On Tue, 06 Jul 2004 20:01:02 -0600, Carol J. Elkins wrote: >So, as James Harper suggested, I think you can get a couple years of >breeding from your bottle ram and then need to replace him with one of his >sons. You might want to read the article I wrote for Sheep! magazine >entitled "How to Grow Your Flock with Only One Ram." The URL is at >http://www.critterhaven.biz/conbreed.htm.
Carol, if a ram were neutered at that age after that sort of testosterone related behavior had begun, would the behavior stop? Or is it a learned behavior that becomes a habit? (In your opinion). My bottle ram lambs are just 4 months old now. Because of bladder stones I wanted to wait until they were over 6 months before neutering them. Of course that leaves me no alternative but surgical neutering but that's the breaks. I had thought the testosterone mediated behavior started at a very young age. If it takes several *years before the "ram behavior" starts I'd dearly love to leave one of them intact just long enough to breed 1 or 2 of my girls. They're gentle & sweet and I'd like them to stay that way at all costs. If that means neutering now then so be it. This is a wonderful informative list, by the way. Mitzi Potter Guthrie OK =============================================== This message is from the Barbados Blackbelly Sheep mailing list (http://www.awrittenword.com/listserv/index.html). To respond to this message, send e-mail to [EMAIL PROTECTED] To unsubscribe or change your membership options, go to http://lists.coyotenet.net/mailman/listinfo/blackbelly To search the archives, go to http://www.mail-archive.com/[EMAIL PROTECTED]/
