Can't catch my sheep

egbert

Member
Livestock Farmer
You guys have given me some hope! Sorry but no videos 😄. Its bad enough being watched from the footpath!!
I will start a routine with the feed. They did seem more interested today. I just need to create a pattern. Blackface seems to be the leader so I'll focus there.
Great ideas with fence lines and angles. The trick closing a normally open exit sounds perfect. I will create a more permanent pen and make it a good place to be. This also helps me as they will be closer to the house.
I have next week off so can spend a lot of time on this. I may try to train my mothers dog (Korthal Griffon) but it seems more likely to munch them all.


OMG!...don't suggest the face colouring on one NoE mule is better than another...there'll be bloodshed amongst our northern brethren
 

som farmer

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
somerset
when i started to keep a few sheep, money was tight, i was young, and stupid, bought the odd couples in mkt, found out, by deduction, these were determined breakers, off loaded. There are methods to train them, some i did, the others went back to another mkt, lesson learn't !!
Once bought 400 welsh hillbillies, could write a book on them, but a damn good profit out of them. One, is still on farm, couldn't work out, how/where a small group were getting out, so I waited, and watched, down an effing badger hole, and under the fence, rifle, waited, and first one duly shot. And, there she still is !!
Best way to catch awkward small groups, train a couple to the cake bag, friend with 800 ewes, always rears a few bottle lambs, and makes a great fuss of them, as soon as they see him, they come running, the rest follow, fantastic, he has quads, but no dogs, in the 40 yrs i've known him, never had a sheep dog.
 

Kiwi Pete

Member
Livestock Farmer
Longer term, if you're going to keep them in the 6 acre as a whole, get a "Patsy" like a bottle-fed lamb, a wether, I have tame sheep so they're redundant now, but they are great with new sheep that give trouble.
Like yourself, not worth having a dog around for 3 uses a year; I just trained our 4 pet rams to do it because they do more than one job - and eat for free .
They will round up any mob of sheep intuitively, bring them over to me calmly, and I just crook 'em (and give the rams a few sheepnuts or a head of lettuce as a reward) so they don't go dip their wicks while I dig a stone out of a hoof or WHY.

It's like the team of dogs you have when you don't have a team of dogs
 

cowboysupper

Member
Mixed Farmer
Don't laugh!!
So I am new to this and received 20 North of England Ewe lambs last week. They are in a 6 acre field with permanent electric fencing around it. They have lots of grass and don't seem overly interested in sheep nuts yet. They don't come to a bucket.
I made a pen outside the current field using the field gate as an entrance. With a friend (just) managed to get 18 of them in it last week. I was able to do some vital work on a cut foot and back sore. Now another is lame and I obviously need a look. Trying the same method yesterday we got nowhere. They know exactly where I am taking them and two people is not enough. I live on my own so need to find a solution. I cant be dragging 3 or 4 friends over every time I need to look at a sheep...
I have had a go at grabbing them individually but they are extremely fast and aware. I am far from slow (serious runner) but really struggle. It seems wrong to be chasing lame sheep for any period of time.

I think some of my main issues are:
They never got the chance to trust me as they needed working on straight away.
They don't have mature sheep to follow.
They don't come to feed.
The electric fence is not ideal when pushing them into corners.
I cant really have a dog/dogs as I work full time.

Any ideas? Perhaps I was crazy to imagine I could do it without dogs...? A footbath around a feed trough may reduce the times I need to capture them but its not the full answer. Should I get a crook and concentrate on that...? Spend a lot on hurdles and have very long funnel.... ? Make a permanent pen in the field with all of their water/food there..? Sooooo frustrating. I have the time to work with them but they hate me :)

I've been in a similar situation too. I would buy some electric fencing gear and sub divide the field into 4 paddocks. Run a water line up to the central point and stick in a plastic trough which can be slid under the elec fence to the next paddock when you move them on. Which ever paddock is closest to the gate set up your holding pen (either temporary or permanent). I went for the temp option and bought hurdles to bring with the trailer each time I round them up. With them being in a relatively small paddock you'll be able to set up a funnel which should get them to your pen quickly. I usually carry a bag of nuts to keep them interested. I indulged in a Gallagher smart fence to make my funnel. 50m of elec fence which can be reeled out in 5mins. At £250 it was expensive but if you're tight for time and have another job it sure makes life easier! The elec fencing kit will cost you a bit of money but you'll be fit to grow more grass and it'll save you having to move them less to another field. You might even be able to expand your numbers a bit.
 

AJR75

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
Somerset
I have, on occasion when for whatever reason I don't have my dogs with me, stalked an offending sheep with my truck, fully armed with leg cleek (one of those new zealand super crook things) camouflaged against the side of the vehicle, snaring the thing through the drivers window Hasn't failed me yet, but can be a bit tricky keeping hold of said creature while getting out/ negotiating the open window.
 

som farmer

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
somerset
different specis, but, if you can get a 'lasso' round a cow/steer in field, let it run, and park on top of the rope, animal will usually run around the vehicle, ending up, 'caught'. Not for everyday use, but for the odd occasion, you are stumped.
 

delilah

Member
Just another observation if you go down the bribery route. Make sure you have ample trough space for all 20 before you start the feeding regime. Your problem will be the shy ones. They need to equate - from day 1 - coming to the trough with tasty treats, not getting bashed about by the bullies.
 

Ysgythan

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
Ammanford
Don't laugh!!
So I am new to this and received 20 North of England Ewe lambs last week. They are in a 6 acre field with permanent electric fencing around it. They have lots of grass and don't seem overly interested in sheep nuts yet. They don't come to a bucket.
I made a pen outside the current field using the field gate as an entrance. With a friend (just) managed to get 18 of them in it last week. I was able to do some vital work on a cut foot and back sore. Now another is lame and I obviously need a look. Trying the same method yesterday we got nowhere. They know exactly where I am taking them and two people is not enough. I live on my own so need to find a solution. I cant be dragging 3 or 4 friends over every time I need to look at a sheep...
I have had a go at grabbing them individually but they are extremely fast and aware. I am far from slow (serious runner) but really struggle. It seems wrong to be chasing lame sheep for any period of time.

I think some of my main issues are:
They never got the chance to trust me as they needed working on straight away.
They don't have mature sheep to follow.
They don't come to feed.
The electric fence is not ideal when pushing them into corners.
I cant really have a dog/dogs as I work full time.

Any ideas? Perhaps I was crazy to imagine I could do it without dogs...? A footbath around a feed trough may reduce the times I need to capture them but its not the full answer. Should I get a crook and concentrate on that...? Spend a lot on hurdles and have very long funnel.... ? Make a permanent pen in the field with all of their water/food there..? Sooooo frustrating. I have the time to work with them but they hate me :)

get some trough trained ewes in with them. They’ll look and learn. Put the trough in a handling pen. It’ll take a while but it will come.
 

Green farmer

Member
Livestock Farmer
My quad died at the start of summer. Never had a sheep dog, so I've no way of catching me sheep. So, resorted to letting the sheep come to me. Plenty of penning and troughs. Ewes not a bother, young weaned lambs , more difficult. However as said previously, let in some ewes and the lambs will follow them into the penns. Take out ewes and away you go. also for working in penns, keep the penning tight ayou work through them. A ewe cannt run if their all tight together. Mealed a few lambs , a few days ago and within 5 days lambs are bawling at me when I enter paddock and running towards troughts. A few shake of oats or meal, costs around the same as a can of petrol for the quad. Going to try living without the quad over the winter and see how I get on. Must mention I've all 5 acre paddocks so the sheep ain't allowed to run wild either. Only issues I've seen so far are the easycare lambs are way more cautious and might give me some bother, but we'll see.
 
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keep the penning tight ayou work through them. A ewe cannt run if their all tight together.

I can't get on with treating in a larger pen as there's always something to catch or knock you or fall over, and the OP will be in a field so it will quickly turn to slippy mud and muck with all the hooves in the same small area. I have to let three or four out at a time from the crowded catching pen into a smaller handling pen to do whatever needs done, and thereafter back to the field. Keeps the bulk of them calmer until their turn, I can see more and it gives more room for me to work.
 

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