382 REARING AND FEEDING OF ANIMALS. 



on turnips; in the following April they were put on grass, and by the begin- 

 ning of June they were washed and dipt; they then received the name of din- 

 monts/when they were fat, and ready to be sold as soon afterwards as conve- 

 nient: or when, from the deficiency of feeding or other cause, they were not 

 then ready for the butcher, they were again pastured during the summer, a 

 second time penned on turnips, and generally pastured till they were dipt the 

 second time, when they were wethers and in high perfection with regard to 

 growth and feeding. 



Sheep, especially when fat and loaded with wool, are often unable to rise 

 when they have fallen upon their backs in any hollow place, and they will 

 perish if not relieved -in time. To guard against these and all other accidents, 

 sheep must be regularly tended. They must be examined at least twice in the 

 day; they are to be cleaned when necessary, by cutting off clotted wool, and 

 above all things they are to be guarded against the attacks of maggots. In the 

 latter case, a decoction of tobacco mixed with spirits of tar, and in some cases 

 a solution of sublimate of mercury, are the remedies commonly employed. 

 Their heads are frequently injured by the attacks of flies: for which a little tar 

 spread upon the wound is the most frequent and the best remedy. 



In the whole treatment of sheep, gentleness is of great moment. The wor- 

 rying and harassing of them by dogs is never to be thought of. In upland pas- 

 tures the faithful dog is es>ential to the shepherd; in an enclosed country the 

 necessity for employing him is greatly lessened, and he is always to be used 

 with temperance and humanity towards the flock. 



The treatment of a lowland stock has been described, where the breeder is 

 likewise the feeder; but sometimes the object of the breeder is not to feed the 

 stock which he rears, but, after having brought it to a certain age, to dispose 

 of it to others who will feed it. 



Sometimes, on the other hand, the design of the farmer is not to breed sheep, 

 but to buy them from others whose interest it has been to rear and not to feed 

 them. The effecting of these sales, on the one hand, and the making of these 

 purchases on the other, constitute one of the branches of farming as a business. 

 But it is a branch which cannot be taught by rule, but must be learned by 

 practice. 



One of the branches of sheep-farming, in which the breeder is likewise the 

 feeder, is the rearing of lambs and selling them when fattened. The lambs 

 are fattened by the milk of the mothers, and are merely disposed of when they 

 are ready for being killed. The feeding of the lambs in the house for early 

 consumption is also practised, and in some parts has been brought to a system. 

 This branch of management need not be described. The sheep of the Dorset 

 breed are valued as being the best suited to yield early lambs in this manner. 



Grass in summer and roots in winter, with a little hay for the ewes, have 

 been spoken of as the food of sheep. The basis of this system is the turnip 

 crop. But, in certain cases, this mean of support may fail or be wanting, and 

 it then becomes necessary to resort to other substances. Potatoes, mangel- 

 wurtzel, and other roots, may be eaten by sheep as well as by oxen; and cab- 

 bages and rape are perfectly suited to the purpose of feeding them. 



All kinds of farinaceous food are consumed by sheep. When grain is given, 

 it is the common practice to lay down the sheaves unthrashed, when the sheep 

 readily separate the grains from the straw. Brewers' grains may be given to 

 sheep; and they will consume this nourishing substance readily. Oil-cake, 

 too, is well calculated to fatten sheep, and may be used occasionally where 

 cheaper methods of carrying on the stock are wanting. 



Besides common food, there is a condiment, salt, of great importance to 

 sheep, as to all domestic animals, but which is too much neglected in the rural 

 economy of this country. If laid on flat stones or in troughs, the animals will 

 quickly find their way to it, and will be seen to wait for their daily portion of 

 salt with as much eagerness as for their periodical supplies of food. 



I have spoken of the management of a lowland breed of sheep. It is neces- 

 sary to consider also the treatment of the animal under circumstances entirely 

 different; that is, when reared and pastured in a country where cultivated 

 food is either wanting or to be procured in limited quantity. 



The Cheviot sheep are reared in an elevated country. But in the places 



