[Louiseanastasia]

Hi I'm new to this group but have a question about ryeland rams for hire we own a fantastic show ram lamb who someone has approached us about hiring for a few weeks to tup however I'm unsure how much to charge ? how long for? And what terms and conditions
I Should outline?
Thanks in advance for any help given ! X

[crobertson]

As much as you would like to help them (I can understand a lot of small holders don't want their own ram) but personally its not something I would do, especially show stock, then again others might do so and have some good advice.
I think its a question of risk, would you risk you important show ram getting ill, injured, chance of loosing condition, biosecurity such as worms, whats the fluke risk of where he'd be going, orf can survive in soil, is the farm he'd be going to experienced that before? All potential things he could bring back and introduce to your farm. I hate to sound negative but I've had experience when I brought in some stock and its been a pain in the butt to get rid of, eventually going around all of our sheep. From then I decided I'd try and keep a closed flock, keeping all my own replacements and only changing my ram every few years.

Welcome to the group by the way

[bj_cardiff]

If its a fantastic show ram I def wouldn't hire him out! I'd only hire out something that you wouldn't miss if he didn't come back!

One of the members here hires out rams to people they've sold sheep to in the past and they get them back, isolate them and then cull them, so they never go back into the flock. Couldn't you just sell them a ram lamb at a good price and let them cull it afterwards if they didn't want one for the rest of the year?

[landroverroy]

I agree wholeheartedly with what's been said.
I once lent out, to a neighbour a young Hereford bull. He was pedigree and one of the best bulls I've ever had. the neighbour just had a few continental cows he wanted in calf. The arrangement was he kept the bull over winter and had free use of him. When he came back he was thin and, as the neighbour remarked, had no backend on him. I was mortified as he'd been a well rounded, fantastic shaped animal when he left me. Turned out, that the neighbour had given all the animals some rolled barley, (in addition to hay) each day, but the young bull was pushed out by the large cows so didn't get any. I suspect there wasn't that much to get anyway and that they were fed poor quality hay that he couldn't sell.  I never said anything and i'm sure the farmer hadn't realised that my bull was still growing and needed something better than a scarcely maintenance diet. You don't realise that, without meaning any harm, a lot of people don't treat other people's animals as well as they should. In spite of that, all the cows were in calf and produced fantastic calves.
In the early days of my sheep keeping (in the last century!) I lent someone a ram lamb for a few weeks. He came back in January. I'd no complaints about the way he'd been treated but he gave the rest of my flock scab. The chap had bought some more ewes from market which developed scab. So he injected them all, returned my ram, and never thought to mention it. By the time the scab developed in my flock I was in the middle of lambing.
So, in my experience, I would never again lend out/hire anything I cared about as however well you know someone you cannot guarantee your animal will be returned in a suitable condition to ever be of use to you again. [size=78%] [/size]

[Marches Farmer]

If its a fantastic show ram I def wouldn't hire him out! I'd only hire out something that you wouldn't miss if he didn't come back!
One of the members here hires out rams to people they've sold sheep to in the past and they get them back, isolate them and then cull them, so they never go back into the flock. Couldn't you just sell them a ram lamb at a good price and let them cull it afterwards if they didn't want one for the rest of the year?

That's probably me and, yes, I agree.  If he's that good you could use him for as long as you can, covering just the unrelated old ewes so he doesn't run with his daughters.  Start a waiting list for his ram lambs in the future.  I hire out for only 4 weeks and presently charge £60 for a registered pedigree ram, with up-to-date vaccinations in tip top health.  The flock is free of footrot, CODD, orf, abortion agents, scab, lice, etc., etc., and I hope to keep it that way.

[pharnorth]

So you have all the warnings from some experienced keepers. However to answer your question, I hired in a ryeland ram in year 2 (year 1 I bought ewes ready tupped). Cost was about £40 I think for 6 weeks. He came with his own bag of feed but I was responsible for any vets bills/ medication.