[Blackbelly] Fw: placenta Bag
- Original Message - From: "Nancy & Tom Richardson" To: Sent: Sunday, January 17, 2010 8:35 AM Subject: placenta Bag Good morning everyone I have a problem this morning I found where a second ewe couldn't clean the bag off a baby. It was really thick and tough. The first time it happen the ewe had had twins and I thought possibly it could have been still born or she was just to busy with the first since she was a first time mom. But this morning I found a second. This was a girl who only had one and she was a 2 year old having her second lamb. Any Ideas what the problem could be? If possible I want to stop it before the other 75 ewes lamb. Thanks Nancy - Original Message - From: To: Sent: Friday, January 15, 2010 5:01 PM Subject: Blackbelly Digest, Vol 6, Issue 8 Send Blackbelly mailing list submissions to blackbelly@lists.blackbellysheep.info To subscribe or unsubscribe via the World Wide Web, visit http://lists.blackbellysheep.info/listinfo.cgi/blackbelly-blackbellysheep.info or, via email, send a message with subject or body 'help' to blackbelly-requ...@lists.blackbellysheep.info You can reach the person managing the list at ___ This message is from the Blackbelly mailing list Visit the list's homepage at %http://www.blackbellysheep.info
Re: [Blackbelly] Breeding twice in a year
You might find the Accelerated Breeding Schedule helpful at http://critterhaven.biz/info/articles/breedingschedule.htm It will give you three lambings in 18 months. Carol Elkins Critterhaven--Registered Barbados Blackbelly Hair Sheep (no shear, no dock, no fuss) Pueblo, Colorado http://www.critterhaven.biz At 05:11 PM 1/16/2010, you wrote: My primary question is...If you want to lamb twice in one year how soon after lambing should the ewe be exposed again? ___ This message is from the Blackbelly mailing list Visit the list's homepage at %http://www.blackbellysheep.info
Re: [Blackbelly] Selection for herding
-Original Message- From: blackbelly-boun...@lists.blackbellysheep.info [mailto:blackbelly-boun...@lists.blackbellysheep.info]on Behalf Of blackbelly-requ...@lists.blackbellysheep.info Sent: Friday, January 15, 2010 4:01 PM To: blackbelly@lists.blackbellysheep.info Subject: Blackbelly Digest, Vol 6, Issue 8 Send Blackbelly mailing list submissions to blackbelly@lists.blackbellysheep.info To subscribe or unsubscribe via the World Wide Web, visit http://lists.blackbellysheep.info/listinfo.cgi/blackbelly-blackbelly sheep.info or, via email, send a message with subject or body 'help' to blackbelly-requ...@lists.blackbellysheep.info You can reach the person managing the list at blackbelly-ow...@lists.blackbellysheep.info When replying, please edit your Subject line so it is more specific than "Re: Contents of Blackbelly digest..." I currently have 5 ABB ewes and 7 wooly lambs. I'm also getting ready to acquire a ram. I noticed Mary Swindell's comment on herding, and am curious how to select from my small flock to work with my herding dogs. The ewes are pretty aggressive, and it is almost impossible to get a dog behind the whole flock to get them out of a corner. Tom Quinn Message: 1 Date: Thu, 14 Jan 2010 18:30:45 -0600 From: Mary Swindell To: blackbelly@lists.blackbellysheep.info Subject: Re: [Blackbelly] what to do about an aggressive ram? Message-ID: <7.0.1.0.2.20100114171456.024b0...@siu.edu> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"; format=flowed I would like to add my comments concerning the aggressive ram question. First, there is something different about male sheep, whether they are rams or wethers. The boys just seem more curious and outgoing, from the time they are babies on through adulthood. Even my wethers (which I have often kept in large numbers as herding sheep, until they were several years old) have often seemed more curious and friendly than my ewes, and have had charming personalities. The ewes seem to always be more shy, from birth onward. ___ This daily digest is from the Blackbelly mailing list. Visit this list's home page at %http://www.blackbellysheep.info/ End of Blackbelly Digest, Vol 6, Issue 8 ___ This message is from the Blackbelly mailing list Visit the list's homepage at %http://www.blackbellysheep.info
[Blackbelly] follow up death of lambs
Hi Cecil, Thanks for the information regarding the probable cause of death in the neighbors lambs. I would have written sooner but was out of town for a week. I will pass this on to the folks who lost their lambs and also about the suggestion by the other posting to have wormed the lambs. Not sure they will get lambs again though and it was a tragic lesson. Cecil do you still have the link you mentioned regarding the goat site regarding the enterotoxin? This is a great group and I grately appreciate all the information shared by our fellow breeders. take care, Cathy Mayton Leap'N Lambs ___ This message is from the Blackbelly mailing list Visit the list's homepage at %http://www.blackbellysheep.info
[Blackbelly] Selecting Sheep for Herding
Hi Tom, I appreciate the trouble you have had with trying to herd your aggressive adult ewes out of a corner. I suggest first rounding off your corners in your working area by inserting a piece of cattle panel or something similar, to make a diagonal or curved corner, at least temporarily. It will be easier to work through these problems if there are no deep corners. And, I suggest using a very small group of 3 sheep to practice herding as you work through these issues. I would use your least "reactive" sheep to start. You said you have some ABB ewes and some wooly lambs. Not knowing your sheep, I will just assume that your ABB ewes are the real "bully" problem (since your wooly lambs are still too young and naive to be much of a serious threat, they are probably followers, not yet leaders). So I suggest using one ABB ewe (your gentlest) and 2 wooly lambs to make your first group of three sheep. This "corner" problem is a confidence issue for your dog. You need to rebuild his confidence, and you need to build his trust that you will be there to help him work through this. The corner problem is also a training issue for your sheep. You will need to reverse their habit of confronting the dog in a corner. Here are a couple of exercises to help resolve the corner problem. First, practice walking your small group of 3 sheep around the perimeter of the entire area in "fetch" mode (you first, then sheep, and your dog last), slowly and steadily. Don't let the dog push the sheep past you, but make sure they keep moving.The further back the dog can be (while still keeping the sheep moving forward) the better, especially on turns at the corners. Second, if your sheep are still repeatedly getting stuck in a corner, then walk a good distance away with your dog and send him on an outrun, so that he comes in and behind them on the closest side of the corner (giving them plenty of "escape" room on the most open side of the corner). His outrun momentum will help him get behind them quickly and then turn them toward you for a fetch. When he is confident doing this long outrun exercise, try the same thing from a closer starting point. If you are fairly close, be sure to back off (away from the sheep) just as the sheep lift, so that they can see their "escape or opening" and move toward it. Often the dog's confidence will build after he has had several successes lifting sheep from a corner. If the dog doesn't want to get behind the sheep on a closeup flank like this, follow him around the flank "circle" to encourage him on around. If the sheep start to turn on him as he gets behind them, then you must get in there beside him to help him. Grab a little wool on their rear, or give them a verbal "shoosh" to excite them and the dog. If necessary, encourage him to grip (bite) them on the rear. Then immediately, once they are moving out of the corner, get back to your place in front of the sheep ASAP, and cue the dog to return to his fetch position behind the sheep. Praise your dog for the great work he has done. Calmly start walking forward (away from the sheep) immediately to open up a place for them to go, and continue on in your "fetch" mode walking down the field. Praise any successes your dog has in getting behind his stock in these difficult situations. He needs to know when he is doing a good job, and that you will be there when needed to help him. Do not worry if he bites a little bit in getting the job done, as the sheep probably need a little of that anyway so that they'll learn to respect your dog more than they presently do. The more times he moves behind them without hesitation, the greater his confidence will be, and the more the sheep will respect him. And the more times the sheep cooperate and learn that no harm will come to them, the more likely they are to be cooperative in the future. As your dog gains confidence with a small group, you may try the same thing on another group. Rather than starting with a totally new group of 3, instead you might take one of the "trained" sheep that moved off the dog well in the first group, and combine it with 2 other sheep. The "trained" sheep will make this new group tend to work better, almost from the start. Slowly cycle through your entire group of ABB ewes this way, using those that have been "trained" in combination with one or two untrained sheep to help things go smoothly with the new group. Within a short time you will have trained your whole group. By the way, this use of a core group of "trained" sheep to help teach the other sheep, really works well to teach a large group of sheep to go through a narrow working chute, or to jump into a stock trailer, or to go up a ramp, or any other difficult task. The first group always takes the most time. Then the later groups seem to learn quickly (the secret is they've got a trained leader in each later group). T
Re: [Blackbelly] Aggressive Rams
Hi Dave, I, too, put bells on my rams. Many years ago, I took a bad hit from one of my woolie rams. I knew where he was, & wasn't "armed" when I was changing the sprinklers. I could usually sidestep him without a problem. He charged, I stumbled, lost my balance& fell. He charged again & hit me full on in the chest. No broken ribs (I don't think), but man was I bruised & sore for a few weeks! I didn't have anything to defend myself or to distract him. Ever since then, I carry something with me. I think they call this "imprinting"??? :-) It sure stuck with me & left a mark too! Always be careful even when you know where they are! Karen P.S. I forgot to send this as plain text the 1st time, so it may show up twice. Sorry ___ This message is from the Blackbelly mailing list Visit the list's homepage at %http://www.blackbellysheep.info