Range Sheep 147 



On the other hand, some may not give any salt at all and 

 claim they secure better results by allowing the sheep to 

 find alkali licks than by supplying them salt. Where the 

 alkali licks are abundant, and when this alkali contains 

 as much as 85 per cent common salt, it must be considered 

 as entirely satisfactory, but where the alkali is not very 

 abundant or when it is composed largely of carbonate of 

 soda, sulfate of soda, or Epsom salts, it cannot satis- 

 factorily take the place of artificial salt. 



WEANING 



The lambs are ordinarily weaned at the time when they 

 are brought off the summer range. The lambs are sep- 

 arated and taken some distance away from the ewes. 

 The process of weaning is simple, as at this time the ewes 

 are not giving a large quantity of milk and consequently 

 the lambs are not very dependent. 



MARKETING MUTTON STOCK 



Mutton lambs are either marketed at weaning or are 

 placed in the feed-lot and sold ninety to one hundred days 

 after being placed on feed. Big breeders usually divide 

 their lambs into three lots ; one lot consists of ewe lambs 

 which are to be kept for breeding purposes ; the second, 

 lambs which are fat enough to ship direct to market; 

 while the third lot consists of those lambs which are too 

 thin to go for mutton and which must be put into the 

 feed-lot. In addition, there is sometimes a fourth lot 

 consisting of wether lambs which are to be held over and 

 run as yearlings the next summer. This fourth division 

 is growing constantly smaller and in practically all cases 

 consists only of those wether lambs which show no evi- 



