Sheep - would I be mad to....

[PinkvSantaboots]

I wouldn't have sheep or pigs or anything really i would just get the grass mowed to keep it down much easier

I look after my friends horses that live out in a field belonging to a house they have 2 pigs and I have to go in there pen for the water supply, honestly they absolutely stink I wouldn't want them near my house.

 

[Moobli]

Sheep are fantastic escape artists. We’ve had them for a few winters at our farm and I spend a lot of time herding them back where they should be and ringing the farmer to come and sort out his fallen fencing!

I hear this so often but as well as the 3500 hill sheep we care for, I have my own small flocks of Hebrideans and Herdwicks (both known to be escape artists) but none of mine have ever escaped and fingers crossed none have died yet either (and my Herdys are six years old). They are in fields with just regular rylock sheep fencing.

 

[teacups]

We borrow sheep every now and then and they are fine to keep in, but need three strands of electric rather than just the two which keep the horse contained.

I was given the advice that Welsh mountain sheep are good as they will eat more of the weeds etc. - also someone nearby got some sheep to keep her grass down and this breed is handy in that they don’t eat bark, so won’t damage trees. Can’t remember the name of the breed right now…

ETA forgot to say: two acres next to your house - fabulous! How exciting.

 

[twiggy2]

Borrow about 50 sheep in spring, give them 4-5 days on it and you’ll have a) perfect bare grass, and b) no ragwort at all that summer.

I don’t know the science behind this but it’s true. I often divert my OH’s sheep to my pony fields in spring for this reason.

There is no science behind it, sheep eat ragwort when it is the rosette stage, we shepherd 17500 acres and there is no ragwort except in my garden, plenty on the other side of the river where there are no sheep.

 

[Nudibranch]

Just a quick note - vaccinations aren't for transmissible diseases on the whole. They are for clostridial diseases (eg tetanus) and pneumonia, etc. Lots of things which come from the soil rather than other sheep so if you want to reduce the chances of them randomly dying, vaccines do help.

 

[Patterdale]

There is no science behind it, sheep eat ragwort when it is the rosette stage, we shepherd 17500 acres and there is no ragwort except in my garden, plenty on the other side of the river where there are no sheep.

But I put them on before it’s even at rosette stage. And if that was the only reason then it would come back as I only put them on for a few days end of winter.

There’s definitely a reason that ragwort grows where horses are, and not where sheep are, and it can’t be as simple as them eating it for reasons stated above.

Also you can have a field that has been left and never had horses on - no ragwort. Then put horses on and ragwort comes. Seen it many times!

 

[meleeka]

But I put them on before it’s even at rosette stage. And if that was the only reason then it would come back as I only put them on for a few days end of winter.

There’s definitely a reason that ragwort grows where horses are, and not where sheep are, and it can’t be as simple as them eating it for reasons stated above.

Also you can have a field that has been left and never had horses on - no ragwort. Then put horses on and ragwort comes. Seen it many times!

I think it’s to do with how short horses graze, so ragwort gets a chance to invade grass.

 

[Errin Paddywack]

Also you can have a field that has been left and never had horses on - no ragwort. Then put horses on and ragwort comes. Seen it many times!

You can also have land that has never seen horses and been cultivated for years and then just left with trees planted and that becomes covered in ragwort yet none on surrounding fields or roadsides for it to have migrated from. Sadly no cinnabar moth caterpillars either so no benefit.

 

[rabatsa]

This year we had no ragwort but lots of cinnabar moths and caterpillars. The little owls feasted on the adult moths over summer.

 

[Widgeon]

i would just get the grass mowed to keep it down much easier

I wish it was that easy but it's currently pretty lumpy bumpy, so I'm not sure I can get the ride-on over it, and it's an odd shape with dozens of corners, so would be a PITA to top with a proper tractor. Over time I'm sure I can flatten it out though.

 

[ElvisandTilly]

I have 5 pet sheep. 2 of them are texel crosses that my brother gave me for Christmas! They were hand reared so are very friendly! The other 3 are valais black nose that we bought. Went for 1 and ended up with 3! All lovely and friendly. They eat some of the docks and nettles so I’m happy! lol! They are so very entertaining! Join Sheep As Pets on Facebook such a great source of advice, hints and tips! Especially for me as a rookie sheep farmer!

 

[Widgeon]

The other 3 are valais black nose that we bought.

Ooh you must be very rich Valais blacknose are gorgeous! But my poor husband would probably collapse if I told him I wanted three sheep at a grand a pop.

Thanks for the FB group tip, I'll join that, just in case we do end up with a few of our own......

 

[Snow Falcon]

@ElvisandTilly pics please. I love VBN

 

[Widgeon]

@ElvisandTilly pics please. I love VBN

Oh my goodness yes! Pictures immediately please @ElvisandTilly !

 

[ElvisandTilly]

Ooh you must be very rich Valais blacknose are gorgeous! But my poor husband would probably collapse if I told him I wanted three sheep at a grand a pop.

Thanks for the FB group tip, I'll join that, just in case we do end up with a few of our own......

I will let you into a little secret!…….. the VBN I bought are pure bred but not marked very well so they are wethers and were very reasonably priced! Lowest was £100 and most we paid for the better marked was £200! Much cheaper than the alpaca’s my husband wanted! We ended up on The Yorkshire Vet with the gang! lol!

 

[ElvisandTilly]

@ElvisandTilly pics please. I love VBN

Oh my goodness yes! Pictures immediately please @ElvisandTilly !

I have loads of pictures but they won’t upload on here. How do you upload photos on here? Says they are too big to upload.

 

[ElvisandTilly]

Sussed photo file size so here they all are! Junior, Jackson, Jethro, Blueberry & Muffin!

 

[Snow Falcon]

Easiest way is to screenshot them then post.

Eagerly awaiting pics of cute sheep!!

 

[Snow Falcon]

Yay!! Cuties. Has that episode been aired yet?

 

[ElvisandTilly]

Yeah it’s aired. Was series 16 episode 12! I said some daft bits but it was worth the chuckles! They called me ‘rookie sheep farmer!’ lol!

 

[Widgeon]

I will let you into a little secret!…….. the VBN I bought are pure bred but not marked very well so they are wethers and were very reasonably priced! Lowest was £100 and most we paid for the better marked was £200!

Oh my goodness.....you did get lucky!! I don't rate my chances though with a "wanted, Valais Blacknose, the worse marked the better" ad....

Yours are absolutely flipping adorable

 

[Widgeon]

Whoops! Three Shetland ewes. They're currently confined to a small section of the paddock until we've got time to check and upgrade the fencing of the rest. We unloaded them yesterday and they were still there this morning....so that's a good start, right?

 

[Errin Paddywack]

Looking forward to hearing more about these girls.

 

[Ratface]

Lovely. But just biding their time and lulling you into a false sense of security . . .

 

[Widgeon]

Lovely. But just biding their time and lulling you into a false sense of security . . .

So we've already had to wrestle them to the ground and return them to their paddock - I've just come back to my desk after a particularly fun lunch break - but I am 99% certain that was because a neighbour had untied the gate to go and catch his dog, and not tied it back up. I have never yet met a sheep that could untie knots and leave the baler twine on the far side of the field Padlocks and chains will be arriving tomorrow!*

*this is easier than trying to persuade the neighbour not to let his dogs in the field anymore

 

[Ratface]

I suppose that you could have a quiet word with your neighbour about what happens (legally) to dogs who worry sheep?
It might concentrate his mind more than it seems to be able to at present.
However, going forward, it risks the neighbour becoming rather frosty with you.

 

[Widgeon]

I suppose that you could have a quiet word with your neighbour about what happens (legally) to dogs who worry sheep?
It might concentrate his mind more than it seems to be able to at present.
However, going forward, it risks the neighbour becoming rather frosty with you.

If it was anyone else I would, but in this case it's not worth it - the dogs are actually okay with sheep, and the neighbour (who we get on with well) is related to our landlord. Also, there is theoretically a tiny possibility that maybe the sheep opened the gate themselves (in my mind, a REALLY tiny possibility - it was knotted!) so it's not worth making a fuss. I'll just chain the gate shut and any further escapes will have to be via high jump! They were right little horrors to put back though, I think they'd rather have died than gone back through that gate. It didn't help that our own dog was having a hysterical meltdown in the barn over a) the excitement, and b) being tied up and not allowed to join in the fun. Total chaos all round. Hopefully there won't be a repeat performance tomorrow before the Amazon delivery driver can get here. If there is, I'll sell tickets.

 

[Arzada]

Total chaos all round. Hopefully there won't be a repeat performance tomorrow before the Amazon delivery driver can get here. If there is, I'll sell tickets.

Count me in

 

[ElvisandTilly]

Whoops! Three Shetland ewes. They're currently confined to a small section of the paddock until we've got time to check and upgrade the fencing of the rest. We unloaded them yesterday and they were still there this morning....so that's a good start, right?
View attachment 131937

They‘re cute! Welcome to the sheep owners club! Now let the fun and games begin!

 

[Squeak]

To be fair to our sheep, I found that once they’d settled and knew where the gates and everything were if I opened the gate up to where I wanted them to go and vaguely walk them towards it then they happily trot towards and through the gate so hopefully yours might be a bit easier once they’re settled.

However if you wish to get hold of one of them or get them into somewhere to catch them then I recommend gin.