216 LIVE STOCK MANAGEMENT. 



These are the essentials; given these, the flock will come 

 through the summer in fine shape, and the lambs will come 

 strong and hearty. 



The barn or shed in which the ewes and their little ones 

 are to be cared for should be wind-proof, reasonably warm, 

 and should have considerable glass on the south side. Good 

 ventilation throughout the barn and separate quarters for 

 the lambs should be provided for. A creep will prevent the 

 ewes from passing into the lambs' portion of the barn. Suffi- 

 cient bedding to keep the sheep clean should be furnished, 

 but an excess is objectionable. Gypsum will keep down the 

 ammonia from the fermenting manure. Water and salt should 

 be furnished in the barn, and the ewes and lambs need not 

 be allowed outdoors from the time they are put in until the 

 lambs are all slaughtered and sold. 



For feed there is nothing better for the ewes than good 

 bright clover or alfalfa, with corn meal, wheat bran, and if 

 prices permit, some oil meal or gluten feed. Cost is the de- 

 termining factor in deciding on these supplemental foods, 

 though due care must always be taken to secure only those 

 protein carrying foods that are palatable, for sheep are the 

 most particular about their food of all domestic animals. 

 Carrots or Swede turnips are also very valuable as supple- 

 mentary food for the ewes; but bright, fresh silage will 

 answer practically the same purpose, and is much cheaper. 

 The size and general thrift of the ewes should be the guide 

 in feeding, and enough grain should be given to keep the 

 ewes in a thrifty condition so that they will give an abund- 

 ance of milk for the little fellows. 



The lambs should be fed grain in troughs of their own. 

 There is nothing better than corn meal and wheat bran, 

 mixed in proportions of about 75 pounds corn and 25 pounds 

 bran. This grain mixture with plenty of bright clover or 

 alfalfa hay will make the lambs grow at a surprising rate; 

 and if silage is available they should also receive some of 

 this once a day, with some bran or gluten feed sprinkled 

 over it. In feeding the lambs, they should be given all the 

 grain they will clean up three times a day. and be supplied 

 with bounteous hand. The troughs for both ewes and lambs 

 should be thoroughly cleaned out before each feed. 



Joseph E. Wing, in the "Winter Lamb," warns feeders to 

 beware of silage when taken from near the bottom of silo, 

 and states that the acid present in such silage is like rank 



