1904 
487 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
SHEEP NOTES. 
Hothouse Lambs. —Is it profitable for the 
ordinary farmer to raise hothouse lambs? 
Col. Co., N. Y. v. a. e. 
The name “hothouse” lamb is mislead¬ 
ing, and at once suggests specially heated 
buildings and such luxuries as the “ordi¬ 
nary” farmer does not possess. These are 
not necessary. It does pay any one with 
a liking for sheep, who has good, comfort¬ 
able, dry barns, and is willing to feed and 
care for them well. Lambs are dropped 
from November to March. Of such the 
supply has never yet equaled the demand, 
so as to bring the price below that of a 
nice margin of profit. Prices have run 
from $13 for those marketed in early Jan¬ 
uary to $5 for those not ready before 
March. In these latter there is a profit, 
but much less of course than the former. 
They must be fat and weigh alive not less 
than 40 pounds. 
Early Breeding— The great difficulty 
is to get the ordinary sheep to breed early 
enough to obtain the top price. The Dor- 
sets will do it and are excellent for this 
purpose. Half bloods of this breed show 
a marked improvement over the Downs, 
i he grades of the Merino will also breed 
much earlier than the latter. The ram 
mated with such should always be pure- 
blood, and of the mutton breeds. I have 
never been successful in getting many 
lambs from the Downs before February. 
The Tunis, I believe, are going to be of 
value for this purpose. Clark Allis, of 
Orleans Co., N. Y., has been very success¬ 
ful with this breed. They are natives of 
Africa, used to breed when me weather is 
warm. The lambs also lay on fat very 
rapidly. They are very prepotent and fix 
their characteristics on their offspring 
with certainty. I had become so im¬ 
pressed witn their value for early lambs 
that last August I purchased a Tunis 
ram. The ewes were nearly pure blood 
Shropshires. Although I did not get my 
lambs any earlier than usual from such 
ewes, out of 30 odd lambs there were only 
two or three that showed any Shropshire 
form or characteristics. Some have said 
that a ram of a breed noted for mating in 
warm weather will induce ewes of any 
kind to breed earlier. This has not been 
my experience. I think it depends largely 
on the ewes, i'hey should be kept rather 
thin, and if started taking on flesh about the 
time the male is put with them and given 
a little heating food like corn or rye, they 
will breed early. The lambs will be much 
stronger if the ram is only allowed to run 
with the flock at night, and in addition to 
his fodder is given wnat oats he will eat 
up clean. 
In New York State many of the flocks 
are small. We like the lambs to come 
early and prefer twins, except for lambs 
for Winter market. I think, however, on 
an average the lambs raised will not be 
over a lamb to a sheep. I can get more 
profit from two lambs at $3 each than one 
at $4. If ewes and lambs are well fed 
there need not be any difference in the 
price, but it will take a little longer to ma¬ 
ture the twins. We want to get above the 
average. I know not a few successful 
sheep keepers, who raise at least a third 
more lambs than they have ewes. I know 
of two cases where there was an average 
of two lambs to a sheep, enough ewes 
running three to balance those that only 
had one. t ne ram has a great deal to do 
with twins. First in his breeding; that is, 
from a breed like the Southdowns, that 
are very likely to produce twins; then his 
individual heredity. I once selected a 
ram partly because he was a triplet, and 1 
never had so large a proportion of twins 
as from him. Next his physical condition 
and treatment at time of mating. 
Shearing.— As to time of shearing 
sheep were formerly washed (?), which 
usually consisted of dipping them in a 
stream so cold that the men handling them 
had to (?) take liquor to keep themselves 
from contracting a severe cold. ^ The men 
always changed their clothes. The sheep 
could not, and with this wet cold over¬ 
coat next to their skin, unless the wash¬ 
ing was done very late in the season, death 
often followed, laid to the shearing, but 
due to the washing. Now few in this 
State wash their sheep. If the sheep are 
warmly housed it is much better to shear 
in early Spring, the last of March or first 
of April, selecting a mild day. Then 
crowd them a little closer in the pens 
than usual. I have practiced this for a 
number of years and have never lost a 
sheep from this cause. In fact, they feel 
the change less than when they have suf¬ 
fered from the neat of their fleece and are 
then deprived of it, and compelled to lie 
on the cold ground and often exposed to 
rain. Unless the ewe is particularly well 
fed she will make very little wool when 
she is suckling her lamb. Often the wool 
comes off at this time and is lost. The 
lamb can also get to the udder better if 
the wool is off. There is no loss from 
the wool getting dirty by the sheep scour¬ 
ing after they go on the soft grass. Both 
they and the lambs can be easily dipped 
for ticks, and a better lamb is always the 
result. EDWARD VAN ALSTYNE. 
SORE MOUTH IN PIGS. 
My Spring litter of pigs have a disease 
that starts in the form of a scab on the nose 
and in the mouth, and keeps getting larger, 
until it forms into a canker. Cut into it and 
it is a gristly pus. What is it? F. c. 
Hartington, Neb. 
Occasionally this disease makes its ap¬ 
pearance on the pig farm. Opinions dif¬ 
fer as to the cause. By some k is thought 
to be filthy quarters; by others that the 
young pigs in sucking wound each other 
with their sharp teeth and disease germs 
getting in these wounds cause the sores. 
Again it is thought to be caused by an 
unhealthy condition of the sow’s milk. 
It may be that all these have something 
to do with causing it. I have not had a 
case on this farm for 25 years, not since 
departing from the old way and giving 
better attention to sanitary conditions. 
With cases that are very bad probably 
the best way out is to kill and burn or 
bury. To cure cases that are worth cur¬ 
ing catch the pigs and with a sharp knife 
cut out all appearance of pus; then wash 
with carbolic acid diluted one part of the 
acid to nine parts of water. Wash with 
this once a day. When the sores are 
cleansed of pus dip the nose in the solu¬ 
tion. Equally as good as this, I think, 
will be found the sheep dips like Zeno- 
leurn made from coal tar. They can be 
used without diluting, but I think they are 
rather strong without it. Equal parts of 
water and the fluid will be strong enough, 
dipping the pig’s nose in the solution. 
Continue the dipping daily till the sores 
begin to heal, when the treatment can be 
given every other day. The disease may 
run through a litter, but I hardly think it 
will continue to other litters unless they 
run together and there is thieving done by 
the pigs to get more than their share of 
milk. Improve the sanitary conditions 
surrounding the herd, and the disease may 
never appear again on the farm. 
JOHN M. JAMISON. 
ORPHAN LAMBS ARE WOOLLY. 
A. L. Dent, a farmer of the school section, 
near North Yakima, Wash., sheared three or¬ 
phan lambs that turned off the largest fleeces 
of wool ever sheared from lambs in this sec¬ 
tion. One of them weighed 20 pounds and 
another weighed 16% pounds. Last year 
Mr. Dent sold the clips of these sheep for 
$4.50 and this year the wool netted him 
$0.50. He had another lamb that weighed 
200 pounds and brought him $8. The clip 
from the lambs will be put on'exhibition at 
the World’s Fair by Coffin Bros., who bought 
them. 
The above clipping from a local paper 
shows what can be done with sheep in 
this region. I had lambs—a cross with 
the Cotswold—that did nearly as well, 
clipped nearly 15 pounds of clean wool. 
Sheep here require no feeding or housing 
in Winter, but feed in the fields all the 
year. With the use of rape and Crimson 
clover, which thrive well in our open 
Winter, some wonderful results can be 
obtained in the Puget Sound region of 
Washington from sheep by careful man¬ 
agement; in fact, more than is yet 
dreamed of. J. f. cass. 
Washingto n. 
IMPORTED ANGORA GOATS. 
How about the following bit of news? 
The steamship Susquehanna, which arrived 
at New York in May from South African 
ports, brought in 149 Angora goats. They 
are for G. A. Early, of New Jersey, who 
will attempt to domesticate them. The Brit¬ 
ish Government recently placed an embargo 
on all live stock in South Africa, so that 
nothing can be taken out. These animals, 
however, were purchased before the Boer 
War and do not come under the restriction. 
Several attempts have heretofore been made 
to domesticate Angoras, but without success. 
The writer has been on a farm where 
three Angoras were kept simply for pets 
and without any special thought of profit. 
They climbed the stairs to the hayloft 
and never mistook anything else for good 
Timothy hay. They walked over four- 
foot poultry netting fences, stood on their 
hind legs and ate the choicest grapes six 
feet from the ground, girdled some young 
fruit trees and broke into the feed house 
and ate grain, and also the dry hotel 
bread purchased for the poultry depart¬ 
ment. We never made any effort to do¬ 
mesticate them, as they seemed perfectly 
able to domesticate themselves. 
This is not meant for a slur at Angoras. 
They are not only beautiful pets, but I 
believe can be made profitable, but let the 
beginner provide a suitable place well 
fenced, before he buys his goats, unless 
he intends to devote all his time to watch¬ 
ing them. H. A. H. 
Linden, N. J. 
Aiding Hens. —Tell your correspondent 
who has the “ailing hens,” page 439, the 
trouble is too much food, too much stimulat¬ 
ing food and too little exercise. I had the 
experience described once with hens, only 
worse, and 1 found that regulating the diet 
and giving more chance to exercise was a 
cure. Scatter all food possible, often and in 
small quantities in litter, if hens are con¬ 
fined, and make them scratch and get a lit¬ 
tle at a time, Nature’s way. If ranging feed 
morning and night only. J. l. l. 
Minong, Wis. 
The Separator News 
Did you think all separators were 
alike—that any kind was good enough 
I —that makers of bucket bowl separa- 
I tors would tell you their machines are 
poor? Some dairymen have thought 
so—have dropped a bunch of money 
that way. But you’ll not if you in¬ 
vestigate—read The Separator News— 
learn that 
Separators are Vastly Different 
A cow’s leg and tail may look alike, 
but they’re very different. One is good 
for support—the other to swipe your 
f ace in fly time. 
SEMRATORS are just 
as different. The 
SeparatorNewstells 
how, tells it plainly, 
tells why Tubulars 
are best, appeals to 
I your judgment. Tu- 
I bulars recover more 
butter fat— skim 
twice as clean by 
official tests. It’sthe. 
only simple bowl 
separator. TheSep- 
I arator News tells 
about separators—is issued periodical¬ 
ly—subscription free. Write for it 
and catalog No. C-153. 
Sharpies Co. 
Chicago, Illinois 
P M. Sharpies 
West Chester, Pa. 
DE LAVAL 
Cream Separators 
Are as much better than 
the best of imitating separators 
as such machines are better 
than setting systems. 
Send for new Catalogue 
and name of nearest local agent. 
THE DE LAVAL SEPARATOR CO. 
Randolph & Canal Sts. 
Chicago. 
74 Cortlandt St. 
New York. 
Separator Truths. 
They stand out best in the trial. We’re 
not afraidtolet honestmen try the 
popular priced 
AMERICAN. 
Seeing it work sells it. That’s our plan. 
It’s a machine that wins its way. 
Shall we send catalog ? It’s free. 
AMERICAN SEPARATOR CO., 
Box 1069, Balnbridgo, N. Y. 
Green Mountain 
and Not-LI-Mah, 4 
SILOS 
lead all others in preserving and 
convenience. Rightly curved 
perfect fitting staves, tongued 
and grooved, extra strong 
hoops, new patent door. Also 
handle Cream' ry Supplies, En¬ 
silage Ma hinery. Gasoline En¬ 
gines, etc., everything the best. 
Books free. Write for a copy 
todfly. 
STODDARD MFC. CO.. Rutland. VL 
s 
CIENTIFIC CORN HARVESTERS.—Out 
Corn quicker, better than any other. No ears 
knocked off. No mouldy fodder. Get catalogue 
K. EOOS MFG. CO., Springfield, Ohio. 
i strain of hard work 
man or beast is quickly 
relieved by 
SLOAN'S 
LINIMENT 
"The Smalley' 
Cutters and Blowers 
The only Cutter and Blower containing safety feed device, 
safety belt pulley and safety balance wheel. Light power 
required. Will elevate into any silo. Exceedingly strong 
andsold on their meritatlow prices. Also ensilage car¬ 
riers, silos, horse powers, threshers, hay presses. 
HARDER MFC. COMPANY, COBLESKILL, N. Y. 
Wilder’s 
“Whirlwind' 
ENSILAGE CUTTER 
OR SHREDDER 
Will be shipped to re¬ 
sponsible parties on THIS 
POSITIVE GUARANTEE 
that 11 will run with 1 ess power 
and do faster work, prove 
more convenient to use And 
safer, stronger and more sim¬ 
ple than any other BLOWER 
SILO FILLER made. Get 
our proposition and printed 
matter. 
WILDER-STRONG IMPL. CO., 
MONROE, MICH 
Box20 
Shoo-Fly 
r^.vy.v-.;ii0'Y’-V THE 
ANIMAL’S 
FRIEND 
No. 1 
Br-ginning of 
Fly time these 
c o w a w e re 
• equal in every 
respect. No. 1 was sprayed 
and she continued to give 20 qts. milk daily 
through Fly season; No.2 lost so much milk 
» and flesh were obliged to use 
to keep her alive, half cent's worth of which 
would have made No. 2 as profitable as No. 1. 
Shoo-Fly is the original stock protector used by same dairymen 
since 1885 after testing imitations, because it protects cows much 
longer in pasture. It prevents contagious abortion and other dis¬ 
eases, cures all sores, scratches, skin diseases, hoof ailments, etc. 
NO LICE inpoultry house or any place it is sprayed. Beware of 
imitations that lastouly afewhoursand make sores. Ifyourdealer 
does not keep Shoo-Fly (made in Philadelphia, l*a.,) send $1.00 
for latest Improved Three Tube Sprayer and enough Shoo-Fly 
to protect 200 cows. Cash returned if cows are not protected. 
SHOO-FLY MFG. CO. 1005 Fairmount Ave. Phila.,Pa. 
SMALLEY SILO FILLER-, 
The strongest and most satisfactory ensilage machine built. 
No silo owner can afford to do without the New Smulley 
Special No. IS. No fear of breakages. Largest capacity. 
Guaranteed to handle bundlesas large as any corn binder can 
bind, quickest am l cleanest work. Will fill any silo. Smalley 
Safety Blower elevates up to 50 feet. Sold on positive guar¬ 
antee. Catalog explains the strong points of the SMALLEY 
and proves it to be the best machine made. Write for it. 
SMALLEY MFC. CO., Box R Manitowoc, WIs. 
New and Improved 
with Self Feed Table. 
Send for 
Free Catalogue. 
BLIZZARD 
Feed and Ensilage Cutter or 
Shredder with Wind Elevator 
Docs tetter work than any 
other I£ nsllage orFoddcr Cut¬ 
ter ever niude; willelev&teto 
any desired height and la any di¬ 
rection. Kernels of corn ground 
into meal, mixed all through the 
silage. Stalks and leaves battered 
and softened, seuloquicker, pack closer. 
Silo will take 1-4 more Silage. Less beating, 
fermentation, and souring. Better and sweeter 
silage. Good for all stock; no waste, all palatable .nd 
well digested. Does splendid work in shredding and 
» cutting dry stalks. Fully guaranteed. 
JOSEPH DICK AGRICULTURAL WORKS 
Box 09 Canton, Ohio. 
