Types and Market Classes of Live Stock 251 



Iambs much lacking in flesh grade here. They are often paunchy. 

 Western lambs which lack condition usually classify as feeders unless 

 they are very coarse, hence this grade is mostly filled by native lambs. 



Common lambs. — Coarse, rough, thin lambs grade as common. 

 Many of them are of very light weights, ranging from 30 to 50 pounds. 

 However, coarse buck lambs and those which are staggy because of 

 late castration also grade as common, and these sometimes weigh up 

 to 100 pounds. Failure to castrate, failure to castrate at the right time, 

 and infestation by internal parasites frequently explain the common 

 lamb's coarseness and thin condition. Western shepherds do not 

 neglect to dock and castrate, and western lambs are free from internal 

 parasites. The majority of common lambs are natives. 



Many uncastrated lambs still come to market and they are dis- 

 criminated against rather severely at times by buyers. Ram lambs 



Fig. ^t).- Comiiiuii lambs. 



are so restless that they do not acquire the finish of wether lambs. 

 This is especially true after they have reached the age of 3 or 4 months. 

 Tests have shown that wether lambs make 11 per cent more gains in 

 weight than do ram lambs under similar conditions, ' and the difference 

 in fatness is much more marked. Lambs should be docked and cas- 

 trated when from 7 to 10 days old. 



Why some lambs sell at a loss. — An editorial in the National 

 Stockman and Farmer of August 5, 1922, entitled "A Lamb Market 

 Lesson," contained the following: "On an eastern market last week 

 a buyer had orders for three carloads of choice fat lambs and couldn't 

 find them. On the same day and market another buyer had orders for 

 feeder lambs and couldn't get them. Yet there was a big supply of 



ij. B. Spencer: Sheep Husbandry in Canada, Dom. Can. Dept. Agr. Bui. 12, 

 p. 59. 



