Sheep

Sheep are small ruminants, just like goats, and belong to the even-toed ungulates. In addition, they are real herd animals that are known for being tame and friendly. Almost every country has its own sheep breeds that are bred for different purposes. For example, there are sheep for wool, milk and meat. There are also sheep that have to graze specific pieces of land, such as the heath sheep. Because of this, sheep also come in different sizes, colours and their horns can differ greatly. Sheep are herd animals that get along well with goats, they complement each other's grazing behaviour. Sheep graze more for grass and leaves, while goats also eat twigs, branches and bark.

General

Sheep come into heat in the autumn and will give birth approximately 5 months after a successful mating. Ewes that are lambing for the first time will often only have 1 lamb. It is not uncommon for this one lamb to be too big to be born naturally, in which case a caesarean section is necessary. Certain breeds have more difficulty giving birth naturally due to breeding, if in doubt consult your vet. Older ewes usually have two to three lambs. In most breeds, the lambs are sexually mature from the age of 6 months. Remove the rams at that time.

Care, housing and nutrition

Care:

It is important to take care of the hooves, nails and wool of sheep. If sheep walk on a hard surface, their nails will wear down naturally. However, most sheep walk on a pasture, which means that their nails need to be trimmed at least once a year. In addition, sheep need to be sheared once a year, which usually happens in May or June. An experienced sheep shearer can shear 150 sheep in one day, but someone without experience may have some difficulty with this. That is why it is advisable to leave this to someone with experience. Work is done from head to tail. In addition, it is important not to feed the sheep the day before, because they are turned for shearing and a full stomach could cause twisting of the intestines. After shearing, the sheep are more sensitive to sunburn and cold, so keep this in mind.

Housing:

Sheep are relatively easy animals to keep and can withstand cold weather well. However, it is nice if the animals have an indoor pen to shelter in and for when lambs are born. Sheep wire is ideally suited as fencing. The square meshes are smaller at the bottom than at the top, so that lambs cannot stick their heads through. The size of the pasture and the indoor pen depend on the number and type of sheep.

Nutrition:

Sheep, like goats and cattle, have four stomachs and are true ruminants. They can get almost all the nutrients they need from roughage, grass and hay. However, they will also eat leaves and twigs. Pregnant ewes and ewes with suckling lambs in particular can use extra nutrients in the form of special sheep pellets. Cattle pellets are generally not suitable for sheep, especially the Texel is very sensitive to copper poisoning. Make sure that there are no poisonous plants such as ragwort in the pasture. Clean and fresh drinking water must be available at all times!

illnesses

A sheep that does not want to eat, is lethargic, loses weight and lies down a lot is sick. In that case always consult a vet. A common problem during the summer is myiasis. This is caused by flies laying eggs in the wool and the maggots that hatch make wounds in the skin and start to eat the sheep. This often happens with sheep whose hindquarters are dirty. A sheep can be badly affected within a day. It is absolutely not an unnecessary luxury to check your sheep daily during this period. Preventatively, you can shear and use pesticides. In addition, preventing and treating diarrhea is important.

Diarrhea can occur as a result of a worm infection. That is why it is important to deworm your sheep several times a year. It is best to do this based on manure testing and in consultation with the vet. This is to limit resistance to deworming agents as much as possible. Regularly grazing sheep on a new pasture and leaving the old one empty for about 6 weeks can also help to reduce the infection pressure. This is called rotation grazing.

foot rot is an inflammation of the interdigital claw/nail and is very painful. Sheep often graze on their front knees because of the pain. It is caused by bacteria and is very contagious. It can be vaccinated against.

Another important disease is Q fever, the sheep themselves often do not get sick from this but it is dangerous for people. That is why it is recommended to have your sheep vaccinated against this. The Q fever bacteria is mainly released during lambing, so it is important to take good hygiene measures, such as gloves and possibly a mouth mask. Pregnant women are absolutely not allowed to assist with the birth of lambs.

Lambs can become very ill from the Clostridium bacteria, the blood, and die quite suddenly. It is possible to have your lambs and pregnant ewes vaccinated against this. Vaccinating the ewes gives the lambs protection via the colostrum (first milk) for a short period.

For further questions or advice, please contact the veterinary practice.