Sheep husbandry Flashcards
Carcass bruising
- Wool grabbing
- Getting trampled
- Sharp objects
- Injection site reactions
Wool quality
Fineness of staple measured in microns
- Fine < 24 microns
- Medium: 25-35 microns
- Coarse: 35-50 microns
How to increase flock performance
- Higher scanning %
- More lambs born
- More lambs reared
- Higher lamb weights
- Higher price achieved
- Less store lambs
- Lower feed cost
- Lower fixed + variable costs
Short keep store lambs
Winter finished - lambs are 5-7 kg off target weight
- Rape, turnips, beet tops etc
- 70-130g daily liveweight gain
- 25-50 lambs/ha
Medium/long-keep store lambs
8-12 week store period on grass/stubbles - 5-60 DLWG
8-12 week finishing on root/arable byproducts - 75-100g DLWG
Target finish weight of a lamb
1/4 of sire + dam weight
Pregnant ewe energy requirements
Voluntary intake
- Max. 3% of bodyweight = 2.1 kg dry matter
Requirement (twin bearing)
- Maintenance/mid pregnancy: 10 MJ
- 4 weeks pre-partum: 15 MJ
- Lambing: 20 MJ
Energy value of feed
- Hay: 8 MJ/kg DM –> 2.5 kg DM
- Concentrate: 12-13 MJ/kg DM –> 1.6 kg DM
Ensuring correct nutrition
- Assess condition score
- Scan for foetal numbers
- Check teeth
Target body condition score
Hill:
- Tupping: 2.5
- Pregnant: 2
- Weaning: 2
Upland:
- Tupping: 3
- Pregnant: 2.5
- Weaning: 2
Lowland:
- Tupping: 3.5
- Pregnant: 3
- Weaning: 2.5
Lactating ewe
Peak lactation @ 4 weeks
- ME requirements: min 20MJ
Twin suckling = 30% more milk
Wean in time
- Body mobilisation + gain
Factors for hypomagnesaemia
- Mainly lactating dam
- No magnesium storage
- Pasture/weather
Copper deficiency
- Swayback, poor growth
Supplement by injection or oral
Cobalt deficiency
- Pine, ill-thrift, scour
Supplement by mouth
Iodine deficiency
- Goitre
- Poor growth
- Reduced fertility
Supplement with feed/salt licks
Vitamin E deficiency
- Low vigour
Supplement feed
Shearling
Sheep between its 1st and 2nd shearing
Hogget
- Young sheep slaughtered before permanent incisors erupt
- Sheep between weaning and its first shearing
Gimmer
Young female, between 1-2 years that has not born a lab
Ram/ewe lamb
Male/female < 1 year
Wether
Castrated male
Tup
Uncastrated male usually used for breeding
Draft ewe
Ewe too old for rough grazing, drafted out of the flock to move to better grazing on another farm
2-tooth
Sheep with first pair of permanent incisors erupted
Broken mouth
Adult that has lost some or all of its incisors
Hefting
Combined instinct + copied behaviour in some breeds to stay in a small local area - so no fencing needed
Stages of parturition
1:
- 6-12 hours
- Vulva relaxation
- Uterine contractions
- Cervix dilates
- Allantoic fluid
- Restless/separation from group
2:
-30 mins to an hour
- Abdominal straining
- Foetus through vagina
- Amnion breaks
- Lies down/strains/grunts
3:
- 3-4 hours
- Expulsion of foetal membranes
When to intervene with parturition
- Farm protocol?
- Head or tail only
>60 mins after water bag out without progress - Lamb not advanced for 15 mins
>30 mins between lambs - Abnormal discharge
Causes of abortion
- Infectious
- Stress
- Placenta insufficiency
- Metabolic problems
Causes of stillborn lambs
- Dystocia
- Congenital abnormalities
Actions for hypothermia
Temperature 37-39℃:
- Dry lamb –> stomach tube colostrum –> return to ewe –> monitor
Temperature <37℃ <6 hours old:
- Dry lamb –> warm up –> stomach tube colostrum –> return to ewe –> monitor
Temperature <37℃ >6 hours old + able to hold head:
- Dry lamb –> stomach tube colostrum –> warm up –> return to ewe –> monitor
Temperature <37℃ >6 hours old + unable to hold head:
- Dry lamb –> glucose i/p –> warm up –> feed –> return to ewe –> monitor
Glucose i/p
10 ml per kg BW
20% solution
- Dilute solution 1:1 with boiled water
Post partum losses
- Hypoglycaemia
- Watery mouth
Hypoglycaemia
Starvation
- Mastitis
- Rejection/inexperience
- Multiple lambs
- Weak lamb
Exposure
Congenital abnormalities
Watery mouth
E. coli –> endotacaemia
- Oral infection
- Predisposing factors
- Poor hygiene
- Inadequate colostrum
- Large litter
- Early castration
Clinical signs of watery mouth
- Normal at birth
- Dull
- Absent suck reflex
- Salivation
- Abomasal distension
- GI status - retention of meconium
Orphans
Fostering:
- Skinning
- Crates
Artificial rearing:
- Min. 15% of BW/24 hours
Post partum losses (2-7 days)
Lamb dysentery - clostridium perfringens type B
Enteritis - Rotavirus/colibacillosis
Neonatal septicaemia - septic arthritis
Aspiration pneumonia - force feeding
Accident
Starvation - lack of milk, orf lesions
FMD
