My Sheep Journal~ I'm a grandma! Black Betty had twins!!!

[Beekissed]

Aggie, I know the position you are describing..or a variation of it, anyway. That is the position we used to use for our piglets for castration, except both hind legs were pulled up towards the holder's chest and the piglet's head....no way to struggle as they are practically folded in half! Also, one can support the area around the sight with the other hand when you pull out the testes.

JHM47, I had read about the burdizzo and I really like how it sounds but they are a little pricey, aren't they? If I had more sheep, it would justify the cost, but I only have a few.

I think, in this heat, I prefer cutting a slit(s) in the very bottom of the sac and removing the testes...I think this would allow for adequate drainage and he would heal up a little faster than carrying that sac around under the band.

If it were in the cool of early spring or late fall, I wouldn't mind using my bands.

 

[jhm47]

You must have a farmer or rancher near you that would rent you his/her burdizzo. If not, watch for one at farm auction sales, or advertise for one on Craigslist. I got mine at an auction sale. One large one for calves, and a smaller one for lambs. Paid $10 for the two, along with several dehorners and some other animal health supplies.

In the very few times that I've had to castrate bull calves in the warm months, I've just cut off the very bottom of the scrotum and removed the testes. This allows for drainage, and any maggots that might hatch usually will fall out due to gravity. You'd be amazed how quickly they heal.

 

[Beekissed]

The girls continue to thrive and grow on Sweetwater. I am adding a few pics to the journal to show their progress...along with the new ewe and lamb.

After a few ups and downs with Slow Mo's castration...drama, drama....he seems to be doing fine and putting on weight like a sumo wrestler. I feel the UP/ACV and raw honey drench may have been a big boost to him as he seemed to start gaining almost immediately afterwards....I'm thinking it had an affect on his stomach culture and possibly helped him digest and utilize his milk better...if his weight gain is any indication.

I am really pleased with how this new, young ewe has performed with her lambing, her mothering and her general good health and condition during lactation. She has been a real protective mother and will butt any dog that strays a little near her Baby Hewey... This pic added to show how nice an udder she has...not a great shot but you can still see she's not doing to bad for only a year old ewe.

We had extremely dry weather during which all the grass here browned and seemed to die. I fed a little hay during this but the girls didn't really consume much. I gave them armfuls of pigweed from the garden, which seems to be a big treat to them. They have been eating apple drops and managed to get through the drought pretty well and in good condition.

I found a great deal on this year's first cut hay of good quality....for $1.50 per bale, which is unheard of around here. I will place it in the back of the barn for spring consumption and maybe scatter a few bales into the winter's feed of second cut hay I will buy later.

I will be getting a new ram lamb this month real soon and he will be a pretty fellow. He is almost entirely black, a Katahdin/Dorper cross, and has a pretty conformation. He will be four months old, so still little but will be breeding age by the time I need him in Nov/Dec. I hope to keep for some time to come, if he turns out to be compatible here and turns out good lambs.

 

[aggieterpkatie]

They're looking good! Little Mo isn't so little anymore!

 

[Beekissed]

No, he weighs a ton! Hard to lift him like we did before....my arms get tired real quick while lugging around this ton bun.

He seems to be doing fine with his banding but I won't stop being nervous until that sac is gone and he is completely healed up.

I can't get over how sleek and fat his mother is staying through her lactation. No added grains or anything and she is still smoothly plump and doing well. Big udder and fat lamb.

I am really glad I chose her from the 65 ewe lambs that day...she was the thickest and most unusually marked of the bunch. She was really showing her pregnancy compared to the other ewe lambs....I think she will make a good flock ewe.

 

[Dreaming Of Goats]

Wow, those sheep are beautiful.....I'm new to this thread and the forum.

 

[Beekissed]

Nice to meet you! I think they are beautiful also....but then, I'm slightly biased.

If you have read this thread, you know you are looking at sheep who have never been wormed with a commercial de-wormer since they were 4 mo. old. I think its pretty impressive that they look so sleek and healthy as adults.

I'm hoping this continues!

I may be selling the holstein patterned one and will soon be gaining a ram lamb that is mostly all black. I don't really like the conformation of the spotted one and she is a trouble maker, a bully and just an all around nuisance most days.

I'd like to keep a main flock of 3 breeding ewes and one ram. This is all my little acre will probably support, even with the supplemental crops I will be planting.

 

[Beekissed]

I'm pretty proud of myself this evening....I took on the sheeples and won!

I've been wanting to dose them with UP/ACV ever since they got into some corn and got the runs awhile back. They have been having some pretty moist stools, which is unusual for them. Not really runny but just too moist for my liking.

Well, my menfolks are all away this evening and I decided to tackle the drenching job myself...but these sheep are pretty wiley and aren't easily lured or cornered.

I also wanted to place small, light-weight dog collars on each one....I have nowhere that they can get hung up in the fencing and I really need to have a quick hand hold place to snag them when I need to....hence the collars.

So, I let them "sneak" into the chicken coop for a nip of feed while I was pretending to look the other way...then I slammed the door! It took me a few wrangles like a rodeo star to get the two older ewes into collars and to drench them..but I did it.

The younger ewe was very gentle and calm about the whole thing and just went right back to stealing chicken feed after her drenching. I made a good choice on that little gal!

I drenched them with the vinegar, a dab of Shaklee's soap, garlic powder, raw honey and water.

For good measure, I used the rest of the mixture on the dogs and then in the chicken's water.

All the pretty sheeples now have cheery little red collars on their necks...we'll see how that all goes.

 

[Beekissed]

I took a notion to play around with my lactating ewe and see if she would stand and let me milk her. She is very calm and sweet, so she stood still and I gave an experimental squeeze.....

Success! She is very easy to milk and didn't even seem to care...but I can't imagine how much one would have to milk from one sheep to get enough milk to do anything with.

I should have tasted it...forgot!

Anyone else on here tried milking their sheep yet?

 

[aggieterpkatie]

I took a notion to play around with my lactating ewe and see if she would stand and let me milk her. She is very calm and sweet, so she stood still and I gave an experimental squeeze.....

Success! She is very easy to milk and didn't even seem to care...but I can't imagine how much one would have to milk from one sheep to get enough milk to do anything with.

I should have tasted it...forgot!

Anyone else on here tried milking their sheep yet?

A few years ago I milked one of my ewes to try the milk. It was pretty sweet milk. Their teats are just so tiny.... I have thought about trying to milk my ewes now, but I don't really need to since I have the goat.