Is a barn necessary for sheep?

[KrisK]

I've been reading "Storey's Guide to Raising Sheep". When it comes to facilities, it says "you don't have to have a single building"

 

I live in N. Ontario where the temperatures in the winter can get to -40C (thankfully not often!) and we often have nasty winds wailing out of the north. We also can have 2-3 metres of snow on the ground in mid winter. I find myself reluctant to believe that sheep could manage without a building given these conditions. I would likely be looking at 6-12 sheep maximum.

 

I'd like to be prepared before I venture into sheep so I really do need to know if a building of some sort is necessary.

 

Thanks

[Maralynn]

If I lived in your area I would have some sort of shelter for my sheep. It's not absolutely necessary (plenty of range flocks have managed for years), but I would feel alot better if my critters had some place to go to get out of the wind. Besides- you'll need someplace to store your hay anyway .

 

I live in southwest MI, our barn is built into the side of a hill. The sheep are in the lower section which has one side open to the east. Our temps get down to -15 F. Sheep can tolerate the cold just fine as long as they are healthy and fed well. 2-3 day old lambs have done just fine with night temps down in the single digits, providing they are healthy, there are no drafts, and the ewe has plenty of milk.

 

The key with housing sheep is not to make the barn "cozy". Basiclly all you would need is a place for them to get out of the wind and snow. A 3-sided shed would probably be sufficient for you. But, with that you'll get snow blowing in. Not a problem in the winter, but a sloppy mess when things begin to thaw in the spring. You might think about a simple shed, with a large sliding door that you can leave open most off the time, but have the option to close if its snowing and blowing hard.

[trailrider]

On the other hand, my relatives near Sudbury and Timmins think that sheep and farm animals will have less feed required when the sheep are properly sheltered, and remember to keep the barn near enough to your house so that you don`t need to dig so much in heavy snows. It`s easier to feed IN and barn than IN or ON 5 feet of snow.

[kajarrel]

I had (wool) sheep for a number of years without a barn (with just a windbreak - it's wind more than cold that seems to cause *them* trouble). They thrived, but it was tough on me.

 

Having a barn makes my life so much easier. I especially like it when lambing during Jan/Feb and try to identify and pull in ewes in/approaching labor (ewes in labor will sometimes stay out in extremely cold/windy conditions - I assume because they are not cold/are hot with 6+" of wool). However, I find my sheep and older lambs stay much healthier (less pneumonia) when they are not housed in the barn. So I give my flock run-in access and, except for extremely windy days here, most adult sheep will *choose* to stay outside. I'd caution you to think carefully about feeding in the barn -- with 6 months of winter you can accumulate quite a hay pack by spring. And it's so much easier to clean up a paddock than the barn itself. I also think it's cleaner to feed on snow (we have snow almost daily here throughout the winter) rather than in the barn where the floor gets rather mucky.

 

But, then again, I have a larger flock and these may not be considerations for a flock of 6.

 

Kim