes your land can take over winter (this is important especially if you don’t have any off grazing offered to you for winter), and then think about lambing sheep.


Whatever sheep you buy in, make sure you quarantine them on arrival, it will save a lot of stress and stop you from introducing resistant worms, bad feet bacteria onto your ground. Speak to your vet on the best ways to quarantine.


I think I reared a few lambs for a good 4 or 5 years before I bought my first ewes, now my flock is closed apart from buying a ram every 2 years, and I breed fat lambs and flock replacements myself.

[LeeHambone]

Thanks both, that's really useful.

With regards quarantine I would only buy in a single lot and there would only be poultry/waterfowl or pigs already on the holding. We are starting small and slowly. It can't come soon enough!!

[twizzel]

Thanks both, that's really useful.

With regards quarantine I would only buy in a single lot and there would only be poultry/waterfowl or pigs already on the holding. We are starting small and slowly. It can't come soon enough!!

They still need a quarantine worm drench on arrival and keep in for 48 hours after as a very minimum. You don't want resistant worms...


Anything coming onto my ground gets Zolvix as a quarantine wormer, 2 x ivermectin jabs 1 week apart for scab, a drench for fluke, and all 4 feet looked at incase of codd/footrot/scald. Only then after all that do they get turned out onto grass.


This is a good explanation of quarantine treatments https://www.scops.org.uk/internal-parasites/worms/quarantine-treatments/

[shep53]

Depending as Sally says on the area you will be living in store lamb sale's run from july to march ,with the biggest numbers in sept to jan , as the year moves on the lambs tend to get smaller and more expensive per kg to buy , these are called long keep and are destined for sale prime in april to june  . How will you keep the grass under control during peke growing season ,until you can buy some lambs ?  make hay ? cut every week with a ride on ? if you do nothing it will grow long and start to rot at the base and while it will provide sheep grazing it will not be top quality for finishing . Will you make or buy hay in ? depends on how much grass you will have over winter plus how rough / cold the weather as to how much hay you may or not need ? Don't expect all the lambs /hoggs to be ready to kill at the same time .  Extra freezers in an outside shed to hold all the meat etc ?

[PipKelpy]

More importantly, be prepared for NOTHING going to plan!

My plan was 4 pregnant Hereford X's running through winter with 2 calving this month! Oh and 3 sheep lambing.

Actual??

1 maiden heifer due in 3 weeks, 1 2nd calving heifer very aware that she's lucky I adore her and better not let me down next year, or else!!!!! And 1 maiden heifer quite content to run empty.

We want to calve at set time and have been majorally let down by AI!!

Sheep? 1 ewe wouldn't let the tup near her, 1 I don't think has held and the 3rd looks like she'll pop same day as Mary!

No wonder I'm going grey!

But fortunately they are a hobby more than an income. However, I will get tough next year if the other 2 don't calve!

[LeeHambone]

Thanks both, that's really useful.

With regards quarantine I would only buy in a single lot and there would only be poultry/waterfowl or pigs already on the holding. We are starting small and slowly. It can't come soon enough!!

They still need a quarantine worm drench on arrival and keep in for 48 hours after as a very minimum. You don't want resistant worms...

Helpful link, thanks Twizzel


Anything coming onto my ground gets Zolvix as a quarantine wormer, 2 x ivermectin jabs 1 week apart for scab, a drench for fluke, and all 4 feet looked at incase of codd/footrot/scald. Only then after all that do they get turned out onto grass.


This is a good explanation of quarantine treatments https://www.scops.org.uk/internal-parasites/worms/quarantine-treatments/

[LeeHambone]

Depending as Sally says on the area you will be living in store lamb sale's run from july to march ,with the biggest numbers in sept to jan , as the year moves on the lambs tend to get smaller and more expensive per kg to buy , these are called long keep and are destined for sale prime in april to june  . How will you keep the grass under control during peke growing season ,until you can buy some lambs ?  make hay ? cut every week with a ride on ? if you do nothing it will grow long and start to rot at the base and while it will provide sheep grazing it will not be top quality for finishing . Will you make or buy hay in ? depends on how much grass you will have over winter plus how rough / cold the weather as to how much hay you may or not need ? Don't expect all the lambs /hoggs to be ready to kill at the same time .  Extra freezers in an outside shed to hold all the meat etc ?

It will all depend on the when and where once we get our eventual holding, hence "hypothetical advice". Keeping control of the grass will be done by combination of hay, mowing, miniature horse and geese, either combination grazing or rotation. Not sure why you mention our over winter hay requirements because in the original post I mentioned the lambs will be bought in spring and kept until autumn for slaughter? What we eventually do will of course depend on what stock is available and when etc. And yes, of course, enough freezing capacity. Please assume from my original post that despite having never kept sheep before I'm actually quite bright and full of common sense! ?

[LeeHambone]

More importantly, be prepared for NOTHING going to plan!

My plan was 4 pregnant Hereford X's running through winter with 2 calving this month! Oh and 3 sheep lambing.

Actual??

1 maiden heifer due in 3 weeks, 1 2nd calving heifer very aware that she's lucky I adore her and better not let me down next year, or else!!!!! And 1 maiden heifer quite content to run empty.


Haha sounds like a nightmare. There's no guarantee with livestock, I know that. I've kept and bred animals all my life so this I know! I'm hoping my sheep needs will be very basic and straightforward, but if anything, I will be OVER prepared, I've been researching it and looking forward to it for decades!!!
We want to calve at set time and have been majorally let down by AI!!

Sheep? 1 ewe wouldn't let the tup near her, 1 I don't think has held and the 3rd looks like she'll pop same day as Mary!

No wonder I'm going grey!

But fortunately they are a hobby more than an income. However, I will get tough next year if the other 2 don't calve!

[SallyintNorth]

I think it's already been mentioned that you have to be prepared for not all the lambs being ready for the off before the abattoirs and butchers close to home use intake - which is end of November around here and in Cumbria.

But you can always buy in hay if you've had to keep a pair or three back for a bit longer .  Presumeably you're buying hay for the miniature horses anyway.

As to buying lambs in spring, if you want to buy them in spring, as I was trying to explain, you will need to find someone who is lambing before Christmas and is willing to sell some lambs as stores.  Depending on location, lambing in winter usually means the farmer is aiming to fatten all his or her lambs themselves and sell them all as fat / finished in summer, so then they may not want to sell them as stores.

The other way to get lambs in spring is to be prepared to take orphaned lambs and bottle-feed them yourself.  If you're livestock-savvy, that might work for you.  Expect some losses, even if you can find a farmer to reliably only sell you the very best, definitely had a good bellyful of colostrum in the first 6 hours of life, lambs.  And of course, you do get very attached to them when you bottle-feed.  (Even wizened old hill farmers do. )

[LeeHambone]

Hi Sally, thanks yeah that makes sense re hay etc, we have pondered dividing the land for hay and grazing, it all depends what we end up with to be honest. But just trying to weigh up all options. One thing that's difficult to find when doing research for something like is the hands-on experience of people like you all, who have taken the time to share your views.

I may be hampered by wanting a specific breed, but my plan is to join the breed society first to make contact with local keepers and see how things work within the breed and taylor what we do around that. To an extent it's very hypothetical, but as above, you guys are very helpfully sharing your experiences! I knew there was a reason I'd been lurking on here for years

[SallyintNorth]

One thing you might get offered by a breeder is to have someone else's ewe hoggs, or tups, or even a few ewes with lambs at foot, at yours on summer "keep".  That way you'd get the sheep you like on your land and start learning about looking after them.  Maybe if it was ewes with wether lambs at foot, the lambs could become yours for your freezer (ie, you could buy them as stores) when their mums get weaned and go home. 

Just a thought, anyway.

[twizzel]

One thing you might get offered by a breeder is to have someone else's ewe hoggs, or tups, or even a few ewes with lambs at foot, at yours on summer "keep".  That way you'd get the sheep you like on your land and start learning about looking after them.  Maybe if it was ewes with wether lambs at foot, the lambs could become yours for your freezer (ie, you could buy them as stores) when their mums get weaned and go home. 

Just a thought, anyway.

Sally has a good idea there but I would add caution to having someone else’s rams on your land if you’re a novice with sheep. I graze a neighbours fields with ewe lambs over winter, but the tups always stay home where I can keep a close eye and nobody else has to handle/check them bar me and Mr Twizzel. Then only me and Mr Twizzel can be knocked down by them 

[shep53]

As Sally says to buy lambs in the spring you will either buy orphans to rear on milk or buy ewes with lambs at foot , but to restrict to one breed makes this much harder plus to get them finished by the autumn you really need a terminal sire and very good grazing