Getting Started with Sheep
We had tossed around the thought of someday raising sheep for a while. We didn’t really know what that would actually be like, we just liked the idea. We went into a rabbit hole learning about sheep - and found that the answers we unearthed, brought more questions and intrigue.
How do you raise sheep?
What kind of sheep do we want?
How do you source your sheep?
What do we need to care for them?
What else do I need to learn?
Below are some of our learnings and decisions that led us to obtaining and raising sheep, maybe this will be helpful to someone, but take everything with a grain of salt, everyone’s needs are different.
How do you raise sheep?
We started by researching how to raise sheep. I read Living with Sheep by Chuck Wooster, which is a book I highly recommend for anyone interested in getting into sheep, as he covers different methods and necessities. I read blogs from Kim Goodling for New Shepherds, which were very helpful for breaking down the basics, and getting you excited about raising sheep. I read Sheep 201: A Beginner’s Guide to Raising Sheep, which honestly covers everything and is a great one-stop-shop resource for information. And we started to watch hours and hours of YouTube. From Greg Judy for raising hair sheep on pasture, to Sheepishly Me for lambing at scale. There were loads of sheep-raising videos from small homesteaders just starting out, but we wanted to learn from producers who had mastered their operations and were raising sheep at scale, even if that wasn’t part of our plan. From here, we were able to make a few decisions on how we would like to start raising sheep.
Start with 5-6 sheep to get our feet wet, and source locally from a shepherd that uses management practices we want to use
Do a grass-fed operation - using pasture as the feed source in the warm months, and hay as the feed source in the winter months
Use electric netting for fencing and rotationally graze sheep, moving them every 1-3 days to avoid parasite issues, and for the health of the sheep and pasture
Overwinter in a barn since NY can get quite a bit of snow accumulation and get pretty cold
Do a bedded pack in the winter shelter vs. cleaning it out regularly to build up additional warmth and make our lives easier in the bitter cold
Only deworm as needed to protect parasite resistance - determine need by monitoring stool (should be pebbly, not liquid/scoured), and FAMACHA (measuring the amount of blood in their mucus membranes by color)
**Be careful when using anything meant/designed for goats for sheep, they are closely related but sheep cannot have anywhere near the same amount of copper that goats can and it will cause copper toxicity, anything meant for goats that contains copper should not be used
What kind of sheep do we want?
Now that we know how we want to raise sheep, we started researching sheep breeds. There are so many wonderful breeds of sheep out there, that it really is choosing the breed that fits your needs best. At first, we were just looking at black breeds of sheep, because I had this vision of a black herd of sheep. But ultimately, as new shepherds, our goal was to make this transition as smooth as we could. We decided we wanted to minimize necessary inputs and complications. This helped us determine what we were looking for, and what we wanted to do with sheep.
To raise them to breed and for meat. We didn’t just want to raise sheep as feeders for meat, we wanted to breed them and breed quality animals as breeding stock
A medium-sized breed, not too large to handle if needed, but not too small that it would still be a valuable venture
A breed that is polled (no horns), and a breed that doesn’t require tail docking (either a naturally short tail, or a hair breed) to make handling, and breeding sheep easier
A hair sheep breed so we wouldn’t need to worry about shearing them ourselves, hiring a shearer for a small flock, or keeping wool in good condition (we are still interested in a wool breed down the line, but not yet)
A breed that is common enough to be able to source new genetics at a price we can manage and would do well in our area
With that in mind, we dwindled it down to Katahdin, Dorper, Barbados Blackbelly, and St. Croix for hair sheep. And ultimately landed on Katahdins for their parasite resistance, mothering, size, temperament, and color variety.
How should we source our sheep?
So great, we know that we want to raise Katahdin hair sheep, but where can we get them to ensure I have a good start to raising sheep? There are a couple of things to consider, but the recommendation for having the best start is to buy from a local breeder that uses the same management practices you hope to use, not from a sale barn or auction. So based on how we wanted to raise sheep and what we wanted to raise, and advice/recommendations from mentors with experience raising and breeding sheep in the ways we were interested in, we were able to outline criteria when looking for our starter flock.
A local source, so we know the animals are well adapted to the area
Source from 1-2 farms to reduce the exchange of disease/ailments. One farm for ewes, one farm for rams at max to start, preferably all from one farm if we could find one with unrelated stock.
In the light of reducing dealing with disease/ailments - looking to buy stock from a farm that follows good biosecurity measures. Farms that either test for the key diseases (OPP, Johnes, CL) upon adding new members to the flock or a portion of the flock annually. Closed flocks that only bring in new rams or minimally add new animals from limited, reputable sources.
We were looking to raise sheep solely on grass/forage, so wanted to buy stock that is grass/forage-based. Sure, grain sheep can do fine on this system, but better to be sure they will work with your management plan to start. Not everyone is honest about this one, do your research.
We wanted to fence them in electric fencing, so wanted to buy sheep that are trained/used to electric fencing. The last thing we wanted to do was chase sheep around unnecessarily before we knew how to or have the sheep hurt themselves in electric fencing.
Registered vs commercial? We were planning to raise breeding stock, so registered animals seemed like a great investment - but for just starting out, good commercial sheep, or partially recorded sheep felt just as good for a lower cost. We can always upbreed/upgrade our stock.
Since we wanted to breed sheep, we decided to start with older ewes, not first-time mothers. We wanted ewes that already knew what they were doing since we did not.
Buy healthy animals from a reputable breeder. At this point, we didn’t know what a healthy sheep necessarily looked like.
Start with the obvious - alert, bright-eyed, in good condition based on when they last lambed, aren’t limping, do not have abscesses.
Ideally, make sure they have sound udders, pink eyes, a clean rear-end, sound feet, enough teeth, and a normal bite.
Take a look at what a sheep should look like and compare - shoot for a straight back, straight legs, meat on the hind end, they shouldn’t look gawky or frail and bony.
What do we need to care for them?
So we have determined how we want to raise sheep, what we want to raise, and how we want to source our sheep - so now what do I need to acquire to be able to raise and breed sheep following the management practices we plan to use in our area?
Fencing:
Electric netting - at least 2 rolls to make moves easier (so you can set up their next paddock while still keeping them in their previous paddock), ideally 4 rolls to keep the breeding ram in a separate group outside of breeding season
Fence charging method - portable energizer, grounding rod, fence tester, extra batteries, a battery charger
Weed wacker or lawn mower to clear a path for the netting
Shelter:
A portable shelter for the pasture during growing months
A permanent winter shelter (at least 3 sided)
**make sure you are still getting good airflow, or build that into your plan for the shelter
Feed & Water:
A way to get water to the pasture - a portable stock tank for water, a portable water tank, a BPA-free hose
Portable mineral troth for free choice sheep loose minerals (not a mineral or salt block, as it’s too hard on their teeth and typically not designed for sheep), loose salt to mix in (if not pre-mixed), baking soda
Feed buckets and scoopers
Hay feeder and hay for winter
A way to heat the water in the winter so it doesn’t freeze - troth heater, heated stock tank, heated buckets
General/Medical Supplies:
Hoof shears
Vetericyn for wound care
Safeguard for deworming as needed (Cydectin, Ivermectin, Valbazen are also good to keep on hand)
Halter, sheep crook
Additional meds to keep on hand
Lambing Kit:
Iodine to dip navels
Stomach tube, bottle, nipples, colostrum (needed within the first hour or so that they are born - if mom isn’t providing them milk for any reason, this needs to be given), milk replacer (if you need to bottle feed them after 48 hours)
Gloves and lubricant
CDT and needles (this is the only vaccination we do - it’s recommended to give the ewes their booster 3 weeks before they are due if possible to provide the lambs immunity from the start)
Ear tags and ear tag applicator
Bander and rubberbands (if you plan to castrate - this is just one castration method)
Prolapse harness or spoon
Propylene glycol and CMPK (in case of pregnancy toxemia or milk fever)
Lamb sweaters, heat lamp
Lamb saver, nutridrench, vitamins, selenium
Lamb sling, digital hanging scale (to weigh lambs and growth)
Lambing jug set up (for the first 24-48 hrs to allow them to bond)
What else do we need to learn?
So now we have made the decisions, learned the basics, have a list of items to acquire when we obtain sheep, and feel good to bring home sheep on the farm. What else from here do we need to learn? A lot of it will be learning as you go - but there are items that are definitely need to know and do within the first year to prepare for.
How to handle sheep
tips for approaching, corralling, catching, and restraining sheep
tips for moving sheep from one pasture to another (bucket training)
How to administer care for sheep
How to give shots and vaccines - subcutaneous and intramuscular
How to orally drench
How to trim hooves
How to monitor parasites
Learn about the different types of parasites and deworming options and practices
FAMACHA training - how to check and monitor FAMACHA
Additional signs of parasites - monitoring stools, fecal testing
About common diseases/ailments
Facebook groups are a good source to become more aware of what other people deal with often, and how other shepherds advise handling it - take these with a grain of salt
Obtain a couple of books that detail what to look for, how to handle common diseases/ailments
What to expect during lambing
How to prepare for lambing
What correct presentation and birthing look like
How long labor should take, how long after the water bag to expect lambs
What it looks like if there are multiples
How long to expect between lambs if there are multiples
When to intervene vs let the ewe do the work
How to intervene if necessary
After the lamb is born what to do
What to expect from the mom and lamb to ensure the best start