4TH EDITION Storey’s Guide to RAISING SHEEP Breeding · Care · Facilities PAULA SIMMONS & CAROL EKARIUS ß Storey Publishing The mission of Storey Publishing is to serve our customers by publishing practical information that encourages personal independence in harmony with the environment. Edited by Sarah Guare and Deborah Burns Art direction and book design by Cynthia McFarland Cover design by Kent Lew Text production by Jennifer Jepson Smith Front cover photograph by © Jason Houston Author photographs by Sunrise Printing, Inc. (Paula Simmons) and © Ken Woodard Photography (Carol Ekarius) Interior photography credits appear on page 438 Illustrations by © Elayne Sears, except for Brigita Fuhrmann 25, 279, 320; Chuck Galey 110, 113, 114, 122; Carol Jessop 2, Carl Kirkpatrick 117, 119; and © Storey Publishing, LLC 121, 159, 216, 220, 221 Indexed by Christine R. Lindemer, Boston Road Communications © 2009, 2001 by Storey Publishing, LLC All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced without written permission from the publisher, except by a reviewer who may quote brief passages or reproduce illustrations in a review with appropriate credits; nor may any part of this book be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means — electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or other — without written permission from the publisher. The information in this book is true and complete to the best of our knowledge. All recommendations are made without guarantee on the part of the author or Storey Publishing. The author and publisher disclaim any liability in connection with the use of this information. Storey books are available for special premium and promotional uses and for customized editions. For further information, please call 1-800-793-9396. Storey Publishing 210 MASS MoCA Way North Adams, MA 01247 www.storey.com Printed in the United States by Versa Press 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 LIBRARY OF CONGRESS CATALOGING-IN-PUBLICATION DATA Simmons, Paula. Storey’s guide to raising sheep / Paula Simmons and Carol Ekarius. — [Updated ed.] p. cm. Previous ed. published 2001. Includes index. ISBN 978-1-60342-459-2 (pbk. : alk. paper) ISBN 978-1-60342-484-4 (hardcover : alk. paper) 1. Sheep. I. Ekarius, Carol. II. Title. III. Title: Guide to raising sheep. IV. Title: Raising sheep. SF375.S56 2009 636.3—dc22 2009023860 To Paula Simmons for writing the original Raising Sheep the Modern Way; Sherry O’Donnell for helping get me into sheep in the fi rst place; Ann Wells and Susan Schoenian for all they do to help maintain the small-scale sheep industry in the United States; and to the staff and volunteers of the American Livestock Breeds Conservancy for their tireless efforts in protecting heritage breeds. — Carol Ekarius — Contents Preface to the 2009 Edition . vii Preface to the 2001 Edition. viii 1 Starting with Sheep . 1 Some Background on Sheep • Sheep Farming Today • Behavior • Breeds • Buying Sheep • Home at Last 2 Breeding and Breeds . .30 Breeding and Genetics • Genetic Diversity and Sheep Breeds • Individual Breeds 3 Pasture, Fences, and Facilities . .99 Pasture • Fencing • Facilities 4 Herding Dogs . 135 Traits of Herding Dogs • Breeds • Selecting a Dog • Training • Dog Trials 5 Predators and Protection . .148 Managing for Predators • Guardian Animals 6 Feeds and Feeding . 167 Digestion • Nutrients • Feeding Practices • Types of Feed 7 General Health Considerations . 191 Healthy Strategies • Recognizing Sick Sheep • Alternative Health Practices • Natural Defenses • Causes of Illness in Sheep • Parasites • Other Disorders of Sheep • Drugs for Sheep iv 8 Problems of Rams, Ewes, and Lambs . .237 Problems with Rams • Disorders in Ewes • Lamb Problems 9 Flock Management . 261 Successful Breeding • The Ram • Ewes 10 Lambing . .278 Preparation for Lambing • The Lambing Process • After Lambing • Problems with Newborn Lambs • Orphan Lambs • Care of Baby Lambs 11 Products and Marketing . .310 Merchandising to Reach Your Market • Wool • Meat and Milk • Pelts • The Live-Animal Business • Odds and Ends • Recipes 12 Showing Sheep . .377 Kinds of Shows • Show Classes • Training Sheep • Fitting • Show Ring Strategies 13 Records and Animal Identifi cation . .391 National Sheep Improvement Program • Computer Software and Spreadsheets • Sample Record Charts Feed Requirements for Sheep . 396 National Animal Identifi cation System . 400 Resources . 402 Glossary . .413 Index . 420 v The following poem was prepared by Paula’s good friend Darrell Salsbury, DVM, for an earlier edition, but its wisdom hasn’t changed at all. The Shepherd’s Lament Now I lay me down to sleep Exhausted by those doggone sheep; My only wish is that I might ’Cause them not to lamb at night. I wouldn’t mind the occasional ewe, But lately it’s more than just a few: Back into bed, then up again, At two o’clock and four A.M. They grunt and groan with noses high, And in between a mournful sigh, We stand there watching nature work, Hoping there won’t be a quirk: A leg turned back, or even worse, A lamb that’s coming in reverse. But once they’ve lambed we’re glad to see That their efforts didn’t end in tragedy. There’s no emotion so sublime As a ewe and lamb that’s doing fi ne. I’m often asked why I raise sheep, With all the work and loss of sleep; The gratifi cation gained at three A.M., From the birth of another baby lamb — How can you explain, or even show? ’Cause only a shepherd will ever know! D. L. Salsbury, DVM vi Preface to the 2009 Edition IT IS HARD TO BELIEVE that almost 10 years have passed since I fi rst began working on the last update of Storey’s Guide to Raising Sheep. The times have changed: the landscape has looked rather bleak for shepherds in recent years, yet there are many things happening now that signal better times ahead for the North American sheep industry and shepherds everywhere. One important change took place over the last decade that has affected all levels of society: the Internet has gone from a limited resource to which few individuals had ready access to a household fi xture with a wealth of infor- mation. It has helped revolutionize marketing options for producers. In the Resources section, you will see lists of organizations and Web sites where you can learn more about specifi c issues and network with other shepherds. As ever, I owe thanks to dozens of people but especially to Paula Simmons. Her vision and knowledge provided the foundation that has made this the fi nest sheep book on the market for more than three decades! I am proud of the opportunity to continue in her footsteps. Thanks to all the other folks who have participated in the process over all these years! — Carol Ekarius vii Preface to the 2001 Edition Raising Sheep the Modern Way has been used by more than 100,000 sheep lov- ers since its publication in 1976, but times have changed, laws have changed, technology has advanced, and the resources (which change so rapidly) all required updating. Carol Ekarius, author of Small-Scale Livestock Farming (also published by Storey Publishing), undertook the update for this new edition, Storey’s Guide to Raising Sheep. She is particularly knowledgeable about genetics, sheep dogs, guardian dogs, sheep showing, and ecological concerns, and she has addressed these subjects to a greater degree than they were discussed in my original book. Much appreciation to Carol for her good work in updating and adding to a book that has been relied upon by so many sheep owners, to the benefi t of their animals. A book is never the work of just one or two people. From the outset many have contributed to my initially meager knowledge. The Lunds, original pub- lishers of The Shepherd magazine, were most helpful. And sheep! Magazine has been a constant source of useful articles and veterinary columns; in my opinion this magazine is a “must-have” in any shepherd’s household, for suc- cess with sheep is more certain with a regular supply of current information. And the more you know, the more you will enjoy your sheep. — Paula Simmons viii 1 Starting with Sheep “SHEEP ARE THE DUMBEST ANIMALS on God’s green earth,” our neighbor avowed, with a vigorous shake of his head when he saw the newest additions to our farmstead. His belief is not uncommon. In fact, sheep are love–hate animals: People either really love them or really hate them. And the people who really hate them love nothing more than to malign them. But sheep don’t deserve the bad rap they’ve received. They fi ll a niche that needs fi lling: they provide economically effi cient food and fi ber, they eat many kinds of weeds that other livestock species won’t touch, they’re rela- tively inexpensive to begin raising, and they reproduce quickly so that a mini- mal capital outlay can yield a respectable fl ock in short order. On top of all that, sheep are simply nice, gentle animals. Watching a group of young lambs charging wildly around the pasture or playing king of the hill on any mound of dirt, downed tree, or other object that happens to occupy space in their world has to be one of life’s greatest joys. Admittedly, there are some diffi culties to raising sheep: They think fences are puzzles that you’ve placed there for them to fi gure a way out of. Their fl ocking nature can sometimes make handling a challenge. Although they’re less susceptible to many diseases than other critters, they’re more troubled by parasites. They’re also vulnerable to predators.