Tagging lambs at birth outside

ladycrofter

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
Highland
I have been tagging at birth for years with varying success, just for pedigree reasons rather than performance recording. This past year I decided to use those little metal Roxan tags that go next to their heads, in case the real tags got pulled out. Which happens a LOT when I tag at birth, often both tags :android::android::android:.

Don't bother with Roxan. I wonder where these companies actually trial their products. The points aren't very sharp and you end up bending the whole clip affair, so when you DO finally get the pin through the ear, it won't fit in the fold-over catch. I was going to post a photo but couldn't find one, maybe they stopped doing them now. Anyway, all but two of them pulled out also.

The design of sheep tags is such that if you put them in correctly i.e. the point pointing forwards from the back, then the animal number is on the back of their head. WHY?? Funnily enough, the sheep don't like to come up to me and put their heads down so I can read their numbers. I don't think the tag companies are really making an effort. Why would you want to see your flock number when looking at a sheep? WHY don't they print one of the sets with the animal number on the front?

BTW I have had good luck in the past catching lambs with a fishing net strapped to a long pole:cool:.
 

puppet

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
sw scotland
We do not tag but separate into different fields as they are rung. So a good ewe with lively ewe twins likely to make replacements. Bad experience with early tags as some got wrapped in the wool and tore a lot of ears
 

Danllan

Member
Location
Sir Gar / Carms
Does spraying numbers on the back stay on better than if you spray on the sides of the sheep? (i.e. less likely to get rubbed off) Bit harder to read but you'd be close up to the sheep anyway if tagging lambs.

It stays on the back much better than the sides, but... it is remarkable just how bl**dy difficult it can be to read off the top sometimes.
 

Chapelton

Member
Location
Castle Douglas
We’re going to have a go a setting up an EID panel between two fields for a coupe of days after marking and tagging and letting everything wander past it - the theory being the lambs follow their mothers. I know this is working pretty well in Australia but wondered if anyone had tried it here? I can’t believe it’s as simple as I’m making it out to be.

We obviously won’t get any data other than (hopefully!) establishing the genetic link (and realistically it’s not going to be completely accurate) but that’s all we’re really after at this stage. Setting it up isn’t that much effort so I can’t see a reason not to try it. If it’s a disaster we just won’t use this data and know not to bother next time.
 

exmoor dave

Member
Location
exmoor, uk
We’re going to have a go a setting up an EID panel between two fields for a coupe of days after marking and tagging and letting everything wander past it - the theory being the lambs follow their mothers. I know this is working pretty well in Australia but wondered if anyone had tried it here? I can’t believe it’s as simple as I’m making it out to be.

We obviously won’t get any data other than (hopefully!) establishing the genetic link (and realistically it’s not going to be completely accurate) but that’s all we’re really after at this stage. Setting it up isn’t that much effort so I can’t see a reason not to try it. If it’s a disaster we just won’t use this data and know not to bother next time.


I think it works by reading the couples several times as thry pass back and forth rather than just the once,
Getting the software would probably be the hardest part

Panel on constant read will take some power as well
 

Tim W

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
Wiltshire
Try
We’re going to have a go a setting up an EID panel between two fields for a coupe of days after marking and tagging and letting everything wander past it - the theory being the lambs follow their mothers. I know this is working pretty well in Australia but wondered if anyone had tried it here? I can’t believe it’s as simple as I’m making it out to be.

We obviously won’t get any data other than (hopefully!) establishing the genetic link (and realistically it’s not going to be completely accurate) but that’s all we’re really after at this stage. Setting it up isn’t that much effort so I can’t see a reason not to try it. If it’s a disaster we just won’t use this data and know not to bother next time.
Try setting it up at the entrance to a pen leading to a water trough....i did this one year to catch & tag lambs...worked well
 

jamie

Member
Location
Duns
We’re going to have a go a setting up an EID panel between two fields for a coupe of days after marking and tagging and letting everything wander past it - the theory being the lambs follow their mothers. I know this is working pretty well in Australia but wondered if anyone had tried it here? I can’t believe it’s as simple as I’m making it out to be.

We obviously won’t get any data other than (hopefully!) establishing the genetic link (and realistically it’s not going to be completely accurate) but that’s all we’re really after at this stage. Setting it up isn’t that much effort so I can’t see a reason not to try it. If it’s a disaster we just won’t use this data and know not to bother next time.
Have you tried this yet? How did it work? What kit are you using?
 

Chapelton

Member
Location
Castle Douglas
No, we're still marking lambs so haven't had a go yet @jamie. I'm struggling with the balance between what's enough data to be accurate and what's too much data to even begin to analyse. I suspect giving it a go will be the only way to find out. The plan is to use a TruTest XRP2 with a 12v battery. Will keep you posted on it and try and get some pictures while I'm at it.
 

Cow1

Member
This year I've been spray marking ewes and lambs with the last 3 digits of their EID tag number.

I have the odd duplicate number but the chances of them lambing outside in the same place at the same time are slim.

It's worked very well and saves having to cross reference tags with a number.

Pre lambing I made a spreadsheet with all the ewes listed in numerical tag order and filled in the details as they lambed.

To spray numbers on the ewe I've a couple of sets of 4 alligator hurdles in the field that can be dragged behind the Gator.

Last year I pre numbered ewes with ascending numbers cross referenced to the ewe before lambing when vaccinating but found this fiddly to do and some numbers had faded by lambing time.

I have found changing it this year has worked very well.
 

Tim W

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
Wiltshire
No, we're still marking lambs so haven't had a go yet @jamie. I'm struggling with the balance between what's enough data to be accurate and what's too much data to even begin to analyse. I suspect giving it a go will be the only way to find out. The plan is to use a TruTest XRP2 with a 12v battery. Will keep you posted on it and try and get some pictures while I'm at it.
Shearwell have some experience doing this i think
 

Al R

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
West Wales
This year I've been spray marking ewes and lambs with the last 3 digits of their EID tag number.

I have the odd duplicate number but the chances of them lambing outside in the same place at the same time are slim.

It's worked very well and saves having to cross reference tags with a number.

Pre lambing I made a spreadsheet with all the ewes listed in numerical tag order and filled in the details as they lambed.

To spray numbers on the ewe I've a couple of sets of 4 alligator hurdles in the field that can be dragged behind the Gator.

Last year I pre numbered ewes with ascending numbers cross referenced to the ewe before lambing when vaccinating but found this fiddly to do and some numbers had faded by lambing time.

I have found changing it this year has worked very well.


How many ewes are you talking?
Reading previous posts on here people are using car paint to pre number?

It’s something I’m keen to do but I don’t think it could work with us and how do people cope with 70-80 lambs a day outside?
 

Cow1

Member
How many ewes are you talking?
Reading previous posts on here people are using car paint to pre number?

It’s something I’m keen to do but I don’t think it could work with us and how do people cope with 70-80 lambs a day outside?

This flock is only 150 so admittedly manageable.

However I would have thought it was scalable as if you were lambing big numbers surely there will be more labour within reason.

I see the logic in car paint. Would marking them as early as tupping or at Scanning work so as not having to handle when heavy in lamb?
 
How many ewes are you talking?
Reading previous posts on here people are using car paint to pre number?

It’s something I’m keen to do but I don’t think it could work with us and how do people cope with 70-80 lambs a day outside?
It a bit dependant of your lambing % and what kind of ground you are on. Tagging 80 singles a day on steep rough hill is hard going. Tagging 40 sets of twins a day in flat fields is quite easy. I'm currently tagging 40-50 a day and i'm bored, 60-80 a day is no problem. I've done over a hundred a day but it starts to be hard work.

If i remember right you are ringing and numbering all your lambs anyway so you would be adding seconds to each lamb to stick a tag in and log the data.
 

Al R

Member
Livestock Farmer
Location
West Wales
It a bit dependant of your lambing % and what kind of ground you are on. Tagging 80 singles a day on steep rough hill is hard going. Tagging 40 sets of twins a day in flat fields is quite easy. I'm currently tagging 40-50 a day and i'm bored, 60-80 a day is no problem. I've done over a hundred a day but it starts to be hard work.

If i remember right you are ringing and numbering all your lambs anyway so you would be adding seconds to each lamb to stick a tag in and log the data.
Only twins lamb outside on the main flocks, the “other flocks” are all lambed our, nothing apart from a major problem will come in.

I spoke to someone locally who was half our size and did all indoor lambing and they said that it was almost at the point of they were missing the odd problem with other ewes because they were tagging and inputting data, they said that if outside they wouldn’t dream about doing it as the weather and predators arnt on your side!
 

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