Sheep

Jobi-Wan Kenobi

Jobi-Wan Kenobi

Every Day Is A School Day
Oct 10, 2001
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Rotherham, South Yorks
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Does anyone keep a few sheep?

I'm looking to get a couple of ewe's to take lambs from and to put on my pony paddocks from time to time.

BUT I'm a first time sheep keeper so any advice on licences, problems/ ailments, breeds (preferably rare breed), advice forums (more New Sheep Keeper than NR) etc welcome!

Thanks :)
 
all id say is make sure you have good fencing as sheep are escape artists! one farmer near me had to put a trianguar bit of wood round the sheeps head to stop it getting through the fence as it kept escaping onto main road!!!
 
As far as i'm aware you need a licence to move them from place to place? Also need regular worming (and they aren't overly keen on this.. so if you're little like me you'll need some help catching them because they're stronger than they look!) They also need their feet trimming, keeping an eye out for maggots on their back ends, shearing, tagging etc. IMO more aggravation than they're worth. They are supposed to be good at keeping worms down when kept alongside horses though. I've always been a cow person myself, much nicer creatures..
 
you might be better seeing if you can borrow some from farmers when you need them. you do need licences, and also think about the FMD this year -your ponies would have been stuck in their fields if you were in the exclusion zone. someone asked something similar on saddle-up recently, and a fair few people who've had or have sheep all said the same as wildponies - more trouble than it's worth unless it's a business.
 
There is ALWAYS a good reason a breed is on the rare list! ;) Shetland sheep and Shetland cows a case in point! Shetland sheep can jump like a stag, you need goat fencing to keep them in....or out!

The paperwork and bumph from the ministry to keep 2 sheep is a nightmare.

Cows are like horses, they hate being alone.
 
Borrowing sheep is a good idea but I was hoping to use the lambs for meat for my own purposes. Obviously I realise that this is kinda counterproductive of the rare breeds side but it's a fine balance I guess and am not 100% set on any one breed. I really am at the investigatory stage of it all so all opinions and ideas are welcome, horse owner or not.
 
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You're far better to buy in a few weaned lambs every year - and fatten them or borrow a few and buy a meat lamb off the farmer at the end of the year. Don't bother with the breeding side of it - worse than horses!!:rolleyes: I used to breed pedigree suffolk sheep - pain in the arse!!! They die at the drop of a hat, go lame every day on a different foot etc they are quite expensive time consuming creatures, especially at lambing time!!!:D:rolleyes:
 
I've got three Wiltshire Horns grazing with my horses. I chose this rare breed because they don't need shearing and very rarely suffer from fly strike.

Your land has to be registered with defra and you also need to contact them to get a flock number for the sheep. Once they arrive, you have 3 days to complete your part of the movement document that the previous owner will bring with him/her. The white copy has to be sent to the local authority and the pink copy kept for your records.

Hope this helps. :)
 
Shetland sheep don't need shearing either, they have naturally short tails so no need for docking and you don't get the flystrike either.....but the Moorit ones especially, remain very, VERY wild and flighty, and can jump a sheepnet from a standstill.

A neighbour specialises in moorits, he has a huge flock book flock of them, he says they'd rather starve than come up for food with a human in sight.

You really need a grip dog ( as they are called here) that are trained to round them up and when they don't, as is another of their characteristics, the dog is trained to grip them by the wool and hold on to them for you.
 
This is great guys thanks, really informative!!
Are there any sheepy forums that you know of or could recommend so I can sit and watch and learn a bit.
I'm hoping to get them in the spring so there's no rush, I'd rather do the research first and get it right.

:)
 
The best research you can do is on the DEFRA website as they will give you far, far more trouble than the sheep themselves ever will. ;)

The man from the ministry turned up unannounced on my doorstep once to see cattle eartags. It was winter so he assumed all my cows would be in. (I keep my cows the same way I keep my horses- as individuals) it was a nice day so they were out in the sunshine. I had the Aga in bits and was sweeping the lum. dust, soot and chimney rods everywhere, and the Aga in its component parts.

He really was quite insistent that he had come to see the tags, so I told him the cows were there, as was the dog, if he wanted to see tags, he was to take the dog and get them in himself as I was busy. "I don't have to give you notice" was his mantra. No they don't, but if they want to see the ear tags it might be helpful to tell me so I don't put them out. It was when I advanced on him with chimney rod and brush in hand he got the message and made an appointment for the next morning. They do the same with wanting to count hill sheep. They ohone you at 4pm on a Monday night and inform you they are coming to count hill sheep and 9 am the next morning......it takes 5 days to properly gather the hill, it's several 10s of thousands of acres.

So just be careful what you ask the ministry to get involved with and stand your ground when they make silly statements or "requests"
 
Jacob sheep are lovely, and i believe they are one of the oldest breeds ever...
 
Lots of handlebars to get a grip on too. Sheep without handlebars are more difficult than ones with.
 
India you decided to get some wiltshire horns then, I seem to recall posting on your thread when you first asked about them, and I joined NR. Hope your getting on with them okay. Oh and by the way they are no longer on the rare breed list, they are now classed as traditional. There are too many now for them to be rare.

JoF, India has given some good advice on movement. You should contact your local trading standards & defra offices. You do need to get a holding number. I think trading standards can give you that. If the land has previously had sheep or cattle on it then it may already have one.

If you want a cow then I recommend a dexter, short or long legged. If you have one or two they are usally quite docile. More than seven and they return to being a herd animal. Of course they eat the same amount as a horse so you have to bear that in mind. But you can have them as a house cow for milk and you can do your own beef.

Its 2 and a 1/2 sheep to 1 cow if I remember rightly when you talk about grazing.

Sheep, well I have 60 wiltshire horns, its a pity your not closer cos I am looking to sell some ewe lambs. If your down my way then you are welcome to have a look.

All sheep keepers will tell you that sheep have a will to die, if there gonna get sick they will. To be honest though I haven't lost that many in the 7 years I have been keeping them. They don't cost a fortune either. A lot less than keeping a horse in some respects.

Wiltshire horn websitehttp://wiltshirehorn.org.uk/ Go on there and have a look at the list of members section for your area and ring a few up, to ask if you can go and look at the sheep.

No shearing required, less fly strike probs. Slow maturing.

Horns have advantages/disadvantages.
You have something to get hold of.
Can get caught up.
If you use electric fencing you have more chance of keeping them in than woolly things like Suffolks.

You can get what they call Easycare sheep, which are wiltshire horns without the horns. I think they are a little smaller than the wiltshire horns, and I saw some and wasn't to impressed.

Wiltshire horn meat is very lean, you don't get much fat when you cook a leg of lamb. Not like you do with some breeds. Mine are heading for the freezer in the next few weeks and they were born in March time. Mind I don't push mine on at all. I have done some at 18 months old and the meat is lovely and tender still, and more fuller flavoured.

You need to decide on how much spare grass you have and how many sheep you want to keep and for how long.

I am at work now and my lunch break is nearly over, but if you want some more advice I will be happy to advice you. Sorry if this post is a bit bitty, its just I was rushing to type it before the boss sees. Please feel free to PM me, I can post some pics of the wilts tonight if you want.

Have a look at my pic link below, thats 'Black Foot' soon to be in the freezer, but he was about two months when I took that.
 
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