Shepherd to Shepherd: Producer Forum Blog #3

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For our third producer forum we asked our four shepherds, all enrolled in NSIP, how they select their breeding rams and how they make breeding decisions on their farms. Their answers, shared below, reflect the differences among the farms in environment, markets, individual flock goals and management styles. As a reminder, our producer forum includes: Michelle Canfield (Canfield Farms, Western Washington), Lynn Fahrmeier (Fahrmeier Katahdins, Western Missouri), Roxanne Newton (Hound River Farm, South Georgia), and Etienne and Isabel Richards (Gibraltar Farm, Central NY) What traits do you look for when selecting a breeding ram? Canfield: I always seek a ram…

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Ovine Progressive Pneumonia (OPP)

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Most shepherds have probably heard of OPP as it is one of the three diseases included in the biosecurity panels that many laboratories offer. The USDA Sheep 2001 study tested over 21,000 samples from 682 randomly selected flocks country wide to collect data on the prevalence of OPP. They found that 36.4% of flocks had one or more animals that tested positive and overall, 24.2% of the animals tested were positive for OPP. Only 1.2% of the producers suspected that their animals were infected with OPP. This data is from over 20 years ago but still relevant as it shows…

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Shepherd to Shepherd: Producer Forum #2

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For our second producer forum we asked our four shepherds what data they collect besides that used for NSIP; how they manage their data; what software programs they use; and how they analyze and use their data to make selection decisions.  Michelle Canfield, Canfield Farms, Western Washington I use Ranch Manager for my day-to-day husbandry records. Mostly what I keep in here are records of medical treatments & other events; location of sheep (pasture vs barn); breeding & lambing records; and purchase & sale records. It supports functionality to track weights and financial data, but I don't use those features,…

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Scale Options for On-Farm Use

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A producer needs a way to weigh animals when they want to understand how well their lambs are growing, and when to take them to market. There are a variety of reasons to weigh animals, depending on what data you are collecting and what results you want to be able to achieve from it. Before we were involved in the National Sheep Improvement Program (NSIP), we just wanted to know weights between 30 & 150 pounds, as we only cared about how our lambs were growing between one and 12 months of age. We didn't weigh newborns or adults, as…

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Udder Health in Ewes: Mastitis, Udder Scores and Management

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Ewes only have two teats and hopefully raise at least twin lambs, so maintaining healthy udders and culling ewes with udder problems is important to minimize lamb losses and bottle lambs while ensuring optimal growth of lambs on your farm. Mastitis leads to lower weaning weights in lambs of affected dams, takes time and money for treatment, as well as slowing down genetic progress due to forced culling of ewes. Rates of mastitis are variable across different farms. It is important to keep track of the percentage of ewes that get mastitis each year or are culled for lumpy udders…

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Producer Profile: Vince Pope, Double Ewe Farm

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As a dairy nutritionist by training, Vince Pope knows well the science of raising sheep. However, he feels there is a lot of art in raising sheep as well. This art is just as important as science in producing strong animals, yet often takes many years to master. That education happens on the fields and in the barns, as the rhythm of each year moves forward. Vince grew up on this land of Double Ewe Farm in the rolling hills of southern Wisconsin, which was bought by his great grandfather in 1912. Four generations in his family have farmed this…

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Shepherd to Shepherd: Introducing our NEW Producer Forum

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Sharing experiences is the hallmark of education. In this new producer forum, four experienced EAPK members enrolled in NSIP, from very diverse areas of the U.S., answer questions and share their knowledge and insights into shepherding. In a series of interviews, Lynn Fahrmeier (Fahrmeier Katahdins, Western Missouri), Michelle Canfield (Canfield Farms, Western Washington), Roxanne Newton (Hound River Farm, South Georgia), and Etienne and Isabel Richards (Gibraltar Farm, Central NY) describe their operations, unique challenges and what traits and qualities best fit their goals, management system and environment. The interviews will continue throughout the year with additional questions. In 2023, a new…

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Making Genetic Progress

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As breeders of purebred livestock, attention to genetic progress should be at the forefront of our selection programs. The equation below summarizes the components that contribute to genetic progress. indicates change in genetics ( stands for change, G stands for genetics). Genetic progress can be improved by increasing those components in the numerator (Accuracy, Selection Intensity, and Genetic Variation) and decreasing those traits in the denominator (Generation Interval). Each component is described in greater detail below. Accuracy: Accuracy values represent the relationship between the "estimated" breeding value and "true" breeding value. Increased accuracy results from greater records in the evaluation…

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Selecting for Maternal Traits Drives Profit

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Katahdins are raised in diverse environments using a wide range of management styles and for a variety of reasons. However, there should be a few common goals in any flock. In addition to being a shedding hair breed, Katahdins have always been viewed as an easy keeping maternal breed. In recent years, many breeders have also begun selecting for parasite resistance to make the breed even more easy keeping. We know that the number one predictor of profitability in a ewe flock is the "Pounds of Lamb Weaned per Ewe Exposed." This metric combines several maternal traits. This article will…

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Selecting Your Next Breeding Ram

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Achieving genetic progress and meeting your production goals depend in large part on selecting the right breeding ram for your flock. No animal has greater influence on genetic progress (or lack thereof) than your breeding ram. Selecting a new sire should be considered an investment in the genetic future of your flock. We all know that the ram provides 50% of his genetics to his offspring and we often hear the phrase that "your ram is half your flock", so careful selection is important. For many breeders it all starts with the phenotype. That is, the physical appearance of the…

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