THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. 



535 



is that the ewes are sometimes filled with too much 

 gas from eatiug turnips, and the lambs are blown in 

 their mothers. Therefore, I propose to treat under 

 three different heads the subject with regard to ewes 

 having dead lambs, as the causes are produced so 

 very differently, and these are the only cases which 

 have ever come to my knowledge during my expe- 

 rience. With these few observations, I will now 

 proceed with my subject, in the order it stands on 

 the card, which is " On the treatment of ewes during 

 the time they are in lamb, and the cause of many 

 having dead lambs." Now, in the first place, with 

 regard to the treatment of ewes, we sheep breeding 

 farmers iu a general way half starve what we call 

 our flock ewes during the summer months, to keep 

 our sale sheep and lambs well ; and the latter have 

 the greatest part of all the good keep on our farms 

 until the autumn, when the out-going stock is sold. 

 The consequence is, our stock ewes are in very poor 

 condition at the time the ram is put to them. By 

 this system I am of opinion that many of us err. I 

 don't think we get paid for half this extra keeping, 

 if we sell them Avithout being made fit for the 

 butcher — I mean on farms where it is not convenient 

 so to do without what I call starving our flock ewes 

 to accomplish this object, as there is not difference 

 enough made in price between a poor sheep and mid- 

 dling conditioned one to pay for half the extra keep 

 wliich we rob our stock ewes of. Now, if we were 

 to get into the system of selling our out-going stock 

 early in the summer, then we should be enabled to 

 keep our stock ewes well during the latter part of 

 the summer, which would put them in a proper con- 

 dition to breed a much better crop of lambs in the 

 ensuing season, and be in a more forward condition 

 for sale in the early part of the next summer, as I 

 have before recommended. But here, gentlemen, I 

 must leave this part of the system for your consider- 

 ation, and proceed to point out to you the result 

 which often happens, from having our flock ewes 

 poor at the time the ram is put to them. With the 

 general run of our down lands and stubbles, they 

 seldom get in good condition before the lambs arc 

 large iu them, unless they have a few turnips and a 

 good supply of hay from the early part of October. 

 This latter treatment, I am of opinion, brings the 

 most healthy lambs, if you can get your ewes in suf- 

 ficiently good condition to breed them and go through 

 the winter well, and to leave the ewe in good order 

 in the spring of the year. But this can seldom be 

 done, unless you begin to keep them well before they 

 are three-parts gone with lamb, after which you can- 

 not make them hold their condition, as the lambs get 

 large iu them and take so much from the nature of 

 the ewe, and as they have a great weight to carry 



about, particularly when they have twins in them, 

 and more so if they are driven far during the day, 

 which practice ought to be avoided in all cases after 

 they get heavy. Nor do I approve of their being 

 kept too close, as ewes want sufficient room for 

 exercise, and for other reasons which I shall presently 

 state. There is very little grass or hay which grows 

 in this district that has proof sufficient to keep a 

 ewe in fair stock condition after she is three-parts 

 gone with lamb ; therefore I think, where it can be 

 made available, all ewes after that time should be 

 kept well with turnips or swedes and plenty of hay. 

 But if you have not sufficient turnips to keep your 

 whole flock at that time, I am of an opinion every 

 flockmaster ought to run out from his flock, from 

 time to time, such ewes as begin to get poor from 

 breeding their lambs, and some will be so on account 

 of having twins in them ; all such as are of this 

 class ought particularly to be kept well with swedes 

 and hay. I do not believe, as some do, that turnips 

 are injurious to forward ewes if properly managed 

 and should you think they seem to get too low iu 

 condition when they begin to approach their time of 

 lambing, I would say, give a few of this description 

 a little corn until they have lambed, as all ewes will 

 never do alike in any flock ; then after they have 

 lambed they will be able to breed their lambs, and go 

 away with the best of the flock. But I think most 

 of us do not pay a proper attention to this matter to 

 be profitable to ourselves. Another thing is, farm- 

 ers ought to contrive, as much as they possibly can, 

 to provide a place for the sheep-keep to be in as 

 sheltered a situation as possible for the breeding 

 ewes during the winter months. As many of us 

 have different aspects on the same farm iu our hill 

 country, a field .should rise towards the south for a 

 wet season, and towards the north for a frosty one, 

 as sheep will always get to the highest land to lay 

 down, if possible, which has great influence on our 

 forward ewes, and often causes many of them to slip 

 their lambs for want of their being removed to a 

 sheltered place in bad weather, as I am satisfied that 

 ewes are very susceptible to chills when they are in 

 a forward state of pregnancy, where what we term 

 dry sheep will thrive and do well. Therefore we 

 ought, where we have hedges on bleak farms, to keep 

 two sets of cribs for haying our forward ewes, that 

 they may be removed to the shelter in a bad night of 

 weather, and have their hay in such a place as they 

 can stand to cat it, and then lay down comfortably, 

 instead of being penned up in a close fold and bleak 

 place, in a wet night, uj) to their knees iu mud, 

 either for the sake of saving the shepherd a little 

 trouble on his part, or because his master will not go 

 to a little expense to keep an extra set of hurdles or 



