3G4 
On the Breeding, Feeding, S^-c, of Sheep. 
the scab or not ; and a question often arises in the minds of some 
persons how late in the season, when the ewes are perhaps heavily 
inlambed, such operation may safely be performed without any in- 
jury arising to the young lamb within. In the autumn of 1834 
my ewes were lined or dressed with ointment in the usual way; 
but in consequence of some apprehensions that they had caught 
the scab some time after they were dressed, or might break out 
with it in the spring, I determined upon giving them a second 
dressing, which was performed on the 9th and lOlh of January, 
the ewes being considerably more than half their time gone with 
lamb. They were turned upon their sides as usual to be dressed, 
but no lines were put down the belly of the ewes. I found that 
no injury arose from the dressing, as they lambed quite as well, 
and the lambs were as healthy as usual. I had one ewe lined a 
third time, to try whether the ointment would affect her, being 
inlambed, which was done on the 10th of February. She yeaned 
a lamb quite healthy on the 23rd of IMarch. I believe dressing 
with ointment does not affect old sheep so much as lambs. A few 
years since I sustained two or three great losses from my lambs 
having been dressed with mercurial ointment. The weather set- 
ting in very hot some days afterwards, the greatest part of them 
were attacked with inflammation, and many died ; in one case 
they were lined with ointment about the 1 1 th of October, and in 
the other about the middle of February. 
When ewes are with lamb they are very susceptible of taking 
cold, and due attention should be paid to them that their lair is 
clean and dry, particularly a few weeks before the lambing season 
commences. If they are allowed to remain in wet weather on the 
turnip land when it is very dirty, in many cases the loss will be 
great, which I have proved from experience. In the winter of 
1832 all my ewes were put to turnips, and remained upon them 
until the 1st of February. Having bought this year a quantity of 
high-priced ewes, I drew from the flock 21 of them, and kept them 
on grass land, and they were fed daily with turnips from the 1st of 
February ; the remaining part of the high-priced lot of 35 were 
left with the flock upon the turnip land, and fed in the common 
manner, the land being exceedingly wet and dirty nearly alb the 
month of February. About the end of that month those on the 
turnip land began to cast their lambs before the proper time, and 
those ewes which went their full time, many of them brought dead 
lambs, and of those that came alive many died a day or two after- 
wards; whilst those 21 ewes which were kept on grass were 
healthy and went on well : 18 of them lambed by the 1st of April 
and had IG lambs alive. From the 35 ewes ke])t on the wet land 
5 were guest, 30 had lambs, and only 1 1 lambs were alive from 
them on the 1st of April. 
