icelandic sheep on pasture/hay only?

[ohiogoatgirl]

i am thinking on a fiber animal and one of the ones i am thinking on is icelandic sheep.
i picked this breed because they are multipurpose. milk/meat/fiber. so i can milk them (and make cheese ) as well as get the wool and i can eat them or sell the meat. plus i'm reading that they do well on pasture. i live in south-east ohio. space isnt a problem (though money is tight and fencing will be more difficult then actual space to put it on).


also what type of hay feeder seems best? i have goats and i know they are pros at wasting it and getting it all over themselves. here is a pic of my goats hay feeder. it is just a panel part from a futon bed and a panel part from a bunk bed. the barn walls are pallets so its easy to tie them up.

what type of fence would you all suggest? and how tall should i have it?
i was thinking to have two good size pastures (like 3 acres) and to rotate them back and forth.

any other thoughts or tips are welcome. thanks!

 

[SheepGirl]

Here is more information on the Icelandic: http://www.sheepusa.org/Icelandic

You want to raise them for meat, milk, and fiber. My only concern is that they are a smaller breed (130-150 lbs), so the carcasses would be lighter (maybe around 30-40 lbs) and you will get smaller cuts of meat. Also because they are smaller, they will produce less milk than a pure dairy breed. Personally, the only thing I think they are good for is wool production. If you are interested in wool production, if you ALWAYS want to have a market for wool, breed for white fleeces. You can sell it in a commercial wool pool if you can't use it yourself or find a buyer for it.

I do know that Icelandics do have a gene for prolificacy...similar to Booroola Merinos and the F+ gene. You will need to supplement with grain if you end up with any of these types of ewes. You will probably need to supplement with hay during the winter.

If you want a breed for wool, you will need to stay away from the type of feeders where the hay can fall into the fleece (ruining it's value because of the "vegetable matter"), or the kind of feeder they can bury their head in. I think for a wool breed, you can have those black rubber feed pans and put a flake of hay in it...I think that would help to keep their fleeces clean. If you can't get a new feeder, buy covers/jackets for the sheep and you won't have to worry about it.

We have woven wire fencing that is 47" tall with one strand of barbed wire running along the top. Keeps sheep in and my dog (15 lb cockapoo) can't go through it/over it (she can go through our gates though).

As for pasture rotation, we don't do that. Our sheep are on a continuous grazing system. But I have heard and read that pastures should be about an acre or less in size and you should have at least three of them.

Personally, instead of having a purebreed, you can always opt for a crossbreed. I think if you have East Friesian (or other dairy breed) x Rambouillet (or other fine or long wool breed) ewes, you will be able to milk them and have a good quality fleece. Then you can cross some of those ewes onto a terminal sire for market lambs and cross a select few onto a maternal sire to create replacements.

JMO.

Edited to add some links.

 

[ohiogoatgirl]

thanks. i have read a bit about the breed and like them more then anything i have ever read on any other breed. plus they look more appealing to me. for whatever reason i just dont care for the looks of most sheep. i mean lambs are adorable but what baby animal isnt?

i want them for wool for myself and to sell what i can.
milking i would have to fiddle with. i have been hand milking goats for years so to me its no big deal other then making another milk stand to fit the sheep and another bucket to wash. plus i make cheese and would like to play with making yogurt, soap, etc.
meat, i want a medium sized animal anyways. i will be doing my own butchering and i think that the multi purpose pretty much makes up for the smaller amount of meat. plus i am learning to tan hides so i will have that as well.

a pretty informative site on the breed: http://www.isbona.com/icelandicsheep.html
this says "Market lambs will start to reach their ideal slaughter weights of 70-100 pounds at four to five months. With continued access to quality graze, the lambs can be slaughtered directly off the grass all through the fall months." which sounds like a very good weight to me.

 

[SheepGirl]

The 70-100 pounds is liveweight. A lamb on average can turn 47% of it's live weight into retail meat cuts...so that means you will only get 32.9 to 47.0 lbs of meat you can stick in your freezer.