Before and After

[aggieterpkatie]

DSS and I are showing the sheep at our county fair this year, so it was time to think about fitting them. I couldn't decide whether to slick shear them or fit them. I started fitting one of the lambs yesterday but it was WAY to hot and sticky and gross, so I just decided to go ahead and slick shear her. Here's her before and after (though she still needs some finish work done).

Barley

 

[Lizzie098]

Awww, she looks like she has big winter boot on!!!! Lol, too cute!

 

[SDGsoap&dairy]

I love her rear legs! Are short, upright pasterns pretty typical with sheep? Very cute.

 

[goodhors]

Lamb is wearing Uggs! Very fashionable this year. And that is what you say when legs are all that is left to clip!!

 

[aggieterpkatie]

LOL. Sheepie Uggs. I am going to be trimming them so they're not quite as poofy.

n.smith, I think it's the same with sheep/goats. Upright ones are good, and sometimes you'll get animals with weak pasterns. Hers appear vertical.

 

[aggieterpkatie]

I sheared Bean this morning and like her even more than Barley! It's a good thing I kept them both because I was thinking about selling Bean at weaning.

Barley on left, Bean on right.

Again, Barley on left, Bean on right.

 

[Ms. Research]

I really don't know what I'm looking at, but I have to say Bean is the better looking one. I love the shape of her head looking at both of them in the 2nd picture. And though others giggled at the UGGS, I have to say you did an excellent job on shearing. I can't even cut my bangs straight let alone make an animal look like you did.

Good Luck at the Fair!

Goats now sheep! I should have been born on a farm.

 

[aggieterpkatie]

Thanks Ms. Research! I am waiting on my clipper blades to be returned from being sharpened so I can clip them before the show. The clippers will do a much better job than the shears at getting them much smoother. And the booties do serve a purpose. Southdowns are shown with wool on the lower legs and head, so since these are half Southdown lambs they got to keep their boots and wooly head for the show. They'll be fitted before the show and really cleaned up much better, but I wanted to leave them on.

 

[Ms. Research]

Thanks Ms. Research! I am waiting on my clipper blades to be returned from being sharpened so I can clip them before the show. The clippers will do a much better job than the shears at getting them much smoother. And the booties do serve a purpose. Southdowns are shown with wool on the lower legs and head, so since these are half Southdown lambs they got to keep their boots and wooly head for the show. They'll be fitted before the show and really cleaned up much better, but I wanted to leave them on.

Please post pictures of them fitted out. I would love to see them. Especially Bean. What a sweet face!

 

[goodhors]

We pull the hay and free grazing time back to almost nothing, before showing. This reduces the forage bulk in stomach area, since we want the straight line look on spine and stomach. Ours are getting a fairly heavy grain and wet beet pulp diet to finish, so they can manage for the short time of being off volume forage. After the sheep show at Fair, we give their hay back to keep busy standing around in the stalls. Other folks showing are big into pelleted feed only, measured amounts to keep the lambs "figure" trim and muscular. These are meat lambs, so that look is important.


Looking at breed photos of show sheep, can give you an idea of what Judge will want. I found this one doing a search. They appear to have the level topline and stomach that we strive for in market lambs. And they have the Ugg legs too! Are you walking them daily for getting mileage? That really puts muscle and condtion on them, even if doing breeding stock classes. Also all the leading helps to get them handling better for ease of showing.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/chris_lanzarotti/5396506629/

Best of Luck at your Fair with the lambs.