Store Lambs

If building up slowly, how does a creep feeder work? Do you just fill feeder and leave in? I genuinely don’t know. I was thinking of buying those green plastic sturdy ones from Glanbia. They’re about €380.

I had 60 ewe lambs outside on a poorish run with access to ad lib meal. Gave them a bale to pick at aswell. The silage was top quality, took them 3 weeks to go through it, the bale lasted that long which was suprising.

Factories will pay to 23kg dead weight but at there weight they will more than likely kill out over 25 kg and ull be penalized. Best bet is mart and they will make over 160 euro now. Seen ones in athenry and ballina mart that weight and ewe hoggets' making 165 euro this week. If enough grass id wait till after st patricks day/first week of april. Ramadan starts 1st april so there will be demand for that and easter so the price will most likely be better, but sell them at the mart factories will screw you with penalties.

Is chopped fodder beet an option for fattening lambs? Meal is going to be mad next year.

Bit early alright, could be lucky and find a few but I suspect you would pay through the nose for them now and lambs at €8.5/kg. If I was you and you just needed something to keep the grass down cull ewes might be a better option but this time of year you would want them sheared and they also could be hard found.

Just went onto LSL after I seen your posts not many store lambs in Stanolar mart this evening, good few ewes with lambs though. There still knocking about at around €200 a piece depending on age and strength of lamb, but if I was you I look for ewes already sheared save you the hassle - 10 ewes fleeces at 2kg a fleece wouldn't even get you and your missus a 99 cone.

Are stores a good trade this year? I haven't been in the mart yet.

Are lads feeding much meal at the minute? Only bought 30 this year as I've too many cattle. Was thinking of feeding 3 bags a week for 2 months. What are lads paying for bagged meal at the minute? The grass has been great so far.

Yeah will be interesting to see the hogget carryover this year

Have a few light lambs around 33-35 kgs that i had hoped to let run on and not meal them as i have plenty of grass....but think i will have to bite the bullet and start feeding them . When would i want to have them gone by before they would be classed as hoggets in the factory, i suppose it would be just before early spring lambs come in, would i be right thinking that would be before easter approx

Someone here may correct me if I'm wrong put anything come 1st of Jan 2023 will be classed as Hogget's (unless they are new season spring lambs), even though they realistically may still be lambs in age. You will see factories instead of quoting for lambs they will be quoting for hogget's but they will still be the same price up until march time when they will have a higher quote for new season (spring lambs).

If they have a frame and are sizey at that weight then you could finish them on meal and get them to good dead weight kgs. If they are small then it would be best to wait let them build a frame on grass, then finish indoor come ferbuary/march for 6-8 weeks on meal and pray that hogeet price starts to rise with Easter/Ramadan trade which it may not with the carryover of lambs due to meal prices this year.

Is it ok to finish hoggets on hi maize cattle ration? I’ve only 30 and will be feeding a few bullocks as well. Just out of pure handiest. It’s the copper I’m anxious about.

I've a few store lambs that I bought in and are not thriving. I can feel the bone on their backs and they are loosing a little wool. All lowland type. What is this a sign of? They've been dosed with wormer and fluke. Started feeding meal last week.