Our Almost Hands off Lambing Method

I cannot remember where, but I once read a quote from an older shepherd on lambing. He said something like this; “The best thing to do during lambing season is to go on vacation”. We have incurred several occasions in which our interventions led to unfavorable outcomes and other times where our help has saved lambs. From our experience, we have learned to observe and only intervene if absolutely necessary.

The hardy hair sheep we raise rarely need any assistance. In fact, we have never had to assist in an actual birth. Even the first time ewes seem to have no trouble delivering their lambs.

The biggest threat to lambing success is weather. While our sheep are very hardy, the day a lamb is born they are extremely vulnerable. They can get chilled very easily while they are still wet. Rain or wind on a chilly day exasperates this issue. On the coldest of days, we step in to dry and warm new lambs. We have brought the lambs indoors to dry with towels or even a hair dryer. Putting them in front of a wood stove is also helpful. We have also had success with the Premier Lamb and Kid Covers. They can help keep the lamb just enough warmer to survive a cold day. After a day or two, our lambs can usually handle any temperature that the mature ewes can handle. Even with the best care, we have still lost lambs on cold days. To mitigate this we separate our rams to avoid December or January lambs. This works well in our climate as those months are the worst.

Another issue we have faced is when a ewe will not feed one of her lambs. In these cases, we like to observe the ewe unseen as much as possible. Sometimes a ewe just doesn’t like to feed her baby with watching eyes. A lamb needs colostrum within 12-18 hours of birth. If I do not observe feeding, we go ahead and pull the lamb. We use a pre prepared colostrum from the farm store right away. A syringe is great for newborn lambs. We switch the lambs to a homemade formula within a couple days. The lambs usually reside in the house with us for a week and then move to a stock tank in the sheep barn. After a month or so, they are usually big enough to join the flock. Bottle feeding lambs is a really rewarding task and there’s not much cuter than a bottle lamb that follows you everywhere. However, it is so labor intensive that we usually cull ewes that do not feed their lambs.

After lambs are born, we apply iodine to their navels to prevent tetanus infection. We also take this time to check the lambs and record information about their in our lambing logs.

That’s about it! Our simple way of navigating lambing season. Feel free to comment with any specific questions.

How we raise sheep 100% on grass

Sheep are the best livestock to manage on grass. They aren’t terribly picky and are easy to move around. We raise a mixture of Katahdin, Dorper and St. Croix sheep. They are very hardy sheep in a variety of climates and are non selective browsers. We have found that daily moves in smaller enclosures are the best for our sheep flock.

Our farm is 30 acres with about 20 acres of usable grazing land. We do not have a perimeter fence. We use Premier Electric Sheep netting. Four sets of the fence are sufficient for our needs. We keep them in two joined together and then move them into the next paddock. There are no shelters in our paddocks. We have experimented with different types of shelter and haven’t found one that works for us. Kansas winds easily blow shelters away and a heavy shelter is too challenging for daily moves. During the summer heat, we prioritize paddocks with natural shade.

During the winter months, we bring the sheep to a barn and permanent paddock. There, they eat hay and enjoy the shelter of the barn. While out on pasture, we do need to haul water. We use a water tank in the back of our Kawasaki Mule UTV.

Our fence is electrified with a deep cycle battery inside of an old cooler to protect it from the elements. It is connected to the fence and grounding rod. If you can find a cooler with wheels, that makes moving much easier. The cooler can be quite heavy.

I spend 1-2 hours caring for our grass fed sheep on pasture each day. This is one of the most enjoyable parts of my day. We do it together as a family and enjoy the peace and beauty of grazing animals.

Blog Post Title One

It all begins with an idea. Maybe you want to launch a business. Maybe you want to turn a hobby into something more. Or maybe you have a creative project to share with the world. Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.

Don’t worry about sounding professional. Sound like you. There are over 1.5 billion websites out there, but your story is what’s going to separate this one from the rest. If you read the words back and don’t hear your own voice in your head, that’s a good sign you still have more work to do.

Be clear, be confident and don’t overthink it. The beauty of your story is that it’s going to continue to evolve and your site can evolve with it. Your goal should be to make it feel right for right now. Later will take care of itself. It always does.

Blog Post Title Two

It all begins with an idea. Maybe you want to launch a business. Maybe you want to turn a hobby into something more. Or maybe you have a creative project to share with the world. Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.

Don’t worry about sounding professional. Sound like you. There are over 1.5 billion websites out there, but your story is what’s going to separate this one from the rest. If you read the words back and don’t hear your own voice in your head, that’s a good sign you still have more work to do.

Be clear, be confident and don’t overthink it. The beauty of your story is that it’s going to continue to evolve and your site can evolve with it. Your goal should be to make it feel right for right now. Later will take care of itself. It always does.

Blog Post Title Three

It all begins with an idea. Maybe you want to launch a business. Maybe you want to turn a hobby into something more. Or maybe you have a creative project to share with the world. Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.

Don’t worry about sounding professional. Sound like you. There are over 1.5 billion websites out there, but your story is what’s going to separate this one from the rest. If you read the words back and don’t hear your own voice in your head, that’s a good sign you still have more work to do.

Be clear, be confident and don’t overthink it. The beauty of your story is that it’s going to continue to evolve and your site can evolve with it. Your goal should be to make it feel right for right now. Later will take care of itself. It always does.

Blog Post Title Four

It all begins with an idea. Maybe you want to launch a business. Maybe you want to turn a hobby into something more. Or maybe you have a creative project to share with the world. Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.

Don’t worry about sounding professional. Sound like you. There are over 1.5 billion websites out there, but your story is what’s going to separate this one from the rest. If you read the words back and don’t hear your own voice in your head, that’s a good sign you still have more work to do.

Be clear, be confident and don’t overthink it. The beauty of your story is that it’s going to continue to evolve and your site can evolve with it. Your goal should be to make it feel right for right now. Later will take care of itself. It always does.