Lambing ease gestation length

unlacedgecko · Apr 21, 2022

Kentishfarmer said:
Have you ever come across many ewes that consistently wean triplets? I used to leave reasonable numbers of triplets on good ewes but I've come to the conclusion it wrecks the ewe in the long term. Either by ruining her udder or BCS well below the rest of the flock. They never tend to do many lambings after IMO. Would rather £20 in the pocket for a cade/sock lamb and a cracking pair

I'll find out going forward. If the scan is too high I can reduce it.

tepapa · Apr 21, 2022

unlacedgecko said:
I want to scan over 200% because I want to wean over 200%.

If I'm going to have ewes which can wean triples they must be given the opportunity by lambing triples. Otherwise how else will I identify those ewes?

View attachment 1030590

Here's a Shetland draft (cull?) ewe with her triplets. The ewe reared a single the next year then went cull. And did it all off grazed forage.

The dark lamb in the center is a ewe lamb. She reared a single as a ewe hogg and is due to lamb a single as a 2 tooth this year.

"Optimum" scan is decided by the feed you have access to and how well you can utilise it. Destocking my grazing platform October - March means I go into lambing with a good grass wedge.
Moving forward I'll look to tighten the tupping period to 1 cycle for maternals. This will allow early weaning (8/9 weeks) to set ewes up for next tupping.

Have you done much research Into the Cambridge breed?. Bred to have a lot of lambs, may have some useful traits for you if it's weaned numbers your after.

unlacedgecko · Apr 21, 2022

tepapa said:
Have you done much research Into the Cambridge breed?. Bred to have a lot of lambs, may have some useful traits for you if it's weaned numbers your after.

Yes. Their fertility is controlled by GDF9 gene mutation FecGH. I'm not entirely sure about the inheritance of it though.

Inverdale has always been my focus, and through @MJT I've got easy access to it. We'll see how the inverdale goes over the next 3 years. Can always change focus to GDF9 if inverdale proves unworkable.

CopperBeech · Apr 21, 2022

One thing a lot of people don’t realise with regard to the inverdale gene is that it obviously doesn’t give you all multiples and with singles can lead to increased lamb birth weight and lambing issues. Apparently.

We have ewes rearing threes but it’s more about the ewes ability to count and the grazing platform rather than super ewes.

CopperBeech · Apr 21, 2022

Global ovine · Apr 21, 2022

Guleesh said:
Am I the only one that would like sheep to have a longer gestation? When we tup late enough to guarantee grass at lambing (May) we take a hit on % as there's not much goodness left in the grass in December. November tupping and May lambing would suit me.

It may take a few million years for evolution to extend gestation length if environmental pressures can offer enough challenge. However growth rate limitations due to low pasture quality can be overcome with pasture management changes, but only in places where these can be economically applied and politically allowed. In such situations, economic sheep farming remains a sprint race utilising the spring feed flush.

neilo · Apr 22, 2022

unlacedgecko said:
Yes. Their fertility is controlled by GDF9 gene mutation FecGH. I'm not entirely sure about the inheritance of it though.

Inverdale has always been my focus, and through @MJT I've got easy access to it. We'll see how the inverdale goes over the next 3 years. Can always change focus to GDF9 if inverdale proves unworkable.

The Cambridge Society have identified several prolificacy genes in their (limited) population, GDF9 was only one of them. I think they were offering gene tested rams, so you can chose just how much prolificacy you want to add.

We used to run Cambridge crosses (and fifty purebreds once, scanning at 300%

). We kep putting single born Texels on them, ending up with 7/8 and 15/16 Texels that reliably scanned at 220-225%, without flushing. Only went away from them as the amount of Texel blood made for difficult lambing, but my current flock is derived from them.

Iirc @easyram1 was testing for GDF9 in his NZ Texels, which could be another source, in a more ‘conventional’ type of sheep?

andybk · Apr 22, 2022

Sheepfog said:
I think it does. Having run pure Suffolk and Charollais flocks side by side, as well as using the same on crossbred ewes, the Charollais is clearly losing/has lost its easy lambing attributes. Due to breeders trying to turn the breed into a Texel.

The Charollais sired lambs always go over term and as a result have averaged 0.5Kg more at birth compared to the Suffolks.

And as the (UK) Suffolks are fine boned and selected for vigour, they are up and sucking in no time.

exactly my beef ! breeders turn their noses up at the old triangular fine boned chars , T%&*s, main reason why i went back to france

unlacedgecko · May 3, 2022

Inverdale easycare 2tooth with myomax lambs at foot. The ewe hasn't been sheared. The lambs should be clean shedding.

The ram lamb with with black stripe will be tested for myomax and inverdale later this year.

Lambs by your double myomax ram @Woolless

unlacedgecko · May 8, 2022

Inverdale x Shetland lamb. Shaping up well at max 21 days old.

unlacedgecko · May 8, 2022

Current tup team, from @MJT and @Woolless.

6/7 are inverdale
6/7 are (at least) single myomax
1/7 sheds

Will this be the year I can combine all of the above into a single animal?

unlacedgecko · May 16, 2022

Home bred shedding ewe hogg with myomax ram lamb at foot. Hopefully he'll go over the Shetland x inverdale ewe lambs this autumn.

unlacedgecko · May 16, 2022

Inverdale lambs out of Shetlands continuing to shape up real well.

Jonp · May 16, 2022

Good to see your breeding program and hard work is bearing fruit.

neilo · May 16, 2022

unlacedgecko said:
View attachment 1036413

Inverdale lambs out of Shetlands continuing to shape up real well.

What are the Inverdale carrier rams? Texels?

unlacedgecko · May 16, 2022

neilo said:
What are the Inverdale carrier rams? Texels?

Texel Cheviot hybrids. But more texel than Cheviot.

@MJT can give full details, as he provided them!

unlacedgecko · May 20, 2022

A few G1 ewe hoggs with G2 myomax lambs. Assistance rates less than 1%. Excited to see how these guys grow out.

unlacedgecko · Jun 6, 2022

Lamb marking. G2 myomax lambs shaping up nicely.

Hoggs currently rearing at 74% (of ewe lambs to the tup). I'm pretty please with that for Shetland G1s.

Hope to do better this year with the inverdales.

unlacedgecko · Jun 7, 2022

2tooth easycare stud ewes with inverdale lambs. Currently rearing 138%.

Aspiring Peasants · Jun 7, 2022

Excuse my ignorance, what is an Inverdale?

Lambing ease gestation length

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0 %

Up to 25%

25-50%

50-75%

75-100%

100% I’ve had enough of farming!

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