Barking Rock Farm

Battering Ram

2010-11-22T16:54:00.001-05:00

I have a bottle baby lamb that is about 7 months old. He was castrated 3 months ago but still wants to butt me and my granddaughter. We were the ones who bottle fed him. When I give attention to one of the "siblings" (those bottle fed around the same time as him), he has to push between us. Some days there is no problem; but he seems quick to jerk his head at us. Sometimes he back ups, with ears back and jumps to buck, then swings his head. The other day he got me with a horn and cut me and bruised me.

If I can push him with my leg on his side, he backs off. Many times ignoring him, he will back off; but if we are head on he will not. My granddaughter he goes after all the time, but as a baby (first 5 weeks he was here by himself, no other lambs and in the house) she was his playmate.

I want to train him, I only have 6 lambs all were bottle babies, and no other sheep.

What can I do? Will he calm down since he is castrated?

Thanks for any help

I really wish I could offer some great ideas here; but to be perfectly honest, I'm not very optimistic about the outcome of this situation. Once a sheep starts butting behaviour, it only gets worse as he matures; and there's no simple, sure way to curtail it.
Castration will help, but it's usually most effective when done at a very early age (a few days) and before the butting behaviour starts. Your only options now are to retrain the lamb against his natural urges. The very first thing I would do is keep him away from your granddaughter. He obviously feels very comfortable challenging her, and that sounds like a recipe for disaster. He apparently views her as an equal in your "flock" (using the term loosely here, as this sheep probably considers humans as part of his flock), and probably won't stop until he "wins." Never, ever, ever allow ANYONE to pet him - or any of your sheep - on the top of the head. Carry a squirt gun, squirt bottle, or something similar any time you're near him. A dose of water right in the face will deter him. Don't coddle him or apologize for disciplinary actions...you're trying to make him slightly afraid of you! Forget about any schemes which might include whacking him with something, as that will only serve to reinforce and encourage future butting.
If you are really serious about keeping him at all costs, keep him away from humans as much as possible. The idea is to make him more like a natural sheep - i.e., slightly shy or afraid of humans. It'd be best if he were running with other dam-raised lambs, and had as little future human contact as possible.
I realize I sound somewhat draconian here, but believe me...my advice stems from many sorry experiences. Although domesticated for millennia, sheep have never really been bred as pets as have been cats and dogs. And although some rudimentary training is possible (such as walking on a lead), sheep are not trainable as are dogs. To make matters more complicated, you're trying to un-train natural urges here. I'm not sure that's at all possible.
I do wish you the best of luck.

Lambs Won't Nurse!

2010-11-22T16:45:00.000-05:00

We sometimes have a problem with young lambs not feeding from the mother. They seem to not know how to suck. The ewe has healthy teats and milk. We have tried rolling the ewe onto its back, holding the ewe and offering the teat to the lamb. This works well if the lamb knows how to suck, but if it doesn't what can we do? Can you advise? Appreciate your site.

A chilled lamb usually has no interest in food. If that's the case, the first order of business is to warm the lamb up by whatever means you can (e.g. hair dryer, immersion in warm water, etc.). You can try tube-feeding the lamb warmed colostrum or warm dextrose (NOT cold milk or replacer!); usually that helps *if* chill is the problem. Once the lamb nurses for the first time, it should do ok after that unless something is seriously wrong.

You can tell if a lamb is cold, by the way, by sticking your finger in its mouth. If it's cold in there, the lamb is chilled. At the same time you'll be checking for vigor of sucking response.

Your use of the plural here tells me you've seen this more than once. Perhaps it might be a good idea to review your bloodlines, and look for a different and/or more unrelated ram. Loss of early life vigor is one of the first signs of inbreeding depression.

How Can I Tell When My Ewes Will Lamb?

2010-07-10T14:28:00.001-04:00

My 2 ewes are looking very close to lambing. Their udders have swollen nicely. How can I tell how close they are? We bought them pregnant.

Indicators vary from breed to breed and individual ewe to ewe, esp. depending upon age. But generally, once a ewe starts making an udder the event isn't too far off. A day or two before the birth, you should notice some subtle changes in the ewe's body and the udder. The lambs "drop", and the ewe becomes saggier looking around the hips. The tail head appears to move up slightly. The udder will become full, taught, and somewhat "shiney" (assuming it isn't covered with wool!); and you will be able to express a little bit of milk.

The actual day of lambing, the ewe will probably separate herself from the flock. She'll probably refuse feed, and may stand by herself staring off into space or start "nesting".

All these signs are somewhat subtle, and seeing them may take some experience and knowledge of your individual sheep.

Email from Charles - a new potential shepherd - and some answers

2010-05-07T00:00:00.003-04:00

"I have been doing a lot of research into bio diverse farming methods and "flerding" techniques. I also have a real interest in setting up a sub commercial aggrobiz for myelf and my family with a lot of varied options after im done with military service.

"Without going into long winded detail about various business aspirations, I wanted to know if you had any ideas as to a good breed of sheep that gives high quality meat and wool while still producing enough milk and decent quality hide for home useage for recreational crafts that'd be good in the climate of northern Pennsylvania."

There are dozens upon dozens of breeds available in the USA. I can pretty much guarantee you that every breeder will tell you his or her breed is the best! I urge you to talk to various breeders, and ask them why they have chosen their particular breed. Take every response with a grain of salt, of course. Read everything you can about a breed before investing in it.

A few details to keep in mind:

(1) No breed is perfect in every way

(2) Most money in sheep is made by selling meat lambs.

(3) There are some niche markets for speciality breeds, wool, hides, and breeding stock; but it takes a special effort to find and develop such markets.

Just about any breed you find should do just fine in your climate.

"I am trying to see if i can come up with cost projections to grow my own feed. Also is there a preferred method of preparing pasture and grazing land? "

A great source of such information can be your county extension agent. Yes, there is most certainly methods of preparing pasture! Good pasture and hay does not just happen by itself.

"I want to start off with a small herd of maybe 10-15 sheep and slowly include cattle, on an acreage of say 100 acres of pasture. Do you think it would be possible to maintain a few cows as well as sheep and horses? "

Certainly. Starting with a smaller farm animal, such as sheep, is a good start.

Barbados Blackbelly Lambs Available

2010-04-11T00:19:00.006-04:00

We now have a few select Blackbelly lambs on the ground. They will be weaning age in early May, and may be reserved now. Check our online saleslist at http://www.barkingrock.com/sheep4sale.htm

Update 5/6/10 - one ewe lamb left this year!
Update 11/20/10 - we are sold out for the year. If you're interested in a lamb from our winter/spring 2011 crop, please drop us an email at farms@barkingrock.com

When is a lamb first shorn?

2010-04-11T00:12:00.002-04:00

Please tell me when a lamb is born, are they born with some fleece already or are they naked?

After birth, how long can the sheep be shorn for their wool? How long it will take for the fleece to be fully grown before another shearing is needed?

All lambs are fully covered with wool when born; but the wool is very short - just a few milimeters long. The wool grows quickly, and most lambs *can* be shorn at around 6-8 months of age; although typically lambs are shorn for the first time at around one year of age.

While most breeds are shorn annually thereafter, a few of the faster-wool-growing breeds (with generally coarser wool) are shorn every 6 months.

Sheep & Fruit Trees

2010-04-10T23:58:00.005-04:00

From a recent email correspondence...

I came across your site and I was very thankful to read. I am wondering, do sheep typically eat the bark of fruit trees?

Yes

I have a flock of sheep and I would like to put them in the orchard to keep the grass down, but don't want them to damage the trees.

Unless the trees are quite large and well-established, with the trunks well protected, the sheep will definitely damage and probably kill the trees.

Is there something I could feed them in order to deter them from the trees in the case that sheep do eat tree bark?

Pasture the sheep in the orchard ONLY when the grass is very lush and thick, and move the sheep at first sign of the grass being depleted and/or the sheep start experimenting on the trees. Don't pasture rams with the trees. Resign yourself to losing the bottommost branches. Wrap the trunks with hardware cloth...NOT chicken wire or page wire. (Neither of those will do much good.)

Repellants (such as "Hinder") MIGHT work temporarily; but I wouldn't bet the farm on it.

Sorry I can't give you better news here; but as I look out at what was once our orchard, I can say all this from experience.

Will sheep fight?

2009-10-30T00:01:00.002-04:00

Q. I have 2 acres in northern California in a temperate area. I want to have a flock of about 8-10 jacob sheep, I plan to sell the majority for meat and home consumption. I also do some agri-tourism. People come to see crops, and they’d like to see the sheep (even if the sheep don’t want to be seen).

I will be new to raising sheep, and am busy with two young kids and an off-farm job. So I thought maybe I’d just buy young males or castrated rams and see if I think it’s too much of a hassle. If I start with 3 males and plan to sell/butcher 2 within a year or so, am I going to have bunch of fighting on my hands? If I have one or two females and two males will that lead to fighting?

A. It's pretty typical to keep a group of males together during non-breeding season, and it usually works out ok. Wethers (castrated males) will sometimes fight, as of course do intact males; but unless there's something serious to fight about (read: females or starvation), it should work out fine.

There's always the potential of acquiring that one SOB ram that just won't adapt, in which case he's a candidate for early retirement to the freezer. But that's not usually the case.

A female in heat kept in with (or very near) 2 adult rams will probably drive everyone crazy until she's bred.

Questions Welcome!

2009-10-29T23:56:00.005-04:00

Please feel free to post any sheep-related questions you may have here, or under a new heading.

Novice with Questions

2009-10-15T12:04:00.003-04:00

Q. I am a novice and recently purchased four sheep: two ewes and two rams for breeding. They look pretty scraggly and had been in a poor pasture. I have lots of pasture and they have been eating nonstop. Their bowel movements have changed from pellets to bigger stools and their rear ends look dirty. I was giving them a it of sheep grain but stopped and now I would like to wash them up a bit. What do you shampoo and groom sheep with and if diaherra develops what do you give them?

A. I think you're unfortunately finding out the hard way why it pays to buy well-bred and well-managed healthy stock from a reputable breeder! In addition to having a better start, you'd have someone with personal knowledge of the sheep and their own health concerns to turn to with your questions.

But here we are, and I'll try to help you as best I can.

Any sheep that is no longer producing pellets has a problem, and it can be potentially life-threatening. It sounds like what you have is a problem from too much good food, too quickly. Moving a hungry sheep to a lush pasture can cause a number of problems, among those you've described. Parasite infestation - especially coccidiosis - is another likely cause; again common in young sheep that have not received proper care.

Here's what I'd recommend:

Clean up the sheep, at least the rump area, with warm water and a mild livestock shampoo. (I like Orvus paste, which can be obtained at your feed mill.) Otherwise you run the risk of fly strike. (Dealing with a sheep infested with maggots is nobody's idea of a good time!)

Treat any really severe diarrhea with a product such as Pepto Bismol - approx. same dosage-per-pound as a human.

Contact your local vet (large animal vet is best, but any vet office should be able to help), and have them do a fecal check. (In plain English, take a poop sample to them. Ask them to check for parasites, INCLUDING COCCIDIA. Do NOT assume they will check for this, which is NOT a worm and will NOT be treated with any dewormer.) If the sample tests positive, ask for a recommended medication to treat the problem.

If possible, put the animals on dry hay for a few days. Introduce them to the rich pasture for only a couple hours per day, extending their grazing time a little each day.
Make absolutely certain the sheep have access to clean drinking water at all times!

After the sheep are acclimated to your pasture, you can introduce grain into their diet, if desired and necessary, starting slowly and gradually increasing the quantity.

2010 Lamb Crop

2009-08-30T17:28:00.003-04:00

Thank you to all of our 2009 buyers!

We're now taking orders for our 2010 lamb crop. Please drop us a line at farms@barkingrock.com if you'd like to be added to our mailing list.

We'll simply drop you a line once the ewes drop their lambs! There is no obligation.

Shearing Sheep

2009-08-30T17:18:00.001-04:00

From: Susan
To: 'farms@barkingrock.com'
Sent: Saturday, August 29, 2009

... I would like to get a better understanding about shearing. Do they need to be sheared at least once a year? Does the heat in summer make them suffer with a full fleece still on since the year before? Can they get infestation or diseases from not being shorn? I have seen some that look very uncomfortable and ugly besides when they still have a full fleece in the middle of summer. Thank you for any information you can provide...

Hi Susan,

Most wool breeds should be shorn once per year. Some of the coarse wool breeds will need to be shorn twice per year. And hair breeds - such as our Barbados Blackbellies - need no shearing at all!

Wool is an insulator. Contrary to popular conceptions, it really isn't mandatory that sheep be shorn in spring; they can be shorn any time, including late summer. Wooly sheep - although they appear to us to be too warm - will generally do just fine in the summer.

A sheep doesn't get a disease or infestation simply from not being shorn; but too much wool will certainly hide the symptoms of any such problem. Unshorn sheep do become matted, messy, dirty, and unattractive. And unshorn ewes will certainly become incredibly soiled when they lamb. Their lambs also may starve for inability to make their way through the matts to the teats!

So back to what I think was your original query...what becomes of a wool breed that isn't shorn? Well, a sheep doesn't die directly for lack of shearing. But unshorn, wet wool tends to become messy and matted. Messy and matted, partially shed wool is a great place to harbor maggots, lice, and other highly icky things. It's possible that the wool will grow to the point where the animal steps on it and stumbles over it.

Basically, if you are raising sheep for sale and don't shear, no one is going to buy from you because you obviously can't manage your flock.
If you are raising sheep as decorative pets, you're not going to like the appearance or attendant problems.

If you're contemplating owning sheep and don't want to deal with shearing, a hair breed is a very good option.

Jacob Fleeces for Handspinning

2009-05-22T17:04:00.002-04:00

We still have a few gorgeous naturally-spotted Jacob fleeces available. Please check out the supply at our website at http://www.barkingrock.com/wool.htm

Questions & Answers About Shepherding

2009-05-11T19:47:00.002-04:00

We welcome all sheep-related questions here, and will do our best to answer any serious inquiries!