Simply Sheep

[Beekissed]

The sheeples are doing well, fat and sassy on fall graze and browse. They rotate out on pasture every 2 days in an alternating pattern so both groups can get good food besides hay. All poops are shiny pellets and that's a GOOD thing!

The nipple waterers seem to work for the ram but the girls can't seem to understand to use them properly, even when confined to them and with no other water source. Could be their noses are bigger than his and can't fit into that bowl. I'm thinking about getting bigger bowls for those units before spring. It's likely they will all water from the dog's heated bucket this year if I can't get this gravity fed nipple waterer off the ground properly. I think getting larger bowls will solve the issue, though, so it will still be a great delivery system for the rest of the seasons.

The ram is still pretty bold and friendly...don't really know how to curb that, though I don't encourage it. Every time he gets into my personal space I grab him or scratch his back around the loins, which usually gets him on the run. Prey animals usually don't like being touched or grabbed there and it's the go-go button....well....except for when Rose wants her back scratched and then she will lean into me and stand still for a good scratching.
Shine still won't let me anywhere NEAR her body except if she's busy eating some really good feed, which is rare. Still have to work on those stanchions so I can train them to them this winter.

 

[baymule]

How old is your ram? When will you breed your girls to him? I hope you get the water figured out for the ewes. Mine are on 5 gallon buckets, I water twice a day. Can you post pictures of your water set up and explain it to me?

 

[Beekissed]

How old is your ram? When will you breed your girls to him? I hope you get the water figured out for the ewes. Mine are on 5 gallon buckets, I water twice a day. Can you post pictures of your water set up and explain it to me?

Will have to take some pics of that...haven't done that yet! Jo will soon be 5 mo. old in Oct. and I'll be breeding him to the girls at the last part of Nov./early Dec. for an early April lambing. It's very mild here by then and the grass is recovering well from winter.

That gives us lambs that will be 6-7 mo. by Oct/Nov. butchering time. I'll be banding all the ram lambs this first year so I can let them self wean....usually band around 10 days. I want them on milk for as long as I can keep them and I want to milk for as long as I can as well.

Will keep one wether to keep the ram company when he has to be kept separate. Ewe lambs will be evaluated for keeping or selling, wethers for eating or ram companionship.

I'd like to add one ewe per year until I get the numbers this land can feasibly support, even in a drought year. Will have to see how that all goes.

 

[Beekissed]

How old is your ram? When will you breed your girls to him? I hope you get the water figured out for the ewes. Mine are on 5 gallon buckets, I water twice a day. Can you post pictures of your water set up and explain it to me?

Here you go, Bay. The larger cooler system has a small leak at the quick connect junction due to me having that whole hose under too much tension, putting tension on that junction.

I have a quick connect on the smaller cooler but no tension exists, so it doesn't leak at all.

The quick connect is so I can disconnect those quickly, without having to unscrew them, for cleaning or moving to a paddock system. I used pieces of an old garden hose we had in the farm junk pile, just bleached it out really well prior to use.

As you can see, the bowls are tiny....they looked bigger than that in the pics on Ebay. I'll be getting larger basins/bowls to go with these nipples so the girls can use it better.

I'll be doing a system like this for the dogs eventually as well. Cleaner water, less waste, and the ducks can't "fowl" it up....heh, heh!

 

[baymule]

I really like that. I have considered something like that for my chickens when I finally build a permanent coop. Right now I have chickens in 6 different places. I want to build a good sized coop with a 16-20’ run. I’m going to slaughter down for winter, done the roosters, got to slaughter and can 10 old layers. Then I wouldn’t have to fool with those gallon waterers.

You are always so smart. You make things that make it easier on you.

 

[Beekissed]

You are always so smart. You make things that make it easier on you.

Nah! God brings me good ideas and I just follow up on them. If it's smart, it's all to God's glory, for sure.

Stream lined chores make sense so when someone else has to watch your place or stock for you, they don't have to worry so much about what to do.

As it stands right now, I can leave all animals for several days without anyone needing to check on them or put out feed. The dogs are the only complicated ones, as I can't leave them food enough for a week that the chickens won't gobble when they turn their backs. I can solve that issue by penning the chickens while I'm gone and that just leaves someone to gather eggs now and again.

I'm thinking of moving to designing my own drinkers with a larger basin and the use of these float valves....

I can get a two pack of these on Amazon for around $12.

 

[Beekissed]

The sheep are all sleek and fat on fall graze, even though we just came through a month of no rain and the grass is not its usual lush of fall. We are now getting rains and that should help regenerate some of the fall forage, but the sheep are looking FINE.

No feeding of grains here and will be doing no flushing of any kind, as all body conditions are at peak levels.

I've been rotating the girls and the ram on two day schedules so they each get good exposure to the graze and then a rest time with just hay. All feces look healthy and show a healthy rumen action.

Can't wait until they can all be together as a herd and I won't have to confine them any longer unless I just want them off pasture.

Luckily, a lot of the tree's leaves are falling while still green due to that drought time and that's just good nutrition on the ground right there...all the nutrition of the tree is still in those green leaves and the sheep are making good use of them.

They are also sampling from their minerals well and Shine's red patches are slowly leaving her coat and she's going back to shiny black.

The ram could use more muscling and fat padding on his back instead of that enormous gut he's got but I figure that will come with time. He's still a lamb with a lamb's bone structure and build, but I expect he'll fill out.

 

[bambi]

Bee, I think I could read a book written by you, the way you describe how you care for your place is so lovely to read about. Your love of the Lord shines with your praise of him and how much care you give to his creation. Thank you for sharing

 

[Beekissed]

Bee, I think I could read a book written by you, the way you describe how you care for your place is so lovely to read about. Your love of the Lord shines with your praise of him and how much care you give to his creation. Thank you for sharing

Awwww! Thank you! Made my day, Bambi.

 

[baymule]

Your ram's gut may just be a well functioning rumen. My ram has a "good rib spread" LOL LOL. It's nice to hear how well your ewes have adjusted to better care and are blooming into the healthy animals you want them to be.

I wish I had lush grass! Late winter and spring are my best grass months with clovers, rye and fescue. The summer sun soon scorches them off the face of the earth.