Tupping time

Ashill5

Just want a bit of advice on what would be the best cross for Texel & Beltex crosses.
While I'd be used of cattle, this is my first time having sheep!

Lambman

Ashill5 wrote: »

Just want a bit of advice on what would be the best cross for Texel & Beltex crosses.
While I'd be used of cattle, this is my first time having sheep!

I'd it hoggets you bought? I'd go with the charrlois on hoggets..... crosses well on most breeds IMO

cuff92

Lambman wrote: »

I'd it hoggets you bought? I'd go with the charrlois on hoggets..... crosses well on most breeds IMO

I'd have to agree with the man, ease of lambing too as them beltex can be narrow.

Ashill5

They bought in as store lambs and they turned out great, very quite sheep. So I decided I'd try and lamb them.
Think I'll go with the Charlouis
Thanks for the replies.

Hard Knocks

Ashill5 wrote: »

They bought in as store lambs and they turned out great, very quite sheep. So I decided I'd try and lamb them.
Think I'll go with the Charlouis
Thanks for the replies.

Just to note, Charolais wouldn't be suited to outdoor lambing, but are super lambs when the get going

Sheep breeder

Hard Knocks wrote: »

Just to note, Charolais wouldn't be suited to outdoor lambing, but are super lambs when the get going

Have to disagree with you on that,a Charollais great lamb to get up and get going and no problem.

Cran

Hard Knocks wrote: »

Just to note, Charolais wouldn't be suited to outdoor lambing, but are super lambs when the get going

Totally disagree have lambed 1000s of ewes in lamb to charollais over the years, for me best lamb outdoors.

Hard Knocks

Cran wrote: »

Totally disagree have lambed 1000s of ewes in lamb to charollais over the years, for me best lamb outdoors.

Put a Charolais with Ewe lambs last year (first time using Charolais), really impressed, but was told as I'm part-time to lamb indoors & let out on the morning of a good day as they wouldn't have the same cover as other breeds

cuff92

Had them here outa hiltex ewes. No handling, up fast, they nearly hit the ground suckling. Great cross. Had them outta Suffolk type ewes too and found them good but too bare. Them being that bare didn't suit us

grassroot1

Texel or beltex cross ewes wouldnt be world champions for outdoor lambing either.
Crans mules would be more suited to outdoor lambing.
A ewe that will look for a sheltered place to lamb and has been bred to outdoor lamb (mountain crosses or romneys) and a sire breed that makes an effort to get up and suck are the key to outdoor lambing.

charolais0153

Charollais can be bare cold lambs. Would jackets be a good job for them perhaps. Pita bringing lambs in that are hunched by the wall

Hard Knocks

charolais0153 wrote: »

Charollais can be bare cold lambs. Would jackets be a good job for them perhaps. Pita bringing lambs in that are hunched by the wall

Put jackets on all here, some last a day others a week.

farming93

Rams went out today 10 ewes tipped so far. Have the ewes and ewe lambs mixed together so hopefully a few ewe lambs will go in lamb.

Sheep breeder

cuff92 wrote: »

Had them here outa hiltex ewes. No handling, up fast, they nearly hit the ground suckling. Great cross. Had them outta Suffolk type ewes too and found them good but too bare. Them being that bare didn't suit us

Any new born only needs one thing plenty of suck and if the ewe hasn't got that it's not the rams fault let him be a char, suff, Tex,
Have used Charollais for nearly twenty years and never had problem when the ewe is well fed,bareness is only a excuse for poor management.

charolais0153

Sheep breeder wrote: »

Any new born only needs one thing plenty of suck and if the ewe hasn't got that it's not the rams fault let him be a char, suff, Tex,
Have used Charollais for nearly twenty years and never had problem when the ewe is well fed,bareness is only a excuse for poor management.

What can you do when the texel and suffolk lambs are fine but your constantly bringing in charollais lambs cos their up against the wall with humps on their backs. What do you propose we do so they arent as cold

Ard_MC

Bought a ram 2 weeks ago. I house all my rams for a few weeks now till i let them out. Just pure laziness as i am workin and i know they wiil be there when i am gone!

Any way ram is eating and looking healthy but is lyin down alot. Every time i pass he is lyin but hops up an eats and then back down. Like if i put him up he is lyin by the time i get back with his nuts. Again he is healthy...well nothing obvious. No lameness, pneumonia etc..

Is he is just lazy or is did i buy a flop?!

kk.man

Ard_MC wrote: »

Bought a ram 2 weeks ago. I house all my rams for a few weeks now till i let them out. Just pure laziness as i am workin and i know they wiil be there when i am gone!

Any way ram is eating and looking healthy but is lyin down alot. Every time i pass he is lyin but hops up an eats and then back down. Like if i put him up he is lyin by the time i get back with his nuts. Again he is healthy...well nothing obvious. No lameness, pneumonia etc..

Is he is just lazy or is did i buy a flop?!

Can't answer your question but that's a great idea 're housing. One of my rams managed to break through 2 fields to reach ewe lambs I intend keeping 4 hoggets. I don't know how long he was there for (hours) or damage he did. Lambs weren't that interested in him when I arrived and I got him out of field on his own ! I was thinking of putting him in with a few cast ewes till mating starts.

Sheep breeder

Ard_MC wrote: »

Bought a ram 2 weeks ago. I house all my rams for a few weeks now till i let them out. Just pure laziness as i am workin and i know they wiil be there when i am gone!

Any way ram is eating and looking healthy but is lyin down alot. Every time i pass he is lyin but hops up an eats and then back down. Like if i put him up he is lyin by the time i get back with his nuts. Again he is healthy...well nothing obvious. No lameness, pneumonia etc..

Is he is just lazy or is did i buy a flop?!

Has being on the 4 or 5 time a day feed system and when he see you he thinks it feeding time.

Ard_MC

Sheep breeder wrote: »

Has being on the 4 or 5 time a day feed system and when he see you he thinks it feeding time.

No this buck was defo not on hevay feedin. I am tempted to buy a spare incase he does the same when he sees the ewes!

rangler1

Ard_MC wrote: »

Bought a ram 2 weeks ago. I house all my rams for a few weeks now till i let them out. Just pure laziness as i am workin and i know they wiil be there when i am gone!

Any way ram is eating and looking healthy but is lyin down alot. Every time i pass he is lyin but hops up an eats and then back down. Like if i put him up he is lyin by the time i get back with his nuts. Again he is healthy...well nothing obvious. No lameness, pneumonia etc..

Is he is just lazy or is did i buy a flop?!

Your lambing will be a lot more compact if you put the rams in the next field to the ewes for two weeks before mating and the rams will be fitter too....if your fencing is right that is

Ard_MC

rangler1 wrote: »

Your lambing will be a lot more compact if you put the rams in the next field to the ewes for two weeks before mating and the rams will be fitter too....if your fencing is right that is

Yah i know rangler but most of my ewes are running on a mountain and wont be gathered till about 10 days before the rams go out..its rhe neighbours ewes i am keeping them away from! I swear some of the swales can jump 6ft!!

IH784man

My rams been out since 25th and hasn't tipped any yet,might be time to get a new one sharpish

Inchilad

Picked out a few mules to put with the hampshire at weekend.my thinking is that ill have a few lambs ready for muslim festivals next year.trying to keep the swale in a shed until 1 november.like a feckin grand national winner.some hoors to jump

Lambman

The dates change everyyear.... wat dates are the festivals next year?

farming93

IH784man wrote: »

My rams been out since 25th and hasn't tipped any yet,might be time to get a new one sharpish

I didn't raddle my rams last year.. one ewe lambed the 18th of February (the due date) the rest all burst off lambing the 1st of March. Sometimes it goes like that but probably would you of been safer having the second ram or even a ram lamb from the start? Just for peace of mind.

razor8

Two weeks earlier next year

Hard Knocks

razor8 wrote: »

Two weeks earlier next year

Yea hopefully good prices in April & May for spring lambs

Western Pomise

Just checking my dates for ram....

I hope to have ewes lambing from March 24th....so with that in mind what date should I let ram in on?

Thanks for any replies.

charolais0153

Western Pomise wrote: »

Just checking my dates for ram....

I hope to have ewes lambing from March 24th....so with that in mind what date should I let ram in on?

Thanks for any replies.

29th october

Green farmer

What lambing dates are lads aiming for next year ? Undecided here.

charolais0153

Ram out since 22nd sept. Around 75% tipped so far. Texel x ewes have been very slow

Ashill5

I put out ram out Sept 30, Texel crosses, only 5 of 30 tipped so far.

Lambman

Rams going out 22nd October here same as every year... what's your take on creeping lambs till get them away for the festival time I'd say it would a paid till creep feed this year?

arctictree

Ram went out here with first batch of 40 ewes on 1st October. He's done 5 or 6 so far.

I have a few ewe lambs in the mix and they seem very small compared to him. Do ye think they'll take? I was thinking of taking him out and getting a ram lamb in at the end of the month to clean up.

Lambman

arctictree wrote: »

Ram went out here with first batch of 40 ewes on 1st October. He's done 5 or 6 so far.

I have a few ewe lambs in the mix and they seem very small compared to him. Do ye think they'll take? I was thinking of taking him out and getting a ram lamb in at the end of the month to clean up.

An old ram and young ram won't fight as the young ram will just run away so safe enough till throw him in with the old ram.

rangler1

Ashill5 wrote: »

I put out ram out Sept 30, Texel crosses, only 5 of 30 tipped so far.

You can be unfortunate sometimes,.... if the ewes were in heat the week before the rams go out they won't come in heat for a fortnight then no matter what you do

DJ98

What would be the result of a ram tipping his daughter,(didnt happen but almost happened the other day when a couple of ewes found a hole in the ditch while moving them) I know the result wouldnt be good!

charolais0153

DJ98 wrote: »

What would be the result of a ram tipping his daughter,(didnt happen but almost happened the other day when a couple of ewes found a hole in the ditch while moving them) I know the result wouldnt be good!

If the ram had no faults itd be grand. If he did you could be in bother. Most of the time it hit the fertility if the offspring

MayoAreMagic

DJ98 wrote: »

What would be the result of a ram tipping his daughter,(didnt happen but almost happened the other day when a couple of ewes found a hole in the ditch while moving them) I know the result wouldnt be good!

Potential genetic issues. Clear blindness I believe can be one of them. There are probably lots more too.
Slower growth rates in the lambs - basically the opposite of hybrid vigour.

farawaygrass

DJ98 wrote: »

What would be the result of a ram tipping his daughter,(didnt happen but almost happened the other day when a couple of ewes found a hole in the ditch while moving them) I know the result wouldnt be good!

You could have the best lambs ever born on the farm, or the complete opposite. I know a man that done it when breeding horses in his time. He said all breeding matches were ok bar brother-sister. (When he said ok, you would have to be pretty confident of no flaws in genetics). Ever hear the saying-there is very little between inbreeding and line breeding

Western Pomise

Was just looking at the diary there....dosed the ewes with Flukiver and Bovithrive mineral dose exactly a month ago....getting them dipped tomorrow ......not letting the ram out until 25th of October.
Ewes on dry hill run at moment ...was thinking of dosing them again with Flukiver and Bovithrive a few days before letting out ram.

Can there be any negative impact on conception rates by dosing too close to ram turn out ??

Thanks for any replies.

White Clover

Small numbers here but nice and compact so far. Two thirds of ewes tipped in 5 days. Ewe lambs going to ram next weekend.

Bleating Lamb

Western Pomise wrote: »

Was just looking at the diary there....dosed the ewes with Flukiver and Bovithrive mineral dose exactly a month ago....getting them dipped tomorrow ......not letting the ram out until 25th of October.
Ewes on dry hill run at moment ...was thinking of dosing them again with Flukiver and Bovithrive a few days before letting out ram.

Can there be any negative impact on conception rates by dosing too close to ram turn out ??

Thanks for any replies.

Hope there isn’t a detrimental effect from Fluke dosing....I let the rams put yday evening and had dosed all the ewes the evening before for Fluke with all the wet weather they have suffered in last few months ,its bound to be rampant this winter in wet ground.

Anyone any scientific view or experience as to whether dosing close to ram let out is a good or bad idea ?.....I dosed the rams too.

Ard_MC

Bleating Lamb wrote: »

Hope there isn’t a detrimental effect from Fluke dosing....I let the rams put yday evening and had dosed all the ewes the evening before for Fluke with all the wet weather they have suffered in last few months ,its bound to be rampant this winter in wet ground.

Anyone any scientific view or experience as to whether dosing close to ram let out is a good or bad idea ?.....I dosed the rams too.

Always do it here a week before the ram goes out. Never an issue.

Lambman

I usually do the fluke dose and mineral dosing 4+ weeks before letting ram out just so there both working in the ewes by that stage and should be getting the benefit from them.... can't see dosing close till letting the ram out causing any problems though.

DJ98

Lambman wrote: »

I usually do the fluke dose and mineral dosing 4+ weeks before letting ram out just so there both working in the ewes by that stage and should be getting the benefit from them.... can't see dosing close till letting the ram out causing any problems though.

Any problem with doing after rams let out?

DJ98

Lambman wrote: »

I usually do the fluke dose and mineral dosing 4+ weeks before letting ram out just so there both working in the ewes by that stage and should be getting the benefit from them.... can't see dosing close till letting the ram out causing any problems though.

Any problem with doing after rams let out?

Lambman

Wouldn't think so but the whole point off mineral dosing is till have the ewe in good health so she'll go in lamb quick hold for full term and might make her more prolific aswell so doing it a couple days before or after the rams go out u aren't really getting the use outta it... as for fluke dose shouldn't matter but I'd do it b4 ram goes out as its less stress on the ewes.

Western Pomise

Western Pomise wrote: »

Was just looking at the diary there....dosed the ewes with Flukiver and Bovithrive mineral dose exactly a month ago....getting them dipped tomorrow ......not letting the ram out until 25th of October.
Ewes on dry hill run at moment ...was thinking of dosing them again with Flukiver and Bovithrive a few days before letting out ram.

Can there be any negative impact on conception rates by dosing too close to ram turn out ??

Thanks for any replies.

Was chatting to vet since I posted this question,vet felt that if the sheep are on a relatively dry run there is no need to dose them within a month to 5 weeks again for Fluke.He said you really only get high incidence of Fluke on land that is wet 365 days of the year.
As regards Bovithrive (or other good mineral drenches)...they last and work in the sheeps system for over two months so no need to dose them again now for it either.

So will just be clipping ewes tails before ram let out.
When people are changing raddle colour on rams do they do it on 16th or 18th day of cycle after letting in ram �

farming93

What is the best thing to do with ewe lambs with long tails I had five tipped in thr last week that have long tails and I would prefer not to have to have long tails on these come lambing time? Usually have them all done as lambs but these were born outside and I never got around to them .

kk.man

farming93 wrote: »

What is the best thing to do with ewe lambs with long tails I had five tipped in thr last week that have long tails and I would prefer not to have to have long tails on these come lambing time? Usually have them all done as lambs but these were born outside and I never got around to them .

Lamb them and sell them with their lambs.