Sheep for kids

[Tim W]

But if @Tim W said there seems to be a market for shedders that arent molly coddled
So im sure i could sell my few shearlings as well as i did lleyn shearlings?


.

Recorded shedders of known health status
So many buyers are getting switched on to the dangers of buying unknown health status stock

The last ram i bought at a sale came home into isolation and subsequently identified positive for MV
Bang!
£700 down the drain ---just lucky i have a good isolation /testing policy as it could have cost me a lot more
There were probably 600 sheep at the sale and i wonder how many were MV positive (or CLA/Johnes/contagious abortion carriers?)
Or how many people handled this infected ram and then went on to handle a dozen other rams ?

 

[Benn]

Recorded shedders of known health status
So many buyers are getting switched on to the dangers of buying unknown health status stock

The last ram i bought at a sale came home into isolation and subsequently identified positive for MV
Bang!
£700 down the drain ---just lucky i have a good isolation /testing policy as it could have cost me a lot more
There were probably 600 sheep at the sale and i wonder how many were MV positive (or CLA/Johnes/contagious abortion carriers?)
Or how many people handled this infected ram and then went on to handle a dozen other rams ?

Have you found over the years people Moving over to replacing there flocks to shedders,due to benfits of shedding.
Or do you think its more with buyers being more swotched on and buying due to your recorded health status?

 

[Bury the Trash]

Exactly my thoughts worse thing about sheep
Shedders do appeal to me alsobg as can sell shearling ewe lamvs the same as i could with lleyns as i made more then selling lambs dead,

But if @Tim W said there seems to be a market for shedders that arent molly coddled
So im sure i could sell my few shearlings as well as i did lleyn shearlings?


I say sheep for kids but i be looking after flock until kids old enough as,kids are 2-4 years old,
i was brought up with livestock(cattle&pigs) and i
Loved it and think it make you understand were food comes from and learn about death and taking responsibility.
Also this is why i want to choose the right breed as i say a flock of upto 20 start with ,but i have enough ground to get up to 90 odd,so want to pick a more commercial breed.

Just to add ..
there are no worries about booking up shearers / not being able to apply pouron ( leaving them open to strike because the shearers are coming in the near future etc...(but I applied pouron on my shedders in late May just to be sure )
.and generally no dagging /clipping at all
but it could be that clippers might be needed to tidy up the odd one in June .or so ...very easy to do and smarten/evens them up but.hence my advice to get the best shedding ones possible if that's the route that is chosen ..

other pluses are they don't take up as much space when transporting either, and any loss of condition can be spotted by eye sooner with out a big fleece on.

 

[Benn]

Kerry Hill or Clun Forests would be ok.

A bloke Just up the road had flock pedigree kerry hills
and local farmer ended up buying when he got out sheep
He reckon they are wild and pain in arse.
Although personally i do think there one of nicest looking breeds,as hobby flock could be ok?

 

[Benn]

Just to add ..
there are no worries about booking up shearers / not being able to apply pouron ( leaving them because the shearers are coming in the near future etc...(but I applied pouron on my shedders in late May just to be sure )
.and generally no dagging /clipping at all
but it could be that clippers might be needed to tidy up the odd one in June .or so ...very easy to do and smarten/evens them up but.hence my advice to get the best shedding ones possible if that's the route that is chosen ..

other pluses are they don't take up as much space when transporting either, and any loss of condition can be spotted by eye sooner with out a big fleece on.

Luckly I dont have worry about waiting on shearers now as a family member started privately shearling last year ,just small flocks,
Previous years ive found it a right pain having less then 100 ewes getting a shearer in hence why always thought shedders a good route to go down.
Only thing thats stopped me from buying shedder when first got few sheep was Everybody local i know and get help/advice from for some reason against shedders and all advise me was/is better stick with a wolled breed?these same people i sold lleyn shearlings to.

 

[Tim W]

Have you found over the years people Moving over to replacing there flocks to shedders,due to benfits of shedding.
Or do you think its more with buyers being more swotched on and buying due to your recorded health status?

People move to shedders for a variety for reasons including;
1) Low labour input
2) lower chemical inputs
3) ease of management
....all of which mean reduced costs

But they then come looking at Exlanas because of our recording and health testing
Shedding is a great trait but a crap shedding sheep is still a crap sheep

There is a good market for shedders but if you want a decent price you have to put the effort in

 

[yellowbelly]

I know this is a thread about choosing a breed for kids, so there may be slightly different considerations (and only @Benn can really know what they are) but if I was starting off in sheep again, with a totally 'blank sheet of paper', and knowing what I know now (having lambed a handful of shedders this year) and in the present political climate, I'd go with good shedders and sell deadweight.

 

[Bury the Trash]

Luckly I dont have worry about waiting on shearers now as a family member started privately shearling last year ,just small flocks,
Previous years ive found it a right pain having less then 100 ewes getting a shearer in hence why always thought shedders a good route to go down.
Only thing thats stopped me from buying shedder when first got few sheep was Everybody local i know and get help/advice from for some reason against shedders and all advise me was/is better stick with a wolled breed?these same people i sold lleyn shearlings to.

perhaps better advice to have given would've been never mind about breeds, names etc , just buy some good quality breeding sheep.... from an intelligent/switched on/ 'up to the minute' breeder of ..ones that don't need ... farting around with every five minutes because they got a limpy toe or a shitty arse or not enough milk or their lambs wont finish quick enough or they are on their back or keep climbing up the hedges or jumping the fences or don't like their lamb and he runs off etc

 

[Bruce Almighty]

4 years ago my then 14 year old son wanted some sheep, so I bought 36 full mouth Easycares from a friend.
This year at 18 he's lambing 280 of them.
We brought them in on Christmas Eve & they are due to start early Feb

The original appeal to me was no dagging & very little fly strike

 

[MRT]

If you are talking about less than 20 sheep for your kids, just let them pick the pretty/wooly/happy/friendly ones. Not sure selling dw, commercial this or that, getting away without pour ons etc etc really comes into it?

 

[Devil's advocate]

A wild card perhaps, but considering for my nephews & niece.

Boer goats, especially if crossbred from dairy goats and hand reared.

NB Non accredited/tested goats should never be allowed near commercial sheep, goats harbour lots of bugs for sheep.

My relatives are a few miles away from me, but they seem keen for me to help them with a small livestock enterprise.

 

[Bury the Trash]

I love your sales technique Tim. Whenever I hear you talking to someone who wants to buy sheep, you seem to be telling them to buy something other than Exlana

I think that's called reverse psychology

 

[woodfield]

Zwartbles are wonderful with kids Kerry Hills are mental - even when run as a small hobby flock (friends of ours have them and they are completely wild, even though they're fed every day and handled regularly). They are also supremely tasty - not much commercial value unless you cross them with a heavier tup (I've put a Berrichon on two of my ewes this time - will see what the lambs are like when they're born in Feb!) but if you have the surplus lambs killed for your own freezer you won't regret it! I also sell a few each year boxed to local customers who keep coming back.

 

[Mark77]

Soooo Possibly looking at getting few sheep again but this time small pure flock (15-20ish )for son and nephews next autumish if things pan out how there meant to ,with moving back down farm,not looking at this as earning money as come to terms never earn enoughout sheep on land we have.

Struggling to figure out the breed .
Looking for breed that can deal with lambing outside, most importantly good temperament.

Had lleyns were perfect but too prolific and had hampshire but not keen on The wool.

All views welcomed,Cheers all!

Wiltshire Horns! Self shedding wool so no shearing. Easy lambing and brilliant mothers as well. Several breed society shows as well so get the kids into showing a few, just for fun

 

[Obi Wan]

Hill cheviots with a texel or Suffolk tup.

 

[Trevlaaa]

Have a small flock of pedigree Kerry’s, and a larger hobby flock of Heinz 57 everyone says that the Kerry’s are nuts but we’ve never had a problem with ours, all in lamb to our kerry tup

Even put our kerry tup over our 30 mix flock, find the Kerry’s quiet to be fair

 

[ilyria]

Whitefaced woodlands? Ours are very friendly, no problem in shifting the lambs and easy to keep. Same with the Norfolk horns. Its like having a flock of annoyingly friendly labradors

 

[Nithsdale]

I can't believe nobody has suggested BFLs

 

[Stewart Setter]

Herdwick and Greyface would do.. I work with these a lot.

 

[MRT]

@Stewart Setter yes GFD and no Herwicks are the sheep of the Devil