Sheep Question

[(Jess)]

To all you Sheep people:

 

I have located a "sheep resource" in my area I think. I was really hoping to find one so that my BC could work. It is a woman who has working dogs about 25 minutes from me. Once I talk with her, I will know more but it sounds as if she is very nice to work with. If this does prove to be a good herding resource, I was wondering about sheep.

 

I don't want sheep if I don't have a trainer, but if I do have one I'd really like to get some sheep of my own. Can someone tell me what type of sheep would be best for a novice? (breed, age, etc) We have 25 acres of land, and my dad said he would build an enclosure for them next to my horse pasture & barn, they could graze with our goat.

 

Any tips? Thanks!

 

PS: Here's photos of our land. The first pic, to the left of it is where we could put the sheep in their own little paddock. They could graze out with the horses during the day in the open pastures. (we have a pond too)

 

 

 

 

[TotallyTerry]

The breed of sheep is probably not as important as the type of sheep that you get. Also the health of the sheep that you get is more important than the breed.

 

Find sheep that have been worked with dogs. Undogged sheep would be very hard for you, a beginner, and your dog, a beginner, to start on.

 

If you have found a trainer with sheep, start by asking her/him to help you find some. She/he could also have some sheep for sale.

 

Stay away from Suffolks or Hamps if you are just starting.

[(Jess)]

Thanks Terry. What sex is generally preferred for work dogs?

 

Once I talk more with the trainer no doubt I'll get more sheep resources, but till now it would be good to just get a little bit sheep savvy

[Maralynn]

One of the best ways to become sheep savy would be to volunteer to help with sheep chores.

 

Go to this trainer and ask if you could come to help and learn. It would be a great way to learn hands on, and you could pick up a lot of valuable information and experience.

 

It could help you decide if you want sheep of your own, or if training somewhere would be better.

 

Do you want to raise sheep? Or just keep a few?

This could also make a difference in what kind you want.

[(Jess)]

Thanks, yeah I was thinking I could volunteer once I found out the trainer is right down my road LOL I thought she was further. I'm suprised I never knew about her before.

 

I'm not sure which I'd want to do - I'm usually the type that likes to start from scratch, I've raised my own horses (well I get them super young), I raise our chickens, and I've raised goats. So, I may like getting a couple experienced adults and then buy a few lambs myself. I think its probably best to get a really experienced couple of sheep to start with, and then of course once I learn those, I can probably have an easier time with some lambs that I buy.

 

Before I GET sheep I am for sure going to make sure my dog wants them.. if she shows interest in the trainers sheep, then I'll take that as a green light.

 

A few months before I get sheep though, I need to get a donkey settled in to our area to guard - we've had coyote problems this winter, and my friend Pat who's incharge of the SPCA here is going to give me a donkey out of her herd.

[Eileen Stein]

Jessica, there are some good sheep articles on the LittleHats site at http://www.littlehats.net/sheep.html . The article by Mike Neary would probably be especially helpful to you.

[(Jess)]

Originally posted by Eileen Stein:

Jessica, there are some good sheep articles on the LittleHats site at http://www.littlehats.net/sheep.html . The article by Mike Neary would probably be especially helpful to you.

Thanks, I'll look at it.

 

I'm just wondering, at what age can I test my dog to see if she has herding desire? The breeder has offered to let me see how she reacts to her goats and ducks that are very dog broke - I just wonder what the appropriate time to do it is? I'd like to get my pup into puppy obedience before she does any herding, but i still want to see what sort of herding desire she has

[CoRayBee]

Hi Jessica,

 

Unless I'm mistaken (and I'm sure any number of people will let me know) you can expose your puppy to stock any time you want, to see if the desire to work is there. You might want to hold off on any sheep work, though, until the pup is a bit bigger

 

I agree with staying away from Suffolks- from my limited experience they are large and particularly stubborn. No use in subjecting a young dog to a group of ewes that outweigh it by a LOT and are more than willing to fight back! (And if you think Suffolk ewes are nasty, try winning a battle with a ram.) FYI, llamas make great livestock guardians too. I have actually known a few that DIDN'T spit at any human that passed by (lol)

 

So....25 acres and you're still living at home. I don't suppose you're interested in any permanent guests...?

[(Jess)]

Thanks for the information.

 

I think what I'm going to do, is get around the trainers sheep, and if I think herding is a "go" for us, I'd like to buy a couple mature dog broke sheep, and raise a few lambs myself to use. I'm not sure what breeds are available here in TX, although the hair breeds appeal to me.

 

And yep, 25 acres and I still live at home - so sure, come on over LOL We had our house built about 10 years ago here, but the barn we have is a rebuilt 30 year old thoroughbred hay barn! Kind of interesting. Personally, I prefer the barn over the house. hehe