Methods of raising sheep

What is a Ram (buck)?

intact male

What is the weight of a ram?

150-400lbs

At what age is a ram mature?

3 years old

At what ages foes a ram reach puberty?

5-7 months

What is a Ewe?

A female regardless of parity status

How much does a ewe weight

120 - 300lbs

At what age is a ewe mature?

3 years old

What age does a ewe reach puberty?

6-7 months

What is a lamb?

immature ram or ewe

What is a wether?

A castrated male

How much does a wether weigh and at what age?

80-170 lbs at 5-8 months

What are decreasing daylight breeder?

Sheep that typically breed in the fall when daylight hours decrease

What is the typical breeding cycle?

Breed in the fall and lamb in the spring

What are out of season breeders?

Breeds that can breed outside of the normal season and lamb in the fall

What are examples of out of season breeders?

Dorset, merino, rambouillet, polypay, dorper, and katahdin

What is the average length of gestation?

140 - 153 days

What is different about white faced breeds gestation length?

It might be slightly longer

What is the litter size?

single, twins or triplets

What breed of sheep is known for having large litters of 5-7 lambs?

Finn sheep

What is the approximate birth weight of a lamb?

5-14lbs

At what age should you dock tails?

1 week of age

At what age should you castrate male lambs

1-4+ weeks of age

What is the ethnic market?

Where lambs are sold for the ethnic market and may not have their tails docked or be castrated

What is the typical age to wean lambs

6-10 weeks

What vaccination should you give at weaning time?

CDT booster

What is the typical life expectancy of a sheep?

8-12 years

What are the different types of sheep?

Meat, wool, hair, dairy and fur

What are other uses for sheep?

Power, fuel, fertilizer, landscape management, science, hides/leather and lanolin

How many sheep where there in the 1800s

7 million head

In 1845 what state had 25% of the US sheep population?

New York

What what the peak population of sheep in 1945?

56 million head

what is the current population of sheep?

5.033 million head

In 1917 - 2003 how much did the sheep population decrease by?

56%

what was the historical emphasis of sheep used for?

wool production

what is the current emphasis of sheep used for?

Meat production

How many sheep are in the New England states?

47,000 sheep

In 1975 -2004 how much did the new England sheep population increase by?

19%

What is the average amount of lamb consumed compared with other meats?

1.7lbs

Where is lamb consumed the most

East coast and west coast

What months are peak lamb harvest

march and april

Why is lamb in such high demand in the spring?

Because of holidays and different religious observances (easter, Passover and Ramadan)

What are the primal cuts of sheep?

leg, loin, rack, shoulder

What is carcass quality based on?

Age, conformation, flank streaking

What are the quality grades of lamb and yearling mutton?

Prime, choice, good and utility

What are the quality grades for mutton

Choice, good, utility, and cull

What is lamb?

From a sheep less then 1 year of age

How many break joints does lamb have?

2

What is the shape of a lambs rib?

round with red edges

What color is the muscle of lamb?

reddish pink

what is yearling mutton?

meat from a sheep 12- 24 months of age

How many break joints and spool joints does yearling mutton have?

1 break and 1 spool joint or 2 spool joints

What do the ribs of yearling mutton look like

flat and white

What is mutton?

24+ months of age

How many spool joints does mutton have

2 spool joints

What do the ribs of mutton look like?

Wide, flat and white

What color is the muscle of mutton?

dark red

What is flank streaking?

Visible steaks or lines of fat in the flank muscle

what is primary flank?

The main or first area or flank fat streaking used when evaluating the carcass

what is secondary flank

Additional area of flank that can be examined to evaluate fat distribution

What is yield grade?

Estimates the amount of closely trimmed retail meat obtained from the four major cuts

What is the range of yield grade

1 (highest yield less fat) - 5 (low yield most fat)

What is the formula of yield grade

(10 x last rib backfat) + 0.4

How many stomachs do sheep have?

one stomach but 4 compartments

What are the 4 stomach compartments?

rumen, reticulum, omasum, abomasum

What did sheep evolve to digest

forages (grasses and legumes)

What factors impact the quality of forages?

Plant maturity at harvest

What are different sources of energy for sheep?

Corn, barley, sorghum and oats

What does energy do for sheep?

gives energy for growth maintenance, reproduction and production

What does protein do for sheep?

Muscle growth, tissue repair and producton

What are examples of protein ingredients?

soybean meal, dried distillers grains, corn gluten feed, corn gluten meal, brewers grains and alfalfa meal

What do minerals do for sheep?

support bone development, muscle function, growth and overall heath

What are minerals important for sheep?

Ca, P, K, Na, Cl, Co, Mo, S and Se

What are different fat soluble vitamins

A, D, E, K

What are water soluble Vitamins

B complex and C

What vitamins do rumen microbes generally synthesize?

B complex and K

What vitamin is synthesized by heathy adult sheep?

C

What is the most important nutrient for sheep?

Water

Why is water important?

Needed for digestion, temperature regulation and normal body functions

What is the goal of least cost feeding in sheep?

Allow sheep to graze, use pasture and forage to meet most nutritional needs and provide supplements when necessary

What mineral is toxic to sheep?

copper

What factors affect copper susceptibility?

Breed, age, heath status, levels of other minerals in the diet, amounts of feed additives

what sheep are most susceptible to copper toxicity?

Medium wool breeds (texel)

What sheep have intermediate susceptibility to copper toxicity?

Fine wool sheep

What sheep are the most resistant to copper toxisisty?

Finn sheep

What are the two types of copper toxicity?

Acute and chronic

What is acute copper toxicity?

Occurs quickly after ingestion of a large amount of copper

What is chronic copper toxicity?

Occurs over weeks or months from being fed diets higher in copper levels that required in diet

Why are sheep susceptible to copper?

store copper in the liver and excrete it poorly, causing it to accumulate. When the liver becomes saturated, stress can trigger a sudden release of copper into the bloodstream, destroying red blood cells, damaging tissues, and potentially causing death.

What minerals prevent copper toxicity?

Mo and S

How does Mo and S prevent copper absorption?

Binds copper in the but reducing its absorption increasing copper excretion

What is a ionophore?

Increase the efficiency of copper absorption

What are examples of ionophores?

rumensin and bovatec

What is the dietary copper requirement?

4-8 ppm but depends on breed sulfur and molybdenum levels

How much Mo should you add to prevent copper toxicity?

3ppm

What can high levels of Mo cause?

Copper deficiency

How much copper can every 3ppm of Mo tolerate

20ppm

What can you do to prevent copper toxicity?

Don't feed poultry or swine feed, check feed labels, test feed and forages, avoid contaminated pasture where poultry and swine waste, supplement Mo and preform postmortems

How many incisors do sheep have in their top jaw?

none, they have a dental pad (cartilage)

Where and how many incisors does yearling sheep have

On the mandible 4 pairs (8 total)

How many teeth do sheep loose per year?

One pair per year from the middle of the mouth