SHEEP PRODUCTION 19U 



consideration in buying a clip of wool. Wet and filthy portions of the fleece 

 and all foreign substances must be separated and kept out of the fleece. Buyers 

 can readily judge the character and value of wool and appreciate an at- 

 tractive clip to the extent that they will pay the top market price for it. Keeping 

 sheep away from straw stacks and protecting them from chaff and burrs of all 

 kinds add much to the value of the clip of wool. 



Rams for the Breeding Flock. A vigorous, pure bred ram of desirable 

 type should be selected early in the season to insure no delay in the mating 

 season. He should not be over fat, but in good condition. For a month prior 

 to and during the mating season, he should be grained in addition to being 

 fed the best of hay and grass pasture. One-half to one pound of grain daily, 

 like oats, bran and peas with perhaps a little oil meal, should keep him in 

 good condition. Mangels, sugar beets and silage should not be fed. 



The ram to be used for service should be a year and a half old at least. 

 It is very undesirable to use a ram lamb and if necessity demands his use, 

 he should not serve more than 8 to 12 ewes, during the season. An older 

 ram can be expected to breed fifty to fifty-five ewes successfully during 

 the mating season. Where the rams run with the flock, it is well to let 

 them run only for the night or for a few hours in the morning. Painting 

 the breast of the ram enables the owner to know what ewes are bred and in 

 pure bred flocks it is well to know the dates that each ewe is bred in order 

 to anticipate the date that she will lamb. Where two or more rams are 

 employed to serve a flock of more than fifty-five ewes, each ram should 

 be given a flock. After there has been an opportunity for all the ewes to 

 have been bred, rotating the rams will overcome failure on the part of any one 

 ram and insure most of the ewes being successfully bred. 



Never hesitate to get the best rams possible. 



Hand coupling is not always practicable, but it conserves the strength 

 of rams and is practiced by many of the best shepherds. 



Allow the ram plenty of exercise at all seasons of the year. 



The ram should have separate quarters from the ewe flock and remain in 

 them except at mating time to avoid his worrying the ewes. 



Rearing Lambs. Little lambs are very dependent upon their mother's 

 and the shepherd's care during the first few weeks of their lives. During this time 

 about all that can be done to encourage their growth is to keep them in dry 

 comfortable quarters and see that they are properly owned and nursed by their 

 mothers. 



Lambs that are not owned can be raised by hand where it is practicable to 

 do so. Oftentimes it is possible to put a lamb with another ewe that has lost 

 its lamb. Skinning the dead lamb and putting the skin on the lamb that is to 

 have the foster mother, is one means employed to encourage a ewe to adopt the 

 strange lamb. 



Where lambs are raised by hand, the milk of a fresh cow testing high in 

 butter fat should be regularly fed and in very small quantities (two to three 

 tablespoonfuls), at intervals of two or three hours for the first few days. 

 Gradually increasing the amount as the lamb seems to thrive, keeping bottle and 



