Questions for all you owners of large herds out there

[Singing Shepherd]

Just a few (probably silly) queries I have always wondered abou....For those of you who run hundreds of sheep: when your sheep graze in large wild pastures and thickets, and pick up sticker plants, berries, seeds, leaves, pollen and all sorts of detritus in their wool, how do you efficiently remove that detritus from the wool after shearing? When one of your adult sheep suffers from a lenghty bout of diarrhea, is it your habit to immediately wash the whole sheep, of just his rear, or to just ignore it til shearing day? Do you try to observe your sheep at least once each day urinate and deficate so you can stay on top of illnesses before they get worse? What is one thing you watch for that, once you observe this symptom, you know something is wrong and you know to call a vet?

 

[purplequeenvt]

We don't run hundreds of sheep, but we have 40-50 during the winter and 60 or so during the summer. I think that for the most part, big operations are not raising the sheep for the wool and so they don't care how much junk they collect.

For us, we don't have any pastures that the sheep can get too much stuff in them, but there is always grass heads, sticks, and occasional bugs that get in there. Usually stuff like that works its way out eventually or we might grab a twig as a sheep goes by. When we shear, the fleeces go onto a skirting table (a table with slats for the junk and second cuts to fall through) and the britch areas (belly, thighs, neck) are taken out along with 2nd cuts and vegetable matter.

The only sheep we wash are the ones getting shown. If a sheep has diarrhea, we try to figure out why and treat them and, if they have collected a lot of "dingle-berries" (manure tags), then we will take hand-shears and trim them off.

We do not spend any amount of time each day waiting to see each sheep go to the bathroom. That would be extremely time consuming, not to mention not all illness can be noted by a change in their poop.

Get to know your sheep. We spend a lot of time with our flock which means that I can go out and take a look at on of them and be able to tell you whether she's is feeling well or not. It's the little changes in behavior that you learn. I try to do as much of the doctoring myself. You have to figure out how much of the care you are willing/able to do for yourself and where the line is between pet and livestock. I will call the vet for emergencies and questions, but we simply cannot afford to call the vet out for any and all slight illnesses or injuries. Again, this is a personal decision. I am comfortable dealing with blood and guts and maggots and whatnot (I autopsy most of the animals that die), but some people can't deal with that stuff and would prefer to pay a vet.

 

[Bossroo]

What Purple said. Calling a Vet. to just come out will cost more than the sheep is worth, then add on any treatment and drugs. Just NOT economically feasable and one would go broke before one even knows it. The only way I would call a Vet. out is if I had several sheep in distress otherwise I would treat one or two myself. Or invite any sheep with serous injuries that was attacked by a coyote or dog to freezer camp.