18 MISC. PUBLICATION 9 0, tf. S. DEPT. OF AGKlCTJLTtiBE 



The practice of feeding sheep in feed lots in the winter is becoming 

 more and more extensive. Tests or studies have shown that the losses 

 of sheep are less in the feed lots, and that feed-lot ewes produce 

 more wool and produce more and larger lambs than do desert- 

 wintered ewes, other conditions being the same. Some sheepmen are 

 convinced that the advantages of feed-lot winter feeding offset the 

 extra cost of the feed. 



Many of the herds that winter on the deserts are fed corn, cot- 

 tonseed meal, hay, and other feeds to supplement the often scant 

 native forage. The amount of feed produced on the deserts varies 

 with climatic conditions. A light crop of feed follows dry seasons. 

 Good winter range feed follows moist periods during the late sum- 

 mer and fall. Sheep are dependent upon snow for water on the 

 deserts. Sometimes the snow comes so late in the fall that herds 

 can not be taken far from the few permanent water holes. A 

 scarcity of feed within traveling distance of water holes then results. 

 Sometimes the snow is so deep that sheep can not obtain feed, and 

 supplemental feeding becomes necessary. 



With the melting of the snow in the spring the sheep are started 

 toward the mountains. Some of the sheepmen own or lease sjoring 

 range on the foothills or lower mountain slopes. On these they hold 

 their sheep until the higher ranges are ready for grazing. Other 

 sheepmen use the public domain adjacent to the deserts for spring 

 ranges. 



The lambing period varies. Where the sheepmen have sheds to 

 protect the sheep, lambing often starts in February or early March. 

 Most range lambs are born in late April and in May. 



During the spring the sheep are sheared. Usually there is a 

 shearing corral on each spring-range district. Men who make their 

 living shearing sheep travel from corral to corral and from State 

 to State. 



Almost all of the wool is sold to wool buyers or contractors. These 

 men know where practically all the sheep in their district are 

 wintered. They know what kind of sheep are raised. They know 

 the quantity and quality of wool that will be produced. By watch- 

 ing the trend of the market closely they know about how much to 

 offer for wool, though even they are sometimes fooled by sudden 

 changes in the market prices. Usually these men bargain for the 

 wool some time before shearing time. They make a first payment 

 to the sheepmen to bind the contract. 



When the snow has melted on the high ranges and the forage 

 has made a sufficient growth the sheep are driven from the spring 

 ranges to the summer ranges. On the high ranges the forage is 

 generally luxuriant and succulent. The lambs make very rapid 

 growth. Toward fall, generally in September, the lambs to be 

 marketed are separated from the rest of the herd and are driven 

 to the nearest railroad point for shipment. Some sheepmen ship 

 their lambs directly to the packing-house centers. Others contract 

 to deliver their lambs at a stated price to lamb buyers at the railroad 

 points. 



The last of September and first of October usually bring snow 

 and cold storms in the mountains. Once more the highways and 

 stock trails resound to the tinkling of bells, barking of dogs, and 

 the bla, bla of desert-bound sheep. 



