[plumseverywhere]

The orphan boys are now over 6 weeks old and rather huge...they are so much healthier and larger than last years lambs that we helped raise for the sheep club. In fact they've obliterated the grass in the nursery paddock now and I'm feeding hay and creep.
On top of this, they are pushing down the fencing (never an issue last year as they were quite weedy little lambs in comparison) so I'm keen to turn them out during the day, bringing them back in during the night so they have shed shelter.
There are 2 adult ewes in the main field, both wormed but I am aware there will still be a greater risk to the lambs.
Can you more experienced sheep owners give me some advice please? should I worm them before turning out?
thank you as always 

[jaykay]

What was the worm burden likely to be on the nursery paddock?

If low, no point worming lambs now. But you're right, they may well pick up worms when they go out with the adults.

Lots of folk will tell you not to worm, look at their bums, get worm counts....
All I say is that I worm lambs (and ewes) on pasture that's had sheep on, every 4 weeks for the first 3 months or so. Sometimes the only symptom of Nematodirus in lambs is death. The worms can build up very quickly if you get a warm, wet spell and lambs can quickly succumb. The NADIS forecasts help decide.

After mid summer, I start to go by mucky bums, bearing in mind that lush grass produces this too.

So - when did you last worm the ewes? What sort of worm burden is the pasture likely to have where they are?

If low then don't worm often. If likely to be higher, then do.

[plumseverywhere]

Ewe's were last wormed in December (27th) there are 2 ewe's on about 2 and a half acres so a couple of area's with a lot of poo (wehre they sleep) but mostly just grass

the nursery paddock had one or two sheep in it for the odd month within the last 6 months.

[jaykay]

Ok, so pretty low worm burden likely.

Do you rotate? It's quite a good idea to divide pasture up into four blocks and move the sheep every week. That way, the worm larvae hatch 3 weeks after the eggs were deposited, no-one ingests them so they die.

Based on what you're describing, I'd say you don't need to worm much, so just keep an eye on bums and do it if it seems necessary.

[plumseverywhere]

we need to work on rotating. Hubby's put up so much new fencing these past few weeks so its been on the list and will be done. because we only had 2 on quite a large space I was hoping they'd be ok, so far so good, but now we will have 5.
will keep an eye on bums - am assuming we'll have some green runnier poo once on this more lush grass?
thanks ever so much Jaykay 

[FiB]

Thats really useful, thanks from me too - I was wondering how you tell what the worm burden would be.  So If I move my small flock (14) into a different field every 4 weeks, it would reduce the worm problem over time?  I have 2 fields I'm going to use over the summer (both about 1.5 acres) and was wondering what the optimum rotaion would be. (They are slopey and rocky, so not easy to sub divide).  Thanks

[jaykay]

They say that a sheep shouldn't hear the church bells twice in the same field, ie you should move them every week - around four fields, to break the worm cycle.