Management tags

arctictree

Lads - do ye use management tags for the lambs and where do you get them?

Didn't tag the lambs this year and have no idea how the different ewes did!

Green farmer

Got blank tags in whatever colour I wanted from cormac's, but only use them to mark cull ewes. Same as slaughter tag but blank. For lambs might be just as cheap to white slaughter tag everything and cross reference back to ewe. Tags were only 20cent each. Going to tag them at birth next year as like yourself couldn't tell what lambs are out of what ewe here.

roosky

I get three tags per ewe off cormac so three number one three number 2 and so on

When the first ewe lambed she got number one and her two lambs the same and this number was sprayed on their sides.

So then your ewes and lambs match up on their side and their tags, also get the two lambs tags in different colors so you can tell them apart as in you have a green twenty and a red twenty.

Sheep breeder

roosky wrote: »

I get three tags per ewe off cormac so three number one three number 2 and so on

When the first ewe lambed she got number one and her two lambs the same and this number was sprayed on their sides.

So then your ewes and lambs match up on their side and their tags, also get the two lambs tags in different colors so you can tell them apart as in you have a green twenty and a red twenty.

Good idea, we got the coloured disc to go on the eid tag from cormac.

Bleating Lamb

roosky wrote: »

I get three tags per ewe off cormac so three number one three number 2 and so on

When the first ewe lambed she got number one and her two lambs the same and this number was sprayed on their sides.

So then your ewes and lambs match up on their side and their tags, also get the two lambs tags in different colors so you can tell them apart as in you have a green twenty and a red twenty.

Would you not find that in time with that system you could have ewes with messy ears ?.....as next Spring each ewe will need a different tag,even if you put them in this years hole they might be looser in the ear.

roosky

Bleating Lamb wrote: »

Would you not find that in time with that system you could have ewes with messy ears ?.....as next Spring each ewe will need a different tag,even if you put them in this years hole they might be looser in the ear.

No i started it about 8 years ago and a the ewe keeps her number for life as in i fist started with numbers 1 to 100 then as ewes fall out of system their number is recycled but you soon notice your best stock i have a ewe number 17 that has been there since start so she will lamb for the 9th time next march and id say i could have about 10 ewes in the flock that are her daughters

razor8

roosky wrote: »

No i started it about 8 years ago and a the ewe keeps her number for life as in i fist started with numbers 1 to 100 then as ewes fall out of system their number is recycled but you soon notice your best stock i have a ewe number 17 that has been there since start so she will lamb for the 9th time next march and id say i could have about 10 ewes in the flock that are her daughters

how do you keep info alltogther?

razor8

Ive been using a management tag at birth and relate it back to mothers for years now. you find a slight improvement on flock performance year on year by measuring data

Here is the type of data i get from the TGM software i use

roosky

razor8 wrote: »

how do you keep info alltogther?

So the like of that ewe just stands out to me i wouldn't know that much about them all.

Id write down all ewe lambs number that i like so for example lamb green 20 is a twin and ewe lambed on her own and has plenty milk ill take note then at weaning ill have maybe 50 ewe lambs marked but will then pick the best 30 for keeps.

Another huge advantage is when i wean lambs and i find a few screws i take their numbers and cull the mothers

razor8

roosky wrote: »

So the like of that ewe just stands out to me i wouldn't know that much about them all.

Id write down all ewe lambs number that i like so for example lamb green 20 is a twin and ewe lambed on her own and has plenty milk ill take note then at weaning ill have maybe 50 ewe lambs marked but will then pick the best 30 for keeps.

Another huge advantage is when i wean lambs and i find a few screws i take their numbers and cull the mothers

yes, recording is a great way of finding the weak links!