- Location
- Dumfries & Galloway
You've just admitted you were a Kappa Slappa 
Mule gimmer lambs
- Thread starter Swaley
- Start date
- Location
- Cheshire
Funnily enough I tend towards buying mule gimmer lambs with the old fashioned brown faces... there are still a few breeders sticking too the old type stock. Usually a bit cheaper too as they arenāt in vogue like the āBonny headedā ones. But Iām not buying with a view to selling them as anything other than cull ewes hopefully after a minimum of 5 years! (I know it doesnāt always work like that but it helps me sleep at night...
)Yeah & alot of people actually believe it.
Bonny heads and creep feeding mule gimmers will soon be the thing that kills the job of the mule breeder. The mule is meant to be be a hard sheep off hard farms, not a tarted up lowland sheep bred for looks and how well it performs eating out of a hopper!
I bought a run of 100 big running lambs from a well know mule breeder 3 years ago, they are dreadful sheep now, 20 had to go cull after the first lambing because just wouldn't flesh back up. Just cant keep the condition on them, but they do have bonny head when the are being loaded into the knacker wagon!
When I was buying this year they came into the ring and I walked out, Iv let my feeling be know to quite a few big buyers!
I bought a run of 100 big running lambs from a well know mule breeder 3 years ago, they are dreadful sheep now, 20 had to go cull after the first lambing because just wouldn't flesh back up. Just cant keep the condition on them, but they do have bonny head when the are being loaded into the knacker wagon!
When I was buying this year they came into the ring and I walked out, Iv let my feeling be know to quite a few big buyers!
livestock 1
Member
Yes we are the same. Anything that leaves here goes through the cull ring so makes no odds to us what they look like. Strangely enough though all the mule lambs we breed here and I still try to make a good effort to get colour but carcass comes first. I think we need to all keep an eye on carcass for the mule. As said Swales are bad and Leicester tups are probably too big if anything. If they were maybe a bit shorter of the leg might make the weather lambs easier to fatten and a good back in them instead of a church roof.Funnily enough I tend towards buying mule gimmer lambs with the old fashioned brown faces... there are still a few breeders sticking too the old type stock. Usually a bit cheaper too as they arenāt in vogue like the āBonny headedā ones. But Iām not buying with a view to selling them as anything other than cull ewes hopefully after a minimum of 5 years! (I know it doesnāt always work like that but it helps me sleep at night...
livestock 1
Member
After years of buying Swale tup shearlings itās been noticeable that some of the fellas that went for a certain coloured head ended up with little bodies no coat and narrow shoulder. When these folk said to me āwhy you never buy a tup of meā I just used to say āway I always think the are a bit smallā being a polite way of say the carcasses are sh!t. They would all turn around and sayā how big do you want them or a Swale fell ewe shouldnāt be that bigāYeah & alot of people actually believe it.
If they get smart itās good to ask what they averaged for their weather lambs or draft ewes some couldnāt do either at the same time Iāve been caught out with that and some could. Maybe they had just found some folk daft enough to buy them. Go to a draft ewe sale and look at whatās sold you can get a shock they donāt all have good ewes.
Ive stood up at Swale meetings in the past and said a Swale ewe wouldnāt be worth anything without a mule lamb asked why the teeth are bad asked why they are light legged and light faced they donāt like it
livestock 1
Member
We used to sell mule lambs at the association sales annually. We had regular buyers who came back every year. They commented how well they had done. Our lambs never saw any feed nice types but small. We sort of couldnāt keep up with the caking after lambing and creep feeding. Now the feeding has ended up most of the summer. This canāt make it easy for the end user.
Cheviot mules I produce ,they never see creep. Same buyers take them every year as they always say that they just come home and thrive,I never top the trade at the sales but I do have the satisfaction of knowing that I have return customers. I have now got to the stage that folk say that I am getting a very good trade for the size of them as the word has spread because the buyers are topping the trade with them as gimmers.
Just the way it should be. I buy a load off one farm, they are untrimmed and straight from the field, they do very well on my poor ground. They used to be cheap but in the last couple of years are pretty much the same price as the rest, so everyone else must have worked it out but I would happy pay more for them because they are just what I want.
A little bit of creep a the right time doesn't hurt. We use it for twins from about 3 weeks old but will be stopping shortly once the grass gets going. Singles are all up on the heather alotments, twins pastures below. We'll trough feed them for a month before the sale. Our lambs reared like this do well for our buyers, they aren't sale toppers when we sell them but often are when sold again as shearlings or hoggs with lambs. It's the lambs bred on dairy ground and fed all summer that are spoiling the job, Lazonbys Alston Moor sale used to be for proper hill lambs but there's alot there now that have never been near a hill
- Location
- Cheshire
After Hawes the Alston Moor sale at Lazonby was THE sale for good going on lambs. Trying too remember how many years it is since I bought my first mules there. BIG pale headed lambs Ā£71 a piece. I was going too keep them for myself but Grandad liked them that much he gave me Ā£10 and had them for the firm.
- Location
- Cheshire
I hope you locked the door well on your bunker...Shouldnāt be using a BFL tup at all you should be using an Aberfield! Thatās what all the progressive farmers are doing! Mules are dead in the water.....(picks up bag of popcorn and gets comfy.....)
Bloody aberfields couldn't think of out worseShouldnāt be using a BFL tup at all you should be using an Aberfield! Thatās what all the progressive farmers are doing! Mules are dead in the water.....(picks up bag of popcorn and gets comfy.....)
Woolless
Member
- Location
- Berwickshire, Scottish Borders
They seem to be real marmite sheep.
I quess you ever like them or you don't
Woolless
Member
- Location
- Berwickshire, Scottish Borders
Very mixed reviews from folks on here.
You stick to breeding your mules. Everyone knows really that they are the best all round commercial sheep, try and keep off those modern type swales go for a bigger darker traditional type and you'll be ok
- Location
- Cheshire
stick a 1/4 Northumberland blackface into your ewes do them a world of good... I love them mules with a touch of blackie in them. Put some real width in the lambs
Seems to be a lot of variation in aberfields, was talking to a lad last night whoād bought some ewe lambs an he was very disappointed with howād theyād grown, little dumpy things he said! I have some ewes that I bought just to try a few an Iāve been pleased with the lambs Iāve had, my ewes are up on the leg an very smart, lambs come very shapey to a charlie!!
