Proceedings of the 7th Great Lakes Dairy Sheep Symposium GUELPH IN 1830 NOVEMBER 1-3, 2001 EAU CLAIRE, WISCONSIN PROCEEDINGS OF THE 7TH GREAT LAKES DAIRY SHEEP SYMPOSIUM November 1-3, 2001 EAU CLAIRE, WISCONSIN Organized By: Wisconsin Sheep Dairy Cooperative, Strum, Wisconsin, USA University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, Wisconsin, USA College of Agricultural and Life Sciences Spooner Agricultural Research Station Department of Animal Sciences Office of International Programs ORGANIZING COMMITTEE 7TH GREAT LAKES DAIRY SHEEP SYMPOSIUM Yves Berger, Spooner, Wisconsin, Chair Carolyn Craft, Fall River, Wisconsin Dan Guertin, Stillwater, Minnesota Tom and Laurel Kieffer, Strum, Wisconsin Larry and Emily Meisegeier, Bruce, Wisconsin Dave Thomas, Madison, Wisconsin Proceedings edited and compiled by: David L. Thomas, Madison, Wisconsin Susan Porter, Madison, Wisconsin Cover Design by: Susan Porter, Madison, Wisconsin Cover Photographs: Top: East Friesian crossbred ewes in the milking parlor at the Spooner Agricultural Research Station, University of Wisconsin-Madison. Photo by Wolfgang Hoffmann. Bottom Left: One of the first East Friesian crossbred ewes born at the University of Wisconsin- Madison. Photo by Sarah Bates. Bottom Right: Specialty cheeses, many of them sheep milk cheeses, in Fairway Market, Manhattan, New York City. Photo by Dave Thomas. Copies of the 1995, 1996, and 1997 Proceedings of the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd, respectively, Great Lakes Dairy Sheep Symposia can be purchased from the Wisconsin Sheep Breeders Cooperative, 7811 Consolidated School Road, Edgerton, WI 53534, USA (phone: 608-868-2505, web site: www.wisbc.com) Copies of the 1998, 1999, 2000, and 2001 Proceedings of the 4th, 5th, 6th, and 7th respectively, Great Lakes Dairy Sheep Symposia can be purchased from Yves Berger, Spooner Agricultural Research Station, W6646 Highway 70, Spooner, WI 54801-2335, USA (phone: 715-635-3735, fax: 715-635-6741, email: [email protected]) Previous Proceedings of the Great Lakes Dairy Symposia can be viewed and downloaded at http://www.uwex.edu/ces/animalscience/sheep/. Sponsors Platinum: Babcock Institute for International Dairy Research and Development University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, Wisconsin, USA Gold: Wisconsin Sheep Dairy Cooperative Strum, Wisconsin, USA Ontario Dairy Sheep Association Shelburne, Ontario, Canada Silver: Northeast Region Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE) Program University of Vermont Burlington, Vermont, USA Premier Sheep Supplies Washington, Iowa, USA Bronze: Sav-A-Lam Products Chilton, Wisconsin Supporting: Best Boar & Baa Farm Conn, Ontario, Canada Northlea Sheep Dairy Peterborough, Ontario, Canada Rainbow Homestead Viroqua, Wisconsin, USA Wooldrift Farm Markdale, Ontario, Canada PROGRAM 7TH GREAT LAKES DAIRY SHEEP SYMPOSIUM EAU CLAIRE, WISCONSIN Thursday, Friday, and Saturday November 1, 2, and 3, 2001 Thursday, November 1 Noon Registration 1:00-1:40 p.m. Choice of sheep breeds (Dave Thomas) 1:40-2:20 p.m. Choice of milking system (Yves Berger) 2:20-2:40 p.m. Regulations for sheep milk (Bruce Carroll) 2:40-3:20 p.m. Farmstead cheese and marketing (Steven Read & Jodi Ohlsen) Break 3:40-4:20 p.m. The Wisconsin Sheep Dairy Cooperative (Dan Guertin) 4:20-4:40 p.m. Getting Started in Sheep Dairying (John Tappe) 4:40-5:00 p.m. Management of a dairy sheep operation (Tom & Laurel Kieffer) 5:00 p.m. Questions and answers (Panel) 7:30 p.m. Live ETN session - New scrapie regulations and selection for scrapie resis- tance (UW-Extension - Dave Thomas) Friday, November 2, 2001 8:00 a.m. Registration 8:30-9:10 a.m. Comparison between East Friesian and Lacaune (Dave Thomas) 9:10-9:50 a.m. Factors affecting the quality of ewe’s milk (Roberta Bencini) 9:50-10:30 a.m. Effects of SCC and milk with low fat content on cheese manufacturing and quality (John Jaeggi) Break 10:45-11:25 a.m. New developments in genetic improvement of dairy sheep (Juan José Arranz) 11:25-12:05 p.m. Effect of omission of stripping and less frequent milking on milk production and milking efficiency of dairy ewes (Brett McKusick) Lunch 1:15-1:55 p.m. Light control for year-round breeding (Ken Kleinpeter) 1:55-2:35 p.m. Effect of nutrition of ewe lambs on subsequent lactation (Bee Tolman) 2:35-3:15 p.m. Effect of freezing on milk quality and Latest developments in the use of raw milk for cheesemaking (Bill Wendorff) Break 3:30-4:10 p.m. The Australian sheep dairy industry (Roberta Bencini) 4:10-4:50 p.m. Group breeding schemes (Yves Berger) 4:50-5:30 p.m. Future plans for the symposium and an association of dairy sheep producers 6:30 p.m. Depart for banquet at Park Inn, Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin 7:00 p.m. Social and cheese tasting 8:00 p.m. Banquet Saturday, November 3, 2001 Tour of three sheep dairy farms, a box lunch will be served 9:00 a.m. Bus Departs 1st farm: Newly operating sheep dairy farm. 150 ewes. John & Kris Tappe, Durand, Wisconsin 2nd farm: In operation since 1997. 200 ewes. Tom & Laurel Kieffer, Strum, Wisconsin 3rd farm: Small scale operation. 30 ewes. Carolyn Craft, Fall Creek, Wisconsin 4:30 p.m. Bus Returns Sunday, November 4, 2001 Open house at the Dairy Sheep Research Farm, University of Wisconsin-Madison Spooner Agricultural Research Station, Spooner, Wisconsin (no transportation provided) SPEAKERS Dr. Juan-José Arranz, Dpto. Produccion Animal, Facultad de Veterinaria, Universidad de Leon, 24071 Leon, Spain Dr. Roberta Bencini, Animal Science, Faculty of Agriculture, The University of Western Australia, 35 Stirling Highway, Crawley, WA 6009, Australia Yves Berger, Superintendent, Spooner Agricultural Research Station, University of Wisconsin- Madison, W6646 Highway 70, Spooner, WI 54801-2335 Bruce Carroll, Food Safety Supervisor, WDATCP, Division of Food Safety, 3610 Oakwood Hills Parkway. Eau Claire, WI 54701-7754 Carolyn Craft, Ewe Phoria Farm, E 17900 Scenic Drive, Fall Creek, WI 54742-5011 Dan Guertin, Shepherd’s Pride Farm, 6380 Lake Elmo Ave., Stillwater, MN 55082-8331 John Jaeggi, Associate Researcher, Center for Dairy Research, University of Wisconsin-Madi- son, 222D Babcock Hall, 1605 Linden Dr., Madison, WI 53706-1598 Tom and Laurel Kieffer, Dream Valley Farm, N 50768 County Rd D, Strum, WI 54770 Ken Kleinpeter, Old Chatham Sheepherding Company, 155 Shaker Museum Road, Old Chatham, NY 12136 Brett McKusick, Department of Animal Sciences, 470 Animal Science, University of Wiscon- sin-Madison, 1675 Observatory Dr., Madison, WI 53706 Steven Read and Jodi Ohlsen, Shepherd’s Way Farms, 8626 160th St E, Nerstrand, MN 55053 Jon and Kristina Tappe, Tappe Farms, W5332 State Highway 85, Durand, WI 54736 Dave Thomas, Department of Animal Sciences, 438 Animal Science, University of Wisconsin- Madison, 1675 Observatory Dr., Madison, WI 53706 Bee Tolman, Tolman Sheep Dairy Farm, 6066 East Lake Rd., Cazenovia, NY 13035 Bill Wendorff, Chair, Department of Food Science, University of Wisconsin-Madison, 103 Babcock Hall, 1605 Linden Dr., Madison, WI 53706-1598 Table of Contents Choice of Breed for Dairy Sheep Production Systems David L. Thomas 1 Milking Equipment for Dairy Ewes Yves M. Berger 9 Regulations for Sheep Milk Bruce Carroll 17 Farmstead Cheese and Marketing Steven and Jodi Ohlsen Read 26 The Wisconsin Sheep Dairy Cooperative - Past, Present and Future Daniel P. Guertin 31 Getting Started in Sheep Dairying Jon and Kris Tappe 35 Management of a Dairy Sheep Operation Tom and Laurel Kieffer 36 Comparison of East Friesian and Lacaune Breeding for Dairy Sheep Production Systems David L. Thomas, Yves M. Berger, Brett C. McKusick, Randy G. Gottfredson, and Rob Zelinsky 44 Factors Affecting the Quality of Ewe’s Milk Roberta Bencini 52 Evaluation of Sensory and Chemical Properties of Manchego Cheese Manufactured from Ovine Milk of Different Somatic Cell Levels J.J. Jaeggi, Y.M. Berger, M.E. Johnson, R. Govindasamy-Lucey, B.C. McKusick, D.L. Thomas, W.I. Wendorff 84 New Developments in the Genetic Improvement of Dairy Sheep J.J. Arranz, Y. Bayón, D. Gabiña, L.F. de la Fuente, E. Ugarte and F. San Primitivo 94 Is Machine Stripping Necessary for East Friesian Dairy Ewes? Brett C. McKusick, David L. Thomas, and Yves M. Berger 116 Effect of Reducing the Frequency of Milking on Milk Production, Milk Composition, and Lactation Length in East Friesian Dairy Ewes Brett C. McKusick, David L. Thomas, and Yves M. Berger 129 Using Light in a Dairy Sheep Operation Ken Kleinpeter 136 The Effect of Growth Rate on Mammary Gland Development in Ewe Lambs: A Review Bee Tolman and Brett C. McKusick 143 Effect of Freezing on Milk Quality W.L. Wendorff and S.L. Rauschenberger 156 Table of Contents (continued) Latest Development in the Use of Raw Milk for Cheesemaking W.L. Wendorff 165 The Australian Sheep Dairy Industry: History, Current Status and Research Initiatives Roberta Bencini 170 Group Breeding Scheme: A Feasible Selection Program Yves M. Berger 178 Can the Ovary Influence Milk Production in Dairy Ewes? Brett C. McKusick, Milo C. Wiltbank, Roberto Sartori, Pierre-Guy Marnet, and David L. Thomas 186 Milk Storage Within the Udder of East Friesian Dairy Ewes over a 24 Hour Period Brett C. McKusick, David L. Thomas, and Pierre-Guy Marnet 199 Tappe Farm Tour Jon and Kris Tappe 212 A Visit to EwePhoria Farm Carolyn Craft 213 CHOICE OF BREED FOR DAIRY SHEEP PRODUCTION SYSTEMS David L. Thomas Department of Animal Sciences University of Wisconsin-Madison Madison, Wisconsin Few decisions can have as much influence on the success of a dairy sheep enterprise as the decision as to which breed should be milked. The establishment and operation of a dairy sheep farm requires a greater investment of both money and labor compared to establishment and operation of a farm for only meat and wool production. Therefore, a breed or breeds of sheep need to be chosen that can produce enough additional product (milk, meat, and wool) to justify the increased costs of establishment and operation.