Finding the Right Ram for You

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Ram selection and breeding decisions have lasting impacts on your flock. When replacement females are retained, these decisions can quickly account for a significant majority of your genetics. Just because a ram is a crowd favorite at a sale or a leader in a particular trait or two does not mean it is the right ram for your operation at that given time. The following steps should be taken to carefully evaluate your flock and make accurate ram selection decisions. Establish Goals: The first step to finding the right ram is determining goals for your flock. These goals should take…

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Genetic Approaches to Parasite Control

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Sheep GEMS News Brief 12 – March 2025 In the last Sheep GEMS news brief, we talked about the impact of parasites on production, and it was eluded that genetic selection can be a very promising means to manage worm parasites. Continuing with the Sheep GEMS theme of breeding for climatic resilience and robustness across environments, parasite resistant sheep express improved fitness. Determining fecal egg counts (FEC) at the time of weaning and post-weaning is a measure of parasite resistance already included in the National Sheep Improvement Program (NSIP). Collaboration with the GEMS innovation flocks and 3 USDA ARS facilities…

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How do Parasites Affect Production?

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Sheep GEMS News Brief 11 – Late February 2025 Gastrointestinal parasites are one of the main health concerns for grazing sheep because available dewormers are largely ineffective due to dewormer resistance. Parasitic worms are a year-round problem in tropical and sub-tropical environments affecting millions of small ruminants world-wide. However, resistance to multiple deworming drugs is common in small ruminants. Infection with gastrointestinal nematode parasites can cause reduced weight gains, fertility, fiber and milk production, as well as cause anemia, diarrhea, and death. The most pathogenic worm species is barber pole worm or Haemonchus contortus is a blood sucker and can…

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Identifying Your Fastest Growing Lambs

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It’s easy to look at your lambs and pick out those that are bigger than the rest. But is that the best way to identify the lambs with the greatest genetic potential for growth? Unfortunately, selection for growth traits is not that simple because your biggest lambs are likely to be those that are single born or twin ram lambs out of a ewe in her prime. Lambs like that have had the easiest path to fast growth, but may not carry the genetics for this important trait.  Here are some things to consider when selecting for growth: Adjust your…

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Fall Lambing Considerations

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Experienced Polypay producer, John Anderson of Lambshire Polypays in Ohio, shares some sage advice and techniques on how he successfully lambs in the fall without the use of CIDRs or other artificial methods. John lambs exclusively in the fall now after nearly 40 years of accelerated lambing using both the STAR system and three times per year. Why lamb in the fall? There are many benefits to lambing in the fall. Fall born lambs often bring better prices at market than those born in the spring. Pasture lambing in the fall can match fall forage growth. In many parts of…

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Size Matters

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From the perspective of a long-time, full-time farmer, this article will address the topic of mature ewe size. As we seek to improve the growth and performance of our lambs, we are also producing larger adult animals. The harder we push for improved growth and performance, the faster we accelerate the trend toward bigger ewes. Big sheep catch our attention. We may have an inborn human preference for bigger animals. The bigger sheep seem superior to the small ones. They win lots of ribbons at the sheep shows. A majority of my seed stock customers purchase the biggest animals in…

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NSIP Katahdin Percentile Report

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EBVs of different animals can be directly compared with each other, but how do they compare to the rest of the sheep in NSIP? The Percentile Report, generated by NSIP, is a tool that allows you to evaluate individual animals, set breeding goals, help with marketing and sales, as well as to understand what is available in the breed. As a producer you need to know how to read the Percentile Report, explain it to customers and know what data goes into calculating the percentiles. Note: This article uses the NSIP Katahdin Percentile Report that was generated on 12/18/2024. Percentile…

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Stop Making Excuses

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When the breeding season starts, there is an implied contract between shepherd and ewe. Your commitment to keep her around for another production cycle means her commitment to return her annual costs plus some in lamb production. To do this, she must get pregnant, lamb, and wean a litter that is a relatively high percentage of her own body weight. Getting pregnant is the first step. Ewes that breed and conceive early in the season have a greater chance of weaning a heavier litter. They also contribute to a shorter lambing season, improve lamb crop uniformity, and reduce shepherd fatigue.…

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Blending Technology & Tradition to Achieve Breeding Goals

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We talk a lot about tradition in the American sheep industry. Traditions aren’t stagnant, they get modified from one generation to the next as new information and insights are gained. Nearly everything in modern sheep production – be that fences, milk replacer or RFID readers – was at one time a state-of-the-art technology. Whether we choose to adopt a new technology is dependent on economics and those intangibles that define our unique perspectives for raising sheep in the first place.From the dawn of sheep domestication until the last 50 years or so, the only available technologies to select replacement animals…

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A Tribute to Dr. Charles Parker, Mentor and Friend

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Dr. Charles Parker (1935-2024) was a sheep specialist, researcher, industry leader and experienced advisor to many of us in the Katahdin breed. As an early supporter of the breed, Charles felt that Katahdins could and should be the Complete Meat Sheep, genetically balanced for reproductive and growth efficiency and easily adapted to diverse production systems. Following his death in July 2024 we decided to compile some of his advice and guidance over the years to share with others. In collaboration with the Piel Farm, Heifer Project and some of the early Katahdin breeders, Charles was instrumental in the development of…

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