Ram advice

emilyanne

New Member
I have 1000 Romney ewes down on the Kent marshes , currently the 230 replacement tegs go to a Southdown ram for easy lambing and the ewes go to a Romney ram but we seem to be 5kg short each year off the lambs .

Any suggestions on a different ram to improve lamb weight?
Bearing in mind must be able to keep some Kent’s for own replacements

Many thanks
 

yellowbelly

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
N.Lincs
we seem to be 5kg short each year off the lambs .

Any suggestions on a different ram to improve lamb weight?
Welcome to the forum @emilyanne (y)

Everybody on here has their own ideas, please expect our 'expert advice' to run to several pages:rolleyes:

IMHO, If you want the weight quickly, Charolais - if your're not in a hurry Texel. That's my sixpeneth so I can now sit back and watch the feathers fly
index.jpg
:p:p
 

emilyanne

New Member
Hi Thankyou
I prefer Texel as we have time to fatten , would I have to split my ewes in to 3 groups then ?
Tegs -south down
Quarter of ewes- Romney
Rest of ewes on - Texel ?
Or can I get rid of south down ?
Looking for the easiest solution
Thanks
 
Hello @emilyanne.

I don't know how much recording/selection you do but my suggestion would be to form an 'A' flock which you put to the Romney with enough ewes in it to give you the replacements you need. Anything you're not so keen on or gives you hassle can go in the 'B' flock to tup with your choice of terminal sire. Ear notching is a low tech way to do this or by EID. This should bring your average lamb weaning weights up.

Would it be so much hassle to have three tupping groups? Alternatively, would the ewe hoggs not lamb OK to a Romney? This would also cut numbers of ewes required in the 'A' flock. Or a Charolais could possibly do both jobs? Or Beltex?
 

Six Dogs

Member
Location
Wiltshire
Hi @emilyanne
We also run Romney’s,if I understand correctly you are lambing “shearlings “ not ewe lambs?In which case provided they are grown well enough as I’m sure they are there is no reason why they should not Lamb to a Romney.As Woolless says recording can make a big difference,we have increased rearing % massively from this.As a Romney fan I would say their weakness is maybe getting a a good weaning weight,we are on HLS so the ewes do their lambs really well to around 8 weeks then as milk drys up and given poorer quality grazing our lambs slow down through until we go onto Turnips in the autumn,so partly ewe issue partly feed availability.
Hope this helps
 

Wooly

Member
Mixed Farmer
Location
Romney Marsh
We lamb one or two Romney's and certainly don't put a Southdown on our tegs. They lamb quite easy with a Romney, as do the ewe lambs.

That's one less group you need !!



(Romney Ewes......'A Dam for any Ram'.......but I would suggest you don't use a charolais if you are lambing outside on the Kent marshes !! )
 

Sheepfog

Member
Location
Southern England
We lamb one or two Romney's and certainly don't put a Southdown on our tegs. They lamb quite easy with a Romney, as do the ewe lambs.

That's one less group you need !!



(Romney Ewes......'A Dam for any Ram'.......but I would suggest you don't use a charolais if you are lambing outside on the Kent marshes !! )

Oh yes, because Kent is such a tough environment!! :ROFLMAO:
 
When you say 5kg short what do you mean?

Also are you selling live weight or dead weight?

Only asking as I've finished plenty of Romney lambs at a 20/22 kg carcass. Weight isn't an issue per se, more the time it takes to reach said weight.

Also @Sheepfog you can get nearly as bad a do lambing outside in certain lowland situation as up north, some of our ground is on open downs, not very high, but zero shelter, and battered by rain and wind.

You also dont mention how (if) you finish your lambs - i.e grass, roots etc. And when you aim to sell.
 

Sheepfog

Member
Location
Southern England
I think I would be happier up against a hedge or brick wall on a hillside, than on a wind swept marsh in North Kent when it's snowing or hailing !

No windbreaks from the North Sea !!

I’ve been on the Kent marshes in bad weather and farmed in Scotland on a north facing hill farm lambing outdoors in horrendous conditions. I’d pick Kent for better conditions!
 
I’ve been on the Kent marshes in bad weather and farmed in Scotland on a north facing hill farm lambing outdoors in horrendous conditions. I’d pick Kent for better conditions!

I love it when people do that.

I would imagine that ANYWHERE would be a better place to lamb than "in scotland on a north facing hill farm outdoors in horrendous conditions".
 

Sheepfog

Member
Location
Southern England
When you say 5kg short what do you mean?

Also are you selling live weight or dead weight?

Only asking as I've finished plenty of Romney lambs at a 20/22 kg carcass. Weight isn't an issue per se, more the time it takes to reach said weight.

Also @Sheepfog you can get nearly as bad a do lambing outside in certain lowland situation as up north, some of our ground is on open downs, not very high, but zero shelter, and battered by rain and wind.

You also dont mention how (if) you finish your lambs - i.e grass, roots etc. And when you aim to sell.

I take your point as I currently work on the Downs. But when the weather’s miserable I think back to my days in Scotland and console myself that it really could be an awful lot worse! Did enjoy it though.
 

emilyanne

New Member
We swapped to a south down on the tegs a few years ago because when they were on a Romney ram we had a lot of big heads and tegs are a nightmare to catch (lambing outside sorry should of said )
 

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