Author Topic: What are you doing with your sheep?  (Read 19496 times)

Moleskins

  • Joined Sep 2009
  • England
What are you doing with your sheep?
« on: November 21, 2010, 09:49:11 am »
I quite often wonder if I'm doing the right things at the right time.
So I thought it might be an idea, which would be useful to many,
to ask this question once every month say. Then all us less experienced
shepherds and newbies can judge whether or not we're feeding at the right
time, injecting when we should and treating for flies when we need to.

At the moment I'm giving mine a bit of sugar beet feed and the tup has been
in since the end of October. 7 definite marked ewes and 2 got a bit of colour on
but I think he just jumped on them and not actually mated. Changed colour
on the 14th Nov.
Time flies like an arrow but fruit flies like a banana.

NLL

  • Joined Apr 2010
Re: What are you doing with your sheep?
« Reply #1 on: November 21, 2010, 10:07:53 am »
really good idea. i worry that mine are quite muddy at the moment.its where i feed them as they all have grass fields but i am supplementing with hay so they stand around alot.is that alright.

dyedinthewool

  • Joined Jul 2010
  • Orpingtons and assorted Sheep
Re: What are you doing with your sheep?
« Reply #2 on: November 21, 2010, 08:04:23 pm »
A good Idea,

At the start of a month someone posting a what needs to be done this month.

I'm always wondering if I'm doing the right thing at the right time -is it the right injection ie HEPVAC/wormer etc.When should I be giving it... :-\

Once youv'e done once (or thrice in my case  :-[ :-[) it's okay - but it's knowing in the first place...

Because we made hay late (September) we are a bit short of grass so I'm giving a small feed of barley - damped sugarbeet -a few ewe nuts/coarse nuts.  I know you don't have to feed sugar bit soaked but old habits die hard (horses) and it dampens the barley.  They have some Hay as well with vitamin tubs.
You are never to old to learn something new

ballingall

  • Joined Sep 2008
  • Avonbridge, Falkirk
Re: What are you doing with your sheep?
« Reply #3 on: November 24, 2010, 10:42:22 am »
Ours are grubby too- they hang around at the field gate, or the entrance to the field shelter and it is muddy there. We give a bit of hay to try and stop them stealing the goat kid's hay (goat kids are living in the field shelter at the mo). And giving a few sheep nuts at night- but we are only doing this as they are lambs which we hope to send to slaughter soon. Just trying to fatten up 2 of them.

We will be dosing the 2 who will be with us a bit longer for fluke this week.

Beth

Blinkers

  • Joined Jan 2008
  • Carmarthenshire
  • Carmarthenshire/Pembrokeshire border
    • Glyn Elwyn - Faithmead Herd
    • Facebook
Re: What are you doing with your sheep?
« Reply #4 on: November 24, 2010, 10:49:34 am »
Our lambs are muddy too and for the same reasons.   Feeding up the ram lambs which are due to go for slaughter early December as its taken ages to get weight on them this year.  They've grown in height, but just not put the meat on  :-\         Ewe lambs dagged last weekend cos they'd been mucky and it just keeps building up if you don't clip it off  :P       Ewes all covered by respective rams AND......great excitement.... got trio of Grey Faced Dartmoors arriving from Dorset on Sunday  ;D ;D ;D ;D   They'll stay in a stable for a couple of days so I can worm 'em and check feet etc.   
Did you ever stop to think, and forget to start again !!
www.glynelwyn.co.uk

Fleecewife

  • Joined May 2010
  • South Lanarkshire
    • ScotHebs
Re: What are you doing with your sheep?
« Reply #5 on: November 24, 2010, 12:59:03 pm »
November is a quiet month for our sheep as they are in with their respective tups.  We started with 5 groups of Hebrideans and 2 of Soay, but had problems with one of the groups away on someone else's pasture, so we had to bring them back after only a week.  This has upset the tupping times of course as we had to isolate them for a while before we put them into some of the tupping groups at home.  In exchange we had agreed to tup some Soays belonging to the owner of the 'away' tup - unfortunately they brought conjunctivitis (pink eye) with them so we have had to round up all the little devils in that group, plus some more which had through-fence contact, every day to treat their eyes.  IM Terramycin shouldn't be used on in-lamb ewes (apparently it has an 'anti-anabolic effect') but we had to use it on 3, 2 of which were still cycling so should be ok.  What a nuisance - so much for my well-organised 4 weeks of tupping, to keep lambing just in April. And so much for November being a quiet month for us. Still, lesson learned.
We feed our ewes with ad lib hay plus a small amount of 'tup&lamb'/coarse mix and they have a licky bucket. They also get willow branches throughout the winter.  Some years we don't do all this so soon but this year we have had snow and deep frosts for a while, so the grass has no nutritional value left in it. More deep cold and frosts to come this week.
We usually worm our stock just before the tups go in, but this year they didn't need it.  We will watch them closely but I don't expect to have to do them again until after lambing.  We also check every animals feet at that time, and trim any which need it.  Sometimes that lasts through until after lambing, but if any individuals start to limp over the winter we catch them and do a trim.
Our meat boys go off in August at 16 months, so we have a small group to overwinter - they have ad lib hay, plus coarse mix when there is deep snow lying. Our unbred ewe hoggs have a fairly similar regime, and our 'old biddies' which are past breeding age but are pets so stay on here until they drop off their perches are fed masses !! Spoilt  ::)
"Let's not talk about what we can do, but do what we can"

There is NO planet B - what are YOU doing to save our home?

Do something today that your future self will thank you for - plant a tree

 Love your soil - it's the lifeblood of your land.

lachlanandmarcus

  • Joined Aug 2010
  • Aberdeenshire
Re: What are you doing with your sheep?
« Reply #6 on: November 24, 2010, 02:06:48 pm »
We have 15 Shetland ewes in with our Shetland tup, all being fed hay now the snow has started plus a tiny bit of ewe nuts or wheat and a lick. Hardly feed them as some are first time mums so dont want any big babies!

The two ram companion wethers plus 3 wethers who will go off to abbatoir in  the spring at 27 months (mutton!) and 15 months (hoggett) are together in a different field along with a ram lamb from this year, who will either need to be sold or go to abbatoir in the spring.

Two old girls who have had mastitis and so arent bred from (yes I know they should be mutton too, but....) are in a third field along with my only surviving ewe lamb from this year (the other was killed in a dog attack off the moor :-(((()

The latter two groups just get hay water and a lick food wise.

We havent needed to worm or fluke anything to date, tho we do heptavac prior to lambing. All of them had their feet and tags done before tupping time.

We expect to lamb from about 5 April give or take. To date 13 lambs have been born here, but this coming year there will be a lot more tiny feet!


andywalt

  • Joined Aug 2010
  • kent
  • observe react administer enjoy !!
    • photos
Re: What are you doing with your sheep?
« Reply #7 on: November 24, 2010, 02:24:36 pm »
I have finished the fencing on my new grazing area of 7.5 acres, split it into 3 seperate paddocks so I can manage the grass through the winter, im changing the tup paste every 2-3 weeks have done red, green, and will now put on yellow, half of my 21 ewes will lamb in Feb the other half will lamb through april, they are munching through the 1st field and will be eaten tight in the next couple of weeks, have set up a penned area for checking them ect and have a hay rack there and troughs for feeding near to lambing.....built a door into the pen with my nephew and all I need now is a shelter....

Had one death of an older ewe I think now was just old age...

It nice to see what everyones doing.....
Suffolk x romneys and Texel X with Romney Tup, Shetlands and Southdown Tup

shetlandpaul

  • Joined Oct 2008
Re: What are you doing with your sheep?
« Reply #8 on: November 24, 2010, 04:27:44 pm »
getting the ram back out of next doors flock again. he can clear stock fencing and barbed wire in a single bound. we have just had to offer to buy any coloured shetland lambs next year. how bad does ram meat taste.

kanisha

  • Joined Dec 2007
    • Spered Breizh Ouessants
    • Facebook
Re: What are you doing with your sheep?
« Reply #9 on: November 24, 2010, 04:32:35 pm »
oops  ;D five breeding groups with five different rams nearly had one break a fence but so far so good but alot smaller than shetlands so no fence jumping.
Ravelry Group: - Ouessants & Company

Pony-n-trap

  • Joined Jul 2010
  • Aberdeenshire
Re: What are you doing with your sheep?
« Reply #10 on: November 24, 2010, 06:37:02 pm »
SO if you feed sugar beet, is it the shreds? and it doesnt have to be soaked? In other words, what brand?

Ours have a couple of licks and as I cant get hay til Fri and the snow has started, am giving them a small amount of course mix, well, it was once per day but after todays snow they have had a small amount twice today.

waterhouse

  • Guest
Re: What are you doing with your sheep?
« Reply #11 on: November 24, 2010, 06:40:18 pm »
Blinkers, we've just bought 4 Greyface Dartmoor ewes.  We should compare notes since it sounds like you know what you're doing!  Ours are also in quarantine while our vet is on holiday.  We weren't sure what to do with worming and dosing etc

waterhouse

  • Guest
Re: What are you doing with your sheep?
« Reply #12 on: November 24, 2010, 06:44:28 pm »
We use the ten minute soaking beet although we make up enough for a couple of days at a time.  In this weather it keeps well hydrated for some days but in summer it ferments.  We don't like the long soak stuff because of the risk of someone being a bit hasty with the soaking.

landroverroy

  • Joined Oct 2010
Re: What are you doing with your sheep?
« Reply #13 on: November 24, 2010, 08:52:18 pm »
I've just had my Suffolk ram stolen. You wouldn't believe it - but there's no other explanation- a ram just doesn't wander off on his own from a well fenced field. It actually happened 2 weeks ago, just as I was about to put him with the bulk of my ewes. He was in a field with 3 other sheep and 4 donkeys. Lucky they didnt take the donkeys. Fortunately I'd got one ram lamb left from this year's crop - he's not as well bred as his dad but he's not a bad shape, so instead of ending up as roast dinner  it's like all his birthdays have come at once and he's been promoted to chief ram. So if anyone in Goole area has a Suffolk ram they've finished with, please contact me.
Rules are made:
  for the guidance of wise men
  and the obedience of fools.

dyedinthewool

  • Joined Jul 2010
  • Orpingtons and assorted Sheep
Re: What are you doing with your sheep?
« Reply #14 on: November 24, 2010, 08:53:49 pm »
Hi All,

Good to see what you are all doing.

BBBRRrrrr to the snow and frost for those living up at the other end of the world.  We've had a couple of frosty mornings here but mostly it's wet - what else when you live in West Wales...

As yet not TOOoo muddy in our paddocks but grass is getting short.

Feeding  Sugar Beet - i think I've read you can feed it dry to sheep not sure if it means only the nuts or only the shreds. I use the shreds and soak (not wringing wet) just plimbed up, sometimes adding a bit more each day if a bit wet in the bottom of the bucket.

Feeding hay ad-lib they're not eating much so must be still finding some grass... They also have licks.

Did worm/fluke the girls (still had Combinex in the cupboard) and checked their bums and feet.

Our borrowed Charolias Ram came today - the girls fell over their selves to make up to him ;D ;D with only 5 girls to 'see' to he thinks he's in heaven.

An update to 'itchy sheep' thread, VLA said not lice or scab so are setting dermatology cultures.  Meanwhile I've daubed the scabs with Sudocreme.
You are never to old to learn something new

 
Advertisement
 

© The Accidental Smallholder Ltd 2003-2025. All rights reserved.

Design by Furness Internet

Site developed by Champion IS