- Location
- Exeter, Devon
My phrase for it is “herding cats”.
f**k Up Fortnight
- Thread starter yellowbelly
- Start date
- Location
- South Pennines ol14
They can certainly try your patience!
- Location
- Highland
Slightly pee'd off this morning but it was coming. We brought a gimmer in yesterday, lambed a single a few days ago, not doing at all, lamb hungry, gave her everything in the medical arsenal, dead this morning.
Then I made a decision about Mr. Skin, he took a whole bottle so his new mom's not bothered, having failed to lick a thin cowl off her own lamb. Kicked her out and he's on the bottle now. OH checked gimmers yesterday and a few looking not in lamb although scanned singles. All toxo'd bolused etc etc so no excuse for it.
It's all connected
. We bought 7 gimmers last autumn. One couped herself a few weeks later and died - a fit gimmer, not pregnant. Our own don't do that stupid sh!t. Another was chronically lame all winter PITA, marked cull then. The one above that didn't clean her lamb and has no milk or maternal instinct. This one dead. Another, possibly 2, empty. Just WTF.
No more buying in. It appears that our bad ones are better than anyone else's good ones.
Possibly these poor b****** have just been left running on the hill all their life with no intervention and when it came time to produce a lamb it finished them. Really fking pisses me off. Wasted money, time, meds, feed, management, and it couldn't reverse whatever neglect they've suffered. Maybe one dies or something goes wrong and you think well that's life. But not six out of seven.
Then I made a decision about Mr. Skin, he took a whole bottle so his new mom's not bothered, having failed to lick a thin cowl off her own lamb. Kicked her out and he's on the bottle now. OH checked gimmers yesterday and a few looking not in lamb although scanned singles. All toxo'd bolused etc etc so no excuse for it.
It's all connected
. We bought 7 gimmers last autumn. One couped herself a few weeks later and died - a fit gimmer, not pregnant. Our own don't do that stupid sh!t. Another was chronically lame all winter PITA, marked cull then. The one above that didn't clean her lamb and has no milk or maternal instinct. This one dead. Another, possibly 2, empty. Just WTF.No more buying in. It appears that our bad ones are better than anyone else's good ones.
Possibly these poor b****** have just been left running on the hill all their life with no intervention and when it came time to produce a lamb it finished them. Really fking pisses me off. Wasted money, time, meds, feed, management, and it couldn't reverse whatever neglect they've suffered. Maybe one dies or something goes wrong and you think well that's life. But not six out of seven.
Boydvalley
Member
- Location
- Bath
Sorry to hear. These small groups can be a gamble. Bought a pen of 8 3/4texel shearlings. Not as bad as you but I think the owner knew which ones to sell.
Same as buying 2 or 3 crop ewes, you're only buying someone else's problems, if buying sheep now I would buy draft ewes again, at least they've got to that age because they have produced every year with no problems and have probably only lost some teeth. Buy from hard mountain flock to put on easy lowland ground. Breed your own replacements from them.
- Location
- N.Lincs
We've hit the buffers here. Nothing in over 24 hrs. 10 left with about 9 or 10 days until the end of the 2nd cycle when the tups came put.
The last lamb to be born has not looked 100% and carrying his head at a jaunty angle.
Picked him up this morning and a crow (or similar barsteward) has had one of his eyes out..
I guess it happened as he was being born. Done what I can for him (metacam, antibiotic, bit of blue spray) and penned him up. The wound it pretty clean and not much blood about. Fingers crossed for the little chap. He's drinking away..
I'm half minded to gather the few that's left and take them to the paddock in front of the house as I've just seen two carrion crows and a gull squabling over a cleansing in the sheltered bit under the trees where a lot go to lamb.
The last lamb to be born has not looked 100% and carrying his head at a jaunty angle.
Picked him up this morning and a crow (or similar barsteward) has had one of his eyes out..
I guess it happened as he was being born. Done what I can for him (metacam, antibiotic, bit of blue spray) and penned him up. The wound it pretty clean and not much blood about. Fingers crossed for the little chap. He's drinking away..
I'm half minded to gather the few that's left and take them to the paddock in front of the house as I've just seen two carrion crows and a gull squabling over a cleansing in the sheltered bit under the trees where a lot go to lamb.
- Location
- South Pennines ol14
A novice question, as in novice to using fertiliser etc chap turned up and applied the till today , I still think it’s to cold but anyway.
There’s a few bits of rush and a fair few thistles starting in one or two patches .
How long after the till goes on can I spray ( mcpa for rush and thistles for thistles)
There’s a few bits of rush and a fair few thistles starting in one or two patches .
How long after the till goes on can I spray ( mcpa for rush and thistles for thistles)
if they are actively growing and the forecast is dry then I would spray.
- Location
- South Pennines ol14
Rush is nice and soft , thistles at crown stage so ideal , thank you
Boydvalley
Member
- Location
- Bath
Have you finished yet or still chasing.
I’m going to start footbathing, clik, hep, worm and crovect (ewes) next week. Think it’s that hardest job of the year. Ewes are in 200 sets of twins so a massive job on my own.
I would rather that than mess around with lots of little groups.
Boydvalley
Member
- Location
- Bath
Surely the flocks making enough to hire in some help for days like that. Double fill race and you’d wiz through. I make that about 7000 lamb treatments.
I absolutely admire your work ethic but sometimes it’s better to work clever not hard.
Was going to take some culls to Cirencester today and catch up with you if you hadn’t dropped them in at stupid o’clock. Couldn’t make it so took them to Frome yesterday. Averaged £136. Mules £135. Looks like I had a lucky escape. You had a poor do. I will ask my dealer mate whats occurring.
Woolless
Member
- Location
- Berwickshire, Scottish Borders
Bending over to jag/worm young lambs is tough on the back
Woolless
Member
- Location
- Berwickshire, Scottish Borders
Lambing due to start on Sunday here but greeted by a big, dead single this morning. That makes it 0/5 so far this year. Nothing survives of the two sets of 'accidental' twins that arrived two months early 
I won’t go into it but there is going to be some labour adjustment. Ciren was very poor today I thought, I was happy enough with out but some people had a very bad do.
Mine started like that, 25 dead lambs and 6 dead ewes before I had a live one. Lost almost nothing since though, last 5 days lambing have been probably the best of my shepherding career. Averages it self out.Lambing due to start on Sunday here but greeted by a big, dead single this morning. That makes it 0/5 so far this year. Nothing survives of the two sets of 'accidental' twins that arrived two months early
- Location
- Highland
Hope you do get help even with just someone to push them on. We often do 3-4 things at once but brain fog often sets in. Between us we don't miss anything getting done. But on your own
