Considerations for Winter Feeding Hay and Water

  • Post author:
  • Reading time:5 mins read

  • Loading

We all know that we need to calculate how much hay to put out for our sheep to make sure that they have adequate nutrition over the winter. But, remember that sheep like to do things at the same time, so make sure you put out hay in a manner that allows everyone to eat at the same time. Our flock of 160 ewes requires two 4x5 round bales of hay per day to meet their nutritional needs, We put out eight bales at a time though, and only feed every four days. This way everyone has access to feed…

Continue ReadingConsiderations for Winter Feeding Hay and Water

Orphan Lamb Considerations

  • Post author:
  • Reading time:13 mins read

  • Loading

Sooner or later, nearly every shepherd has a lamb that needs to be supplemented. Whether it's a rejected lamb, one whose dam has died, or simply a lamb whose dam has insufficient milk, identifying these lambs early and getting them off to a good start is essential. Other lambs at special risk include twins out of yearling dams, triplets or quads, and lambs whose dams have or have had mastitis. Start by ensuring they receive adequate colostrum at birth and then supplement with a good quality milk replacer through weaning. It's best, when possible, for a lamb to be raised…

Continue ReadingOrphan Lamb Considerations

Ruminations on Lambing Season

  • Post author:
  • Reading time:23 mins read

  • Loading

Lambing season encompasses the last few weeks of gestation through lambing and early lactation. There are a lot of preventable problems that can arise during this season and derail the health and productivity of your ewes and lamb crop. Below is a compilation of management tips to help keep your pregnant ewes healthy, get your lambs off to a good start and decrease the stress and workload for tired shepherds. These tips are compiled from EAPK blogs and newsletters published during 2021-2023. Preparation for lambing Nutrition and exercise Make sure that you are providing adequate nutrition and exercise for your…

Continue ReadingRuminations on Lambing Season

Colostrum

  • Post author:
  • Reading time:21 mins read

  • Loading

The best diet that you can offer your lambs is good quality colostrum, followed by milk that they consume straight from their healthy, well-fed dam. Unfortunately, things do not always go as planned and all shepherds should be ready to, at least temporarily, supplement or replace a lamb's colostrum needs in case their dam is unable to do so. What is colostrum? The "milk" that ewes produce in the days leading up to lambing and is available to her lambs on the first day after lambing is called colostrum. It is "liquid gold" that contains antibodies to all the diseases…

Continue ReadingColostrum

Recipes for Keeping Trough Water Running in Winter

  • Post author:
  • Reading time:4 mins read

  • Loading

Previously published for The Daily Record through OSU Extension Wayne County I've gotten the question a few times – 'How can I prevent water troughs from freezing without electricity?' Well, what a very good question indeed. First, let's talk a little bit of chemistry. Adding salt to water when you're boiling noodles increases the boiling point of the water, meaning the water is hotter than 212 degrees. This is the same concept with salt water and freezing point; salt water will freeze at a lower temperature than 32 degrees. Soda bottle and salt or burying the trough are a couple…

Continue ReadingRecipes for Keeping Trough Water Running in Winter

Producer Profile: Alex Caskey from Barred Owl Brook Farm, NY

  • Post author:
  • Reading time:8 mins read

  • Loading

As producers we cannot control the weather, but we can build resilience into our farm systems to mediate its effects. Silvopasture - the intentional integration of trees and grazing livestock - has been a hot topic of agricultural webinars because growing trees can do just that. Alex Caskey combines his education in conservation biology with his love of lamb chops. His Katahdin sheep graze the trees along with the pasture grasses and then chew their cud under the shade of those same trees. "Rotational grazing is foundational to silvopasture since trees cannot thrive under continuous livestock pressure. I approach it…

Continue ReadingProducer Profile: Alex Caskey from Barred Owl Brook Farm, NY

Winter Grazing for Livestock: Enhancing Animal Performance, Health, and Farm Profitability

  • Post author:
  • Reading time:6 mins read

  • Loading

Winter grazing for livestock offers numerous benefits that extend beyond traditional feeding practices. This article explores the advantages of winter grazing, including improved animal performance, enhanced animal health, reduced labor for farmers, and ultimately, improved profitability. Improved Animal Performance: Winter grazing allows animals to continue their natural behaviors which limits exposure to mud and pathogens that often occur at hay feeding stations. Research by Johnson et al. (2018, "Effects of Winter Grazing System on Cow Performance and Pasture Productivity") demonstrates that properly managed winter grazing can maintain or even enhance body condition in livestock leading to improved reproductive performance and…

Continue ReadingWinter Grazing for Livestock: Enhancing Animal Performance, Health, and Farm Profitability

Evaluating your mineral program

  • Post author:
  • Reading time:15 mins read

  • Loading

We all know that our sheep need minerals, but how do we know that we are not over- or under-supplying their needs? Mineral deficiencies can lead to disease, but too much can lead to toxicity and even death. Minerals interact with each other; high levels of molybdenum can suppress copper levels and cause copper deficiency but it is also used to protect against copper toxicity in instances where high copper levels are present. The whole diet needs to be evaluated, not just the minerals you are offering. Minerals in the soil determine what minerals are available in the forages grown…

Continue ReadingEvaluating your mineral program

Grazing Native Warm-Season Grasses: SARE Grant Update

  • Post author:
  • Reading time:12 mins read

  • Loading

In my career with USDA-NRCS I've been fortunate to see a lot of different production methods involving a variety of livestock operations across North Carolina. Beginning in 2016, I began working with more producers that had established or wanted to establish native warm-season grasses (NWSGs) in their pasture operations. Those producers mainly worked with beef cattle. These work experiences led me to want to do the same thing on our small 20-acre farm in North Carolina. However, I wanted to do something different by using sheep. Study Design My proposed theory was that I could use NWSGs to lower feed…

Continue ReadingGrazing Native Warm-Season Grasses: SARE Grant Update

Scours: Causes, Treatment, and Prevention

  • Post author:
  • Reading time:65 mins read

  • Loading

Scours or diarrhea is something that most of us probably see in our flocks over the course of a year. Animals scour whenever there is a disturbance in the normal processes that regulate how much fluid is excreted in their manure. Scours is a symptom, sometimes due to a serious disease that requires prompt treatment, but often diet induced and transient, requiring only tincture of time to resolve. Diet plays a large role in manure consistency; expect looser manure for a few days whenever there is an increase in protein and/or energy or a decrease in fiber in their diets.…

Continue ReadingScours: Causes, Treatment, and Prevention