Other Animals - And lots of newbie questions

[CESpeed]

Hello,

I'm farm planning and I'm considering sheep (I LOOOOOVE lamb) in addition to cows and pigs. Can sheep be pastured with either and would a donkey be an appropriate livestock guardian for sheep?

I have a ton of sheep questions: How long do they stay pregnant? I'm going to have a very small farm and I'm trying keep animals to a minimum, so I wonder if it is ok to have 1 ram and 1 ewe or should I get a pair of ewe and try to find to ram to breed them with? Also, how long do sheep live and how to what age can the ybe bred? Last question: How long should I give a sheep between pregnancies for her best health?

Also I'm thinking it might be a good idea to get animals one breed at a time. Between cows, sheep and pigs which order would you recommend I get them in?

Thank you!

 

[SheepGirl]

I have a ton of sheep questions: How long do they stay pregnant? I'm going to have a very small farm and I'm trying keep animals to a minimum, so I wonder if it is ok to have 1 ram and 1 ewe or should I get a pair of ewe and try to find to ram to breed them with? Also, how long do sheep live and how to what age can the ybe bred? Last question: How long should I give a sheep between pregnancies for her best health?

Also I'm thinking it might be a good idea to get animals one breed at a time. Between cows, sheep and pigs which order would you recommend I get them in?

Thank you!

1. They are pregnant for about 147 days on average (roughly 5 months).
2. It's not economical to have one ram for just one ewe. Even with my four ewes I was a little apprehensive about buying a ram for them. But sheep don't start functioning as a 'flock' until you have 3-4 animals. Any less than that and it is nearly IMPOSSIBLE to herd them where you want when you want (even sheep that are friendly in your pocket will be impossible) in a timely manner. I know you said you want to keep animals to a minimum, but I would still get at least 3-4 ewes PLUS a ram (and maybe a wether [or even another ram] companion if he is penned out of sight from the ewes).
3. Sheep can be 12+ yrs old before they keel over. Some may live less. You can breed lambs their first fall/winter.
4. Sheep come into heat in the fall and winter only, so you can only breed them once a year. Unless you have an unseasonal breed (like Dorsets or hair sheep), you can breed them every 6-8 months. BUT I have worked out the economics of this and it is actually better to breed them once a year because if you breed them every 8 months (so 3 lambings in 2 yrs) you have to feed for 3 pregnancies & lactations, but you may only get 4-5 lambs out of it. Whereas if you bred them once a year you would feed for 2 pregnancies and lactations and get the same amount of lambs.
5. Start small and work your way up to the big critters as you gain confidence working with large animals. So sheep, pigs, and then cattle.

 

[CESpeed]

Thank you for the information. According to your breed selector Texels would be best for me. I think they're cute and will go with that recommendation. Does it make a difference that I'm not trying to have a for-profit farm? My plan for my farm is strictly self-sustainability, so any consumption would be for family only not for selling. I think 3 - 4 ewes might be a bit much considering they aren't the only animals I will have.

 

[BrownSheep]

If I were you I would get a couple cross bred meat ewes ( Suffolk, hamp, texel) and find sme one to do the breeding for you. Three to 4 ewes really isn't all that many. But you would also be fine with two. Another option is buying a ram lam in the fall and then butchering him in january after the ewes are bred. We butcher about 3-5 lambs a year just for my family of four ( needless to say we LOVE lamb).

Sheep can live as long as SheepGirl said but tend to be less economical (less lambs) after 6 years. We breed ours for lambs every spring so the rams go in any where from 4-8 month after lambing. We had a wonky lambing season ( january-june) this year that led to those numbers. We breed ours at about 7-9 months.

We raise a couple yaks that live with the sheep on and off. Depending on the temperament of your future cows I would say they could live with the sheep most of the year. Ours have no qualms about headbutt ing the sheep or chasing them so they only share pasture during the summer when the lambs are big enough to run and the ewes aren't pregnant. I would actually say that they are more agressive than most cows would be towards them. I WOULD NOT lett them live with a pig.

I would start with the sheep. If you want you could always bUy some bum ewe lambs and raise them. We did that a few years back. They are friendliest sheep. One will still come in the house and look around the kitchen for a bottle .

 

[Shelly May]

you could by 2 or 3 already bred and pay alittle more this would prevent you from needing
a ram for a while, for being a beginner you know that the sheep you chose has to be sheared,
also, to answer your question about the guard animal, donkeys have a lot of problems with change
and don't like the surprise of the new lambs and will kick at them and hurt or kill them, as for the
pig, I raise one a year and keep it locked up as a piglet for about 2 weeks and let it get use to me
and teach it what the feed bowl is. Then after 2 weeks we turn it loose with the sheep and it bonds
with the sheep, and now thinks its a sheep and grazes with them and sticks close to them. now
so you know we buy the piglet at weaning age, might not work out as well if it where very old. But the
pig Thinks its a sheep and loves belly scratches and comes when called. I agree you should start out
with the smaller livestock first, you can grind lamb meat just like beef for your burger, Also besides
breakfast sauage you can grind some of the pig into pork burger. Laying chickens are fun and easy also.
collecting eggs is great fun and fram fresh eggs are great. Just a few things to think about on starting
your new farm. Good Luck.

 

[SheepGirl]

Thank you for the information. According to your breed selector Texels would be best for me. I think they're cute and will go with that recommendation. Does it make a difference that I'm not trying to have a for-profit farm? My plan for my farm is strictly self-sustainability, so any consumption would be for family only not for selling. I think 3 - 4 ewes might be a bit much considering they aren't the only animals I will have.

I have a Texel ram, and he's really nice. I go in with him every day and he has yet to ram me. Whereas my 3/4 Babydoll ram was trying to kill me every time I went in with him.

He is a very aggressive breeder though and I can't wait to get him out of the field with my ewes. He always tries to rape them. As soon as my ewe lambs are bred/marked, then he's out and into a pen he goes.

BUT--I bolded part of your response for a reason. You certainly don't want to LOSE money on your sheep! If you can make money off your sheep, why not? Also if you can sell any lambs you don't want to eat, then they will pay for the feed their moms ate. Basically a return on your investment. Also 3-4 ewes will give you 5-8 lambs. One or two for you to eat, and then the others you can sell at auction or to other families to eat.

Also I agree with BrownSheep, 3-4 ewes is not that much. I have two mature ewes and two ewe lambs and the only thing I do with them is I feed the lambs (takes 15 minutes) and check on their water (5 min top). Right now they're on grass so not much time or money is going into them. I am feeding hay, but I ran out of my round bale so they're just cleaning up whatever's left in the feeder. I am supposed to get another round bale delivered here in the next couple days.

 

[Alice Acres]

Yes, sheep are pretty easy.
We've bought bred ewes - it is an interesting way to go. One year my husband brought 4 bred ewes home....it was such fun waiting to see what we got for lambs!
Another nice way is to buy ewe lambs and raise them and keep them until breeding age.
I'd go with about 4 animals - 2 ewes and 2 wethers. That way you could keep 2 ewes, and the 2 wethers could go in your freezer the 1st fall.

Our family loves lamb. Lamb chops on the grill are like candy!
We also grind a lot of ours to lamb burger. We use it in any recipe in place of ground beef. It's actually better than beef in chili, etc, and makes awesome jerky as well.
Our usual processing is all the chops as chops, both legs as leg of lamb, and then ground lamb for the rest.

Ours share pasture with our other animals - pretty much everything except pigs we've done. Horses, pony, llamas, chickens, peafowl.....you name it!
Good luck

 

[CESpeed]

This is awesome information!!! I am totally excited! OK more questions: Approximately how much should I expect to pay for ewes? Also, (forgive the ignorance) what's a wether? If I started with 4 ewes would they be enough to keep a ram happy? Or should I prepare to have one or the other transported for breeding?

Last question until next time: how old are the lambs when they are taken to slaughter? What's a good weight?

Sheepgirl: He's too cute!

 

[bonbean01]

CE...no such thing as a dumb question...a wether is a castrated male.

As for when to market a lamb...depends on your location and breed of sheep. We have hair sheep and we try to plan our lambs in January so that they are the weight and age wanted for the ethnic market at Easter. They do sell at other times of year also, but best prices are usually then. If we save a wether for our own freezer, we don't take them to the processor until later fall, early winter...when the pasture is about done. With hair sheep it is different than wool sheep I'm sure...so, that's the best answer I can give you from our little farm

 

[BrownSheep]

We butcher at about 125-150lb or 8-10 months
I would expect to pay 150-200 for ewe lambs. 200-300 for ewes.