574 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
[ December 20, 1888. 
SHEEP MANAGEMENT. 
In the preparation of the lambing fold care is taken to select as 
•dry and sheltered a place as can be had. It is not often that 
farmers are so fortunate as to have a lambing yard enclosed by a 
•wall or hoarded fence with due provision of shedding and cribs, but 
-there are many homesteads where a yard might be spared for the 
purpose, and it is always advisable, for the flock is then more imme¬ 
diately under the master’s eye, and a lot of contrivances for shelter 
■can be put up or made better in a yard than elsewhere. Given 
■only an enclosure we can easily contrive snug cribs with hurdles 
thatched with straw, -which answer admirably for the roofs as well 
as the sides. There must be plenty of single cribs, and three or 
-four little yards, each having its shed or crib large enough to take 
In six or a dozen ewes with their lambs. Ewes that have suffered 
from straining or with delicate lambs require keeping apart for a 
few days in a sort of hospital yard for special attention and 
nourishment. Last lambing season we mentioned having seen a 
line of waggons laden with straw across the middle of a lambing 
yard with thatched hurdles placed along on one side against the 
waggon wheels, and thus affording shelter for sheep and lambs 
-turned out in the yard. The lambing yard or fold should be near 
some good pasture for ewes before lambing and for ewes with 
lambs to go out upon as the lambs become strong enough. But the 
lambs must never be subjected to exposure to cold cutting wind 
■even by day, and for the first few weeks they should always be 
-taken into the folds by night. We have known dozens of lambs to 
be lost simply through exposure, which might easily be avoided, and 
we know no more lamentable sight in farming than that of a lot 
of starveling ewes with weak lambs turn out upon bare open 
pasture without shelter of any sort. Such an example of mis¬ 
management may appear strained and far-fetched, but we saw it 
last season greatly to our regret. 
There is nothing more interesting or pleasant to behold in 
farming than a well arranged lambing fold. On every hand we 
have evidence of energetic care and thoughtful attention to every 
want of the sheep. A fine fall of lambs is the crown of a year of 
•careful management, and a little boastfulness or conceit on the part 
of the shepherd may well be pardoned, for very much depends upon 
his care of the sheep, not simply during the lambing, but always. 
As the ewes become heavy with lamb they are kept as quiet as 
possible, any sudden change or alarm causing abortion, and some, 
•times the loss of both ewe and lamb. Last lambing season the most 
valuable flack in our neighbourhood sustained serious harm by 
being driven out of the fold at night by some poachers’ dogs—a sort 
of mongrel lurcher—-of powerful build and great speed, and there¬ 
fore able to do much harm to the sheep. We mention this to put 
beginners on the alert, the knowledge gained of such cases of 
mischief being part of dear bought experience. 
During the lambing notice must be taken of all bad cases, 
and all ewes marked for drafting and fattening later on that 
prove unfit for breeding. Have at hand some carbolic oil and a 
syringe for use in cases of severe straining, first washing the 
vagina with warm water, and one or two applications of the oil 
slightly warm usually give instant relief and saves the ewe 
Ewes suffering much from straining should not be retained for 
another season, nor should any having protrusion of the uterus. 
This may be cured temporarily, but the ewe is subsequently unfit 
for breeding. Far better is it to withdraw and fatten even 
doubtful animals than to run the risk of loss next season. This is 
one of the reasons we have for preference to home-bred ewes. 
We know them from infancy, and save only the robust for the 
ewe flock, but purchased ewes may or may not he safe ; the buyer 
has to take his chance of that, and there are generally some 
losses. 
Foot rot in a ewe flock is a thing w r e much deplore. It 
invariably becomes worse during the lambing, for it is unsafe to 
cast the pregnant ewes to trim and dress the feet, and it is sad 
work when a ewe heavy with lamb becomes very lame. It makes 
a hurtful tax upon the frame, and the lambs soon become lame too, 
for the disease is very contagious. There is no real cure for it. 
We may, and do heal bad feet by paring, washing, and dressing 
with Gell’s ointment, hut if once a flock gets the taint of foot rot 
it is always liable to an outbreak. The feet of any lame ewe3 have 
attention in a day or two after the lambing, all over-grown or 
broken parts of hoof being pared off carefully with a sharp knife, 
the foot well washed with tepid water, and the ointment well 
rubbed into the sore part. Yery bad cases are poulticed with 
linseed meal, or bandaged with ointment or rags to keep the sore 
part from contact with the ground. 
WORK OK THE HOME FARM. 
Till within the last few days the weather was so mild that grass 
continued growing freely, and if only snow keeps off we shall have 
plenty for the ewes for the next month or two. This abundance of 
grass proves so nourishing that we did not begin using com so early as 
usual for the ewes, but they must now have crushed Oats regularly. We 
have been able to keep the hoggets in Turnip folds with very little 
change, and they are in thriving condition. Turnips are so abundant 
this winter that farmers are offering them free to flockmasters if only 
they will send sheep to consume them on the land. This is not as it 
ought to be. The season has been most favourable to the development 
of a full crop of roots, yet farmers of slender means have no sheep, nor 
can they afford to purchase them to consume a crop for which they pay 
so dear. Surely this is one more lesson of the folly of farming with in¬ 
sufficient capital. Far better, say we, to farm a little and farm well. The 
risk would be less, the profit more assured, and farmers again be prosperous. 
We miss no chance of urging this upon general attention, and mention 
of it is not out of place even in our farmwork note. 
Sales of farm produce still take up much time. We have this week 
realised £90 for pigs, and find our plan of turning inferior Barley into 
pork answers very well. We avoid all waste, and by using only home 
grown food there are no corn bills to meet, and the margin of profit is 
very satisfactory. We can mark no improvement in the corn trade. 
Our sales for the week amount to 250 quarters, the highest price for 
Barley being 28s., and for Wheat 36s. This is a fine sample of white 
Wheat, very fine, dry. and hard, yet the price falls from below that of 
the best foreign Wheat, the quotations for which varied as high as 45s. 
per quarter last Monday. If only we could obtain 40s. we should rest 
content, but it is only for old home-grown Wheat that such prices are 
given, and it is only a favoured few who can afford to wait for them. 
As Wheat is threshed the straw is carefully stacked and thatched, most 
of it being intended for sale eventually, only enough being kept for 
thatching hay and corn stacks next season. There is a brisk demand 
for straw, and we have no difficulty in selling all we have at fair prices. 
OUR LETTER BOX. 
Cabbage-slicing- Implement (C. L. C.).—A Bullock Turnip 
cutter would answer your purpose best. We have never seen a Cabbage 
cutting machine, nor do we think such an implement at all necessary, 
sheep as well as cattle being able to consume the Cabbages perfectly 
well without any cutting. 
METEOROLOGICAL OBSERVATIONS. 
CAMDEN SQUARE, LONDON. 
Lat. 51° 32' 40” N.; Long. 0° 8'0" W.; Altitude, 111 feet. 
DATE. 
9 A.M. 
IN THE DAY. 
1888. 
December. 
I Barome¬ 
ter at 32° 
and Sea 
Level. 
Hygrome¬ 
ter. 
d . 
Or3 
V d 
5 o 
a 
Shade Tem¬ 
perature. 
Radiation 
Temperal ure 
Dry. 
Wet. 
Max. 
Min. 
In 
sun. 
On 
grass 
Sunday. 9 
Monday.K> 
Tuesday .... 11 
Wednesday.. 12 
Thursday.... 13 
Friday . 14 
Saturday .... 15 
Inches. 
30 248 
30.350 
30.31G 
30 389 
30 369 
30.281 
30.407 
deg 
361 
29.1 
310 
33.3 
318 
35.2 
317 
deg. 
35 8 
29.1 
31.0 
32.3 
3 .2 
55.1 
31.7 
N.W. 
N.W. 
E. 
K. 
8.E. 
S.U. 
N. 
deg. 
45.0 
42 8 
40 7 
39.9 
38 9 
38.1 
37 8 
deg. 
44.3 
39.1 
41.0 
39.6 
35 8 
38.7 
40 3 
deg. 
34 2 
27 5 
27.1 
29 9 
28 2 
27.6 
29.3 
deg. 
54.1 
57.9 
41.1 
48.7 
42.1 
38.7 
45.5 
deg. 
28.4 
22 1 
20 4 
22.2 
19.2 
20.1 
30.3 
30 334 
32.6 
83.3 
40.5 
39.8 
19.1 
46.9 
23.2 
REMARKS. 
9th.-Fair and generally bright day. 
loth—Very cold dense fog early, gradually cleared, and bright sun from 11.30. 
11th.—Dense fog, clearing gradually all day, fine evening and night. 
12tb.—Slight fog early, fine brightday. 
13th.—Fine and generally bright, 
llth.—Fog all day. 
15th.—Fog all day. 
A cold,foggy, and rainless week. Temperature about 1U« below that o' the preceding 
week, and nearly 6“ below the average.—O. J. SYMONS. 
