Wether butting 6 year old son

[sheepguyincali]

Hi all:

New sheep guy here. We just got a baby doll wether, a Shetland ewe and two pygmy goats. Our wether occasionally charges and butts my 6 year old son. He doesn't really injure him but it isn't very friendly. My other two kids (5 and 8 year old girls) don't seem to get this treatment so something about our boy (who is quite active) is setting him off. The wife seems to think this is bad news and thinks we should consider getting rid of him. I don't like my little guy getting butted, but I also can't help thinking there must be a simple solution. It isn't particularly violent but disconcerting to my son who is questioning his commitment to barnyard animals. I'll also mention that the Wether is a very friendly animal, likes being petted and is very gentle otherwise.

Any thoughts would be appreciated.

-JP

 

[taylorm17]

How old is the wether? How old is your son? How does your son act with the goats? My only thought is he could either be trying to play or being semi protective if he thinks your son is a 'threat' because of how active he is. Just a thought. I don't know though. How do the girls act with them, are they calmer or anything different?

 

[M.L. McKnight]

My first billy goat was an Alpine x Nubian named Nester with next to no manners and the biggest horns you ever did see. I got him when he was a tad over a year old and he'd rub on you, nibble and find a way to get into everything! He wasn't afraid to try and breed anything that stood still long enough either.
Well, when his beard came in fully (at about 2 years old) the rascal got to where he would try to butt you, at first he'd just raise up on his hind feet then hop down, 'Meeehhhh' at you and trot around like he'd done something big. Then he'd actually butt you! I grabbed him by the horn and told him NO! That worked for awhile but then he started butting everyone that came around and acted like a bully.
I won't tolerate that type of behavior so the next time he butted me, I grabbed his horn and whacked him at the base with a hickory stick about the size of a tire thumper. That stopped him in his tracks, he looked at me as if I had told him he stunk and he trotted away. He didn't offer to butt me anymore and I kept that hickory stick handy in case the need were to arise again.
That is my suggestion to fix your problem. Don't try to hit a homerun but give him a good solid whack.

(Nester got into a butting match with my Jersey cow several months later and long story-short, she won. I kept a little buck off of him that was his spitting image and named him Junior.)

 

[sheepguyincali]

How old is the wether? How old is your son? How does your son act with the goats? My only thought is he could either be trying to play or being semi protective if he thinks your son is a 'threat' because of how active he is. Just a thought. I don't know though. How do the girls act with them, are they calmer or anything different?

Well, the wether (sheep) is about a year old. And he is very laid back normally. My son is 6. He is a very active kid, moves around a lot so probably makes the wether nervous. My daughters are a little more relaxed. My son feeds them and is involved with them quite a bit, but he no longer is a big fan of the wether who insists on ramming him every so often. I'm not always around when it happens (the wife reports this to me) but I have seen it happen a few times. He's not causing damage, but it is like getting smacked, no harm done, but it is unpleasant and not enjoyable. I'd like my son to put the wether in his place, but he might not be big enough to really do much… he is a naturally wrestler though... Not sure how I should intervene other than grabbing the sheep and stopping him from butting.

 

[elevan]

@sheepguyincali - this thread / topic has been moved to the sheep forum so as to remove confusion as to the species being talked about.

 

[taylorm17]

My first billy goat was an Alpine x Nubian named Nester with next to no manners and the biggest horns you ever did see. I got him when he was a tad over a year old and he'd rub on you, nibble and find a way to get into everything! He wasn't afraid to try and breed anything that stood still long enough either.
Well, when his beard came in fully (at about 2 years old) the rascal got to where he would try to butt you, at first he'd just raise up on his hind feet then hop down, 'Meeehhhh' at you and trot around like he'd done something big. Then he'd actually butt you! I grabbed him by the horn and told him NO! That worked for awhile but then he started butting everyone that came around and acted like a bully.
I won't tolerate that type of behavior so the next time he butted me, I grabbed his horn and whacked him at the base with a hickory stick about the size of a tire thumper. That stopped him in his tracks, he looked at me as if I had told him he stunk and he trotted away. He didn't offer to butt me anymore and I kept that hickory stick handy in case the need were to arise again.
That is my suggestion to fix your problem. Don't try to hit a homerun but give him a good solid whack.

(Nester got into a butting match with my Jersey cow several months later and long story-short, she won. I kept a little buck off of him that was his spitting image and named him Junior.)

This is good advice. Sorry I didn't realize it was sheep. Smacking him in with a solid hit could put him in his place. Also make sure your son isn't accidently 'fighting back' you or him might not realize, but if he pushes the buck away especially on the head, the buck may think it is turning into a game. like tug of war with a dog. You try to take the toy away from it and it turns into a game for the dog. That's all I've got for you. Hope he gets better. If you are unable to stop it for some reason, the best thing to do would be to sell him to someone without kids. It can become a habit and can eventually get dangerous.

 

[bonbean01]

I have sheep and wethers are normally not ram like. Just a thought, but is it possible that when he was banded that one testicle was missed? We have one supposed to be wethered lamb that somehow (well...we had helpers...so know how that happened)...but has one under his skin and growing that got missed by the band??? Will have the vet take that one out...feel for a lump under the skin where the scrotum would be...just in case this is the problem?
My grandkids and my friend's grandkids are all active and no wether has rammed any of them...they've backed off from the rambunctious children, but no ramming.

I may be in left field here, but thought I'd mention it just in case this was the problem.

Welcome to BYH!!!!

 

[Bossroo]

This butting behavior will only increase with time . Since this is a wether (?) I would invite it to a BBQ as the guest of honor.

 

[sheepguyincali]

Seems that he butted my 8 year old yesterday so perhaps he is getting worse. I wonder if a little "manhandling" in response to this behavior will show him the error of his ways. Or not. I want to explore all options before I get rid of him. We got the sheep so the children can learn to take care of animals and so they can learn responsibility. If they're scared to go into the pen then this wether is not going to work out.

 

[purplequeenvt]

There are many nicer sheep out there. Don't risk your children's safety with him. Even wethers can get mean sometimes.

Put him in the freezer and replace him with a ewe or another wether that isn't aggressive.