Is it possible to do start to finish on 5 acres

[Hipkiss1987]

Just having a think.

Is it possible to have a flock of sheep small in number start to finish on say 5 acres?

Do sheep need to be brought in through the winter months in a similar fashion to cattle?

 

[spin cycle]

it is but not many

 

[Kiwi Pete]

Yes

Although there would probably be more profitable sheepy options on 5 acres, as you would be limited by how many ewes you can feed over winter.

If, say, you bought ewes with lambs at foot in the spring; then you could run more headage when the grass is growing and none when it isn't, you'd need no tup, you'd need no hay.
Really most of the cost in capital stock is carrying them through the non-growing season and the limitations this brings in terms of numbers.

A workmate of mine has 16 acres and just runs stores, makes around $1000/acre from this

 

[Danllan]

Yes. But are you aiming for personal use or commercial? You can outwinter most sheep and can lamb out as well if you want to, breed depending. If you just get some stores (weaned lambs) when the grass starts growing, and finish them for sale just before it's all gone and isn't growing any more, you'll not need any feed for the winter. That will give the ground a fair chance of recovery too.

You've not mentioned enclosure size, is it one field or several? Important because you need to give the ground some rest if the numbers are on the heavy side. No idea what the correct stocking rate for you is; how many sheep some land can carry is impossible to say without seeing it. For stores 30 is a safe bet, could be as many as 50 if it's really good land and grass; say 40 max and be prepared to give them some supplementary feed if needed. Half the numbers if you are thinking of lambing your own.

If you're new to sheep, you'd be better off starting with some stores and after getting some experience with them, then taking on some in-lamb ewes (Easy Cares are a good choice , lamb easily, no shearing, little fly-strike, feet and mouths fine). In any case, you'll need to have some basic kit for getting them penned and being able to isolate / treat individuals. Don't forget licks, zinc rockies are a good choice.

Good luck.

 

[Hipkiss1987]

Yes. But are you aiming for personal use or commercial? You can outwinter most sheep and can lamb out as well if you want to, breed depending. If you just get some stores (weaned lambs) when the grass starts growing, and finish them for sale just before it's all gone and isn't growing any more, you'll not need any feed for the winter. That will give the ground a fair chance of recovery too.

You've not mentioned enclosure size, is it one field or several? Important because you need to give the ground some rest if the numbers are on the heavy side. No idea what the correct stocking rate for you is; how many sheep some land can carry is impossible to say without seeing it. For stores 30 is a safe bet, could be as many as 50 if it's really good land and grass; say 40 max and be prepared to give them some supplementary feed if needed. Half the numbers if you are thinking of lambing your own.

If you're new to sheep, you'd be better off starting with some stores and after getting some experience with them, then taking on some in-lamb ewes (Easy Cares are a good choice , lamb easily, no shearing, little fly-strike, feet and mouths fine). In any case, you'll need to have some basic kit for getting them penned and being able to isolate / treat individuals. Don't forget licks, zinc rockies are a good choice.

Good luck.

Thanks for this response.

Definitely new to sheep. Have been trying to find some work local to where I am but having no sheep experience and limited farming experience people are very hesitant to give me a chance. So I’ve started thinking of maybe trying it on my own something small.

I wasn’t even thinking up to the 30 mark more 5-10 lol but brilliant advice.

Need to enquire on some land for rent and do some more research.
I know there wouldn’t be much money in it at such a small scale but would love to rear my own livestock. Be it personal or commercial.

It’s all quite daunting but would find it very rewarding

 

[Nithsdale]

Yes

Although there would probably be more profitable sheepy options on 5 acres, as you would be limited by how many ewes you can feed over winter.

If, say, you bought ewes with lambs at foot in the spring; then you could run more headage when the grass is growing and none when it isn't, you'd need no tup, you'd need no hay.
Really most of the cost in capital stock is carrying them through the non-growing season and the limitations this brings in terms of numbers.

A workmate of mine has 16 acres and just runs stores, makes around $1000/acre from this

It's the right idea, but demand for ewes with lambs at foot has squeezed the profit out of it IMO.

There might be more money in taking a cut of hay (sell), leave grass to grow rest of summer and winter. Buy ewes in lamb, lamb, sell with lambs at foot, as soon as.

 

[som farmer]

addition of purchased foodstuffs, will alter the numbers, but I hope you manage to sort something out, if aiming for the private meat sales, you have a 'story' to tell, which is really good PR for farming. Good luck.

 

[Kiwi Pete]

It's the right idea, but demand for ewes with lambs at foot has squeezed the profit out of it IMO.

There might be more money in taking a cut of hay (sell), leave grass to grow rest of summer and winter. Buy ewes in lamb, lamb, sell with lambs at foot, as soon as.

Good call, basically anything "outside the square" beats anything the 15,000-freehold/inherited-acres folk are doing!
Especially with sheep.....

Inside that square it's a numbers game

Outside the square it revolves around attention to detail and looking for opportunities, because of the 'race to the bottom' thing that seems to grip producers

We graze hoggets summer + winter and it isn't bad coin for all that it is: free sheepshit and good quality feed coming away, cashflow with little investment or risk.
This winter we'll keep a few hundred on and lamb them, keep half their lambs weaned and send the rest home - will reserve judgement and let you know in 10 months

 

[Agrivator]

If you get the opportunity and can farm in a sensible fashion, a 5-acre block could be split into two. Have a secure hen house plus a second secure shed for handling or housing sheep in the dividing fence.

Get about 50 - 80 hens (point-of-lay pullets or spent hens) allowed to free-range on one half and sell the eggs locally. Buy good quality layer pellets and increase the numbers of hens as you see how things go. But you must shut them in at night to prevent foxes or badgers killing the lot)

Buy 15 (Texel cross?) ewe-lambs, graze them on the other half and sell them in autumn as 18-month old gimmer shearlings as replacements for a commercial sheep farmer. The only problem is that you would have to have them expertly sheared and you would need to provide about 3 big bales or 30 small bales of hay. Wood shavings would do for any bedding needed for hens or sheep. If you are near a market garden, there might be some amount of vegetable matter both for hens and sheep feed.

Next year, just swap each enterprise over. The sheep and grass will benefit from the fertility from last year's hen muck. And each species will benefit each year from parasite-free grazing.

 

[farmerm]

5-10 is a pet number and pets as we know keeping pets is often an expensive hobby rather than a money making enterprise... as they say, if you want to make a small bit of money from sheep, start with a large bit of money. But I think you already know this. You really need to find 5ac that someone is happy for you to have rent free in exchange for keeping the grass down, you don't want to be paying rent...

 

[Danllan]

Thanks for this response.

Definitely new to sheep. Have been trying to find some work local to where I am but having no sheep experience and limited farming experience people are very hesitant to give me a chance. So I’ve started thinking of maybe trying it on my own something small.

I wasn’t even thinking up to the 30 mark more 5-10 lol but brilliant advice.

Need to enquire on some land for rent and do some more research.
I know there wouldn’t be much money in it at such a small scale but would love to rear my own livestock. Be it personal or commercial.

It’s all quite daunting but would find it very rewarding

You're welcome, it can be daunting, and bl**dy depressing now and then, but its very enjoyable too a lot of the time. It's lambing time for many now, I'd be surprised if there wasn't someone around there who'd be glad of some cheap help; good experience for you too - and, with luck, it would convince you that breeds who give birth without any assistance are the way to go. But if you don't get aby work, do go for stores and go for a breed that will be EASY to CARE for...

I assumed you had the land lined up already. Hmm... land will cost you anything from nothing up to, maybe, £120 per acre per year. If you were taking five acres that would be around £500, + the cost of 30 stores at maybe £55 per head, give or take; so you're up to a bit over £2k at the start. If your stock does well you could sell them for maybe £80 per head, give or take, that leaves you about £400 in the black.

If you get the land for free, get the stores for less and sell them for more you'll make more money. If the land costs you a bit more, the stock costs a bit more, some die - they're sheep... - and you sell for a bit less, you'll be in the red, but wiser.

Welcome to farming.

 

[Hipkiss1987]

You're welcome, it can be daunting, and bl**dy depressing now and then, but its very enjoyable too a lot of the time. It's lambing time for many now, I'd be surprised if there wasn't someone around there who'd be glad of some cheap help; good experience for you too - and, with luck, it would convince you that breeds who give birth without any assistance are the way to go. But if you don't get aby work, do go for stores and go for a breed that will be EASY to CARE for...

I assumed you had the land lined up already. Hmm... land will cost you anything from nothing up to, maybe, £120 per acre per year. If you were taking five acres that would be around £500, + the cost of 30 stores at maybe £55 per head, give or take; so you're up to a bit over £2k at the start. If your stock does well you could sell them for maybe £80 per head, give or take, that leaves you about £400 in the black.

If you get the land for free, get the stores for less and sell them for more you'll make more money. If the land costs you a bit more, the stock costs a bit more, some die - they're sheep... - and you sell for a bit less, you'll be in the red, but wiser.

Welcome to farming.

Thanks again. Really helpful.

I have put the feelers out with work but no hits unfortunately.

Amazing how difficult it is to break even. As not taken into account hay of grass runs low.
Any vet bills. Deaths. Fencing etc.

In your opinion is the easiest way to make a profit to run stores and sell them at weight as opposed to having ewes with lamb at foot?

With any profit you make you would use to buy following years stores but wouldn’t have the same initial investment as for y1.

So how do you make it profitable y on y to buy in new stock of you not breeding your own.

 

[unlacedgecko]

Good call, basically anything "outside the square" beats anything the 15,000-freehold/inherited-acres folk are doing!
Especially with sheep.....

Inside that square it's a numbers game

Outside the square it revolves around attention to detail and looking for opportunities, because of the 'race to the bottom' thing that seems to grip producers

We graze hoggets summer + winter and it isn't bad coin for all that it is: free sheepshit and good quality feed coming away, cashflow with little investment or risk.
This winter we'll keep a few hundred on and lamb them, keep half their lambs weaned and send the rest home - will reserve judgement and let you know in 10 months

I've looked at figures for contact rearing and lambing ewe lambs in UK. The only way I could get the numbers to work was if using the resulting ewe lambs as high genetic merit basis for own breeding flock. Obviously this relies on obtaining high genetic merit ewe lambs to contact graze on the first place.

As a means of producing fat lambs it was a loss maker due to low weaning percentage.

 

[SteveHants]

In my experience, it's easier to find 50ac for rent than 5......

 

[Hipkiss1987]

In my experience, it's easier to find 50ac for rent than 5......

50ac would be well out of my price range and would require more work than a small flock.

This would be new to me and don’t want to take on more than I can handle.

 

[Hipkiss1987]

I've looked at figures for contact rearing and lambing ewe lambs in UK. The only way I could get the numbers to work was if using the resulting ewe lambs as high genetic merit basis for own breeding flock. Obviously this relies on obtaining high genetic merit ewe lambs to contact graze on the first place.

As a means of producing fat lambs it was a loss maker due to low weaning percentage.

So basically the numbers don’t work for smaller flocks?

 

[unlacedgecko]

So basically the numbers don’t work for smaller flocks?

My post was discussing the arrangement @Kiwi Pete has, with regard to lambing other people's ewe lambs and retaining progeny.

What outcome do you want from your small flock? It's probably best to establish that and work back from there.

The main issue with low numbers is the costs are spread across low numbers, so each ewe has a bigger burden.

 

[SteveHants]

50ac would be well out of my price range and would require more work than a small flock.

This would be new to me and don’t want to take on more than I can handle.

Would it?

Rents get cheaper when you get into "sensible" agricultural sizes. 5ac means that you are competing with horsey types and smallholders.

The going rate in Hampshire was about 20p/ewe/week, although as you go west it can get up to 40, 50 or 60p.

If it was all grass, even with decent pasture, I would say 1.5ewes/ac in winter, so in reality, you are only looking at 75 sheep, which is a pretty small flock. Shut half up/give it back in summer.

 

[Old Tip]

Depends if you run right round the outside or straight across the middle I guess ?

 

[Derrick Hughes]

Keeping sheep is like having a wife, once you got one you wished you hadnt
If i could turn the clock back sheep would not be in my life, god truly sent them as a punishments. Dont fall for it .