494 Feeds and Feeding. 



806. Breeding for winter lambs. — Only the ewes of two breeds— 

 the Dorset and the Tunis — can be depended on to breed sufficiently 

 early to produce winter lambs. Dorsets excel in milk production — 

 a vital factor in this industry. Other breeds, as the Hampshire, 

 Shropshire, Southdown, and Merino, are occasionally recommended, 

 tho ordinarily they cannot be relied on for this purpose. At the 

 Minnesota Station^ thru trials covering six years, Shaw found that 

 the breeding habit of common grade ewes which usually drop their 

 lambs in the spring may be so changed by two or three generations 

 of judicious crossing and the selection of the early yeaned lambs for 

 breeders that they will drop lambs in fall and early winter. This 

 change can be hastened and more permanently fixed by mating the 

 ewes with pure-bred Dorset rams. Where the ewes have the early 

 breeding habit well fixed, superior lambs may be obtained by using 

 dark-faced rams, such as Shropshire and Southdown. Shaw further 

 found that ewes which have suckled winter lambs breed more readily 

 before being turned to grass than subsequently, especially when fed 

 a stimulating grain ration while still in the shed. At the New York 

 (Cornell) Station^ Dorset ewes bred earlier, stood forced feeding 

 better, and were less affected by unfavorable weather than Shrop- 

 shire ewes, and their lambs made more rapid gains. Miller and 

 Wing^ advise using a young ram, well fed during service but not too 

 fat, turning him with the ewes not earlier than the middle of March 

 nor later than the middle of ]\Iay. The ewes should be in good con- 

 dition and so fed as to be gaining in flesh. Even with favorable 

 conditions, all the ewes will not breed at the desired time, and to 

 secure 400 winter lambs about 500 ewes are necessary. Ewes which 

 fail to breed are sold early, and those breeding late drop lambs useful 

 for later sales. Ewes wdiieh are successful breeders are kept as long 

 as possible, since those lambing in November are likel}^ to breed at 

 the right time the following year. 



807. Care of the ewe. — During the summer the ewes need abun- 

 dant pasture, water, and shade. Should the grass become scant, they 

 should receive additional feed — rape, pumpkins, etc. If in good 

 condition it is rarely necessary to feed grain before lambing, and 

 then only in small amount. The ewes should be shorn in the fall or 

 as early in winter as possible, the object being to keep them cool 

 and allow more space. At weaning time the ewes should be re- 

 moved to the lambing pen and fed lightly for a few days. The 

 lambing pen should be warm so that the new-born lambs may not 



' Bui. 78. - Bui. 88. ' The Winter Lamb, p. 6. 



