Spring Management of the Flock 191 



she is backward in attending to this, sprinkle a pinch 

 of salt over the lamb. A lamb of ordinary strength 

 will at once seek its mother's milk ; but if it is weak, 

 it must be assisted. 



Marking the lambs. — The most common method 

 of recording the parentage of lambs is to number 

 them while only a few days old by a system of 

 notches in the ear. Tags in the ears of young lambs 

 are likely to tear out. The notches aflford a perma- 

 nent mark, though most associations that record pure- 

 bred sheep require the use of the label bearing the 

 official number after the lamb is recorded. This 

 official label can be inserted at weaning time, when 

 there is small danger of its being torn out, and the 

 official number recorded along with the flock number 

 indicated by the notches. A system of notches can 

 be made to cover several thousand. Such a number 

 would serve most flocks for several years. The 

 lower numbers are most commonly used, and along 

 with the year of birth. The breeder's name, the 

 flock number, and the year make up the individual 

 designations mainly used in registration : thus, 

 Johnson 176 — 1910. A separate mark to indicate 

 the year may be given each lamb of a season, but this 

 is not likely to be needed. Until four years of age 

 the teeth are sufficient guide as to the year of birth, 

 and if older ewes are too numerous to be remembered, 

 the official number and flock book furnish identi- 

 fication. These notches can be made with the punch 



